Financial Accounting Software

There are many choices today when it comes to financial accounting software. You can use native software or cloud-based software. It just depends on what you’re comfortable with using. Let’s go over some of the best options.

• Quickbooks – This is probably one of the ones you’ve heard of before and is used by a lot of accounting firms, bookkeepers, and entrepreneurs. You can use both the cloud version and the native version depending on your needs. It’s great to use the online version because you can connect to your bank account so that you can track your income and expenses with some automation.
• Wave Accounting – This free software is fully featured and yes, it’s free. The only way you’d pay money for this software currently is if you use their credit card processing or their payroll services. This software is easy to use and set up. You can connect with your bank accounts and it does everything you’d expect from accounting software.
• FreshBooks – FreshBooks markets their software as accounting software, but we disagree. It is great software to use for time tracking, project tracking and invoicing, but it is not a complete accounting software or bookkeeping system. It works well with other software, though, and is a great system.
• Xero – This is complete software that can handle anything you have to give it in terms of small business accounting. You can try it free and the price is low enough that any business can afford to use it. Also, they have special services set up for accountants and bookkeepers so it’s also a good choice for them.
• Zoho Books – This well-priced cloud-based software is perfect for most small business owners. They even have advanced inventory management software, which is great if you have physical products. Plus, if you have a membership, this one (with an inexpensive add-on) can handle subscription payments too.
• Go Daddy Bookkeeping – One of the choices that are a little different than the above is Go Daddy Bookkeeping. Unlike all the others, which are double entry systems, this is a single-entry system and super easy to use. If you have a very small service-based business, or a single owner online business of some kind, this may work great for you. It’s easy to set up and understand for non-accountants.
• MS Excel – You can use MS Excel as bookkeeping software with the right set-up. If you know how to set up formulas and books, you can make your own. If you don’t, you can download templates for it. Some people just like doing it the manual way, and that’s fine, as long as you keep it up.

The best way to choose is to have an understanding of what you need to track, and then choose the best software for that purpose. Also, test out each software idea before making a commitment. No matter how easy someone says it is, it’s only easy if it works for you in the way that you like to do things.

*This article is not intended to replace professional business advice and planning. Always contact professionals regarding any business advice, financials, planning, operations, and/or management.