It is a well-known fact that since the advent of the Internet and the boom and bust and cycle and growth and recession and loss and gain and growth of e-commerce and e-marketing, small business accounting software has been able to produce a steady stream of new customers from the comfort of their computers. The top three top rated small business accounting software solutions today are Xero, Quickbooks for Mac for ios devices as well as Android phones under the Google Play store. Other applications such as Lemon Ledger, KashFlow, Bill.com online account management, Raiser’s Edge Cloud, Acuity , invoicing services along with Small Business Accounting Software Market Leaders Intuit , Sage Group PLC, Zoho , Wave
In the past years, the worldwide Small Business Accounting Software market has been growing at a fast pace. In fact, it is expected to witness more developments in the near future. This detailed report on Small Business Accounting Software provides a holistic study of the present and historical statistics while forecasting future trends in the Small Business Accounting Software market. The report aims to provide a clear picture of the Small Business Accounting Software industry by offering statistical insights, predictive data, and key contributing factors of the market.
FreshBooks
The most crucial accounting need for most service-based businesses is invoicing. FreshBooks offers more customizations for invoicing compared to other accounting software. Its primary function is to send, receive, print, and pay invoices, but it can also take care of a business’ basic bookkeeping needs as well. This accounting software makes it easier for service-based businesses to send proposals and invoices, request deposits, collect client retainers, track time on projects, and receive payments.Pros
- Cloud-based
- User-friendly interface
- Third-party app integration
- Affordable
- Advanced invoicing features
Cons
- No inventory management
- No payroll service
- Mobile app has limitations
Founded in 2003 in Toronto, FreshBooks started as just an invoicing software. Over time, more features have been added and FreshBooks now has over 500 employees.2 There are four different plans, and businesses can get a 10% discount if they choose to pay yearly, rather than monthly. Additionally, FreshBooks offers a 60% off discount per month for six months. The four plans are: Lite at $6 per month, Plus at $10 per month, Premium at $20 per month, and Select, which is a custom service with custom pricing.
The main difference between the four plans is the number of different clients that are allowed to be billed per month. In the Lite plan, up to five clients can be billed per month. In the Plus plan, up to 50 clients can be billed per month. In the Premium plan, unlimited clients can be billed per month. The Select plan also does not have a limitation on the number of clients that can be billed per month, but adds unique features. It costs an additional $10 per month for multiple team members to use the accounting software and it costs an additional $20 per month for the advanced payment feature, which allows users to charge a credit card in real-time or set up a recurring credit card charge for a client.
There are many third-party app integrations available, such as Shopify, Gusto, Stripe, G Suite, and more. A unique feature of FreshBooks is that invoices can be highly stylized and customized for a professional look and feel. FreshBooks is a great tool for budgeting out projects, sending estimates or proposals, and collecting customer payments.
Zoho Books: Best automation
3.9
- Starting at $15.00/mo.*
Middle-of-the-road starting price
Additional users for $2.50/user/mo.
Automatic recurring invoicing
Data as of 11/5/21. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.
*When billed annually.
Zoho Books automates the most common (and, let’s face it, boring) bookkeeping tasks—which means you can dedicate more time to your business and customers and less time to the tedious task of data entry. Most notably, it lets you set automatic customer payment reminders, create recurring expense profiles, and manage 1099 contractors.
Plus, Zoho Books is just one piece of software in the larger suite of Zoho products. Each Zoho product integrates easily with the rest, which means that along with accounting, you can use Zoho for project management, inventory management, and customer relationship management (CRM)—just for a start.
Plus, if you make under $50K a year, you can take advantage of Zoho Books’ free plan. Otherwise, Zoho Books starts at $15 a month if you pay annually or $20 if you pay month to month. The cheapest plan includes three users, but you can also pay an extra $2.50 per month for each additional user. That’s a standout bargain, especially compared to FreshBooks’ extra $10 per user per month.
Unfortunately, even though it’s a solid accounting tool, Zoho Books has one huge flaw: Zoho doesn’t offer a payroll plan integration unless you live in California, Texas, or India. And it doesn’t integrate with third-party payroll providers either. Instead, you have to manually update the payroll-related aspects of your books—which detracts from Zoho’s primary perk of automation in a big way.
Similarly, Zoho Books’s cheapest plan doesn’t include automatic journal entry creation. Instead, whenever you debit or credit an account, you’ll have to manually create an entry. If you log more than a few transactions a month, the lack of automation adds major time and hassle—you’ll want the $40 a month (or $50, billed monthly) Professional plan instead.
Sage: Best for Freelancers/Self-Employed
SageSage 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
Freelancers and self-employed people need an affordable accounting program that can help them send invoices and get paid. Sage Business Cloud Accounting offers that and much more, making it our pick for the best accounting software for freelancers and the self-employed.
Editor’s score: 7.5/10
Sage Business Cloud Accounting is inexpensive accounting software that packs a lot of punch. With the entry-level plan, you can create and send invoices, track payments and automatically reconcile bank entries.
Sage has another plan that costs $25 a month for unlimited users. With it, you can send invoices, quotes and estimates; run reports and conduct analysis to forecast cash flow; manage purchase invoices; and automatically snap and post receipts. Sage makes that service free for the first three months, and the company is currently running a promotion that gives business users 50% off the higher-tier plan for six months.
We also like that Sage offers a free 30-day trial. Sage also makes it easy to cancel; there isn’t a long-term contract that costs extra to break, but you do have to give the company advance notice of cancellation. Another reason we chose Sage for freelancers and self-employed people is that it is easy to set up and navigate. The software automates a lot of the accounting processes that are typically manual, such as posting expenses and payments and sending invoices and reminders about past-due bills. Thanks to its integrations and apps, Sage is easily expandable as your business grows. The company operates an online app marketplace and integrates with a slew of apps, including AutoEntry, Draycir, Avalara and Credit Hound.
Sage’s customer service is very accessible, which is good news for freelancers and self-employed people who don’t have accounting expertise. If you have questions or need help, you can access customer support 24/7 by chat and live Q&A sessions. Sage also offers one-on-one help through online sessions with Sage accounting experts.
For self-employed and freelance workers, it’s essential to be able to quickly and easily send invoices and track payments. With Sage Business Cloud Accounting, you get an affordable way to keep cash flowing, making it a great accounting program for freelancers and self-employed individuals.
Conclusion
As the software industry continues to change and evolve, so does the number of accounting software packages on the market. Every day new businesses are created and with it the demand for accounting software grows. To follow this trend, there are dozens of accounting software packages providing millions of SaaS solutions for small businesses. Many different types of accounting software exist and they range from inventory and warehouse management systems to payroll and HR, just to name a few.