Small Business Accounting Programs Free

[Rosham Rosebure]

FreshBooksempowers small businesses to attract new clients and grow their business. Learn how to work smarter not harder and identify opportunities to be more productive and efficient. With FreshBooks, you will be able to create professional looking invoices in just minutes and manage your expenses on the go.

Plus, track your time on the job and collaborate with team members and clients with ease. It is an all in one accounting tool that manages your bookkeeping needs. Take your business to the next level and get paid faster with FreshBooks. Oversee all your accounting tasks without ever leaving FreshBooks.

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With its straightforward accounting software, QuickBooks is an easy favorite amongst freelancers, and not just because many of them bundle it when filing their own taxes with TurboTax. It starts at $15 per month for your first three months and allows for tracking income and expenses, invoicing, accepting payments, maximizing tax deductions, running reports, capturing and organizing receipts, tracking miles, managing cash flow, tracking sales and sales tax, sending estimates and managing 1099 contractors, such as freelancers and self-employed individuals.

Some general standout features you can expect with Intuit QuickBooks include invoicing and payments, tax management tools, reporting and expense tracking, including receipt capture and mileage tracking.

QuickBooks offers four plans ranging from $30 to $200 per month (non-promotional pricing). Each offers all the tools in the previous-tier plan, plus additional tools. Here is a look at the features and pricing for each plan:

Intuit QuickBooks has a 4.3-star rating and a 4.4-star rating on Capterra and G2, respectively, with over 6,700 reviews on the two platforms. Users say the software is comprehensive in its accounting features and easy to use. However, they say that solving an issue can be time-consuming and frustrating.

In my testing, I also found the software to be incredibly intuitive to use, even when dealing with advanced features like setting up workflow automations. I tested the software on a Mac laptop using a Safari browser. The setup process could not have been easier because QuickBooks offers a step-by-step guidance wizard to complete the setup, from adding a bank account and customizing invoices to setting up the QuickBooks mobile app.

From there, once I landed on the dashboard, I received a checklist of items to complete account setup and customization. I could also access a continually updating list of shortcuts to tools I most use in the platform.

Completing necessary tasks required me to fill out simple forms and spreadsheets. For example, adding a bank deposit only requires the skills to input data on a simple grid or spreadsheet. I could use drop-down menus to categorize expenses, select the associated vendor and select where the deposit funds should be allocated. I could further add file attachments of relevant invoices or checks.

Users give Zoho Books a 4.4 out of five-star rating on Capterra and 618 reviews. On G2, it has a 4.5 out of five-star rating with 264 reviews. Users say the features are intuitive to use, though the system as a whole comes with a slight learning curve. They like that it has all the features they need to handle small business accounting and invoicing and that it integrates with other Zoho tools. Some say they have experienced delays in product functioning, specifically when working with large data sets.

All in all, once I got past the learning curve surrounding account navigation in Zoho Books, I found the software to be feature-rich and with plenty of convenient tools to make completing tasks intuitive.

FreshBooks is one of the easiest accounting software to use. It is designed for small business owners without an accounting background. With just a couple of clicks and by filling out simple forms, you can create and send invoices, track expenses, manage projects and clients and view reports. Most steps offer step-by-step guidance so you always know what to do next. Besides its primary plans, it also offers a custom plan with custom pricing for businesses with complex needs or large client bases.

FreshBooks offers key features small businesses need to manage their accounting requirements, including invoicing, tax management, reporting and time tracking tools. Here is a deeper look at what you can expect from each.

FreshBooks has a 4.5 rating on Capterra with 4,379 reviews and a 4.5-star rating on G2 with 688 reviews. Users say it is extremely easy to use and has all the basic features needed to manage small business accounting needs. They like how easy it is to create invoices and access reporting. However, they say the platform could use more automations and more in-depth reporting. They also wish they did not have to pay extra for features such as adding team members, saving credit card information or processing payroll.

Signing up for the free trial required I simply provide my name and email, then retrieve a code from my email address to verify my identity. From there, I was asked a few questions about my business, such as the types of services I offer and how big my team is.

Overall, the user experience was beyond easy. I was walked through how to use all features. However, to allow for this ease of use, the software was not very customizable and did not have some of the automation features that other providers offer, such as mileage tracking, multi-currency support or expense auto-categorizations.

FreshBooks is a good choice for small business owners who want easy-to-use accounting software. The software is also a good fit for service-based businesses, such as consultants, web designers and photographers.

Xero is a full-featured accounting software with advanced features such as project tracking, file storage, customizable invoices, a full-featured mobile app and much more. Here are the details on these standout features.

Xero offers three plans with small business accounting tools: Early, Growing and Established. You can also try Xero for free for 30 days. Each comes with a 70% off promotional price for the first six months. Here are the features and pricing details for each plan.

For $42 per month, you can purchase the Growing plan. Its current promotional price is $12.60 per month for the first six months only. In addition to all the features in the Early plan, this plan offers:

I tested Xero on a Mac laptop using the Safari browser. Setting up my account was quick and easy. I simply had to input my email, name and phone number into a simple sign-up form. From there, I was sent a link to my email inbox. Once I clicked the link, I was taken to my Xero account.

Overall, Xero offers a basic interface for completing key accounting tasks. However, its menu layout can be confusing, lending to a user learning curve and its customization options can be quite basic, creating a one-size-fits-all experience that may not suit the unique needs of all businesses.

Xero is a good choice for small businesses that are looking for an accounting software with payroll capabilities. The software is also a good fit for businesses that are growing quickly and need to track projects and organize their documents efficiently.

AccountEdge provides a meticulously crafted suite tailored to small businesses. Grounded on the desktop, it offers a suite of command centers addressing various facets of your business, from sales and invoicing to payroll, accounting and inventory. Its commitment to the evolving demands of modern businesses is evident through the optional cloud app, AccountEdge Connect. This app provides remote accounting capabilities without compromising the foundational features of the desktop software. In addition, the AccountEdge Hosted option provides remote access from any device, offering flexibility to businesses.

One particularly notable feature set within AccountEdge is its data management and report customization features. You can customize hundreds of reports and use filters, report fields and custom lists to see only the data you need. You can also create graphs, charts and maps to create easily consumable reports. The software allows you to then back up your data even daily to ensure it is safe and never lost. Finally, you can request a free copy of AccountEdge for your accountant so they always have full access to your data.

AccountEdge offers tools for customizing hundreds of reports using advanced reporting filters, fields and lists. You can filter reports by date, customer, vendor, item and other fields. You can also customize the visual layout of your reports using graphs, charts and maps.

You can use AccountEdge to track time based on the job or project. The software even allows a breakdown of tracked time based on billable and non-billable activities within each project or job. From there, you can track job progress based on its income, expenses and profit margin, then easily turn timesheets into invoices. Time billing reports further allow you to view time billing for activities, customers, employees, jobs, rate levels and productivity.

AccountEdge has a 4.3-star rating on Capterra with 93 user reviews and a 3.7-star rating on G2 with 23 reviews. Users say that after a small learning curve, the software is easy to use and navigate. They also like that it has lots of reporting features and easy data backup capabilities.

However, they complain that it is not as easy to use on a Mac computer and the interface looks dated on these devices. I have to agree with this assessment. When I tried testing this software on a Mac computer, I experienced one glitch after another with installation, making it impossible to even download the software and get it going. Users also say that they experience significant bugs with updates that sometimes leave necessary features unusable until the bug is resolved.

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