Accounting software is an essential ingredient for a successful business. Depending on the program, it can help you create professional invoices, record incoming and outgoing payments, identify and follow up on past-due receivables, streamline tax management, and run reports that analyze your company’s financial health and project for the future.
To help you find the best accounting software for your business, we examined some of the most popular platforms on the market today. We looked for affordable, easy-to-use accounting programs that included time-saving features, such as automated bank feeds, automatic payment reminders, and online invoicing and payment acceptance. We also searched for software with comprehensive, customizable, real-time financial reporting because that is crucial for monitoring and understanding your business finances.
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| Accounting software | Use case | Starting price | Free trial period | Mobile applications | Integration options | Bill pay tools |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QuickBooks | Small businesses | $15 per month | 30 days | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| FreshBooks | Invoicing | $6/per month | 30 days | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Oracle Netsuite | ERP tools | Custom | 14 days | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Zoho Books | Microbusinesses | $14/per month | 14 days | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Xero | Growing businesses | $12 per month | 30 days | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| ZarMoney | Transparent pricing | $15 per month | 15 days | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Plooto | Automating accounts payable | $25 per month | 30 days | Yes | Limited | Yes |
| Wave Financial | Free option | Free | N/A | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Sage Business | Freelancers/self employed | $34.30 per month | 30 days | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Melio | Free accounts payable | Free | N/A | No | Limited | Yes |
| Neat | Receipt management | $16.66/month (annual prorated) | 14 days | Yes | Yes | No |
OUR REVIEWS
Intuit QuickBooks Online: Best for Small Businesses
QuickBooks Online has accounting features to meet the needs of businesses of all sizes.
QuickBooks Live Bookkeeper provides professional help and guidance for your accounting department.
If you have a self-employed plan, you can’t upgrade to one of the small business plans.
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We found QuickBooks Online to be the best overall accounting software for small businesses. It provides four plan options for small businesses, as well as a separate option for self-employed users. Each offers features that are suitable for a range of small businesses, from startups to established companies. Between the four options for small businesses, you’ll have access to all the tools and reports you’ll need for accounting purposes, and you can seamlessly upgrade your plans as your business scales. (Note that self-employed users cannot upgrade to the small business tiers.)
Editor’s Score: 95/100
The platform is also easy to set up and use, allowing you to do everything by yourself to get your accounting software up and running. However, if you want extra assistance, Intuit offers access to professional bookkeepers who can help you configure the software in a way that makes sense for your business. Additionally, QuickBooks Online allows you to create custom invoices and forms so your company’s branding is always at the forefront of client-facing communications. For the features and services you get, the price is a bargain.
READ INTUIT QUICKBOOKS ONLINE REVIEW
Oracle NetSuite Accounting Software: Best for Advanced Features
Oracle NetSuite Accounting Software
NetSuite offers a variety of advanced features, including enterprise resource planning tools.
The software focuses on automation, making it simple to send and collect invoices and complete other key accounting tasks.
The website isn’t clear about pricing, so you need to contact a sales representative to determine the cost.
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We chose Oracle NetSuite as the best accounting software option for midsize and growing businesses that are seeking advanced features. As part of its robust enterprise resource planning (ERP) offering, Oracle NetSuite offers an intuitive cloud-based financial management solution that can track your financial data and automate a variety of essential accounting functions. Like any highly rated accounting software, it offers reporting, planning and billing capabilities. It also easily integrates with other software, including Oracle’s comprehensive suite of business solutions. It can also be used with multiple currencies, so it’s a great option for companies with a global customer base.
Editor’s Score 90/100
If your business needs to expedite its accounts receivable and payable, accelerate deal closings, and keep up with more complex financial compliance obligations while taking advantage of a full suite of powerful business management features, Oracle NetSuite is ideal. Moreover, it doesn’t limit the number of users or rely on third-party apps for customization. However, it may be cost-prohibitive and present a steep learning curve for small businesses that don’t need access to the advanced slate of features it provides.
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FreshBooks Accounting Software: Best for Invoicing
FreshBooks Accounting Software
FreshBooks lets you easily craft invoices, accept payments through invoices, track expenses and send automatic reminders.
You get a full suite of accounting tools to do everything from tracking time and expenses to running financial reports.
If you need to add several team members to the software, it can get expensive.
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We recommend FreshBooks as the best software for invoicing. Not only can you develop professionally looking invoices that match your brand, but the software also allows you to track the status of invoices so you know when customers received their bills and when their balances are due. It also facilitates online invoice payments so customers can pay you directly from the invoice.
Editor’s Score 90/100
The FreshBooks dashboard is simple to navigate and includes time and expense tracking, project management features, and tools to create proposals that you can send to prospective clients. The double-entry accounting system makes sure you are organized and prepared for tax time. If you want accountants to have access to your dashboard, reports, invoices and expenses, you can assign them permission, as well as grant other users access to different features. If you have employees, you can give them access to their projects and track their time and additional expenses. FreshBooks has over 100 partners, so you can add plenty of features and connect with other business programs.
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Melio: Best Accounts Payable Tools
With Melio, it’s free to make and accept payments from bank accounts.
You can easily schedule and track payments and control who has access to your accounts payable and receivable.
Melio charges a 2.9% fee for credit and debit card payments, as well as $20 for expedited check delivery and international USD transfers.
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We recommend Melio for small businesses seeking user-friendly accounts payable tools that do not need a lot of bells and whistles. It’s an excellent option for cloud-based software that will send invoices and receive payments, as well as manage bills. Melio also integrates with QuickBooks for free. There’s no charge to make payments through a bank transfer, but there is a 2.9% fee to pay by credit or debit card. Two paper checks per month are free; after that, they are $1.50 each.
Editor’s Score: 80/100
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Zoho Books Accounting Software: Best for Microbusinesses
Zoho Books Accounting Software
Zoho Books has apps for popular operating systems and devices, including Apple, Android and Windows.
Through Zoho Books, you can send invoices, reconcile accounts, track and manage bills and vendor credits, and accept payments on the go.
Zoho Books has a limit of 5,000 transactions per month, which may not be enough for some businesses.
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We selected Zoho Books as the best accounting software for people with microbusinesses. Not all accounting software programs are appropriate for freelancers, independent contractors, sole proprietors, consultants, home-based businesses, individuals operating e-commerce sites and companies that employ fewer than 10 people. The software may be too complicated, unnecessarily powerful and overly expensive. Not so with Zoho Books. It works well for businesses with straightforward invoicing and accounting needs, and the low price is attractive for budget-conscious entrepreneurs.
Editor’s Score 85/100
Zoho Books is also scalable. As your small enterprise expands into a larger business, you can make use of the options that allow you to upgrade and integrate with other business applications. It also includes a mobile app to ensure that you can keep up with accounting tasks while you’re on the go.
READ ZOHO BOOKS ACCOUNTING SOFTWARE REVIEW
Xero: Best for Payments
Xero
Xero offers hundreds of app integrations with which to manage all aspects of your business
You can access Xero support services via email and live chat 24 hours per day.
Xero isn’t as well known as some other accounting software, which may affect your accountant’s learning curve.COMPARE QUOTES
We chose Xero as the best accounting software for making and tracking payments. Xero enables you to maintain excellent relationships with your suppliers and creditors while avoiding costly late fees. With Xero, you can be sure that your cash flow is positive so you don’t come up short when it comes time to pay. On the user-friendly dashboard, you can see when each bill is due, view current and projected expenses, and manage purchase orders. The spare interface gives an immediate picture of your business’s financial position. You can view costs as they happen in real time, then make instant modifications.
Editor’s Score 90/100
Since Xero is cloud-based, you don’t need to download or install any programs. It offers professional double-entry bookkeeping functionality, so your transactions will be entered as a debit as well as a credit. This software also saves you time because you can schedule upcoming payments and batch pay suppliers in advance, automating a process that is typically manual.
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ZarMoney: Best for Transparent Pricing
ZarMoney
The ZarMoney website clearly lays out pricing, which starts at $1.99 per month for a single user.
ZarMoney connects with more than 9,600 banks in the U.S. and Canada to automatically import bank transactions.
ZarMoney’s dashboard is not customizable.COMPARE QUOTES
We chose ZarMoney as the best accounting software program for businesses seeking transparent pricing. Organized by “entrepreneur,” “small business” and “enterprise,” the plans reflect each company’s needs. The cost is based on the number of users, from one to more than 30. If you add or remove users, ZarMoney will automatically update your account and charge you accordingly. Each additional user costs $10 per month.
Editor’s Score 90/100
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Plooto: Best for Automation
Plooto’s payment platform lets you manage payments, approvals, reconciliation and reporting from one central location.
The software provides accounts payable and accounts receivable automation, speeding up payments.
International payment transactions are expensive.
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Plooto is our software choice for automating key accounting processes. With it, you can manage your payments in one central location, providing you with a clear picture of your finances. Payments, approvals, reconciliation and reporting are unified under one dashboard. The software includes smart approval workflows and secure electronic payments, which reduce errors and speed up the accounts payable process. Most notably, Plooto offers business accounts payable and accounts receivable automation, which helps you collect on past-due bills.
Editor’s Score: 77.5/100
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Wave Financial: Best Free Accounting Software
Wave Financial
Wave links with bank accounts and credit cards so that you can track expenses automatically.
Wave gives you standard bookkeeping services for free.
Wave’s integrations are more limited than some competitors.COMPARE QUOTES
If you’re looking for an effective, free accounting software, check out Wave Financial. It offers many important, high-quality accounting features at no cost to you. There are no monthly or annual fees, nor do you have to license software. Through the cloud-based accounting program, you can create and schedule recurring invoices and payments, as well as set up automatic payment reminders and automatic syncing with your bank, credit card and PayPal accounts. It also gives you the ability to run financial reports, and it provides you with unlimited accountant connections and transactions. If you want to integrate popular business apps, you can do so at no extra charge.
Editor’s Score: 80/100
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Sage: Best for Freelancers and Self-Employed
Sage
Sage lets you create and send invoices, track payments, and automatically reconcile bank entries.
It offers 24/7 support via live Q&A chats with experts at Sage, as well as one-on-one sessions with an accounting expert.
The software integrates with only one POS system.COMPARE QUOTES
It is essential for self-employed entrepreneurs and freelancers to quickly and easily send invoices and track payments. For this reason, Sage Business Cloud Accounting is our top choice for these types of small businesses. With Sage, you will have an affordable way to keep the cash flowing into your business without unnecessary delays. This accounting software offers well-priced tiered plans with which to create and send invoices and track payments. With its many integrations and apps, such as AutoEntry, Draycir, Avalara and Credit Hound, Sage can adapt to your growing and changing business.
Editor’s Score: 75/100
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Neat: Best for Receipt and Expense Tracking
Neat
Neat is ideal for small businesses that handle a large stream of receipts.
The software is easy to install and can be used immediately without extra training.
Neat lacks bill-paying functions, and there is no customer service phone number.
As a small business owner, all you may want your accounting software to do is help you manage your receipts and expenses. If so, Neat may be your best bet. This cloud-based tool enables you to upload all of your business receipts with the mobile app and starts at $200 per year, which equates to $16.66 per month. Once done, you can categorize each, keeping you well organized and on top of your costs.
Editor’s Score: 75/100
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ACCOUNTING SOFTWARE COSTS
Accounting software helps business owners streamline billing and accounting, and it doesn’t have to cost a lot of money. Most programs offer several plans to accommodate your needs and budget.
There are typically two types of pricing models for accounting software: perpetual licensing or a recurring subscription. With a perpetual licensing model, you make a one-time payment for unlimited access to the software. With a subscription pricing model, you pay a monthly or annual fee for access to the software.
For subscription pricing, expect to pay anywhere from $4.99 per month for a basic starter plan to as much as $60 per month for a more advanced service plan. Other factors, like the included features and number of users, will affect the monthly cost as well.
Regardless of the pricing model you select, watch out for hidden fees, which can include charges for customization options, installation or setup services, integrations, and maintenance or support services.
If your business is on a really tight budget, you might want to consider free accounting software. Wave, for instance, offers many of the accounting and invoicing features you would find in paid programs.
When you’re choosing accounting and billing software for your business, we strongly encourage you to take advantage of any free trials to test out the solutions and see which one offers the features and tools you need. Plus, spending time with the software beforehand will help you feel more confident in your decision.
ACCOUNTING SOFTWARE FEATURES
There are many aspects of accounting software that help make it a useful tool. As a small business owner, it’s important to know which features to look for. Most online accounting software offers accounts receivable, accounts payable, banking and reporting features. Some programs include inventory management, project management, time tracking and payroll tools.
Here are some of the core features to look for in accounting software:
Bank Feed
This feature connects the software to your business bank and credit card accounts to receive a daily update of your transactions. This saves you time, as you will not have to upload transactions manually. It also gives you a daily, rather than monthly, overview of your accounts. A real-time bank-feed feature can assist with reconciliation, allowing you to make it a small daily task rather than a monthly ordeal.
Dashboard
When you log in to your account, you’ll be greeted by a dashboard that shows you an overview of your account activity and key metrics, such as cash flow, profit and loss, account balances, expenses, accounts payable and receivable, and sales. Some accounting programs allow you to customize what you see first by rearranging the information.
Online Invoicing
If your business sends invoices, the ability to email them and accept online payments helps you get paid faster. Some accounting programs integrate with third-party payment processors; others require you to use their in-house processing services. It’s a plus for accounting software to serve as an invoice generator also.
Recurring Invoices
With this feature, you can schedule the system to automatically generate and send invoices for recurring charges, such as subscriptions. You can choose how frequently invoices are sent – daily, weekly, monthly or annually – and indicate whether there’s an end date to the billing.
Automatic Payment Reminders
This feature helps you remind customers about upcoming and past-due payments. Some have sample email text that you can use as is or customize. You can then choose when you want the reminders to be sent. Some programs give you the option to send thank-you emails to customers after you receive their payments.
Bank Reconciliation
Smart reconciliation tools identify potential matches between your bank transactions and the bills and invoices you’ve entered into the accounting software, saving you the hours it would otherwise take to sift through your bank account for this information. You can then approve or deny the suggested matches. The best applications suggest potential matches as you reconcile your accounts, and a few include a reconciliation tool in their mobile apps.
Financial Reporting
Every accounting program can generate financial reports. But some are more basic than others, and some require you to subscribe to a pricier plan for advanced reporting. If you need specific types of financial reports, you’ll want to make sure they’re included in the software application and plan you choose. Detailed reports can help you interpret your financial data to make informed business decisions.
Mobile Apps
Not all accounting and invoicing programs have mobile apps, but the best ones do. There is, however, quite a range in the capabilities of mobile apps. Some can only capture receipts for expense tracking, some allow you to create and send invoices, and others have almost every feature the web-based software does. It’s worth checking if the software you’re considering offers a mobile app and, if so, what features are included in the app that will help you manage your business while you’re away from the office.
Integrations
The ability to connect your accounting software to other business programs you use saves you valuable time because you don’t have to manually transfer data from one system to another. Payroll, payment processing, point-of-sale (POS) systems and customer relationship management (CRM) software are just a few of the popular types of integrations that are available with accounting software. Integration with systems you already use also cuts down on training time for employees who will use the software.
Tracking for Billable Hours
If you’re a consultant or your business bills clients by the hour, you need software that allows you to track and bill your time or that integrates with the time-tracking program you already use. This is an important feature for freelancers.
Inventory Management
If you have a retail, e-commerce or distribution business, you need an application that helps with inventory tracking and purchase orders. You may need to subscribe to a top-tier plan to get this feature. If you need more advanced inventory features, look for software that integrates with a dedicated inventory management system.
Project-Based Billing
Firms, freelancers and consultants who work with clients on projects or jobs should look for accounting software that helps them track their projects’ tasks and budgets. The software should allow you to invoice customers for tracked time and bill them for project expenses.
Support for Multiple Businesses
Several programs we evaluated let you add more than one business to your account, though some companies charge extra for this convenience. Also, the types of accounting tools that are important to you will depend on the specific needs of your business. For example, if you run a small freelance business, project-based billing might be the most important feature on your list. Or, if you plan to do some work on your mobile device, a full-featured mobile app might be at the top of your list.
ADVANTAGES OF BUSINESS ACCOUNTING SOFTWARE
Managing your finances is vital to the success of your business, and choosing the right accounting software can make that a whole lot easier. There are a lot of benefits when swapping out pen and paper or an Excel spreadsheet for accounting software. Here’s a look at a few of them:
Reduces Mistakes
According to a Bloomberg BNA survey, human error is by far the biggest cause of accounting and bookkeeping errors. Many accounting professionals cite common mistakes such as spreadsheet errors and incorrect manual entries. Accounting software can help cut down on these costly blunders by eliminating clunky spreadsheet inputs and pulling data directly from third-party business apps.
Improves Organization
Small businesses can’t afford not to have their finances in order. Whether it’s time to pay the tax bill or forecast for the next year, it can be difficult to get the information you need if you are not organized. Accounting software helps you stay on top of your financial data. It organizes financial information, stores it in one location and automates many time-consuming accounting processes, thereby freeing you up to focus on running your business.
Bolsters Internal Controls
Internal controls refer to the rules and procedures established by a company to ensure the integrity of accounting and bookkeeping processes. Accounting software increases the reliability of your measures to help prevent and detect fraud. This can significantly reduce the risk of loss and theft from your business.
Doesn’t Break the Bank
Thanks to cloud-based offerings, the price of accounting software has come down a lot over the years. Today, small business owners have a lot of choice: Accounting software costs range from free to $350 per month. The size of your business and your accounting needs dictate how much you pay. But if that monthly cost means you’ll optimize cash flow, meet tax obligations and identify growth opportunities, it’s probably worth it.
Ensures Best Practices
Taxes are part of running a business, and many accounting software vendors are well aware of that. As such, they’ve designed programs that calculate sales tax, prepare tax forms and even file taxes with no intervention on your part.