Freedom251 › Utility Billing Software
Zero Friction
What Zero Friction is
Zero Friction is a cloud SaaS meter-to-cash and billing platform for heating and cooling suppliers. It calculates invoices from fixed or consumption-related rates and cost distribution, then sends them by email or post. Meter data can arrive through an API, (S)FTP, or email, including standard hourly readings, with no stated maximum number of connections. Payment features include direct debits, manual transfers, QR codes, payment links, automated reminders, and payment plans. An optional customer portal displays energy use and invoices and supports online relocations through standard APIs. Connections are available for meter-data, CRM, ERP, and banking systems, with Stripe, Zendesk, Freshdesk, and Power BI named. The company, founded in 2018 in Ghent, Belgium, states ISO 27001 certification, EU data centers, GDPR compliance, and annual penetration testing. Pricing is customized and available on request.
Who it suits
It suits district-heating, communal-heating, and cooling suppliers, plus building managers and heat suppliers. It is intended for organizations handling metering, billing, collections, and customer accounts.
What it does well
- Supports fixed and consumption-based billing
- Multiple meter-data import routes
- No maximum connections stated
- Customer portal supports online relocations
- Payment plans and direct debits
What to know first
- Pricing is available on request
- Custom development is not supported
- Storage follows defined retention periods
Plans
| Plan | Billed and limits | Price |
|---|---|---|
| SaaS | price per connection and price per user · one-time implementation cost · optional add-ons | On request |
| BPO Enterprise | monthly rate per connection · meter reading · master data management · contracting · billing · cash collection · customer interaction · reporting and governance | On request |
| BPO Standard | monthly rate per connection · meter reading · master data management · contracting · billing · reporting and governance | On request |
As zerofriction.co lists them, read 21 Oct 2026. The maker's own page has the final word.
Verdict
Zero Friction covers metering, billing, payments, and customer self-service for heating and cooling operations. Its integrations and payment options support varied utility workflows, with customized SaaS or BPO pricing.
Facts from Zero Friction's own pages
- API authentication
- The API uses subscription keys plus OAuth 2.0 client-credentials authentication and tenant and organization headers. · developer.zerofriction.co, 21 Oct 2026
- API limits
- The documented rate limit is 60 calls per minute for Standard and 600 calls per minute for Enterprise. · developer.zerofriction.co, 21 Oct 2026
- API pricing
- The Enterprise API product costs extra and its price is available on request. · developer.zerofriction.co, 21 Oct 2026
- Automated billing
- The platform automates processing from meter readings through invoice generation. · zerofriction.co, 21 Oct 2026
- Billing
- The platform supports invoicing based on fixed or consumption-related rates and cost distribution, with invoices sent by email or post. · zerofriction.co, 7 Oct 2026
- Company headquarters
- LinkedIn lists headquarters in Ghent, Flemish Region, Belgium. · be.linkedin.com, 21 Oct 2026
- Company size
- LinkedIn lists Zero Friction as a privately held software-development company with 11–50 employees. · be.linkedin.com, 21 Oct 2026
- Consumption billing
- It supports credit billing, cost allocations and pay-as-you-go billing, with monthly, quarterly, half-yearly and yearly periods. · zerofriction.co, 21 Oct 2026
- Cost allocation
- The platform calculates building heat losses and allocates related costs to individual accounts. · zerofriction.co, 21 Oct 2026
- Custom development
- Custom development is not supported except for custom integrations; customers can submit or vote on feature requests. · zerofriction.co, 7 Oct 2026
- Customer portal
- An optional self-service portal lets end customers manage moves, view consumption and access invoices. · zerofriction.co, 21 Oct 2026
- Documentation and support
- The company provides an extensive documentation library, self-service support, office-hours chat, phone and email support, and internal bug-fixing targets. · zerofriction.co, 21 Oct 2026
- Electronic invoicing
- The PEPPOL/UBL integration provides XML invoice export for import into a customer's PEPPOL environment. · zerofriction.co, 21 Oct 2026
- Extensibility limit
- Custom development is not offered except for custom integrations; all customers use the same SaaS product. · zerofriction.co, 21 Oct 2026
- Founded
- LinkedIn lists the company as founded in 2018. · be.linkedin.com, 21 Oct 2026
- Funding
- Zero Friction announced a €2.5 million funding round led by existing investor Shift Invest. · zerofriction.co, 21 Oct 2026
- Headquarters
- Ghent, Belgium · zerofriction.co, 28 Sept 2026
- Hosting
- SaaS pricing includes Microsoft Azure data storage and processing, with data storage subject to defined retention periods. · zerofriction.co, 7 Oct 2026
- Independent market evidence
- SHIFT Invest reported that Zero Friction serviced 22,000 people with district-heating connections in 2021. · shiftinvest.com, 21 Oct 2026
- Integrations
- The integration catalog covers meter-data management, CRM, ERP, banking, reporting, payment, customer-service, accountancy, communication and e-invoicing systems. · zerofriction.co, 21 Oct 2026
- Limit: customization
- The company says it does not provide custom development beyond integrations. · zerofriction.co, 21 Oct 2026
- Limit: pricing transparency
- The pricing page publishes no numeric prices; buyers must request a tailored quote and pay a one-time implementation charge. · zerofriction.co, 21 Oct 2026
- Limit: support coverage
- Staff support is available during CET office hours; outside those hours the company can redirect calls to a third party but does not provide technical maintenance or on-site support. · zerofriction.co, 21 Oct 2026
- Meter data
- It accepts meter data through API, (S)FTP, or email and supports standard hourly metering data. · zerofriction.co, 7 Oct 2026
Where Zero Friction stands on Freedom251
- Utility Billing Software#13 of 26