Best financial software for small business If you are a small business owner, you probably want to save both time and money. Hiring a professional bookkeeper only seems to be an option, but it’s also very time consuming. That is why it is appropriate to choose an accounting software for your accounting needs.
Best financial software for small business! Small businesses are on the rise, whether you work for a startup start-up or you’re one of the vast majority that works for a larger company, you may not even think about how many software out there can help you manage and track your finances, pay your vendors and employees, etc. The internet was designed for more convenience (and monopolies). Rather than searching through the yellow pages (now Google) or visiting local stores, we now have online resources. The best online resources will save you tons of time and money – just like these best free accounting software platforms that are perfect for small businesses.
Wave Accounting
Even if Wave weren’t completely free, we’d still be blown away by how much it offers. It’s one of our top accounting software picks for small-business owners, and for good reason. With Wave, you get perks like these:
- Automatic bank account and credit card syncing for accurate, up-to-date financial records
- Unlimited bank account and credit card connections
- Easy, customizable income and expense tracking
- Crucial accounting reports and general ledger
- Invoicing and billing reminders
- Automatically generated journal entries
- Customer support (email only)
Wave’s easy-to-read dashboard shows you your most important financial info at a glance. Its billing, invoicing, and expense tracking features make it perfect for freelancers, but the software can work for larger businesses too, especially since Wave doesn’t limit the amount of users you can add (unlike, say, QuickBooks Online). You and the rest of your financial team can jump on your account to check numbers and enter information, free of charge.
Zoho Invoice
Don’t be fooled by Zoho Invoice’s name. This software does much more than send invoices (though you shouldn’t overlook its stellar invoicing features—Zoho Invoice is actually our top pick for billing and invoicing software).
While it’s not quite as fully featured as Zoho Books, Zoho’s accounting-specific product, Zoho Invoice has more than enough features to recommend it—and, obviously, they’re entirely free:
- Professional, customizable invoices with multi-currency and multi-language support
- Automatic recurring invoicing and customer payment reminders
- Estimates (easily convertible to invoices)
- Expense tracking, receipt scanning, and time tracking
Thanks to its its built-in time tracking (which syncs easily with invoices), estimate-to-invoice conversion, and client portal for straightforward collaboration, Zoho Invoice is ideal for freelancers who frequently collaborate with customers. With a stellar mobile app, it’s also good for freelancers on the go. If you want more extensive accounting features, Zoho Books starts at $15 a month—but if you’re fine with basic invoicing and transactions, it’s honestly hard to beat Zoho Invoice.
Sunrise
Best for small businesses that want simple bookkeeping software that’s easy to use.
Pros
- Supports unlimited users
- Good customer service
- Easy to use
Cons
- Limited integrations
- Lacks advanced features
Sunrise by Lendio (formerly Billy) is a great free option for businesses that want simple bookkeeping software without the bells and whistles (and high price tags!) of full accounting software. With Sunrise, you can be up and running in just minutes, performing tasks such as sending invoices to clients, managing expenses, and accepting online payments.
One unique feature of Sunrise is that you may qualify for additional funding opportunities through Lendio just by maintaining your books. And if your books become too time-consuming to manage? You can upgrade to Sunrise’s paid professional bookkeeping service, which offers extremely competitive pricing. Throw in support for unlimited users, good customer service, and positive online reviews, and it’s easy to see why Sunrise makes our cut.
Sunrise Features
Businesses that need full accounting software with advanced features (such as inventory management) will need to seek out other software. However, businesses that want basic bookkeeping software with no limitations, an easy-to-use UI that’s perfect for beginners, and great customer service may find a winner in Sunrise. With Sunrise’s free self-service software, you’ll receive:
- Unlimited invoices
- Unlimited quotes and estimates
- Expense tracking
- Chart of accounts
- Cash flow tracking
- Journal entry
- Tax support
Sunrise Pricing
Sunrise’s self-service software is completely free. If you need payment processing, Sunrise offers a pay-as-you-go plan of 3.55% + $0.30 for credit card transactions. You may also opt to upgrade to Sunrise Plus for $19.99/month, which offers lower processing fees, cash flow insights, and integrations with Square, Stripe, and PayPal.
You can also sign up for bookkeeping services with Sunrise. Pricing is based on your number of transactions per month and starts at $149/month.
ZipBooks
Best for small business owners and freelancers looking for a simple accounting solution.
Pros
- Cloud-based software
- Strong security features
- Easy to use
- Good customer support
Cons
- Limited integrations
- Some features limited on the free plan
ZipBooks is free accounting software designed by small business owners for other business owners, freelancers, and entrepreneurs. Automation is where ZipBooks truly stands out, combining a color-coded design with a strong feature set to simplify the accounting process.
With a free account from ZipBooks, you’ll be able to send invoices to customers, manage your contacts, and access business health scores. If you need additional features, ZipBooks offers several monthly membership plans. ZipBooks also stands out for excellent customer service and robust security features and has an excellent reputation among its users.
ZipBooks Features
ZipBooks offers several plans, but for those that don’t want to pay a monthly fee, the free Starter plan includes:
- Unlimited invoices
- Unlimited customers and vendors
- Expense tracking
- Connect to one bank account
- Digital payments through Square or PayPal
- Basic reporting
ZipBooks Pricing
The ZipBooks Starter plan is completely free. If you want access to more features, you can upgrade to one of ZipBooks’ paid subscriptions. For $15/month, you can sign up for the Smarter plan, which boasts additional features and automations, including scheduled recurring invoices, time tracking, and support for up to five team members. For $35/month, you can upgrade to the Sophisticated plan, which includes smart tagging, additional reports, and support for unlimited users.
Akaunting
Pros:
- Open-source software means you can customize however you want.
- Extensive library of integrations.
- Robust user support via online forums.
Cons:
- Design is not as intuitive as other platforms.
- Advanced features cost extra.
- Not as ready-to-use as other options.
Why we like it:
Akaunting is an open-source accounting platform that has the capability for customization, primarily through its library of add-ons. The primary features are available right out of the box: You can invoice, track receipts and take care of the everyday needs of your company’s finances. Plus, with a robust library of integrations, you can build your own Akaunting setup with a degree of customization other free platforms don’t provide. However, you or someone on your team will likely need some coding knowledge to use this software to its full potential.
Zoho Books
Pros:
- Free version is feature-packed.
- Easy to upgrade to paid versions as your business grows.
- Easy to use.
Cons:
- Free plan available only for businesses with annual revenue of less than $50,000.
- Limits on the number of users, contacts and workflows for free plan.
- Free plan provides email support only. (Paid plans include email, voice and chat support.)
Why we like it:
Zoho Books provides an easy way to manage your business’s books from anywhere. This software allows you to handle a variety of accounting tasks, including creating and sending customized invoices and estimates, plus reminder emails for overdue invoices and simple conversion from estimate to invoice. As long as your business’s annual revenue is less than $50,000, you can use the free version for as long as it makes sense for your business. And if you use Zoho’s other business apps, you can integrate them all seamlessly. Outside of those, though, you are somewhat limited in terms of third-party integrations.
GnuCash
Best for Sole Proprietors
GnuCash is a free, open-source accounting solution that can be downloaded for Linux, Windows, and Mac OS X. It offers double-entry accounting resources, a checkbook-style register, scheduled transactions, and customizable visual reporting.
GnuCash’s initial setup and somewhat dated-looking interface might turn a lot of potential users off. But if you’re willing to tough out its tricky installation and don’t need your accounting solution to be particularly pretty, you’re left with a solid application that covers a lot of bases for free.
That said, it’s not much of a long-term solution for businesses anticipating a lot of growth. It’s better suited for sole proprietors who need a program to get them through their day-to-day. If you fit that bill, check GnuCash out.
GnuCash’s Key Benefits
- Double-entry feature ensures books balance
- Budget management tools can help plan financial strategy
- Works on a variety of operating systems
- Can handle internationalized dates and currencies
GnuCash’s Key Drawbacks
- Installation is less straightforward than most other platforms
- Interface isn’t particularly accessible or visually appealing
- No customer support
CloudBooks
Best for Freelancers and Small Businesses
CloudBooks is a free accounting and invoicing solution tailored to accommodate small businesses and freelancers. The program boasts a user base of over 2 million subscribers and has a suite of capabilities that cover invoicing, time-tracking, reporting, and payment needs — among others.
The platform is an invoice management solution, above all else — and that can be a benefit or drawback in its own right, depending on what you need.
While CloudBooks has features extending beyond that functionality, invoicing appears to be its main selling point — meaning it’s not quite as fully fleshed out with accounting functionality as other programs listed here.
So if you’re looking for exceptional invoice creation and management software, you should check out Cloudbooks. If you need a more robust accounting-specific solution, you might want to look elsewhere.
CloudBooks’ Key Benefits
- Allows for unlimited users
- Features email support
- Offers free cloud data storage
- Upgraded plans are reasonably priced
CloudBooks’ Key Drawbacks
- Only lets you bill one client
- Caps your number of invoices at five
- Lacks phone or chat support
Conclusion:
We all need to keep track of our money. Whether you are running a small business or just want to be able to monitor your own finances, it can seem overwhelming with the amount of financial software available. Not only do you have to find software suitable for your needs, but also one that’s actually free!