Invoice Ninja vs SolidInvoice: Self-Hosted Invoicing

Quick Verdict

Invoice Ninja is the better choice for most businesses. It has native payment gateway integrations (Stripe, PayPal, Square, and 10+ others), a client self-service portal, expense tracking, time tracking, projects, and a mobile app. SolidInvoice covers the basics — quotes, invoices, recurring billing — but lacks online payment processing entirely. If your clients pay via bank transfer and you just need to generate professional invoices, SolidInvoice is simpler. If you want clients to click “Pay Now” on an invoice, Invoice Ninja is the only option.

Updated February 2026: Verified with latest Docker images and configurations.

Overview

Invoice Ninja is a full-featured invoicing and billing platform built with Laravel and Flutter. It covers invoices, quotes, recurring billing, expenses, time tracking, projects, purchase orders, and client payments. Over 8,000 GitHub stars and active development since 2014. Two tiers: the open-source edition (self-hosted) and a paid hosted version. Official site

SolidInvoice is a simpler invoicing application built with PHP and Symfony. It handles client management, quotes, invoicing, and recurring billing. No payment gateway integration — you record payments manually. Smaller community and less frequent releases, but the core invoicing workflow is solid. GitHub

Feature Comparison

Feature	Invoice Ninja	SolidInvoice
Invoices	Yes — line items, taxes, discounts, partial payments	Yes — line items, taxes, discounts
Quotes	Yes — convert to invoice on acceptance	Yes — convert to invoice
Recurring billing	Yes — weekly, monthly, yearly, custom	Yes — daily, weekly, monthly, yearly
Payment gateways	10+ (Stripe, PayPal, Square, Braintree, GoCardless)	None — manual payment recording only
Client portal	Yes — view invoices, make payments, approve quotes	No
Expense tracking	Yes — receipts, categories, link to invoices	No
Time tracking	Yes — billable hours, project-based	No
Projects	Yes — with task management	No
Purchase orders	Yes	No
Multi-currency	Yes	Yes
Tax management	Multiple rates, compound tax, per-line tax	Multiple rates, compound tax
PDF generation	Yes — customizable HTML/CSS templates	Yes — built-in templates
Email sending	Yes — SMTP or Mailgun/Postmark	Yes — SMTP
API	REST API (comprehensive)	REST API
Mobile app	Yes — Flutter (iOS and Android)	No
Reports	Profit & loss, aging, expenses, tax summary	Basic invoice/payment reports
Custom fields	Yes	Limited
Docker support	Yes	Yes
License	Elastic License 2.0 (source-available)	MIT
GitHub stars	~8,000	~500

Installation Complexity

Invoice Ninja requires more setup work. The Docker Compose stack needs MariaDB, environment variables for the app key (generated via artisan), mail configuration, and an initial migration step. The first-run setup involves generating APP_KEY, running php artisan migrate, then completing a web-based wizard. More moving parts, but well-documented.

# Invoice Ninja — key services
services:
  invoice-ninja:
    image: invoiceninja/invoiceninja:5.13.1
    ports:
      - "8080:80"
    environment:
      APP_KEY: base64:GENERATE_THIS_ON_FIRST_RUN
      DB_HOST: invoice-ninja-db
      DB_DATABASE: invoiceninja
      # ... 15+ environment variables
    depends_on:
      invoice-ninja-db:
        condition: service_healthy

  invoice-ninja-db:
    image: mariadb:11.4

SolidInvoice is simpler to deploy. Two containers (app + MySQL), fewer environment variables, and the setup wizard handles database initialization automatically. No artisan commands or manual key generation.

# SolidInvoice — key services
services:
  solidinvoice:
    image: solidinvoice/solidinvoice:2.3.16
    ports:
      - "8765:8765"
    environment:
      SOLIDINVOICE_DATABASE_HOST: solidinvoice-db
      SOLIDINVOICE_APP_SECRET: change-me-to-a-random-32-char-string
      # ... ~6 environment variables

  solidinvoice-db:
    image: mysql:8.0

Winner: SolidInvoice is faster to deploy. Invoice Ninja takes an extra 5-10 minutes for the artisan key generation and migration step.

Performance and Resource Usage

Metric	Invoice Ninja	SolidInvoice
RAM (idle)	300-500 MB	256-512 MB
RAM (under load)	500 MB - 1 GB	512 MB - 1 GB
CPU	Low-medium (queue workers add overhead)	Low
Disk	500 MB application + data growth	Small application + data growth
Database	MariaDB/MySQL/PostgreSQL	MySQL
Backend	Laravel (PHP 8.2+)	Symfony (PHP 8.1+)

Both are PHP applications with similar baseline requirements. Invoice Ninja uses slightly more memory due to its queue workers and larger codebase. Neither will stress a modest VPS.

Community and Support

Metric	Invoice Ninja	SolidInvoice
GitHub stars	~8,000	~500
Contributors	100+	~15
Release frequency	Monthly	Sporadic (months between releases)
Documentation	Comprehensive official docs	README + basic wiki
Forum/community	Active forum + Slack	GitHub Issues
Commercial support	Available (hosted plan includes support)	None
First release	2014	2016

Invoice Ninja has a significantly larger and more active community. Bug reports get addressed faster, documentation is more thorough, and you’ll find more tutorials and forum answers. SolidInvoice is maintained but at a slower pace.

Use Cases

Choose Invoice Ninja If…

• You want clients to pay invoices online (Stripe, PayPal, Square)
• You need expense tracking alongside invoicing
• You bill by the hour and need time tracking
• You manage projects with multiple tasks and team members
• You want a client-facing portal for self-service
• You need a mobile app for invoicing on the go
• You want active community support and frequent updates

Choose SolidInvoice If…

• You just need to create and email PDF invoices
• Your clients pay via bank transfer (no online payments needed)
• You want the simplest possible invoicing setup
• You prefer MIT-licensed software over source-available
• You’re a solo freelancer with basic needs
• You want a lighter-weight application

Final Verdict

Invoice Ninja wins for most use cases. It does everything SolidInvoice does and adds payment gateways, a client portal, expense tracking, time tracking, projects, and a mobile app. The setup is slightly more involved, but the feature gap is substantial.

SolidInvoice is the right choice only if you specifically want a minimalist invoicing tool and don’t need online payment processing. It’s simpler to run, lighter on resources, and MIT-licensed. But for most freelancers and businesses, the ability to send a “Pay Now” link in an invoice is essential — and that requires Invoice Ninja.

Related

• How to Self-Host Invoice Ninja
• How to Self-Host SolidInvoice
• How to Self-Host Kill Bill
• Invoice Ninja vs Crater
• Invoice Ninja vs FreshBooks
• Best Self-Hosted Invoicing Software
• Self-Hosted Alternatives to FreshBooks
• Self-Hosted Alternatives to QuickBooks
• Self-Hosted Alternatives to Stripe Billing
• Docker Compose Basics