UISP is Ubiquiti's ISP management application, and its CRM module handles billing. It is the most common free option wireless ISPs consider, so this comparison sets it against Iterative Billing using Ubiquiti's own help centre at help.uisp.com, read on 6 November 2026. Ubiquiti's statements are reported, not endorsed.
Short answer: Ubiquiti says the UISP application is free with no device limit or recurring fee when you host it yourself, on an Ubuntu 24.04 or Debian 12 server or on a UISP Console; UISP Cloud Hosting by Ubiquiti is a paid subscription. Its help centre says the smallest unit a client can prepay is one month, and it names Stripe, Authorize.Net and IPpay among card gateways, with the Ubiquiti Payment Gateway offered to US UISP Cloud users. Iterative Billing is a managed platform from $9 a month that sells hotspot bundles from one hour and collects mobile money. UISP's software fee is lower at every size; the trade-off is hosting, payments and plan length. We build Iterative Billing, so check both.
The two platforms at a glance
UISP combines network management with a CRM module that Ubiquiti describes as included in the UISP application. The CRM covers invoicing, payments, refunds, plugins and an API, and its network features include traffic shaping and suspension. Ubiquiti's FAQ says existing UISP Cloud subscribers received extended free hosting through December 2024, and that the UISP application itself remains free to download and use.
Iterative Billing is a cloud ISP billing and OSS/BSS platform with built-in FreeRADIUS and CoA, MikroTik RouterOS v6 and v7, Huawei GPON OLT automation, TR-069, NOC monitoring and AI agents. It collects M-Pesa, MTN MoMo, Airtel Money, Paystack, Flutterwave, Pesapal and WaafiPay payments into the operator's own merchant accounts. Outside Kenya it charges $0.135 per active PPPoE or Static IP customer a month, capped at $45 up to 500 customers, $90 up to 1,000 and $360 above that, plus 2 percent of collected hotspot revenue capped at $27 a month up to $5,400 collected and $45 above it, with a $9 monthly minimum and a one-time $9 account fee. Optional add-ons are billed on top: every add-on together is $71 a month in the Legacy Partner bundle, with OLTs at $10 each.
What each costs to run
| Cost item | UISP (self-hosted) | Iterative Billing |
|---|---|---|
| Software fee | $0, no device limit | $0.135 per active customer, capped at $45 up to 500 |
| Hosting | Your Ubuntu or Debian server, or a UISP Console | Included |
| Updates and backups | Done by you | Run by the platform |
| Shortest prepaid period | One month | One hour (hotspot bundles) |
| Contract or setup fee | None | One-time $9 account fee |
If you already run servers and bill monthly by card, UISP's zero software fee is hard to beat. The costs to weigh are the server, the time to keep it patched and backed up, and the payment methods your subscribers actually use.
Prepaid plans and payments
Ubiquiti's prepaid guide says the smallest time unit a client can prepay is one month. Iterative Billing sells hotspot bundles from one hour, by time or data, and suspends PPPoE accounts on expiry and restores them on payment. UISP's help centre names card gateways (Stripe, Authorize.Net, IPpay) and a Ubiquiti Payment Gateway currently limited to US UISP Cloud users; Iterative Billing collects M-Pesa through Daraja, MTN MoMo and Airtel Money through ioTec Pay, and Paystack, Flutterwave, Pesapal and WaafiPay, with automatic activation. If UISP's CRM plugins cover your local gateway, check what they support before you decide.
Which should you choose?
Choose UISP if your network is built on Ubiquiti, you bill monthly by card, and you are happy to host and maintain the server. Choose Iterative Billing if your subscribers pay by mobile money, you sell daily or hourly plans, or you run MikroTik routers and want RADIUS, NOC monitoring and TR-069 without running servers; the WISP billing software page shows how it works for a wireless network. Apply for Iterative Billing at billing.iterativebilling.com/register (approved networks get a 3-day trial), and the caps are on the pricing page. UISP details are from Ubiquiti's help centre as of 6 November 2026 and may change. We keep the same date-stamped comparisons for Splynx, Centipid and the other platforms on the alternatives page.
Frequently asked questions
- Is UISP CRM free?
- Ubiquiti's help centre says the UISP application, which includes the CRM module, is free with no device limit or recurring fee when self-hosted or run on a UISP Console. UISP Cloud Hosting by Ubiquiti is a paid subscription.
- Can UISP sell daily or hourly internet plans?
- Ubiquiti's prepaid guide says the smallest time unit a client can prepay is one month. Iterative Billing sells hotspot bundles from one hour and data bundles by the gigabyte.
- Does UISP support mobile money?
- UISP's help centre names Stripe, Authorize.Net and IPpay, and a Ubiquiti Payment Gateway for US UISP Cloud users; check its plugin list for local gateways. Iterative Billing collects M-Pesa, MTN MoMo, Airtel Money, Paystack, Flutterwave, Pesapal and WaafiPay natively.