17hats

The Business Manager for One-Person Shops

17hats launched in 2013 in San Francisco with a simple observation: freelancers use 6-8 separate apps to run their business, and half the day goes to admin instead of client work. The platform consolidates proposals, contracts, invoicing, client questionnaires, scheduling, and bookkeeping into one dashboard. No per-user pricing because, well, you're probably the only user.

The Client Workflow That Sells It

Here's the magic. A potential client fills out your lead capture form. 17hats automatically sends them a questionnaire. Based on their answers, it generates a proposal. Client approves? A contract goes out for e-signature. Signed? An invoice follows immediately. That entire chain fires automatically. A wedding photographer told me she saves 7 hours per week on admin with this single workflow.

Invoicing and Bookkeeping

The invoicing module handles online payments via Stripe or Square, automated payment reminders, and recurring invoices for retainer clients. The bookkeeping side tracks income and expenses, categorizes transactions, and generates profit/loss reports good enough for your accountant at tax time. Not QuickBooks-level, but most solopreneurs don't need QuickBooks-level.

The Limitations

17hats is built for one person. There's no team collaboration, no sales pipeline management, and no way to assign tasks to employees. The scheduling feature works for booking client appointments but doesn't compete with Calendly's polish. Reporting is minimal. And the mobile apps, while functional, lag behind the web experience. If you're growing past 3-5 team members, you've outgrown 17hats.