Tideway vs Moxie: two honest all-in-ones, one real difference
Comparing Tideway and Moxie? Both are all-in-one, both let Stripe pay you directly. Here is the honest read on where they actually differ, and when to stay on Moxie.
Let us be straight: Moxie is a genuinely good tool, and it is the closest thing to Tideway in this whole set. It is all-in-one for solo creatives, it lets you connect your own Stripe or PayPal so it never holds your money, and it already has proposals, a scheduler, time tracking, and a P&L. If you are happy on Moxie, that is a reasonable place to be, and we are not going to pretend otherwise. So this comparison is narrow and specific.
The one real difference: capture, not just record
Moxie, like the rest of the category, is fundamentally a "bill what you tracked" tool. It surfaces the hours and expenses you logged. What it does not do is flag the scope change nobody wrote down. Tideway's Scope Shield is built for exactly that seam: it turns "can we just add..." into a one-click billable change order, so the revenue that usually leaks between the timesheet and the invoice gets caught. That is the wedge, and it is the reason to look past a tool that already works.
AI woven through, not bolted on
Tideway is built AI-native: it drafts change orders, follow-ups, and scope summaries in place, as an assistant to the work rather than a separate chatbot. If that inline intelligence is what you want your ops tool to do, it is core to Tideway rather than an add-on.
Pricing and the team jump
Moxie is Starter $12/mo ($10 annual), Pro $25 ($20 annual), and Teams $40 ($32 annual), with a $149 one-time migration option. Worth knowing: the Starter and Pro plans support zero team members, so the moment you add anyone you are on the $40 Teams plan. Tideway is Base $12 / Pro $23 annual, a single flat price. On the money question the two are identical: your own Stripe, no platform fee stacked on top.
When NOT to switch from Moxie to Tideway
- You are set up and happy on Moxie. It is a legitimately good all-in-one on the same side as Tideway on money, so the switch is worth it mainly if the capture wedge or the AI matters to you.
- You rely on Moxie's built-in Communicator phone line. Tideway does not ship a phone line.
- You need shipped team seats today. Tideway's Studio tier is coming soon, not live, whereas Moxie's Teams plan serves that now.
Common questions
No. You connect your own Stripe or PayPal and Moxie never holds the funds. On the money question, Moxie and Tideway are on the same side.
Both are honest all-in-ones. The difference is capture: Moxie bills what you tracked, while Tideway's Scope Shield catches the un-charged scope change and True Profit shows real per-project profit. Tideway is also built AI-native.
Starter $12/mo ($10 annual), Pro $25 ($20 annual), Teams $40 ($32 annual). Note that Starter and Pro include zero team members. Tideway is Base $12 / Pro $23 annual, single flat price.
If you are already set up and happy on it, rely on its built-in phone line, or need shipped team seats today.