Which one should you choose? The answer: it depends on your specific needs and your business type (Sole Proprietorship, Partnership, C Corporation, etc.). There are great small business accounting software programs out there for every budget.
This article will list the best free small business accounting software options for Mac.
FreeAgent.
FreeAgent is a cloud-based accounting software tool that is perfect for freelancers, small businesses, and their accountants. Trusted by more than 90,000 businesses worldwide, it brings everything, including invoice, expense management, project management, and the sales tax on the same platform.
Key Features:
- Advanced expense management – Comprehensive management where you can categorize expenses by currency. You can also track things like documented and paid invoices
- Tax management – Tax management module enables you can complete all activities related to managing tax and compliance
- Accounts payable management – It can generate and manage bills effectively, and can also customize each bill by adding an introduction for ready reference
- Contract management – Create and send invoices to your clients with ease and choose from a range of templates
Pros:
- Provides a 30-day free trial
- Extensive customer support by phone, email, ticket, and live chat
- Since it’s cloud-based, it is inexpensive and easy to set up
- Can provide very speedy estimates that can help you do more in less time
- Multi-currency and multi-language support. And you can send invoices in over 25 different languages
- Comprehensive dashboard view enables you to visualize the big picture, with the cash flow, profit & loss statements, and invoice timeline
- It allows high customization of invoice by addition of your logo and signature and sends invoices at one click
- Wide variety of invoice templates to choose from
- You can set-up automatic, self-chasing reminders for recurring invoices
- Highly intuitive and user-friendly software
- Allows digital payment through PayPal, GoCardless, and Stripe
- One of the least expensive accounting software platforms in the market
Cons:
- Doesn’t provide a free plan
- Doesn’t have the on-premise deployment option
Pricing:
With FreeAgent, you get only one universal plan. It costs $12 per month for the first six months of your subscription, and $24 per month after that. You also get a 30-day free trial.
Tipalti.
Tipalti is a comprehensive accounting software platform that provides end-to-end solutions to automate the entire supplier payments operation, making global mass B2B payments efficient and frictionless. Moreover, it is a KPMG-certified application.
Key Features:
- Supplier management – You can easily guide suppliers through submitting contact information, banking details, tax forms, and more
- Invoice management – Provide automated invoice capture, approvals, payments, and reconciliation in a single end-to-end AP platform to boost efficiency and standardization
- Tax compliance – It solves the complex manual process of collecting tax information through digital capture, ensuring payment validation even before its processed. It has a KPMG-certified tax module ensuring IRS and VAT compliance
- Tipalti Detect feature – It can proactively prevent fraud with detailed payee monitoring that effectively mitigates risk exposure
Pros:
- Cloud-based software, therefore easy to set up
- Provides an end-to-end AP
- Capable of generating Form 1099 and 1042-S tax reports
- Facilitates international bank/wire transfer
- Customer support available in the form of phone, email, and tickets
- Has an in-built self-billing module with automated invoice creation and submission
- Facilitates mass payments in over 190 countries and 120 currencies
- The secure could infrastructure is SSAE 16 SOC compliant and ISAE 3402 Type II certified
- Performs instant payment reconciliation and generate financial reports
- Provides 24/7 supplier hub online access and cloud accounting
- Provides invoice workflow automation with touchless OCR (optical character recognition) software, approval processing, and PO matching faster, more accurate invoice management 24/7
- User-friendly, highly automated software
Cons:
- Doesn’t provide a free plan
- Comes with hefty pricing plans
- Doesn’t offer on-premise deployment and live-chat
- Can be difficult to use for a beginner
- Doesn’t have an immediate check image feature
Pricing:
Tipalti provides three pricing plans, starting from $299 per month and ranging up to $1599 per month.
Wave: Best for Sole Proprietors and Small Businesses
Best for Sole Proprietors and Small Businesses
Wave Accounting is one of the more tested, reliable options listed here. It’s an accessible, intuitive program that doesn’t require much — if any — training to understand.
Its entire suite of accounting features is available for free — including unlimited income and expense tracking, the ability to run multiple businesses from a single account, and unlimited bank and credit card connections.
Most of Wave’s issues are relatively nit-picky. For one, it doesn’t allow users to track accounts payable. It also doesn’t have a comprehensive mobile application for its accounting features.
Still, the program is one of the sounder, more robust free accounting applications available, and it’s scalable enough to accommodate everyone from independent contractors to sole proprietors to small business owners.
Wave’s Key Benefits
- Accessible setup and interface
- Unlimited bank and credit card connections
- Unlimited income and expense tracking
- Exportable accounting reports
Wave’s Key Drawbacks
- Can’t track accounts payable
- No comprehensive mobile application
ZipBooks: Best for Small Businesses Looking to Upgrade From Spreadsheets
Best for Small Businesses Looking to Upgrade From Spreadsheets
ZipBooks is a web-based financial software with a solid suite of accounting features. The company offers a free plan called ZipBooks Starter — an option that includes basic bookkeeping functionality, along with profit, loss, and balance sheet reporting.
It also covers certain invoicing and quote-related bases — plus the ability to accept payment via credit card or PayPal. It’s a powerful, easy-to-use solution, but its free plan is extremely free plan-ish.
The program’s features you can access with a free plan are restricted to the point that it might be easy to outgrow. You can only link one bank account and view basic reports with its starter option. Should your needs extend beyond that, you’ll need to upgrade to one of its premium plans.
And while those upper-tier plans are reasonably priced, they’re obviously not what someone who wants a free plan is looking for. Again, the solution itself is sound, but if you want a free program that will remain free as you scale, you should look elsewhere.
ZipBooks’ Key Benefits
- Unlimited Invoices
- Ability to manage unlimited vendors and customers
- Accepts digital payments via Square and Paypal
ZipBooks’ Key Drawbacks
- Only allows you to connect one bank account
- Only lets you view basic reports
GnuCash: Best for Sole Proprietors
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
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
Sunrise: Best for Small Businesses Looking for a Bookkeeping Solution
Best for Small Businesses Looking for a Bookkeeping Solution
Sunrise is one of the more prominent bookkeeping applications available for small businesses. Users can leverage the program to easily search and categorize business expenses, send customized invoices, and receive recurring payments.
It offers a free, self-service plan that provides businesses with a decent suite of features and a fair amount of flexibility when it comes to bookkeeping — allowing for unlimited invoices and transactions.
Sunrise sets itself apart from other bookkeeping solutions with its dedicated bookkeeper services, but those services come at a hefty premium. As I mentioned, its free plan is self-service — which works for small businesses but might not be sustainable as your business expands.
Ultimately, Sunrise is a straightforward, effective bookkeeping software with a free plan that can suit the needs of several small businesses. If you need a relatively short-term bookkeeping solution with a reasonable upgrade fee, Sunrise’s free plan is worth checking out.
Sunrise’s Key Benefits
- Lets you manage income and expenses
- Lets you send unlimited invoices
- Lets you generate profits and losses
Sunrise’s Key Drawbacks
- Suite of features is pretty restricted, relative to that of its paid plan
- Lacks payment integrations
- No cash flow insights or alerts
Brightbook: Best for Creative Professionals and Freelancers
Best for Creative Professionals and Freelancers
Brightbook is a web-based accounting solution tailored to suit the needs of independent contractors, freelancers, and small business owners — though it tends to work better for the former two.
The program is essentially designed to democratize accounting software. It has an extensive suite of features available for free — including resources for invoicing, visibility into your cash flow, financial reporting, and drafting financial statements — along with some paid features available for one-time fees.
One area where Brightbook struggles is its lack of mobile support. The program doesn’t have a mobile application, and it can’t be accessed via mobile browsers. And the application itself isn’t quite as sophisticated as some of the more well-established options.
Still, Brightbook is a solid option for freelancers or independent contractors — specifically creative professionals. It’s a little bare-bones, but it still covers a lot of bases that other options on this list might have stuck behind paywalls.
If you’re looking for a comprehensive suite of accounting features and don’t mind working with a relatively stripped-back program, consider checking Brightbook out.
Brightbook’s Key Benefits
- Can be used for multiple companies
- Interface gives you solid visibility into most aspects of your business
- Full suite of features is free
Brightbook’s Key Drawbacks
- Fairly bare-bones — lacking some more sophisticated features
- Can’t be accessed via mobile
- Reporting features are limited
Akaunting: Best for Businesses Looking for a Truly One-Stop Free Accounting Software
Best for Businesses Looking for a Truly One-Stop Free Accounting Software
Akaunting is a free, open-source accounting solution for small businesses and freelancers with a global reach and sizable user base. The program’s full suite of features is available for free — making it one of the few “one-stop-shop” solutions on this list.
The platform is entirely online, meaning you can access it from any desktop, tablet, or mobile device anytime, anywhere. It offers resources that help you manage cash flow, track expenses, deal with invoicing, and set transaction categories.
It also features a client portal — allowing you to share the transactions and invoices with your clients and accept bulk payments. Akaunting boasts a base of over 270,000 users and is available in over 50 languages, making it one of the most popular, wide-reaching open-source solutions on this list.
Some users report trouble with Akaunting’s support department’s responsiveness. The application also seems to be one of the less accessible ones on this list when it comes to ease of use. But if you’re in the market for a free, comprehensive accounting solution and are willing to tough those issues out, look into Akaunting.
Akaunting’s Key Benefits
- Truly one-stop for free
- Accessible from anywhere
- Open source and secure
Akaunting’s Key Drawbacks
- Questionable support
- Potentially difficult to operate
Zoho Books: Best for Scaling Businesses
Best for Scaling Businesses
Zoho Books is a robustly featured accounting solution tailored to help small businesses. Its free plan is restricted to organizations generating less than $50,000 in annual revenue, but if you qualify, Zoho Books can cover a lot of your bases.
The platform has end-to-end accounting resources to handle the more monotonous, frustrating elements of this side of your business — including invoicing and raising sales orders. The program also has a client portal to help you seamlessly connect with your customers.
With a user-friendly interface and a solid mobile application, Zoho Books is one of the more straightforward, accessible solutions listed here. But it still comes with its share of limitations, including a lack of payroll management resources. The free plan also only gives you access to email support — not chat or voice.
But apart from those issues, Zoho Books is a pretty sound application. If its suite of features covers your needs and your business meets its revenue requirements, consider looking into Zoho Books’ free plan.
Zoho Books’ Key Benefits
- End-to-end accounting features cover a lot of bases
- Accessible interface
- Solid mobile application
Zoho Books’ Key Drawbacks
- Support is restricted to email
- Only certain businesses qualify
- No payroll management resources.
Conclusion
We’ve seen the rise of cloud-based services in all areas of life and business. Software isn’t excluded from this phenomenon. Many IT experts predicted that the future of business software would be cloud-based.