Not every piece of business software needs an AI assistant.
That is part of the thinking behind Just Invoice, a new Alberta-built invoicing platform designed specifically for Canadian freelancers, contractors, and small businesses.
Founder Guilherme Perotta began building the platform in December after watching his wife struggle to find suitable invoicing software for her design and printing business.
“Even though there are tons of invoicing platforms out there, none of them seemed like a good fit for what we needed,” Perotta said.
The couple wanted software that was easy to use, Canadian-owned, bilingual, and capable of handling Canadian taxes and invoicing requirements without the complexity of a full accounting suite.
Perotta, who has worked in software engineering for a decade, decided to build it himself.
Just Invoice allows businesses to create invoices and estimates, configure Canadian sales taxes, save customer and product information, and export invoices as PDFs. The platform supports English and French, as well as GST, HST, PST, QST, and other provincial tax structures.
Users can also add Interac e-transfer instructions to invoices, while premium customers can accept credit card payments through Stripe. A no-account invoice generator is available for free and allows users to create unlimited PDFs, while the platform’s premium plan costs $8 per month.
Rather than trying to replace bookkeeping and accounting software, Just Invoice concentrates on helping small operators create invoices and get paid.
Perotta has also resisted the industry-wide push to insert artificial intelligence into every software workflow.
“I believe that using AI for most tasks in invoicing, like many other invoicing tools are doing right now, is not the right tool,” he said.
Just Invoice’s core workflow does not use AI. Instead, Perotta is relying on direct customer input to guide development. Users can vote on potential features through a public roadmap, submit their own ideas, and contact the founder through a feedback box built into the platform.
That approach has already influenced what comes next. A mobile app for Android and iOS is now in development after becoming the most-requested feature on the roadmap. Perotta is aiming to release it around the middle of August.
Just Invoice remains an early-stage, one-person business. The platform has approximately 30 users and a handful of paying customers, while monthly website traffic has grown from zero to roughly 400 visitors over the past few months.
An early Trustpilot reviewer praised the company’s responsiveness and willingness to adjust the product around real business needs.
Perotta is building the platform around a full-time job and family life with five children, finding time each day to make incremental progress.
“I don’t have many users yet, but I’m working hard to put the word out there,” he said. “I still find time every day to move the needle a little bit more.”
For Perotta, the ambition behind Just Invoice is straightforward: create high-quality Canadian software that respects its users and helps small businesses spend less time billing—and more time building their companies.
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