E-invoicing software you buy once: no-subscription options in Germany

In short: programs you buy once and use indefinitely have become rare. The big small-business brands (Lexware, WISO MeinBüro, orgaMAX) now sell only subscriptions, even for their desktop programs ^[6][7][8]. Perpetual licences with XRechnung and ZUGFeRD still exist, mostly from smaller vendors.

Deadline: from 1 January 2027, businesses with prior-year turnover above €800,000 must issue e-invoices, everyone else from 2028 ^[1]. Whether that applies to you is explained on e-invoicing mandate 2027.

Programs with a perpetual licence (as of 6 October 2026)

Prices come from the vendors' own pages; net or gross is shown where the vendor states it.

Subscription only

• Lexware: Lexware Office and the desktop programs (e.g. faktura+auftrag) are sold only as subscriptions ^[6][12].
• WISO MeinBüro Desktop: installed locally, but sold as an annual subscription ^[7].
• orgaMAX: even the local Windows version is a subscription billed yearly; no perpetual licence on the pricing page ^[8].

The catch: updates

E-invoicing standards keep evolving. KoSIT expects XRechnung 4.0 in spring 2027 ^[9]. A licence without updates may one day produce files that no longer match the current version. Before buying, check:

• What do updates cost? For MonKey Office the yearly update is optional and costs €149 net for COMPLETE ^[2]. Amicron includes free service releases; new major versions are ordered separately ^[4]. Faktura-XP's price list doesn't say whether later updates cost extra ^[3].
• Can it receive e-invoices too? You must be able to read incoming XRechnung files and keep the XML ^[10]. If the program only creates, add a free viewer.
• Which ZUGFeRD profile? For invoices to businesses use ZUGFeRD 2.0.1 or later, not the MINIMUM or BASIC-WL profiles ^[10].

Does buying pay off?

For comparison: an invoicing subscription with e-invoicing costs about €10–13 net a month at many cloud vendors (see the software comparison). A €200–300 licence therefore equals roughly two years of subscription, plus any update costs. If you write few invoices, a free plan may cost you nothing at all. Small businesses (Kleinunternehmer) never have to issue e-invoices ^[10].

We currently have no partnership with any vendor named on this page. All prices as stated by the vendor, checked on 6 October 2026. Missing a program with a perpetual licence? Vendors can claim their profile for free.