Best Accounting Software for Small Businesses of 2024

Accounting software helps you track money moving in and out of your small business, so that you can maintain a detailed financial record for tax time.

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Written by Hillary Crawford
Lead Writer
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Assigning Editor
 
Fact Checked
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Xero

Xero

NerdWallet Rating 
5.0
Learn more

on Xero's website

$20/month 

Additional pricing tiers (per month): $47, $80.

95% off for 3 months 

plus get a $300 Amazon voucher (terms apply).

Learn more

on Xero's website

FreshBooks

FreshBooks

NerdWallet Rating 
4.5
Learn more

on FreshBooks' website

$19/month 

Additional pricing tiers (per month): $33, $60, custom.

75% off 

for 3 months. 30-Day Money Back Guarantee.

Learn more

on FreshBooks' website

QuickBooks

QuickBooks Online

NerdWallet Rating 
5.0
Learn more

on QuickBooks' website

$35/month 

Additional pricing tiers (per month): $65, $99, $235.

70% off 

for first three months or free 30-day trial.

Learn more

on QuickBooks' website

Zoho Books

Zoho Books

NerdWallet Rating 
4.5
Learn more

on Zoho Books' website

$0 

Additional pricing tiers (per month): $20, $50, $70, $150, $275.

14-day free trial 

of the Premium plan.

Learn more

on Zoho Books' website

Sage

Sage 50 Accounting

NerdWallet Rating 
3.5
Learn more

on Sage's website

$62/month 

Additional pricing tiers (per month): $103.92, $177.17.

N/A 
Learn more

on Sage's website

Striven

Striven

NerdWallet Rating 
3.5
Learn more

on Striven's website

$35/month 

Per user. Additional pricing tiers per user (per month): $70.

7-day free trial 
Learn more

on Striven's website

QuickBooks

QuickBooks Enterprise

NerdWallet Rating 
4.0
$1,481/year 

Additional pricing tiers (per year): $1,922; $2,363; $4,668. Adding users or cloud access costs extra.

30-day free trial 
Wave

Wave Accounting

NerdWallet Rating 
3.5
$0 

Additional pricing tiers (per month): $16

N/A 

250+ small-business products reviewed and rated by our team of experts.

95+ years of combined experience covering small business and personal finance.

75+ categories of best business software selections.

Objective and comprehensive business accounting software ratings rubric. (Learn more about our star ratings.)

NerdWallet's small-business software content, including ratings, recommendations and reviews, is overseen by a team of writers and editors who specialize in business software, including payroll, accounting and payment processing. Their work has appeared in The Associated Press, The Washington Post, Nasdaq, Entrepreneur, ABC News, Yahoo Finance and other national and local media outlets. Each writer and editor follows NerdWallet's strict guidelines for editorial integrity to ensure accuracy and fairness in our coverage.

A closer look at our top accounting software picks

QuickBooks Online

Best overall accounting software
QuickBooks
QuickBooks

QuickBooks Online

NerdWallet Rating  
5.0
Starting At  

$35

Additional pricing tiers (per month): $65, $99, $235. 

Read Review
Learn more

on QuickBooks' website

  • $35 per month for the Simple Start plan.

  • $65 per month for the Essentials plan.

  • $99 per month for the Plus plan.

  • $235 per month for the Advanced plan.

» MORE: Explore all QuickBooks plans and pricing

QuickBooks Online is an industry leader in the accounting field, thanks to its strong feature set and scalability. In addition to core accounting capabilities, it has robust reporting and transaction tracking tools, invoicing capabilities, inventory management features and mobile app functionality.

In particular, entrepreneurs trying to measure performance in different segments of their business will like QuickBooks’ granular transaction tracking tools that let you group transactions by department or location, among other categories. Reporting capabilities increase with each plan, but even the least expensive Simple Start plan includes more than 50 reports.

Pros

Easy to share information with your accountant and to find QuickBooks experts and online resources if needed.

More than 750 app integrations, including live, in-house bookkeeping.

Robust feature set includes thorough record-keeping, comprehensive reporting, excellent invoicing and inventory management, plus a capable mobile app.

Daily phone support and 24/7 chat support in all plans.

Cons

Lacks industry-specific features.

Limited account users with each plan.

Double-entry accounting

✅

Automatic bank imports

✅

Automatic transaction reconciliation

✅

Unlimited users with at least one plan

✖

Accountant access with all plans

✅

Standard accounting reports (e.g., P&L, balance sheet, AP and AR)

✅

Customizable reports

✅

Industry-specific reports

✖

Invoicing features

✅

Inventory management features

✅

Project tracking features

✅

Mobile app

✅

Business software integrations (e.g., payroll, HR, CRM, time tracking)

✅

Live customer support

✅

» MORE: Best alternatives to QuickBooks

🤓Nerdy Tip

Many of the household accounting software names, such as QuickBooks, Xero and Zoho Books, can be classified as integrated accounting software solutions. This means that in addition to maintaining a general ledger and assisting with day-to-day bookkeeping, the software includes functions for tracking accounts receivable and accounts payable, reconciling bank transactions (often with some level of automation for convenience and time-saving), managing inventory and purchase orders and handling the billing process.

Xero

Best simple accounting software
Xero
Xero

Xero

NerdWallet Rating  
5.0
Starting At  

$20

Additional pricing tiers (per month): $47, $80. 

Read Review
Learn more

on Xero's website

  • $20 per month for the Early plan.

  • $47 per month for the Growing plan.

  • $80 per month for the Established plan.

Xero is another reliable product when it comes to standard accounting capabilities. It also has excellent reporting features and a capable mobile app as well as a customizable dashboard that lets each user rearrange or hide panels according to their preferences.

Xero allows an unlimited number of users on a single account at each plan level, a valuable feature in situations where several users need some level of access to the system. And you can assign them different permission levels: For example, one user might only be able to create invoice drafts and submit time entries, while another can view reports but not edit transactions. Competitors’ plans limit how many users you can add, or they charge an additional monthly fee for each user, which can add up quickly. Xero offers a large number of integrations, too.

Pros

Unlimited users in all pricing plans.

Integrates with more than 1,000 third-party apps.

Feature set includes an excellent mobile app and suite of reports, capable invoicing features, plus automated bill and receipt capture through Hubdoc.

Simple layout and easy to use.

Cons

No phone number for customer support listed.

Entry-level plan limits bills and invoices to five and 20 per month, respectively.

Double-entry accounting

✅

Automatic bank imports

✅

Automatic transaction reconciliation

✅

Unlimited users with at least one plan

✅

Accountant access with all plans

✅

Standard accounting reports (e.g., P&L, balance sheet, AP and AR)

✅

Customizable reports

✅

Industry-specific reports

✖

Invoicing features

✅

Inventory management features

✅

Project tracking features

✅

Mobile app

✅

Business software integrations (e.g., payroll, HR, CRM, time tracking)

✅

Live customer support

✅

» MORE: Best alternatives to Xero

Zoho Books

Best startup accounting software
Zoho Books
Zoho Books

Zoho Books

NerdWallet Rating  
4.5
Starting At  

$0

Additional pricing tiers (per month): $20, $50, $70, $150, $275. 

Read Review
Learn more

on Zoho Books' website

  • $0 per month for the Free plan.

  • $20 per month for the Standard plan.

  • $50 per month for the Professional plan.

  • $70 per month for the Premium plan.

  • $150 per month for the Elite plan.

  • $275 per month for the Ultimate plan.

Unlike some competitors, none of Zoho Books’ plans put a limit on billable clients, and even its free plan lets you send up to 1,000 invoices per year. On top of that, the free option offers a customer portal, automatic payment reminders, mileage tracking and the ability to schedule reports. Higher-tier plans let users automate workflows and track project profitability, and give access to advanced inventory and analytics tools.

The software’s mobile-first features — such as the ability to send invoices by iMessage or add widgets to your phone’s home screen to easily access timers and overdue invoices — really help set it apart, though. There’s also an Apple Watch app that lets you track time, send payment reminders and review outstanding invoices.

Pros

Less expensive than some competitors; free plan available for businesses with less than $50k in annual revenue.

Email support in free plan; phone and chat support in paid plans.

Rich feature set includes excellent invoicing, inventory management, workflow rules and a capable mobile app.

Add accounting widgets to your phone’s home screen; track time using your Apple Watch.

Cons

Fewer third-party integrations and reports than some competitors.

No plan includes more than 15 users (can add additional users for a fee).

Double-entry accounting

✅

Automatic bank imports

✅

Automatic transaction reconciliation

✅

Unlimited users with at least one plan

✖

Accountant access with all plans

✅

Standard accounting reports (e.g., P&L, balance sheet, AP and AR)

✅

Customizable reports

✅

Industry-specific reports

✖

Invoicing features

✅

Inventory management features

✅

Project tracking features

✅

Mobile app

✅

Business software integrations (e.g., payroll, HR, CRM, time tracking)

✅

Live customer support

✅

» MORE: Best Zoho Books alternatives

🤓Nerdy Tip

To find startup accounting software that will best serve your business at any stage, consider scalability as well as strong customer support. You will also want to choose software that uses the accrual basis accounting method for recording transactions. It’s a more detailed (and therefore more involved) method of accounting, but for many businesses — especially those tracking a large amount of inventory and those in need of a business loan — it’s the preferred method.

FreshBooks

Best for freelancers
FreshBooks
FreshBooks

FreshBooks

NerdWallet Rating  
4.5
Starting At  

$19

Additional pricing tiers (per month): $33, $60, custom. 

Read Review
Learn more

on FreshBooks' website

  • $19 per month for the Lite plan.

  • $33 per month for the Plus plan.

  • $60 per month for the Premium plan.

  • Custom pricing for the Select plan.

With standout invoicing features and client management resources, FreshBooks is a great accounting solution for freelancers, particularly if you have 50 or fewer total clients and can therefore opt for the Lite or Plus plan. Your clients can even choose to create their own accounts. This lets them save and comment on invoices, save their payment information, invite others to access the account and collaborate on projects they’ve been invited to view.

Unlike some competitors that require you to pay extra for a time-tracking module, all FreshBooks plans come with unlimited time tracking. You can start a timer from within the mobile app to log hours spent on a particular project or sync data from tools like Asana and Trello.

Pros

Stay in touch with clients through the FreshBooks mobile app and get notified when invoices have been viewed or become overdue.

Intuitive, customizable invoicing capabilities compete with those of more robust accounting solutions.

Track time and add billable hours to invoices in all plans.

Weekday phone support in all plans.

Cons

Lacks features that quickly growing companies need, like audit trails for accountants to review.

Highest-tier Select plan only comes with two users (additional users add $11 per month) and lower-tier plans put limits on billable clients.

Least expensive plan lacks double-entry accounting reports, bank reconciliation and accountant access.

Double-entry accounting

✅

Automatic bank imports

✅

Automatic transaction reconciliation

✅

Unlimited users with at least one plan

✖

Accountant access with all plans

✖

Standard accounting reports (e.g., P&L, balance sheet, AP and AR)

✅

Customizable reports

✅

Industry-specific reports

✖

Invoicing features

✅

Inventory management features

✅

Project tracking features

✅

Mobile app

✅

Business software integrations (e.g., payroll, HR, CRM, time tracking)

✅

Live customer support

✅

» MORE: Best alternatives to FreshBooks

Sage 50 Accounting

Best desktop accounting software
Sage
Sage

Sage 50 Accounting

NerdWallet Rating  
3.5
Starting At  

$62

Additional pricing tiers (per month): $103.92, $177.17. 

Read Review
Learn more

on Sage's website

  • $61.92 per month, for 1 user, for the Pro Accounting plan.

  • $103.92 per month, for 1 user, for the Premium Accounting plan.

  • $177.17 per month, for 1 user, for the Quantum Accounting plan.

  • Prices increase with each additional user.

Sage 50 Accounting, unlike some of its competitors, offers inventory management and job costing features at all plan levels. Also included with every plan is Sage’s own cybersecurity offering, which will keep tabs on your business credit score and monitor for data breaches. Business owners working in construction or manufacturing may be especially drawn to Sage 50’s advanced inventory, job costing, reporting and budgeting capabilities.

Sage 50 Accounting advertises “cloud-connected capabilities,” which refers to a few features of the software that reach beyond typical desktop software functionality: bank feeds, which flow all your business transactions into the software to assist with the reconciliation process; data backups in the cloud for safeguarding your important financial information; and remote data access so you, your team and your accountant can securely access your data from devices other than the machine the software is locally installed on (though perhaps not simultaneously or seamlessly).

Pros

Advanced inventory tracking and job costing features.

Industry-specific features for construction, retail and professional services businesses.

Phone and chat support, plus a dedicated account representative in all plans.

Cons

Lowest-tier plan doesn’t include audit trails.

Pricier than many other solutions on this list.

Double-entry accounting

✅

Automatic bank imports

✅

Automatic transaction reconciliation

✅

Unlimited users with at least one plan

✖

Accountant access with all plans

✅

Standard accounting reports (e.g., P&L, balance sheet, AP and AR)

✅

Customizable reports

✅

Industry-specific reports

✅

Invoicing features

✅

Inventory management features

✅

Project tracking features

✅

Mobile app

✖

Business software integrations (e.g., payroll, HR, CRM, time tracking)

✅

Live customer support

✅

🤓Nerdy Tip

Also sometimes called on-premise software, desktop accounting software must be locally installed on a specific computer and can only be accessed from that one device or location. For some small-business owners, this type of program feels more secure than online accounting software from a data protection perspective, though regular manual backups are necessary to protect against total loss of data in the event of a technology failure.

Wave Accounting

Best free accounting software
Wave
Wave

Wave Accounting

NerdWallet Rating  
3.5
Starting At  

$0

Additional pricing tiers (per month): $16 

Read Review

  • $0 for the Starter plan.

  • $16 per month for the Pro plan.

Wave is a simple solution for very small businesses that need a place to consolidate bookkeeping records and invoices, but don’t have to log more than a handful of transactions each day. The free version of the accounting software lets you track income and expenses, send unlimited invoices and automatically send reminders for late online payments. It also gives you access to more than a dozen pre-built financial reports, including a profit and loss statement and balance sheet.

If you don’t want to manually enter transactions into Wave, you can opt for the Pro plan to link an unlimited number of bank and credit card accounts for automated reconciliation. The paid plan offers more competitive online payment processing rates, too (starting at 2.9% per transaction vs. the free plan’s 2.9% + $0.60 per transaction).

Pros

Free plan available.

Intuitive, customizable invoicing capabilities compete with those of more robust accounting solutions.

Cons

Lacks features that quickly growing companies need, like audit trails.

Must subscribe to Wave’s Pro plan or other paid services (payroll, payments, advisor, etc.) to receive customer support from a human

No third-party integrations, mileage tracking feature or ability to accept in-person card payments.

Double-entry accounting

✅

Automatic bank imports

✅

Automatic transaction reconciliation

✅

Unlimited users with at least one plan

✅

Accountant access with all plans

✖

Standard accounting reports (e.g., P&L, balance sheet, AP and AR)

✅

Customizable reports

✖

Industry-specific reports

✖

Invoicing features

✅

Inventory management features

✖

Project tracking features

✖

Mobile app

✅

Business software integrations (e.g., payroll, HR, CRM, time tracking)

✖

Live customer support

✅

» MORE: Best free accounting software

QuickBooks Enterprise

Best for enterprise accounting software with advanced reporting capabilities
QuickBooks
QuickBooks

QuickBooks Enterprise

NerdWallet Rating  
4.0
Starting At  

$1,481

Additional pricing tiers (per year): $1,922; $2,363; $4,668. Adding users or cloud access costs extra. 

Read Review

  • $1,481 per year for the Silver plan.

  • $1,922 per year for the Gold plan.

  • $2,363 per year for the Platinum plan.

  • $4,668 per year for the Diamond plan.

With QuickBooks Enterprise, business owners can set up volume discounts and customize pricing rules according to sales rep, item category or customer in the Platinum plan and up. The same plans help speed up the inventory count process by allowing businesses to use mobile devices as barcode scanners. And unlike some competitors that only track single inventory items, QuickBooks Enterprise lets you track inventory parts plus assemblies. You can also track the cost of goods sold and adjust inventory for loss or shrinkage.

It is possible to purchase cloud access so your team can better collaborate and access the software and its data from anywhere, but costs add up quickly with an additional monthly charge per user.

Pros

Strong feature set includes thorough record-keeping, invoicing and advanced inventory management and pricing rules.

More than 200 reports, including industry-specific options for various industries.

24/7 phone and chat support.

Cons

Limited direct, third-party software integrations.

Annual subscriptions are expensive; each additional user license and cloud access costs extra.

Double-entry accounting

✅

Automatic bank imports

✅

Automatic transaction reconciliation

✅

Unlimited users with at least one plan

✖

Accountant access with all plans

✅

Standard accounting reports (e.g., P&L, balance sheet, AP and AR)

✅

Customizable reports

✅

Industry-specific reports

✅

Invoicing features

✅

Inventory management features

✅

Project tracking features

✅

Mobile app

✅

Business software integrations (e.g., payroll, HR, CRM, time tracking)

✅

Live customer support

✅

Striven

Best for industry-specific features
Striven
Striven

Striven

NerdWallet Rating  
3.5
Starting At  

$35

Per user. Additional pricing tiers per user (per month): $70. 

Learn more

on Striven's website

  • $35 per month per user for the Standard plan.

  • $70 per month per user for the Enterprise plan.

With Striven’s integrated accounting software, you have access not only to your general ledger and standard reports like profit and loss but also to tools for accounts receivable and accounts payable plus billing, order management and more. Striven’s accounting software will also help ensure your business is operating in a tax-compliant manner by automating tax calculations and giving you access to various tax reports.

Striven has designed accounting solutions tailored to a dozen industries. Its retail solution, for example, includes CRM, inventory management and marketing features to integrate with its accounting platform. But its nonprofit solution includes tools for managing records and scheduling events and even includes a donation portal. And because it’s a cloud-based system, you’ll be able to access your real-time accounting and other business data on the go from anywhere.

Pros

Offers industry-specific features for consulting businesses, nonprofits, manufacturing companies, professional services and more.

Tools to ensure tax compliance.

Other features include inventory tracking, reporting, invoicing, project management tools and the ability to categorize transactions using classes.

Customer support available by phone and live chat.

Cons

Monthly costs could add up quickly if you require multiple users.

No mobile app.

Limited third-party integrations available; no POS or payroll integrations.

Double-entry accounting

✅

Automatic bank imports

✅

Automatic transaction reconciliation

✖

Unlimited users with at least one plan

✖

Accountant access with all plans

✅

Standard accounting reports (e.g., P&L, balance sheet, AP and AR)

✅

Customizable reports

✅

Industry-specific reports

✅

Invoicing features

✅

Inventory management features

✅

Project tracking features

✅

Mobile app

✖

Business software integrations (e.g., payroll, HR, CRM, time tracking)

✖

Live customer support

✅

» MORE: Best business software

What is accounting software?

Accounting software helps your small business follow basic accounting principles so that you can keep your books up to date and in order, which is especially important come tax season. Think of it as a database for all of your business’s financial transactions.

Without dedicated accounting software, these crucial financial tasks would be tedious and more vulnerable to human error:

  • Entering and organizing financial transactions. 

  • Recording income and expenses. 

  • Reconciling accounts.

  • Generating financial statements and reports.  

  • Keeping track of how much money you’re owed and vice versa.  

Most accounting software goes beyond these tasks with additional built-in modules for invoicing, bill-pay and inventory management, among other functions. The more your accounting software becomes a one-stop shop for these financial chores, the fewer integrations you need to consider.

Learn more about how accounting software works

You’ll get the most out of your accounting software if you understand its main use cases and which features to look for. If used correctly, it can help minimize manual data entry and simplify tedious back-office tasks.

How to choose accounting software

Ideally, your accounting software will make your day-to-day routine easier through automation. Here are some key factors to consider when researching and choosing the best accounting software for your small business.

  • Accessibility: Cloud-based software enables access through any device with an internet connection. This generally allows for easier collaboration with accountants and seamless integration with other business software. Desktop-based software, however, can only be accessed from a single computer.

  • Scalability: Take a look at products’ plan offerings, including how many employees and users the software can support, to make sure you can upgrade to a more robust version of the software as your business grows. If you anticipate rapid or high growth, consider accounting software for medium-sized businesses. 

  • Your budget: Determine how much your business can afford to spend monthly on accounting software in conjunction with other recurring costs, like utilities, rent and additional software subscriptions for a POS system or payroll, for example. If you’re a solopreneur and want to keep costs down, check out our list of best accounting software for freelancers and the self-employed.

  • Ease of use: Accounting software that isn’t intuitive and user-friendly can take up an unnecessary amount of your time or discourage you from using it as often as you should to keep your finances in order. Test out free trials of accounting software, request a demo and watch tutorial videos to get a feel for navigating the software. 

  • Integrations: Think about the other types of software you already use or plan to use, and check to see if direct integrations are available between those products and the accounting software you’re considering. If not, you may need to pay for an indirect integration or manually transfer data from one product to another. 

  • Customer support: Think about what time of the day you’re most likely to reach out for assistance and how you’d like to communicate with customer service representatives. Free accounting software options typically offer less robust customer support solutions than paid products do. 

  • Sharing with your accountant: If you’re working with an outside accountant, take note of how easy (or not) a product makes it for you to share your financial details and reports with your accountant. Many popular accounting software products allow you to easily share access, but some require upgrades to costlier plans for this access and some products only enable you to export data to be sent to your accountant.

More Nerdy Perspective

My husband plans to open a brewery in 2025, and I’m going to help him choose the right accounting software and maintain his books. I’m QuickBooks certified and write about small-business software for a living, but taking on a business’s bookkeeping tasks is still daunting. That’s why I’m not doing it alone.

As I’m setting up the accounting software, I’m going to check in with a certified public accountant to make sure I’m on the right track. More specifically, I want to ensure I’m organizing the chart of accounts efficiently and categorizing transactions correctly. That way, we can run accurate reports from day one.

Other small-business owners can benefit from doing the same early on. And ideally, your accountant will have experience in your specific industry, too.

Hillary Crawford, Lead Writer, Small Business

How much does accounting software cost?

Accounting software for small businesses can cost anywhere from $0 for the basics to $200 or more per month for the most advanced plans. The picks listed above include both free and paid products, and most options have multiple plans at different price points. Here are a handful of factors that could impact how much you’re paying for accounting software:
Paper documents wrapped with a ribbon that has a checkmark on it.
Sign-up discountsAs a new customer, you can sometimes choose between a monthly discount or a free trial. If you go with the monthly discount, understand exactly how much more you’ll be paying when the introductory period is up.
A calculator with cash next to it.
Payment frequencyThe prices listed above apply to month-to-month subscriptions, but you may be able to save by committing to an annual one instead. Just be sure to read the fine print — you might not get reimbursed if you pay upfront and cancel before the year is up.
A person looking at a mobile phone.
Number of usersIn some cases, you’ll need to pay a monthly fee per additional user. Factor in how many users an accounting software product includes, how much it costs to add additional users and how many people in your business need to have access to the software.
Couple of hands typing on a laptop.
IntegrationsMake a list of the integrations you’ll require and check to see if they’re built into your accounting software already. If not, you might need to pay a monthly subscription fee to connect one program to another.

Key accounting software features to consider

Determining which accounting tools you require will depend on your business type, size and industry, among other factors. Here are some features to keep top of mind as you compare options.

This means your accounting software enters a balancing debit or credit for each transaction, so that you don’t have to do it manually.  

Most accounting software comes with a built-in chart of accounts you can use to categorize transactions. You should be able to add or remove accounts as needed.

You may have the option to automatically pull transactions from your business’s bank and credit card accounts into your software. This reduces time and error from manual entry.  

Tracking money-in and money-out transactions is central to bookkeeping. 

Some accounting software products will automatically match your bank and credit card statements with the transactions in your accounting software to ensure alignment, meaning you only have to look them over and approve.

Cloud-based accounting software makes it easy to invite your accountant to look over your books remotely.

Look for report templates — think a profit and loss statement, balance sheet and cash flow statement — along with reports on aged receivables and sales tax. You should be able to customize them by date so that you can compare time periods. 

The ability to invoice clients from your accounting software is key for service-based businesses. You want to be able to customize invoices with your logo, easily turn estimates into invoices, add terms and due dates, and accept online payments. While it might not be as convenient, third-party invoicing software is also available.

To minimize manual data entry, you’ll want to integrate your accounting software with the rest of your business software ecosystem so they can exchange information automatically. This may include your point-of-sale software, payroll software, inventory software and third-party time or mileage tracking tools. 

Accounting software for freelancers, for example, often includes mobile apps for iOS and Android devices that let you track time and miles. Accounting apps are also convenient for sending invoices on the go and snapping photos of receipts and other documents.

It’s not uncommon for accounting software to include basic inventory management in lower-tier plans, though you might have to pay extra or integrate with a third-party app to sync in-store and online sales.

Just like you keep track of how much money your business is owed, you may need to keep tabs on what your business owes. Bill management features can help you schedule payments so you don’t risk late fees.

Service-based businesses may want insight into each job’s profitability, so they know how to best spend their time.

Many of the popular accounting products can work well for a variety of business types and sizes, but they do come with limits. If you work in an industry with more stringent tax requirements, such as the nonprofit sector or legal professions, or in a field that benefits from detailed and specialized financial reporting, such as construction or manufacturing, then accounting software designed specifically with those needs in mind may be the way to go.

Compare NerdWallet’s top accounting software picks by features

To help determine which accounting software is best for your business, start by comparing each product’s maximum user limit, invoicing capabilities, time-tracking tools, inventory tracking features and phone support availability.

Maximum users

Invoicing

Time tracking

Inventory tracking

QuickBooks

5.0

NerdWallet rating 

Up to 25 in Advanced plan.

Unlimited.

Can manually enter time in Essentials plan and higher; automatic time tracking costs extra.

Yes, but only in Plus plan and higher.

5.0

NerdWallet rating 

Unlimited.

20/month in Early plan; unlimited in higher-tier plans.

Yes, but only in Established plan.

Yes.

Zoho Books

4.5

NerdWallet rating 

Up to 15 in Ultimate plan. Additional users cost extra.

1,000/year in free plan; up to 100,000/year in paid plans.

Yes, in the Professional plan and up.

Yes, Zoho Inventory offers free, integrated plans.

4.5

NerdWallet rating 

Up to two in Select plan. Additional users cost extra.

Unlimited, but Lite and Plus plans cap number of billable clients.

Yes.

Yes.

3.5

NerdWallet rating 

Free plan is limited to one user. Must subscribe to paid plan to add additional users.

Unlimited.

No.

No.

Sage

3.5

NerdWallet rating 

Up to 40 in Quantum Accounting plan.

Unlimited.

No.

Yes.

QuickBooks

4.0

NerdWallet rating 

Up to 40, but each user license costs extra.

Unlimited.

Yes, but only in Diamond plan and fees apply.

Yes.

Striven

3.5

NerdWallet rating 

Unlimited, but each user license costs extra.

Unlimited.

Yes.

Yes.

Compare more accounting software products

If you’d like to shop by industry, check out NerdWallet’s picks for:

Methodology: How we choose the best accounting software for small business

NerdWallet’s accounting software ratings favor products that are easy to use, reasonably priced, have a robust feature set and can grow with your business. The best accounting software received top marks when evaluated across more than 10 categories and more than 30 subcategories.

Pie chart displaying accounting software ratings categories and percentages

These ratings are meant to provide clarity in the decision-making process, but what’s best for your business will depend on its size, growth trajectory and which features you need most. We encourage you to research and compare multiple accounting software products before choosing one. NerdWallet does not receive compensation for any reviews. Read our editorial guidelines.

A guide to our star ratings

Accounting software that receives a NerdWallet rating of 5 stars is outstanding among its competition. It delivers great value to users with a range of features and integrations at an affordable — and transparent — price. It also offers multiple avenues for customer support.

Accounting software that earns 4 or 4.5 stars is excellent. It includes all the standard features and most advanced features but is lacking in areas such as integrations, a mobile app and/or pricing transparency.

Accounting software with a rating of 3 or 3.5 stars is a solid choice. It lacks certain key features and integrations, and it may also lack pricing transparency. Alternatively, it may be a free product that lacks certain desirable features but offers enough to be worth consideration for businesses on a tight budget.

Accounting software that we rate below 3 stars is found to be lacking in several key categories, and we therefore won’t typically recommend it.

Frequently asked questions

In most cases, yes. While you can try using spreadsheets to keep track of your business’s finances, they can become messy and time-consuming. Accounting software is less susceptible to human error and makes it easy to quickly run crucial financial reports, like a profit and loss statement or balance sheet.

On top of that, double-entry accounting software enters debits and credits for you so you don’t have to worry about manually balancing your books. Ultimately, investing in accounting software will save you time and help make sure your books are accurate.

QuickBooks Online is one of the most ubiquitous accounting software products on the market. Xero, FreshBooks and Zoho Books are also used widely.

NerdWallet likes Xero for its simplicity and ease of use. Its clean layout, global search function and customizable dashboard are a plus, especially for accounting novices.

Chances are, there will be some sort of learning curve no matter what software you select. Testing out free demos and free trials can help you get a feel for these products’ usability before committing to them.

Wave Accounting offers a free software plan that covers basic accounting and invoicing. It doesn’t offer time or mileage tracking or a billable expense feature, but it does allow for unlimited users and recurring invoicing. Zoho Books also offers a free monthly subscription plan along with several paid plan options, starting at a competitively low cost of $20 per month.

Free accounting software can be a great solution for micro businesses that don’t have a large volume of transactions and only need income and expense tracking, basic reporting and invoicing. But even if the basics are sufficient for your business, remember that free products have their downsides.

For example, Wave’s free accounting plan lacks audit trails, third-party integrations and live customer support. It also doesn’t offer additional plans if your business grows in the future, which means you could eventually have to transfer your data to another provider.

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