We provide a free leasing software for nonprofits and free accounting software to track your financial data. We also offer 2020 free nonprofit business plan template to help you start a nonprofit organization.
We have the best nonprofit leasing software for accountants and bookkeepers, including easy to use reports, an audit module, and built in asset management.
Aplos
Best Overall Accounting Software for Nonprofits
PROS
- Includes a built-in website builder that requires no coding
- Provides end-to-end solutions for event and donor management
- Creates unlimited donation forms
- Bank integrations for easy import of transactions
- Accepts donations via text, which requires additional fee
CONS
- Requires an additional fee for additional users
- Does not include built-in payroll
- Cannot be used to manage grants and volunteers
- Invoices are not customizable
- No mobile app
Overall Score3.77OUT OF5
| RATING CRITERIA | PRICING | 3.03 | OUT OF | 5 |
| EASE OF USE | 4.25 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| GENERAL FEATURES | 4.75 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| NONPROFIT FEATURES | 3.13 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| EXPERT ANALYSIS | 3.75 | OUT OF | 5 |
Our Expert Opinion
Aplos is our best overall accounting software for nonprofits because it has an outstanding set of general accounting and key features that are ideally tailored for nonprofit operations. We consider it a powerful accounting software for medium-sized nonprofits because it provides end-to-end solutions for managing donors and members. It includes an integrated customer relationship management (CRM) tool with a secure portal where members, committees, volunteers, and others can engage with one another, share information, and create an online community to match the offline community. The program allows you to enter all transactions and track and manage your accounting and donations at the fund level. If you’re a medium-sized nonprofit, we recommend the Advanced Accounting package with valuable features, such as fixed asset tracking and income and expense allocation. Aplos is also ideal for faith-based organizations with a few employees. See how Aplos benefits churches in our review of the best church accounting software.
Aplos Pricing
- Aplos Suite: $59 per month
- Aplos Suite + Text To Give: $79 per month
- Aplos Suite + Advanced Accounting: Starts at $159 per month
All accounts include two users and extra users can be added for $10 each. All packages include basic features, such as fund accounting, donation tracking, and budgeting.The most expensive plan offers advanced features, like budgeting by fund.
You can try Aplos for free for 15 days with no credit card required.
QuickBooks Online
Best Accounting Software for Nonprofits Seeking Bookkeeping Assistance
PROS
- Share data easily with your accountant
- Can customize reports to fit nonprofit operations
- Offers bookkeeping assistance via QuickBooks Live
- Comprehensive mobile app
CONS
- No nonprofit-specific tools
- Requires additional fee to use payroll
- Simple Start is limited to one user
- Expensive for nonprofits with multiple entities
Overall Score3.53OUT OF5
| RATING CRITERIA | PRICING | 3.00 | OUT OF | 5 |
| EASE OF USE | 4.13 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| GENERAL FEATURES | 5.00 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| NONPROFIT FEATURES | 1.75 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| EXPERT ANALYSIS | 4.88 | OUT OF | 5 |
Our Expert Opinion
QuickBooks Online demonstrates its versatility by providing customized solutions for almost any industry, including nonprofits. Most nonprofits don’t have a dedicated accounting department to manage their books, thus they need bookkeeping assistance. QuickBooks Online, through its QuickBooks Live Bookkeeping, offers bookkeeping assistance where you’ll get access to a QuickBooks-certified bookkeeper who will take the lead on your bookkeeping duties and generate essential reports for you. You can communicate with your QuickBooks Live bookkeeper anytime through video chat. Alternatively, you can find a local QuickBooks ProAdvisor to help you with your bookkeeping. QuickBooks Pro Advisors are those who have passed the certification exam administered by Intuit.
QuickBooks Online is very easy to use and you can share your data with certified public accountants (CPAs), tax professionals, or others. With the tiered subscription levels, QuickBooks Online can scale as your organization grows or your needs change without having to transfer your data to another software provider. You can compare pricing plan details in our QuickBooks Online comparison guide. While QuickBooks Online lacks industry-specific tools, it’s our overall best accounting software for small businesses.
QuickBooks Online Pricing
- Simple Start: $25 per month with one user included
- Essentials: $50 per month with three users included
- Plus: $80 per month with five users included
- Advanced: $180 per month with 25 users included
Payroll can be added for $45 per month plus $4 per employee.
QuickBooks currently offers a 50% discount for the first three months or a 30-day free trial with no credit card required.
Wave
Best Free Nonprofit Accounting Software for Treasurers of Very Small Nonprofits
PROS
- Easy to use even for nonaccountants
- Completely free forever
- Ideal for simple nonprofit organizations
- Bookkeeping assistance available via Wave Advisors
CONS
- Lacks specialized features for nonprofits
- Not a good fit for large nonprofits
- Multiple apps instead of a single full-featured app
- No tools for managing restricted funds
Overall Score3.26OUT OF5
| RATING CRITERIA | PRICING | 5.00 | OUT OF | 5 |
| EASE OF USE | 4.13 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| GENERAL FEATURES | 4.75 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| NONPROFIT FEATURES | 0.75 | OUT OF | 5 | |
| EXPERT ANALYSIS | 2.00 | OUT OF | 5 |
Our Expert Opinion
Just like QuickBooks Online, Wave has no industry-specific features, but it’s flexible enough to be included in our best nonprofit accounting software. If you are a volunteer treasurer for a small charity, then Wave is suitable software for accumulating your income and expenses. Wave doesn’t offer departmental comparison or analysis, so it doesn’t work if you receive restricted funds. Nevertheless, Wave has a good set of features to streamline accounting for donations, tax receipts, and payroll. Nonprofits with multiple locations can also set up and manage multiple entities with Wave. While Wave is easy to use, even for novice accountants or treasurers, you can seek personalized coaching from a Wave Advisor.
Wave Pricing
Wave’s accounting, invoicing, and receipt tracking features are free. It only charges fees for processing credit card, bank payments, and payroll transactions:
- Accounting, invoicing, and receipt tracking: Free
- Credit card processing: 2.9% + 30 cents per transaction (for most cards) and 3.4% + 30 cents (for American Express)
- Bank payments: $1 per transaction
- Payroll:
- $35 per month plus $6 per employee or independent contractor for users living in tax-service states (Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin). If you live in one of these states, Wave can process your tax payments and file the paperwork with state agencies and the IRS.
- $20 per month plus $6 per employee or independent contractor for users living in the remaining 36 states. These states are self-service, which means that Wave only calculates payroll taxes, but you have to pay and file the required paperwork yourself.
DENALI FUND+Accounting ★★★★★★★★★★ (2)
WHAT WE LIKEScalable Multi-Module SystemStrong Reporting CapabilitiesWHAT WE DON’T LIKEConverting Data from Other Systems Can Be Time ConsumingOVERVIEWPrice Range: $$Starting Price: $1,999/user (perpetual license)Client OS: Windows Demo Pricing
DENALI FUND+Accounting is a multi-module nonprofit software for small to large organizations. Having a multi-module system allows organizations of any size to get only the functionality they really need. Modules available with DENALI FUND include accounts payable and accounts receivable, payroll, bank reconciliation, purchase orders, order entry, inventory control, donor tracking, and job costing. Some modules can be purchased standalone; however, some modules are required with others. An integrated point of sale system is also available with DENALI FUND that works with both nonprofit and for-profit organizations.
Pricing for DENALI FUND is customized based on the modules and functionality your organization needs. The system generally starts around $1,999 per user as a locally installed, one-time purchase. Training options on the system are available in-person or virtually.
Abila MIP ★★★★★★★★★★ (7)
WHAT WE LIKECustomizable ReportsOn-Premises or Cloud DeploymentWHAT WE DON’T LIKEComplex Payroll Add-OnSteep Learning CurveOVERVIEWPrice Range: $$$Client OS: Windows Demo Pricing
Abila MIP Fund Accounting gives organizations strong capabilities including fund accounting, budgeting, human resources management, grant management, reporting, and more. With this system, government and nonprofit agencies can make informed decisions, keep organized, and be prepared for audits. MIP is also designed to scale with your organization, so you get the functionality you need as your organization grows.
Abila MIP can be purchased upfront or leased on a SaaS model, giving you the option for a locally installed or web-based solution based on your organization’s needs.
Advantages of Fund Accounting Software:
Identifies Who, What and Why
In order to fully understand why nonprofits need fund accounting software, you need to understand three fundamental questions:
- Who is the source of revenue?
- What is the designated purpose?
- Why nonprofits need to classify revenue?
1. Who is the source of revenue?
Who identifies the source of revenue and provider of services and expenses. This is know as donor designated revenue. Who is donating or granting funds to the nonprofit? Who is the nonprofit paying expenses, such as salaries, payroll taxes, services, rent, utilities?
2. What is the designated purpose of the revenue?
Nonprofit fund accounting software helps a nonprofit identify ‘what’ their revenue is designated for, and to monitor the restrictions often attached to the revenue. This provides stewardship and transparency. By identifying revenue into appropriate designations, fund accounting enables organizations to keep the revenue it receives in the proper classifications and prevents this revenue from being spent on inappropriate expenses. It also highlights areas of strength and weakness, providing transparency for funding sources.
It allows nonprofit to manage the diverse streams of revenue they receive and monitor the donor restrictions often attached to revenue. By breaking up an entity’s finances into appropriate funds, fund accounting enables organizations to keep revenue it receives in the proper categories and prevent revenue from being spent on inappropriate expenses. Each fund will have its own revenue and expense report, its own excess or deficiency calculation and its own balance sheet.
3. Why do nonprofits need to classify revenue using fund accounting software?
To properly track revenue and expenses separately, you will need to setup a fund accounting system and a specific code for these transactions. This type of system provides organizations with a method to measure how they are meeting their goals.
Each nonprofit has its own set of programs, administrative and fundraising activities known as functional accounting. Separate funds are established for these entities to track how revenue and expenses are spent.
This answers why this type of revenue was received and the type of expense incurred. It classifies the type of revenue and expense of each transaction. It is standard for all accounting and it is a detailed list of the nature of each revenue — grants, program services, contributions and fundraising events — and expenses, such as salaries, payroll taxes, rent, professional services, etc.
FastFund Accounting provides true fund accounting and functional accounting methods, ensuring proper compliance and accountability to funding sources.
Conclusion
Nonprofit organizations need accounting software for lease and pledge payment tracking, donations and grants management, easy financial reports, ability to automate and customize the tasks, ability to send e-mail notifications to end users or donors etc. We’ve created an affordable nonprofit leasing accounting software program that is the perfect solution for your organization. With friendly user interface and extensive reporting capabilities, it will help you organize your financial information in a quick and efficient manner.