Best Alternatives To QuickBooks Accounting Software

In the world of business finance, QuickBooks has long reigned as a popular choice for managing accounting tasks. However, if you’re seeking a free alternative to QuickBooks or exploring best accounting softwares similar to this industry giant, you’ve come to the right place. This article will take you on a journey through the top alternatives to QuickBooks that offer robust features without burning a hole in your pocket. 

We have curated a list of exceptional alternatives to QuickBooks that will elevate your financial management game. So, let’s dive in and explore these software options that provide a perfect blend of functionality, affordability and ease-of-use.

[Related: Benefits of Quicbooks]

List Of Alternative Software Like QuickBooks:

• Xero: A powerful cloud-based accounting software for streamlined financial management.
• FreshBooks: An intuitive and feature-rich accounting solution for small businesses and self-employed professionals.
• Sage: Comprehensive accounting software offering scalability and advanced functionality for businesses of all sizes.
• Wave: A free accounting software with essential features, perfect for small businesses and freelancers on a budget.

What Is Xero?

Xero is a leading cloud-based accounting software designed to facilitate efficient financial management for businesses of all sizes. With its intuitive interface, comprehensive features, and seamless integration capabilities, Xero empowers users to streamline their accounting processes and gain real-time visibility into their financial health.

Pros And Cons Of Xero

Pros 

• Streamlined payment system that seamlessly synchronizes with bank accounts.
• Plan options tailored to the needs of young, growing and established businesses.
• Unlimited user capability, accommodating collaborative financial management.

Cons

• Limited suitability for international businesses or comprehensive project tracking, unless opting for the highest-tier plan.
• Phone-based customer support can be cumbersome to access, potentially impacting timely assistance.

What Are Its Features?

• Expense Tracking and Bill Pay

Xero simplifies the process of monitoring expenses and organizing bill payments within a centralized platform. This functionality empowers users to identify financial patterns, analyze trends, and make informed decisions regarding cash flow management.

• Effortless One-Click Payments

Whether it involves sending payments to suppliers or collecting funds from clients, Xero streamlines the payment process with its convenient one-click Pay Now button integrated into invoices. This efficient feature enhances transaction speed and improves overall payment management.

• Comprehensive Project Management Tools

Xero provides robust project management tools that allow users to track project progress and effectively manage associated expenses. By centralizing project-related financial information, businesses can monitor costs, assess profitability, and maintain efficient budget control.

• In-Depth Financial Reporting and Data Analytics

Accurate financial reporting and detailed data analytics serve as vital components of Xero. By leveraging these features, businesses can gain valuable insights into their financial health, identify growth opportunities, and strategize for long-term success.

• Streamlined Bank Reconciliation

Xero offers advanced functionalities to simplify the bank reconciliation process and streamline expense coding. These features reduce manual data entry, minimize errors, and enhance the efficiency of financial reconciliation tasks.

What Are Its Pricing Plans?

Xero offers a complimentary 30-day trial that grants full access to all features, allowing users to experience its capabilities firsthand. Following the trial period, users can choose a plan that best aligns with their business needs and objectives.

Xero provides three distinct plans:

• Early Plan: 

Designed for sole proprietors, new businesses and self-employed individuals, the Early Plan is priced at $13 per month. This plan encompasses essential functionalities such as sending quotes and up to 20 invoices, managing up to five bills, reconciling bank transactions, capturing bills and receipts, and obtaining a snapshot of short-term cash flow.

• Growing Plan: 

Tailored for emerging small businesses, the Growing Plan is available at $37 per month. In addition to the features offered in the Early Plan, this package includes the convenience of bulk reconciling transactions, empowering businesses to efficiently manage their financial records as they scale.

• Established Plan: 

The Established Plan, priced at $70 per month, is specifically curated for well-established businesses with a longer operating history. It encompasses all the features available in the Growing Plan, while further providing the ability to utilize multiple currencies, track projects, claim expenses and gain access to comprehensive analytics. This plan equips businesses with the tools necessary for enhanced financial management and decision-making.

By offering these distinct plans, Xero ensures that users can select the most suitable option based on their business stage, requirements and growth trajectory.

What Is FreshBooks?

FreshBooks is a cloud-based accounting software that simplifies financial management for small businesses and self-employed professionals. It offers features like easy invoicing, expense tracking, automated time tracking, streamlined project management, and insightful financial reporting. The software also enables efficient project collaboration and provides valuable financial insights. It integrates seamlessly with popular payment gateways for online payments and reconciliation.

Pros And Cons Of FreshBooks

Pros 

• Streamlined process for creating and sending invoices, promoting efficiency.
• The intuitive nature of the cloud-based app enhances user experience and ease of navigation.
• Pricing and features are specifically tailored to meet the needs and preferences of freelancers and self-employed professionals.

Cons

• FreshBooks lacks the inclusion of quarterly tax estimates, potentially requiring users to seek alternative solutions for tax planning.
• Inability to view reports or manage team members directly from the app may lead to additional steps or platforms for accessing and overseeing these functionalities.

What Are Its Features?

• Invoicing Tools:

FreshBooks provides a user-friendly invoice screen where you can customize and brand invoices to align with your business identity. The preview feature allows you to visualize how the documents will appear to recipients. Additionally, you have the flexibility to set up recurring invoices at specified intervals, saving time and effort.

• Estimate and Proposal Conversion:

With FreshBooks, you can seamlessly convert estimates and proposals into invoices, streamlining the billing process and ensuring accurate invoicing based on agreed-upon terms.

• Mobile Application:

FreshBooks offers a comprehensive mobile app that offers the majority of features available on the browser version. This allows you to conveniently manage your accounting tasks on the go, empowering you to stay connected and productive from anywhere.

• Internationally Friendly Tools:

FreshBooks recognizes the diverse needs of businesses operating globally. The software supports multiple languages and currencies, enabling users to conduct business internationally with ease and accuracy.

• Integrations:

FreshBooks boasts a wide range of integration options, with over 100 third-party applications that can seamlessly integrate with the software. This versatility allows you to connect FreshBooks with other tools and systems to enhance productivity and streamline workflows.

• User Roles and Permissions:

To bolster security and maintain data confidentiality, FreshBooks offers the ability to set user roles and permissions. By assigning appropriate access levels, you can ensure that sensitive data is only accessible to authorized individuals, enhancing data protection and privacy.

What Are Its Pricing Plans?

FreshBooks offers a range of plan options, allowing customization through add-ons. There is also a fully customizable plan available from the start. You can try FreshBooks free of charge for 30 days, with no requirement for credit card information, and you have the flexibility to cancel at any time.

• Lite Plan: 

Priced at $17 per month, the Lite plan supports up to five billable clients. It provides unlimited expense tracking, unlimited estimates, acceptance of credit card payments and ACH transfers, sales tax tracking, access to reports, and utilization of the mobile application.

• Plus Plan: 

Regularly priced at $30 per month, the Plus plan expands the maximum number of billable clients to 50. In addition to the features of the Lite plan, it offers recurring billing, business health reports, automatic receipt capture and expense tracking, double-entry accounting reports, accessibility for CPAs, and mobile mileage tracking.

• Premium Plan: 

Available at $55 per month, the Premium plan offers support for an unlimited number of billable clients. In addition to the Plus plan features, it includes unlimited invoice sends, automatic payment reminders, full accounts payable tools, project profitability tracking, and customizable email templates and signatures.

• Select Plan:

The Select plan is a customized option that requires a demonstration and a quote from a FreshBooks sales representative. It includes all the features of the Premium plan, with the potential for additional benefits such as reduced credit card transaction rates and capped ACH fees, a dedicated account manager, data migration support, custom onboarding services, and the removal of FreshBooks branding from client-facing emails. The Select plan also offers the Advanced Payments add-on, available at $20 per month, which is compatible with all tiers.

FreshBooks’ pricing is notably more affordable compared to QuickBooks, with monthly plans ranging from $30 to $200. Team members can be added at an additional cost of $11 per person per month. The Advanced Payments add-on, which includes credit card saving and charging functionality, subscription-based billing, and a virtual terminal, is available for an extra $20 per month and can be used with all plan tiers.

What Is Sage?

Sage is a professional accounting software solution designed to streamline financial management for businesses of all sizes. With its comprehensive suite of features, Sage empowers users to efficiently manage invoicing, track expenses, reconcile bank transactions, generate financial reports, and facilitate payroll processing. Its user-friendly interface, robust functionality, and scalability make it a trusted choice for businesses seeking effective accounting solutions.

Pros And Cons Of Sage 

Pros 

• It is an accessible choice for newcomers to accounting software, offering essential accounting features in a user-friendly manner.
• The software provides two competitively priced plans, with an enticing six-month discount for those opting for the higher-tier option.
• Sage prioritizes comprehensive setup and user guides, leaving no aspect unaddressed, ensuring ease of use and platform familiarity.

Cons

• Sage Accounting lacks dedicated tools for tax calculation, reporting, and filing.
• While Sage offers multiple integrations, it falls short in terms of integration partnerships with prominent platforms.

What Are Its Features?

• Bank Reconciliation:

Sage Accounting seamlessly imports and matches all bank and credit card transactions, streamlining the process of reconciling them with expenses and invoices.

• Automated Invoicing with Customer Payments:

Invoicing customers becomes effortless with Sage Accounting, allowing you to generate invoices with just a few clicks. The software integrates with Stripe to offer convenient payment options, and you can easily track invoice views by customers.

• Streamlined Expense Recording:

Utilizing AutoEntry, Sage Accounting enables you to capture expense data from various sources such as receipts, invoices, credit card statements, bank statements, or sales statements. This automation simplifies the recording of expenses for accurate financial management.

• Financial Reports:

Sage Accounting provides access to essential financial reports, including cash flow, balances, and profit and loss statements. These reports offer valuable insights into your business’s financial performance and help inform decision-making.

• Quotes and Estimates:

The Sage Accounting mobile app allows for instant creation of quotes and estimates, providing a convenient way to generate pricing information for clients. Converting these quotes and estimates into invoices is a seamless process, taking just seconds.

• Basic Inventory Management:

Sage Accounting offers entry-level inventory management tools, including features such as out-of-stock alerts and reorder notifications. While basic in nature, these tools assist in maintaining control over your inventory levels and ensuring smooth operations.

What Are Its Pricing Plans?

Sage Accounting’s cost-effectiveness aligns with its range of basic features, offering affordable pricing options. The lower-tier plan, Sage Accounting Start, is priced at $10 per month, granting one user the ability to create and send invoices, reconcile transactions, and track customer payments. The comprehensive Sage Accounting plan, available at $25 per month, unlocks all other features. Notably, Sage was running a limited-time promotion during the time of this review, allowing users to enjoy a discounted rate of $7.50 per month for the first six months.

Sage Accounting offers a 30-day free trial without requiring credit card information or any upfront payment. There are no additional fees or implementation costs upon committing to Sage Accounting, and the software accommodates an unlimited number of users.

What Is Wave?

Wave Accounting is a professional cloud-based accounting software that simplifies financial management for small businesses and freelancers. With its user-friendly interface and comprehensive features, Wave Accounting enables users to efficiently handle invoicing, expense tracking, bank reconciliation, and financial reporting. This intuitive platform offers essential accounting functionalities, empowering users to effectively manage their finances and make informed business decisions.

Pros And Cons Of Wave

Pros 

• Wave Accounting is a completely free accounting software solution.
• It allows for unlimited users, enabling collaborative financial management.
• Users can manage multiple businesses within the same account, enhancing efficiency.
• The software offers solid features, including expense and income tracking, as well as basic reporting capabilities.

Cons

• Wave Accounting has only one plan available, limiting scalability options for growing businesses.
• The software lacks dedicated accounting or receipt-scanning apps, focusing primarily on invoicing functionality.
• Customer service is solely available through email, potentially resulting in slower response times compared to other support channels.

What Are Its Features?

• Customizable Invoices and Chart of Accounts:

Wave Accounting offers highly customizable and professional-looking invoices, surpassing QuickBooks’ expensive options. Users can create unlimited invoices tailored to their branding. The software also allows customization of the chart of accounts, accommodating the needs of freelancers and small businesses with fewer expense and income categories.

[Related: Chart of Accounts]

• Accurate Double-Entry Accounting:

With its commitment to double-entry accounting, Wave ensures higher accuracy compared to basic single-entry methods. This approach sets it apart, providing precise financial tracking even for freelance-focused users who prioritize accuracy in their bookkeeping.

• Billing and Invoicing Features for Timely Payments:

Wave provides a comprehensive suite of billing, payment acceptance, and invoicing features to optimize prompt payments. Clients can conveniently pay directly through their invoices, simplifying the payment process. Additionally, users can utilize bill and invoice payment reminders to ensure timely payment. Wave offers invoicing perks similar to those of software like FreshBooks, all at no cost to the user.

What Are Its Pricing Plans?

Wave Accounting offers a unique proposition of being free for life. With Wave, users can take advantage of unlimited invoicing and expense tracking, all without incurring any cost. The software enables users to customize their invoices, giving them a professional and personalized touch. 

Additionally, Wave provides the flexibility to create a chart of accounts tailored to the specific needs of freelancers and small businesses. However, it’s important to note that Wave does not include features for tax calculation or receipt scanning. Despite these limitations, Wave remains an attractive option for those seeking a cost-effective accounting solution.

Final Verdict 

From Xero’s cloud-based accounting capabilities to FreshBooks’ intuitive invoicing features, Sage’s comprehensive functionality, and Wave’s free accounting solution, these QuickBooks alternatives offer a range of options to suit different business needs. Whether you’re looking for advanced features, affordability, scalability, or customization, the options mentioned in this article present robust solutions that can enhance your financial management journey. Explore these options and discover the software that aligns best with your requirements and preferences.