Best small business free accounting software

Ability to send unlimited invoices, manage unlimited vendors and accept digital payments. Can work with third-party online payment platforms. Payments and payroll integrations cost extra. Overall lack of integrations with other platforms. The ZipBooks Starter plan includes unlimited and customizable invoices, estimates and price quotes. Plus, if you like ZipBooks Starter, you can always upgrade to a more feature-laden plan as your business grows.

There are a few downsides to ZipBooks, however. Open-source software means you can customize however you want. Robust user support via online forums. Design is not as intuitive as other platforms.

Not as ready-to-use as other options. Akaunting is an open-source accounting platform that has the capability for customization, primarily through its library of add-ons. However, you or someone on your team will likely need some coding knowledge to use this software to its full potential. Easy to upgrade to paid versions as your business grows. Limits on the number of users, contacts and workflows for free plan.

Free plan provides email support only. Paid plans include email, voice and chat support. Zoho Books provides an easy way to manage your business's books from anywhere. This software allows you to handle a variety of accounting tasks, including creating and sending customized invoices and estimates, plus reminder emails for overdue invoices and simple conversion from estimate to invoice. Outside of those, though, you are somewhat limited in terms of third-party integrations.

Plus, changing apps may mean inputting your financial data each time. Read our Xero Review. QuickBooks Online is the most user-friendly accounting software. Extensive accounting features and reporting. Up to 25 users depending on the plan. Unlimited expense and sales tax tracking with each plan. The basic QuickBooks Online plan includes typical features like invoicing, billing, and receipt scanning along with more comprehensive tracking than many competitors: Mileage tracking Sales tax tracking Automatic tax deduction categorization contractor payment tracking QuickBooks also has the absolute best mobile accounting app you can find.

See QuickBooks' Accounting Plans. Read our QuickBooks Online Review. FreshBooks is the best software for invoicing. Middle-of-the-road starting price. Expense and time tracking with each plan. FreshBooks discounts. See FreshBooks' Plans. Read our Freshbooks Review. Zoho Books is the most comprehensive accounting software. Automatic recurring invoicing. See Zoho's Accounting Plans. Read our Zoho Books Review.

Wave is the most affordable accounting software. Wave Accounting. Free-for-life accounting software. Unlimited users. Income and expense tracking.

See Wave's Accounting Plans. Read our Wave Review. Get business accounting right the first time. Learn all about business accounting with our free ultimate guide. Sign Up. Accounting software honorable mentions. Sage Business Cloud Accounting. GoDaddy Online Bookkeeping. Top feature comparison: Accounting software honorable mentions. Brand name. Sage Business Cloud Accounting: Best user-experience runner-up.

Best user experience. Automatic bank reconciliation. Other Sage products. See Sage's Accounting Plans. Read our Sage Review. OneUp: Best for sales teams. Best for sales teams. Plan-limited users. Unlimited invoicing. See OneUp's Plans. Kashoo: Easiest setup. Simplest setup. Well-featured free plan. Additional user options. Income, expense, and sales tax tracking. See Kashoo's Accounting Plans.

GoDaddy Online Bookkeeping: Best bookkeeping-only software. Best for bookkeeping only. One user only. Time and mileage tracking with every plan. See GoDaddy's Bookkeeping Plans. ZipBooks: Most affordable runner-up. Most affordable alternative. One user plus accountant access. Unlimited invoices, billable clients, and vendors. See ZipBooks's Accounting Plans. Track time and expenses Create custom invoices Accept online payments.

Get Started. The takeaway. All of our other picks have something to offer too, so if you find Xero isn't a good fit, try one of these alternatives: QuickBooks Online is an extremely comprehensive accounting solution with one of the best accounting apps you can find.

With up to 25 users, its most expensive plan suits bigger businesses with large, collaborative accounting teams. FreshBooks easily offers the best invoicing of any provider on our list. Its invoice, estimate, and payment acceptance features make it ideal for on-the-go contractors and freelancers who frequently collaborate with clients.

Zoho Books has about as many features as QuickBooks at a lower price and a low additional user fee. Its free plan is perfect for freelancers who want solid reporting and financial tracking without any overwhelming bells and whistles for instance, QuickBooks' dozens of customizable reports. Wave Accounting is the best free accounting solution for most freelancers, contractors, and other small-business owners.

If you juggle multiple businesses, want to add multiple users, or need unlimited expense tracking, Wave won't lead you astray. Related reading. Wave vs. QuickBooks Online FreshBooks vs. Xero FreshBooks vs. Still not sure which accounting software is best?

Accounting software FAQ. What is the best accounting software for small businesses? Is QuickBooks the best software for small businesses? What is the best free accounting software for small businesses? Can I use accounting software with payroll software? Best Free Accounting Software Options. NCH Software. Learn more about our top brands. To find and rank the best accounting software for freelancers and small-business owners, we carefully examined each accounting company's performance in a few crucial areas: Bookkeeping and accounting features , such as bank reconciliation, journal entry generation, charts of accounts, receipt scanning, invoicing, and expense and invoice tracking Pricing , including the number of features with each plan, user limits, and additional fees Scalability for growing businesses , including the number.

Disclaimer At Business. Written by. Kylie McQuarrie has been writing for and about small businesses since Prior to writing full-time, she worked with a variety of small-business owners from freelance writers to real-estate solopreneurs , which gave her a front-row look at small-business owners' struggles, frustrations, and successes.

Read More. Recent Articles. We weighed pricing, plans, limited and unlimited features, customer service reputation, and ease of use We looked at 15 of the top payroll processing companies and evaluated them based on Contact Us. About Us. Partner with Us. While it's not quite as fully featured as Zoho Books , Zoho's accounting-specific product, Zoho Invoice has more than enough features to recommend it—and, obviously, they're entirely free: Professional, customizable invoices with multi-currency and multi-language support Automatic recurring invoicing and customer payment reminders Estimates easily convertible to invoices Expense tracking, receipt scanning, and time tracking Thanks to its its built-in time tracking which syncs easily with invoices , estimate-to-invoice conversion, and client portal for straightforward collaboration, Zoho Invoice is ideal for freelancers who frequently collaborate with customers.

Get Started with Zoho Invoice. Read Our Zoho Books Review. Track time and expenses Create custom invoices Accept online payments. Get Started. ZipBooks: Best for beginners. Invoicing and digital payment acceptance PayPal or Square only. Unlimited billable clients and vendors. Limited reporting, users, and bank account connections. Instead, it sticks to the basics, offering just a few accounting features for free: Unlimited customizable invoices, estimates, and quotes Multi-currency payment acceptance Expense and receipt tracking Chart of accounts generation We know, we know—that doesn't look like much, especially when compared to Wave and Zoho Invoice.

Get Started with ZipBooks. Expensify: Best corporate expense management. Thorough individual, freelancer, and corporate expense tracking. Corporate card management included with free plan. Limited accounting features. Get Started with Expensify. Read Our Expensify Review. GnuCash: Best open-source software. Income and expense tracking.

Customizable open-source software with solid community support. Fairly basic features with limited support. Get Started with GnuCash. Get business accounting right the first time. Learn all about business accounting with our free ultimate guide. Sign Up. Still not sure which accounting software is best for you? Honorable mentions. NCH Software. Best free accounting software: Honorable mentions. Odoo: Best open-source software runner-up.

Basic invoicing, expense tracking, and financial reports. One aspect of a fully integrated, free CRM solution. Limited third-party integration and customer support. Get Started with Odoo. Invoicing, accounts payable, and sales tracking. Thorough financial reports. Available for Mac users only. Limited accounting and bookkeeping features. General ledger and invoicing. Basic spreadsheet-based payroll tracking. Limited features and outdated interface. The takeaway.

But if Wave isn't your thing, a few other options could work even better: Zoho Invoice's automatic invoicing, simple customer portal, and multi-currency support are just right for freelancers who want basic accounting with stand-out customer collaboration tools.

ZipBooks ' customizable invoices, simple payment acceptance, and basic financial reports are ideal for first-time business owners who want free software without too much complexity.

GnuCash is a solid open-source solution for code-literate business owners who want a free, customizable accounting program. Expensify's free corporate plan works well for larger businesses that need affordable company card management and fantastic expense tracking.

Related content. Money Market vs. Free accounting software FAQ. Is there a free alternative to QuickBooks? What is the best accounting software for small businesses? Disclaimer At Business. Written by. Kylie McQuarrie has been writing for and about small businesses since Prior to writing full-time, she worked with a variety of small-business owners from freelance writers to real-estate solopreneurs , which gave her a front-row look at small-business owners' struggles, frustrations, and successes.

Read More. Recent Articles. We weighed pricing, plans, limited and unlimited features, customer service reputation, and ease of use We looked at 15 of the top payroll processing companies and evaluated them based on Contact Us. About Us. Partner with Us. Find Solutions. Don't miss an update.