Small business accounting software is a catch-all phrase which refers to software that is designed for small business owners to track and manage their day-to-day financial operations. These systems handle such tasks as accounting (but not bookkeeping), payment processing, CRM, inventory management, and scheduling.
There are different kinds of software that you can use if you own a small business. One of these software for small businesses is accounting or bookkeeping software. This article talks about accounting or bookkeeping software and what it can do for you and your business.
SlickPie
SlickPie is an online accounting software program that is tailored for smaller businesses. The software is completely online, making it accessible from almost anywhere. It offers online invoices, allowing the user to either use one of the pre-set themes or offering a program that allows users to customize the look of their invoices. Along with online invoicing, the program offers online billing and document management. Through SlickPie, users can produce financial reports to monitor business growth. The software also offers tax management services. Another plus is cost, as it is completely free.
SlickPie relies on automation, offering features that allow companies to send out automatic payment reminders and auto-invoices. SlickPie is also the only no-cost accounting program to offer automated data entry, through its tool, MagicBot.
FreeAgent
FreeAgent is only free to business banking customers of Natwest/Royal Bank of Scotland, but it’s a powerful piece of cloud-based software that’s used by over 90,000 small businesses in the UK. It allows you to automatically generate VAT returns and completes the majority of the self-assessment tax return form for you. It also gives you a clear view of the income, time and expenses associated with each project, so you can see whether you’re making a profit or loss in real time.
These features have won FreeAgent awards including the Small Business Accounting Software of the Year Award in 2018. However, the biggest drawback is that your bank will have full access to your financial data, so they’ll be able to see exactly what’s happening with your accounts.
Wave Accounting
- Powerful accounting software that’s completely free
- Handy receipt scanning mobile app
- US/Canada focus limits UK functionality
- Cloud-based – works on web browser, mobile, and tablet
What is Wave Accounting?
Founded in 2010 in Toronto, Canada, Wave Accounting is powerful, free, cloud-based accounting software that has a great UI and a slick marine design scheme. It makes its money by selling payroll and payments services (alongside display ads), which means its free accounting software is pretty much unlimited in terms of account size etc. All this means Wave Accounting is beloved by US startups, but its US/Canada focus means it’s not an ideal fit for UK small businesses – and some may find it a non-starter for this reason.
What can Wave Accounting do?
Wave Accounting’s great range of features includes:
- Tools to create and send professional invoices, even on the go
- Unlimited income and expense tracking
- Receipt scanning via an iPhone/Android mobile app
- Create and export a range of accounting reports
- Multi-currency support with automatic exchange rate calculations
- Integration with Shopify
- Connections to PayPal, Shoeboxed, and Etsy
- A smart dashboard that organises income, expenses, payments, and invoices
- As well as receipt scanning and invoice creation, the mobile app allows you to easily keep track of your accounts on the move
Why is Wave Accounting free?
As mentioned above, Wave Accounting makes its money by displaying ads, and most importantly, by selling payments and payroll services. These services are targeted at US/Canadian customers, with the payroll service being exclusive to those customers. This focus means that, for UK small businesses, Wave Accounting has some significant deficiencies.
Most notably, Wave Accounting does not support the new Making Tax Digital (MTD) protocol for VAT, and so it will be of only limited use to businesses that need to register for VAT and file VAT tax returns digitally. Unlike some of the other providers discussed here, it also does not support the automatic importation of bank transactions via open banking, making keeping track of your financial activity a more time consuming process.
What support does Wave Accounting offer?
Wave offers expert help via its community forum, and you can also ask for technical support via a help function built into the platform. There is no phone support available, however.
Wave Accounting Verdict
Wave Accounting boasts a great range of features, has a stylish look, and there are virtually no usage limits. However, the US/Canadian focus means it won’t suit the needs of all UK small businesses.
QuickBooks Online
A product of Intuit, QuickBooks has long been heralded as the go-to accounting software for small businesses. Two different versions of QuickBooks exist, including an online format, as well as a licensed version. The program offers easy, online access to all of your customers, vendors, and employee records.
Any user who purchases the online version of QuickBooks has access to free customer service as well. You can test out the program through a 30-day free trial and, after the trial expires, at a minimal monthly cost.
ZipBooks
In the free version of ZipBooks, you’re able to produce an unlimited number of invoices to an unlimited number of customers. You can also use it for unlimited bookkeeping. As a cloud-based piece of software, it’s known for being really easy to use, with a modern looking design.
However, you’ll only have access to basic reporting features and can only connect one bank account. If you want to take advantage of the more advanced and intelligent features, you’ll need to upgrade to one of their paid packages.
Conclusion
Getting started with a business venture should be a fun and exciting time. Unfortunately, the administrative tasks to get a business off the ground can sometimes overshadow these initial stages. You’ve finally found an idea that is going to generate income but what comes next? How do you choose from the many software options available? One of the first decisions you have to make is which accounting software to use. Is Quickbooks right for your situation or will a cloud-based solution be a better fit? Or maybe it’s time for a different approach altogether – one that doesn’t require expensive software and monthly fees.