Payment reminder software: the options compared

It watches your unpaid invoices and sends an email on set days, before and after the due date. Better tools let you change the wording as an invoice ages, set different schedules for different customers, and include a link to the invoice or a way to pay.

What it usually does not do is read the answer. When a customer replies "we need a PO number" or "we'll pay on Friday", a basic reminder tool forwards that to your inbox and carries on with its schedule. Our guide to payment reminder email templates covers what each reminder should say. For what to send once an invoice is well overdue, see past due invoice email templates.

Yes. Each has reminders built in, and for many businesses they are enough.

QuickBooks Online

QuickBooks Online lets you turn on automatic invoice reminders from the Sales settings. You can set up to three reminders, each up to 90 days before or after the due date, and edit the subject and message. Reminders only go to unpaid invoices you have already emailed to the customer. Intuit says QuickBooks Online Advanced users set reminders up through workflows instead. Fits best when you want a simple schedule with your own wording. See our guide to QuickBooks invoice reminders.

Xero

Xero's own site says its automated invoice reminders nudge customers before and after the due date with your own message, and that Xero stops sending once payment arrives. It says you can choose how often to send them and keep track of reminders sent. Fits best when you are on Xero and want reminders that stop on payment without extra setup. See our guide to Xero invoice reminders.

FreshBooks

FreshBooks lets you send up to three automated reminder emails per client, each set a number of days before or after the due date, with a personal message. You can also add a late fee to invoices that go unpaid past a set number of days, as a percentage or a flat amount. Fits best when you invoice from FreshBooks and want reminders and late fees set per client.

Add-on tools connect to your accounting system and take over the chasing.

Chaser

Chaser's site lists email payment reminders, SMS reminders, automated phone calls and letters, and names integrations with QuickBooks Online, Xero, Sage, NetSuite and others. Fits best when you want reminders across several channels and schedules tailored to different customers.

Paidnice

Paidnice describes itself as accounts receivable automation for Xero and QuickBooks. Its site says reminders go out before, on and after the due date by email, text or WhatsApp, with a link to pay, and that it can add late fees or interest your terms allow, with each fee optionally held for your approval. Fits best when you want policy-driven reminders plus late fees and payment plans on Xero or QuickBooks.

Upflow

Upflow describes itself as an AR platform for B2B finance teams. Its collections module runs outreach by email, SMS, calls, letters and tasks, alongside payments and cash application, with integrations including QuickBooks Online, Xero, NetSuite and Sage Intacct. Fits best when a finance team wants reminders as one part of a wider AR platform.

The AR Agent

The AR Agent is an AI agent that chases overdue invoices by email from the due dates in QuickBooks or Xero. It reads replies, tracks promises to pay, flags blockers such as a missing PO, and brings disputes and decisions that need judgement to a person. It works on email only. Fits best when built-in reminders already run and the replies and follow-up are what take your time.

Built-in reminders are usually enough when:

• Most late payers simply forgot, and one or two reminders get them to pay.
• You have a manageable number of customers and someone reads every reply.
• You do not need different schedules for different customers.

They stop being enough when replies pile up unanswered, promised dates are forgotten, or customers who have raised a query keep receiving reminders. That is the point to look at tools that handle follow-up, covered in our comparison of AR automation software.