UK Businesses Face 1,500% Price Hike for Harvest Invoicing Software

British businesses are grappling with significant financial strain following a staggering 1,500% price increase for the US-based Harvest invoicing software. This abrupt change has led to widespread disruption and criticism, with affected companies scrambling to find more affordable alternatives.

Richard Haldenby, director of a consultancy, detailed how his firm's average monthly bill for Harvest software escalated from $130 (approximately £95.50 at the time) to an extraordinary $2,110. This represents a 1,523% increase, which Haldenby described as 'daylight robbery', particularly for a company employing 12 people who utilise the software for time tracking and invoicing.

The price adjustments, attributed to Harvest's revised pricing model, have seen charges shift from a per-user basis to a tiered system determined by the number of active projects. This change disproportionately affects firms managing numerous projects simultaneously, even if they have a modest number of staff.

Haldenby confirmed his company is actively seeking a replacement for Harvest, having already identified a potential alternative that offers comparable services at a fraction of the new cost, estimated at around $70 per month. The incident underscores the vulnerabilities businesses face regarding third-party software dependencies and the sudden, unilateral decisions of US-based technology providers impacting global operations.