Accounting

Patriot Accounting’s affordable price and strong features set it apart from other accounting software. Available at two pricing plans that range from $15 to $25 per month, it’s designed with small businesses in mind. Patriot also offers a Payroll plan that ranges from $14 to $34 per month, depending on the complexity of your needs. Patriot Accounting’s reliable customer support provides ongoing assistance for several issues. It’s an excellent software option for businesses that are looking for basic features like tracking unpaid bills and issuing invoices. There’s a free 30-day trial available if you would like to try it out first before committing. What We Recommend Patriot Accounting For Patriot Accounting has been in business for over 30 years, and it has earned a reputation for being an ideal solution for handling accounting and payroll tasks. Our experts conducted a thorough evaluation of Patriot Accounting through an internally developed case study. We examined the software across 11 categories, and the results reflect Patriot Accounting’s capabilities, especially in terms of banking management, reporting, accounts payable (A/P), accounts receivable (A/R), inventory, and project accounting. Patriot Accounting Is Especially Good For Businesses on a budget that are seeking easy-to-use software and excellent customer support: Patriot Accounting is among the least expensive accounting software on the market, and it’s extremely easy to use. Not only that, but the customer service is quick and accessible—you can contact them by phone, live chat, or email. Mom-and-pop businesses that want do-it-yourself (DIY) payroll software: With Patriot Accounting, you also have access to , which is a separate service that integrates with Patriot Accounting. We selected Patriot Payroll as one of the best small business payroll applications, especially for mom-and-pop businesses. Freelancers and contractors who want strong invoicing software: Patriot Accounting allows you to customize your invoices, giving you the ability to upload a logo, change the invoice colors, and create a personalized message. You can also set up invoices to occur automatically on a monthly basis. Patriot Accounting Is Not a Good Fit For Businesses that need inventory accounting: If you track inventory, Patriot Accounting isn’t a good fit for you. Instead, try , which we ranked as the best overall QuickBooks alternative. Its inventory management features allow you to capture product details, including product costs and stock on hand. It also keeps track of cost of goods sold (COGS) and computes ending inventories. Businesses that often work remotely and need access to a mobile app: Since Patriot Accounting doesn’t offer a mobile app, you might want to consider , which we selected as one of the best mobile accounting apps. Sunrise isn’t as easy-to-use as Patriot, but it has a free version with similar features. Businesses that need project accounting: is ideal for retailers, wholesalers, contractors, and other small businesses that require project accounting features such as job costing. We selected QuickBooks Online as the best overall small business accounting software, partly because of its project accounting features. Patriot Accounting Pros & Cons Patriot Accounting Case Study We formulated an internal case study to see how Patriot Accounting stacks up against Sunrise and QuickBooks Online Plus: Based on the result of our case study, Patriot Accounting dominates Sunrise and QuickBooks Online Plus in the Customer Service category and also performs well in Banking, Tax, and A/R. While QuickBooks Online Plus beats Patriot in most categories, the version we tested is $85 per month compared to $25 per month for Patriot Premium. Patriot Accounting Pricing Patriot Accounting offers two subscription levels: Accounting Basic and Premium Accounting. Before committing, you can sign up for a 30-day free trial. Here are the prices for each: Accounting Basic: $15 per month Premium Accounting: $25 per month Patriot also offers a payroll plan at two subscription levels: Basic Payroll and Full-Service Payroll. Basic Payroll: $10 per month plus $4 per employee or contractor—run your own payroll and handle payroll taxes yourself Full-Service Payroll: $30 per month plus $4 per employee or contractor—run your own payroll and Patriot will handle your payroll taxes Patriot Accounting Features Patriot Accounting offers a wide range of accounting features, depending on whether you subscribe to their Accounting Basic or Premium Accounting plans. Before checking out our detailed assessment of Patriot Accounting as part of our case study, you might want to take a look at the table below to have an idea of what you’re entitled to from each subscription level. For low-priced software, Patriot Accounting is packed with plenty of useful features. It’s fairly simple to set up an account, and the dashboard allows you to manage users, create invoices, receive payments, and enter or pay bills. A toolbar on the left lets you navigate to more specific tasks. The Premium Accounting plan also offers a couple of features that don’t normally come with low-priced software. This includes the ability to issue credit memos and print vendor checks. However, Patriot Accounting is lacking in certain useful features, such as the ability to track income and expenses by location, although you can assign departments. It also doesn’t allow you to track inventory or income and expenses by job: Patriot Accounting General Features Video Accounts Payable (5.20 / 10 Points) One of Patriot Accounting’s best features is the ability to make unlimited payments to vendors. The software also allows you to record an expense without paying, create bills for the purchase of inventory, and set a default sales price of service items. With the Accounts Payable function, you must enter a credit card to use the bill pay service. You aren’t able to create recurring expenses, and vendor accounting doesn’t allow you to enter a purchase order. Project accounting features are also lacking as you aren’t able to create a project within Patriot Accounting: With both the Accounting Basic and Premium Accounting plans, you can create and track unlimited customers and invoices and accept credit card payments. With Premium Accounting, you can also set up recurring invoices and invoice payment reminders and create custom invoice templates with your company logo and colors of your choice. Premium Accounting users also have access to automated payment reminders. When you initially set up Patriot Accounting, you can establish rules for when to send past-due messages to customers. While Patriot Accounting doesn’t allow you to track inventory, you can add inventory to an invoice and charge sales tax on the sale of inventory. Patriot Accounting won’t track billable expenses as you pay them. You’ll need to keep track of these in a spreadsheet to add them to a customer invoice later. More expensive software, like , will track billable expenses as they’re paid, then add them automatically to the customer’s next invoice. You also can’t issue a sales receipt for a sale paid immediately or combine multiple checks and/or cash in a single deposit: Patriot Accounting offers a strong set of features for banking and cash management, which include connecting to a bank account and uploading transactions, selecting transactions that have cleared the bank, and viewing outstanding transactions. One of the software’s drawbacks is that, when setting up your account, Patriot Accounting doesn’t allow you to enter your beginning bank balances. You must instead create them with a journal entry. It’s also not possible to lock your books from a prior year. Patriot Accounting doesn’t offer much in terms of tracking fixed assets, which is why it scored so low in our case study. It does allow you to record a note payable as a long-term note payable, but other functions are missing. This includes viewing a list of fixed assets, assigning an ID number to the asset, setting up a separate depreciation for taxes, and printing or viewing a depreciation schedule. You also can’t set up an amortization schedule for a note payable or record the sale of a fixed asset. Patriot Accounting allows you to create estimates, which can be useful when starting a project. Estimates can be customized with due dates, and it’s possible to show sales tax on an estimate. You can also convert the estimate directly to an invoice on the same screen. However, Patriot doesn’t allow you to track income and expenses by project, so you’re fairly limited in what you can do in terms of project accounting. If you have a lot of projects, you should evaluate whether it would make more sense to find another application that has stronger project accounting features, such as . Patriot Accounting allows you to create sales tax items and charge sales tax on the sale of inventory. You can also include a sales tax adjustment on a credit memo. The software allows you to file a sales tax return electronically, or you can pay your liability by check. If you have independent contractors, Patriot lets you track 1099 payments. When it’s time to file your taxes, you can create, print, and e-file 1099s and 1096s. Patriot Accounting has very limited inventory features. You can create inventory items to add them to invoices quickly, but you aren’t able to track inventory in any way. We recommend instead. It has strong inventory features and also integrates with for more complex needs. Patriot Accounting offers all of the standard reports, which include profit and loss statements, general ledger, balance sheet, A/R and A/P aging, and trial balance. Patriot Accounting’s customer service is its strongest feature. The company employs US-based customer support agents who are knowledgeable in each aspect of the software. They can guide you through each step of the installation and set-up process, and any other issues that may come up along the way. Hands-on, real-time support options include phone, email, and live chat, and experts are available to assist you Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern time. The Patriot website also has a detailed accounting help section that offers training videos for every aspect of the software. There’s also a blog section with accounting tips, further training articles, and news about the platform. Although Patriot Accounting doesn’t have a mobile app, the desktop version is optimized for mobile use, and you can access your account via your smartphone. You can use all of the same features as the desktop version while you’re on the go, but perhaps not as easily as if they had a mobile app. Assisted Bookkeeping Options Patriot’s Accounting Premium software gives you access to , which will take over your day-to-day bookkeeping. This includes a complete setup of your accounts, transaction categorization, monthly reconciliation, and monthly meetings with your bookkeeper. For the bookkeeping service, Patriot charges a one-time onboarding fee which is based on your monthly expenses and ranges from $50 to $95 per month of historical data. The monthly service fee is also based on monthly expenses and ranges from $100 to $650 per month. Patriot Accounting Integrations Patriot Accounting integrates with , which is one of our top picks for the best small business payroll software. You can add on time and attendance software for $6 per month plus $2 per employee, which integrates seamlessly with Patriot Payroll. Check out our Patriot Payroll Review for more information. Patriot Accounting Alternatives Bottom Line is recommended for small businesses that need the flexibility to handle invoices and manage payments while also keeping close track of cash flow. Its ease of use, quick setup, seamless integration with Patriot Payroll, and stellar customer service separate it from its competition.

Lendio Accounting (formerly Sunrise) and ZipBooks both offer an attractive set of accounting features for free. Lendio Accounting has far better options for businesses that need mobile access while ZipBooks is better for users who want to track time and manage projects. In this article, we compare Lendio Accounting (formerly Sunrise) and ZipBooks to see which of these two free accounting software programs is best for your business. We incorporate the results of our internally developed case study throughout this article to provide you with a more detailed comparison of these two free software programs. When to Use Lendio Accounting (Formerly Sunrise) In our case study, Lendio Accounting (formerly Sunrise) ranked high in accounts payable (A/P) and accounts receivable (A/R), tax, and reporting, especially considering that the software is free. These strong features make Lendio Accounting a great option for freelancers and small businesses who need to manage billing and expenses, track invoices, and create financial reports. Its robust mobile app also has many useful features for business owners. Lendio Accounting is also among our choices for the best free accounting software and best QuickBooks alternatives, where we ranked it as the best for assisted bookkeeping. Lendio Accounting is better for: Users that want access to a mobile app: Lendio Accounting is cloud-based and has a powerful mobile app that makes it ideal for businesses that work remotely. Companies with multiple entities: With a paid plan, Lendio Accounting will allow you to manage the books for multiple companies. Businesses that need reliable customer service: Even though telephone support isn’t offered by Lendio Accounting , the live chat feature more than makes up for it. You can talk to a real agent for instant support. When to Use ZipBooks ZipBooks is an ideal solution for small businesses that are looking for user-friendly and affordable accounting software that will automate their bookkeeping tasks and allow them to send unlimited invoices to customers. Its time tracking and project management features make it a great option for contractors and project-based businesses. Its invoicing capabilities are also impressive, especially with the paid plans. ZipBooks is better for: Users looking for easy invoicing: One of ZipBooks’ most appealing features is the readily available templates that you can customize, download, and send to your customers. Its invoicing features are so stellar that we selected it as one of our choices for best free accounting software. It also made our list of the best invoicing software programs for small business and the best free invoice generators because it’s easy to use for basic invoice creation. Users that want a time tracking solution: Contractors and consultants that track their time on a regular basis will appreciate this capability, which includes an in-app time tracker. Project-based businesses: ZipBooks’ project management features enable construction companies and other project-based businesses to track an unlimited number of clients and projects and also manage team members. When to Use an Alternative Lendio Accounting (formerly Sunrise) and ZipBooks are both excellent free accounting software programs, but they lack some important features. You’ll need an alternative if you fit into any of the below categories: Ecommerce companies: Many of the features designed to support ecommerce companies, such as point-of-sale (POS) functions and Shopify integration, are lacking in both Lendio Accounting and ZipBooks. We recommend QuickBooks Online as our pick for the best overall ecommerce accounting software because of its powerful integrations with the major ecommerce platforms. Companies that need to track inventory: Neither Lendio Accounting nor ZipBooks allows you to track inventory. If you need this feature, is an excellent option. It integrates with , an inventory and order management application that lets you automate your company’s order-to-cash process and centralize your inventory system. Desktop users: Both Lendio Accounting and ZipBooks are cloud-based accounting software, so if you’re looking for a desktop alternative, you may want to consider , which we ranked as the best free desktop accounting software. If you would like to learn more about other accounting software packages, check out our article on the best small business accounting software. Lendio Accounting (Formerly Sunrise) vs ZipBooks at a Glance Fit Small Business Case Study Our case study evaluates Lendio Accounting and GnuCash across 11 categories. The results show Lendio Accounting's dominance in almost every category (with the exception of Project Accounting, in which ZipBooks excels). In a couple of categories, such as A/P and Reporting, they ranked essentially the same. You can see the detailed results of our case study in our Lendio Accounting review and ZipBooks review. See the graph below for a summary of our case study. Lendio Accounting (Formerly Sunrise) vs ZipBooks: Pricing Both Lendio Accounting (formerly Sunrise) and ZipBooks offer a free plan, but it’s limited to one user. If you want additional users to access the software, you’ll need to enroll in a paid plan. Lendio Accounting Plus is $19.99 per month and allows for unlimited users, and ZipBooks offers a plan for five users at $15 per month or unlimited users for $35 per month. Lendio Accounting Pricing Lendio Accounting offers both a free basic plan and Lendio Accounting Plus, a paid plan for $19.99 per month. The basic plan includes most of the same features as the paid plan, but Lendio Accounting Plus includes automatic expense categorization in your bank feed and additional payment integrations. Lendio Accounting integrates with WePay and Lendio Accounting Plus users also receive a 1% savings on their WePay transactions. Free Self-Service: Free forever, but limited to one user Lendio Accounting Plus: $19.99 per month for unlimited users and unlimited companies ZipBooks Pricing ZipBooks has three plans for business use and one plan for accountants. The Accountant plan has everything in the Sophisticated plan but is intended for accountants with multiple clients. All of ZipBooks’ paid plans allow for time tracking and the ability to connect multiple bank accounts. Starter: Free, but limited to one user Smarter: $15 per month for five users Sophisticated: $35 per month for unlimited users Accountant: Custom pricing Takeaway: The free plans that Lendio Accounting and ZipBooks offer have limited features, but if you’re willing to pay a bit more, you’ll have access to features like Lendio Accounting's integrated payment gateway or ZipBooks’ time tracking features. If you need to accommodate unlimited users, then Lendio Accounting is the less expensive option. Lendio Accounting vs ZipBooks: Features We looked at each of the different plans that Lendio Accounting and ZipBooks offer and have summarized the available features below: Lendio Accounting Tiered Features ZipBooks Tiered Features Based on our case study, we’ll discuss in detail three key features of Lendio Accounting and ZipBooks that are significantly different. Lendio Accounting vs ZipBooks: General Features Lendio Accounting has many features that are useful for small business owners and freelancers, such as the ability to send invoices and quotes, manage your income and expenses, and generate basic reports like a profit and loss (P&L) statement. We ranked Lendio Accounting as one of the best accounting software programs for freelancers, due in part to its free features. The Lendio Accounting Plus paid plan adds more features, such as the ability to auto-categorize expenses. Lendio Accounting also received high marks in our evaluation of the best A/P software. However, there’s no option to track inventory and costs by project. ZipBooks allows you to send unlimited invoices and manage unlimited customers and vendors, whether you have enrolled in a free or paid plan. While you’re limited to one connected bank account with the free plan, you can connect multiple bank accounts and track time starting with the Smarter plan. With the Sophisticated plan, you can use smart tagging by location or project. But the company setup process cannot record a fiscal year-end, set an entity type, and import beginning account balances. Lendio Accounting vs ZipBooks: Banking The major difference between Lendio Accounting and ZipBooks with regard to banking is that you cannot reconcile bank accounts to bank statements in Lendio Accounting. You can still do a bank reconciliation in Lendio Accounting , but it only compares your bank transactions to your imported transactions. It doesn’t allow you to reconcile a period where you have outstanding checks, because these are book entries that haven't shown up yet in your bank account. You can reconcile your bank account in ZipBooks as long as you turn on “Reconciliation” in account settings. However, it’ll look different from what you would usually see in accounting software. You won’t see the typical line items like deposits in transit and outstanding checks. It’ll only show the difference between the book and bank balance. One downside of ZipBooks’ bank features is that you aren’t able to produce a reconciliation report or print checks. Lendio Accounting also doesn’t allow you to print checks. While Lendio Accounting's free plan allows you to connect more than one bank account, this isn’t an option with ZipBooks. Also, with ZipBooks, you aren’t able to import transactions from CSV or spreadsheet files. Lendio Accounting vs ZipBooks: A/R As revealed by our case study, Lendio Accounting's strongest feature is A/R. It allows you to accept short payment on invoices, view outstanding invoices, issue credit memos, and view your balance by customer. Its invoicing capabilities are also impressive, although ZipBooks offers more customization options with its paid plans. Lendio Accounting does have outstanding features for a free software program, such as the ability to create recurring invoices and collect and track sales tax by jurisdiction. We selected Lendio Accounting as the best free recurring billing software in a bookkeeping system. It was also chosen as one of the best free invoice generators because of its free bookkeeping software that includes invoicing. Although we selected ZipBooks as the best software to create simple invoices in our article about the best free accounting software, it isn’t without its flaws. Since the simple invoice interface in the free version doesn’t use predefined products or services, you’ll need to type the product or service description for every invoice. However, this feature is available with the paid plans. The ZipBooks Sophisticated plan also allows users to add unbilled expenses to customer invoices, a feature that’s usually reserved for higher-priced plans. Takeaway: Lendio Accounting and ZipBooks each have features that are a bonus for free software, such as Lendio Accounting's outstanding A/R capabilities. However, they also lack certain features in the free plans that would be useful to have, such as Sunrise’s inability to reconcile bank statements. Lendio Accounting vs ZipBooks: Ease of Use Both Lendio Accounting and ZipBooks have a clean interface that’s easily navigable and doesn’t require a lot of bookkeeping experience to understand. You can set up your account quickly and view your financial data on your main dashboard. Lendio Accounting Ease of Use Lendio Accounting is extremely easy to use, even if you have little or no bookkeeping experience. The user interface is uncluttered and highly intuitive, and all features are marked on the dashboard. Setting up your account takes just a few minutes, and you’ll be walked through each step. Upon logging in, your dashboard will show an overview of your financial health as well as links to connect your bank accounts and customize your invoices. You can also invite your accountant or team members to access your account. ZipBooks Ease of Use Although not as intuitive as Lendio Accounting, ZipBooks is also very user-friendly. Once you log in, ZipBooks displays a financial performance dashboard that shows a summary of all recent expense and invoicing activity. Navigation is easy, with the vertical menu on the left providing quick access to all system functions. Setting up your company is also simple because the settings aren’t too technical and can be easily adjusted. Takeaway: While Lendio Accounting and ZipBooks are extremely easy to use, Sunrise’s display is a bit more visually appealing. They both have clean interfaces and offer an easy setup process, which are appealing features for business owners that don’t want to spend a lot of time figuring out how to navigate the software. Lendio Accounting vs ZipBooks: Integrations Lendio Accounting and ZipBooks are limited in their integration options, with Zapier providing the most access to third-party apps. Lendio Accounting Integrations Lendio Accounting has limited integrations compared to its competitors like and . Major integrations include Google Sheets, Gmail, Slack, PayPal, Stripe, and Gusto for payroll. It also integrates with over 3,000 apps through Zapier. ZipBooks Integrations ZipBooks currently integrates with Google Workspace (formerly G suite), Square, PayPal, Slack, Pepperi, Zoho Flow, and Gusto for payroll. You can also subscribe to Zapier for more integration opportunities with third-party apps. Takeaway: If you’re looking for free accounting software that offers a wider range of integrations than Lendio Accounting or ZipBooks, consider . It connects with several third-party apps and tools, such as HubSpot, Pipedrive, and Mailchimp. Lendio Accounting vs ZipBooks: Mobile App Lendio Accounting's mobile app is available for both iOS and Android and allows you to perform many of the same functions as the program itself, such as sending invoices, entering bill payments, categorizing bank expenses, and viewing reports. It’s for this reason that we selected it as among the best mobile accounting apps. ZipBooks doesn’t currently have a mobile app. Lendio Accounting vs ZipBooks: Assisted Bookkeeping ZipBooks offers assisted bookkeeping services for an additional fee between $125 and $175 per month. Lendio Accounting has stopped offering assisted bookkeeping services to new customers as of May 12, 2022. ZipBooks Assisted Bookkeeping If you need assistance with your books, ZipBooks offers bookkeeping and tax support services. It can also build a customized plan if you have complex bookkeeping needs. Simple Bookkeeping: $125 per month—includes a personal bookkeeper, a ZipBooks plan, monthly bookkeeping assistance and financial statements, up to five bank or credit card accounts, expert bookkeeping advice, and online bookkeeping support Multi-classifications Bookkeeping: $145 per month—includes all services in Simple Bookkeeping, tagging and tracking multiple locations, business units or classes, individual and consolidated financial statements, and comparison of financial statements across all classes Vendor and 1099 preparation: $175 per month—includes all services in Simple Bookkeeping plus tagging or tracking of vendor payments and 1099 reporting and preparation Takeaway: If you need basic bookkeeping assistance, then ZipBooks is a better option. It not only offers simple and multi-classifications bookkeeping but will also assist with vendor and 1099 preparation. Lendio Accounting vs ZipBooks: Customer Support Neither Lendio Accounting nor ZipBooks allows you to contact customer support over the phone, but Lendio Accounting is helpful with its quick response to live chat or email. You can also contact customer support via live chat with ZipBooks, but you may have to wait some time for a response. Lendio Accounting Customer Support Although Lendio Accounting doesn’t provide customer support via telephone, you can contact a live person directly via live chat or email. Response time is extremely quick, and communication is efficient. When communicating via live chat, you’ll first be connected to “Sunny,” an automated assistant who can offer answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs) and other resources. You will be connected to a live representative if your issue is more complex. You can also use the contact form on the website, and Lendio Accounting has a blog that provides information on small business, bookkeeping, accounting, and tax topics. ZipBooks Customer Support ZipBooks is limited in its customer support options—you cannot speak with someone over the phone and are restricted instead to the chatbot or chatting with a live representative. When you access live chat at the bottom right corner of your screen, ZipBooks will let you know approximately how long it’ll take to address your inquiry. However, while the live chat process is essentially the same, Lendio Accounting's quick response time makes it a better option. You can also browse through the ZipBooks Help Center for articles about different features of the software. Takeaway: Depending on the urgency of your issue, either Lendio Accounting or ZipBooks can assist you. If you require a quick response, then consider Lendio Accounting. Bottom Line There are a few key differences between and in terms of their features. Both are great options for businesses looking for a low-cost accounting solution, but your final choice will be influenced by whether you need time tracking or a mobile app. If you perform a lot of your work on the road, then you’ll appreciate Lendio Accounting for its powerful mobile app. If you need to track time or manage projects, go with ZipBooks.

Both Sunrise and NCH Express Accounts are free accounting programs that offer powerful financial tools, but Sunrise has better reporting and accounts receivable (A/R) features while NCH Express Accounts excels with its banking functions. When to Use Sunrise While Sunrise by Lendio makes its accounting software available for free to any small business that wishes to handle its own bookkeeping. Its cloud-based software has a strong feature set that includes invoicing, creating quotes and estimates, tracking expenses, and financial reporting. Its paid plan also offers additional payment integrations and automatic expense categorization in your bank feed. It’s a great option for freelancers and users that could benefit from assisted bookkeeping. Sunrise is better for: Freelancers seeking online access to their accounts: We selected Sunrise as one of the best accounting software programs for freelancers. Because it’s cloud-based, you can access it from anywhere and can also use the mobile app to perform many functions. We also chose Sunrise as one of the best mobile accounting apps. Businesses that want robust invoicing software: Sunrise is featured in our guide to the best free invoice generators, selecting it as the best free bookkeeping software that includes invoicing. Its recurring billing features also earned it a spot in our guide to the best recurring billing software. Tracking unpaid bills: Sunrise is our pick for best free accounts payable (A/P) software as it allows you to enter unpaid bills and track them until paid. You can also attach copies of receipts through either the desktop interface or the mobile app. When to Use NCH Express Accounts NCH Express Accounts is a free accounting application that provides the tools you need to handle most aspects of financial management for your business. It’s desktop-based software that’s a quick and easy solution for tracking invoices and bills. It also allows you to monitor cash flow and produce basic reports. While it lacks a cohesive mobile app, you can use the Express Invoice app for all of your invoicing needs. You can also integrate with NCH Software’s other products, such as Inventoria, for inventory tracking functionality. We recommend NCH Express Accounts as one of the best free accounting applications. NCH Express Accounts is better for: Small retail businesses seeking affordable inventory management software: NCH Software’s proprietary stock management software, Inventoria, is available as an add-on at a lower price than what most other accounting programs offer. Desktop users that want free accounting software: NCH Express Accounts is available only for the desktop and is free for businesses with less than five employees. Freelancers and microbusinesses seeking a way to track account activity: Intended as a quick solution to basic accounting tasks, NCH Express Accounts is best used as a monitoring tool to track your payments and transactions and view balances and reports. With NCH Express Accounts, our pick for best free bank reconciliation software, you can reconcile your bank accounts easily to keep your books accurate. When to Use an Alternative Sunrise and NCH Express Accounts are both free, effective accounting software programs. However, they both have limitations, such as not being able to track time or costs for project billing. The following businesses may be better served with an alternative: Construction companies: Neither Sunrise nor NCH Express Accounts let you track costs by project. For a more powerful solution, check out , which we selected as the best general-purpose accounting software for tracking job costs in our article about the best construction accounting software programs. Ecommerce businesses: Both Sunrise and NCH Express accounts lack the features that are designed to support ecommerce, such as point-of-sale (POS) functions and Shopify integration. We recommend for a budget-friendly alternative. We also chose Xero as the best small business accounting software for unlimited users. Contractors that track their time: Sunrise doesn’t have time tracking features, and you must add on an NCH Express Accounts software package for an additional fee. For a better option, check out , which is excellent for automating your invoicing workflows. It allows you to run integrated time tracking for project billing. Fit Small Business Case Study Our case study evaluates Sunrise and NCH Express Accounts across 11 categories. The results show that they’re evenly matched in a few categories, except for Banking, in which NCH Express Accounts excels. In a couple of categories, they ranked essentially the same, such as General Features, A/R, and Tax. You can review the detailed results of our case study in our Sunrise review and NCH Express Accounts review. Sunrise vs NCH Express Accounts at a Glance Sunrise vs NCH Express Accounts: Pricing Both Sunrise and NCH Express Accounts offer two subscription plans, but the difference is that Sunrise’s free self-service plan is restricted to one user with no limits on the number of employees in your business. NCH Express Accounts’ free plan is limited to small businesses with fewer than five employees. Larger businesses can choose between the Basic plan for $80 and the Plus plan for $129 (a one-time payment). The Plus plan can also be paid quarterly, which works out to $10.75 per month. Sunrise Pricing Sunrise offers a choice of two plans—you can choose the free self-service version or you can upgrade to Sunrise Plus for $19.99 per month. Most of the bookkeeping features are offered in the free version, and with Sunrise Plus you also receive automatic expense categorization in your bank feed and additional payment integrations with unlimited companies and users. Customers also receive a 1% savings on Sunset Pay transactions, which is Sunset’s integrated payment gateway. Free Self-Service: Free forever—includes most features discussed in this article, but limited to one user and one company Sunrise Plus: $19.99 per month for unlimited companies and users NCH Express Accounts Pricing NCH Express Accounts offers a free program for small businesses with fewer than five employees. Larger companies can choose between two paid plans, Basic and Plus. You can purchase a single-user license with a one-time payment or opt for a subscription with the quarterly plan, which is available with Express Accounts Plus. Inventoria, which we highly recommend if you have inventory, is available in either a Business or Corporate edition as a fully-featured, single installation license. The prices listed below are one-time payments. Business: $139—includes all Corporate edition features without multiple user or web access support Corporate: $190—includes ordering and receiving, inventory control, item control, and the ability to manage inventory by location Takeaway: Sunrise’s free self-service plan offers many of the same features as the paid version, with the exception of enhanced customization options and discounts on Sunset Pay transactions. While NCH Express Accounts may offer a free program for small businesses with fewer than five employees, it charges a one-time fee to larger companies. Sunrise vs NCH Express Accounts: Features There are a few features that Sunrise and NCH Accounts share in common, such as the ability to create invoices and track payments and unpaid bills. But there are other cases where NCH Express Accounts is lacking, such as the inability to connect bank accounts and upload statements. Both also cannot assign time and expenses to jobs and convert purchase orders (POs) to bills. Based on our case study, we’ll discuss in detail four key features of Sunrise and NCH Express Accounts that are significantly different. Sunrise vs NCH Express Accounts: General Features Sunrise and NCH Express Accounts both have strong general features, but they cannot create classes and locations to track job costs, and neither has dedicated time or project tracking features. Also, you’re restricted to only one user with Sunrise’s free self-service plan and NCH Express Accounts’ Basic plan. The standard chart of accounts that is available with NCH Express Accounts is more comprehensive than Sunrise’s—for example, it comes preloaded with the Accumulated Depreciation account for fixed assets. With NCH Express, you also must classify accounts for cash flow statements, which is something that most accounting programs do automatically based on account type. Sunrise vs NCH Express Accounts: Banking NCH Express Accounts excels with its banking features, specifically bank reconciliation. While both applications have automatic reconciliation features, Sunrise won’t let you reconcile accounting periods with timing differences. You also can’t view outstanding transactions, enter the monthly service fee, or save the transaction and return later. We featured NCH Express Accounts as one of the best bank reconciliation applications because of its free desktop program. One of the drawbacks to using NCH Express Accounts is that you can’t connect your bank accounts, although you can upload your transactions using a comma-separated values (CSV) file. Once the file is uploaded, the software will assist you with mapping the transaction fields. It also lets you create adjusting entries directly for bank statement transactions that haven’t yet been recorded in the books without leaving the reconciliation. Sunrise vs NCH Express Accounts: A/R One of Sunrise’s strongest features is A/R, with the Sunrise Plus plan offering invoice customization features. With Sunrise, you can create and send invoices to customers, create sales tax items, and add inventory to an invoice, although inventory tracking isn’t available. NCH Express Accounts also allows for invoice customization, including uploading your logo. Like Sunrise, you’re not able to add unbilled labor and expenses to invoices or combine multiple checks received into a single deposit. Sunrise vs NCH Express Accounts: Ease of Use While both Sunrise and NCH Express Accounts are user-friendly with an easy set-up process, Sunrise has a slight edge with its attractive user interface and navigation. Also, because Sunrise is cloud-based, it’s more accessible than the desktop version of NCH Express Accounts since you can log in from anywhere. Sunrise Ease of Use Sunrise is extremely easy to use, with an excellent user interface and intuitive navigation. Setting up your account takes just a few minutes with the built-in tutorial, allowing you to quickly connect your accounts. All of the features are marked clearly on your main dashboard, and even users with limited bookkeeping experience will be able to use the software easily. If you encounter any issues, you can contact customer support or view related resources with ease. NCH Express Accounts Ease of Use The installation of NCH Express Accounts is relatively simple. Once you have installed the program, you can choose to add on several different options. Some of these are paid options and include facilities like project management and inventory management. The user interface is clean and straightforward, and while it may not be the most visually appealing, it’s easy to navigate. Takeaway: Whether you opt for Sunrise’s cloud-based user interface or NCH Express Accounts’ desktop version, you won’t be intimidated by the account set-up process or navigation. NCH Express Accounts allows you to add on both free and paid features. Sunrise vs NCH Express Accounts: Integrations Depending on the nature of your business, you may not need third-party integrations. However, if you anticipate a need for payroll, then Sunrise’s integration with Gusto will accommodate that need. Sunrise also integrates with Zapier, which will give you thousands of app options. NCH Express Accounts integrations are limited to its other software products like Inventoria and Express Invoice. Sunrise vs NCH Express Accounts: Mobile App While Sunrise has a mobile app that handles almost all of the same features as the web version, the NCH Express Accounts mobile app allows you to handle your accounts receivable, with the ability to create invoices, quotes, and sales orders. If you’re looking for a more well-rounded mobile app and envision that you’ll need to do more than just invoice customers, then Sunrise is the better choice. Sunrise Mobile App Sunrise has a comprehensive mobile app available for both iOS and Android that allows you to track expenses, create invoices and estimates, collect customer payments via credit card, and capture receipts. We ranked Sunrise as the best free accounting software for mobile app users. The invoices and payments functions are fully customizable, allowing you to give detailed descriptions. Invoice templates are professionally branded with your name and logo, and you can customize payment terms. Sunrise’s mobile app received a rating of 4.4 out of 5 stars at the Apple Store and 4.5 out of 5 stars on Google Play. NCH Express Accounts Mobile App NCH Express Accounts doesn’t currently have a mobile app. Takeaway: Sunrise’s ability to collect customer payments and capture receipts makes it a very useful mobile app for many businesses. Sunrise vs NCH Express Accounts: Customer Support Sunrise and NCH Express Accounts both offer some form of customer support, but Sunrise’s is more responsive, and there are also more ways to get in contact. Neither offer phone support, but you can communicate via live chat and email with Sunrise and via email with NCH Express Accounts. You can also browse a library of online resources with both companies. Sunrise Customer Support Although you’re not able to contact Sunrise’s customer support by phone, it receives high marks in this category because of how quickly and efficiently it responds to inquiries via live chat and email. If you initiate a live chat session, the correspondence starts with a bot, and then you’ll be transferred to a representative. You can also submit a trouble ticket on the website, and you’ll receive a response via email. There are a couple of resources on the website, including help articles and blog posts. NCH Express Accounts Customer Support NCH Express is very limited in its customer support, with no option to speak with someone on the phone or via live chat. If you need technical support, you can either email the company or check their online help center. Included are video tutorials, a help manual, answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs), and a user forum. Takeaway: Neither Sunrise nor NCH Express Accounts offer phone support, but this isn’t surprising with free accounting software. Sunrise has more customer support options, but NCH Express Accounts offers a wide variety of resources within its online help center. Bottom Line Sunrise and NCH Express Accounts have many of the same features, but each has its own strong points. Both offer free plans that are ideal for freelancers or microbusinesses, but there are important factors to consider that will influence your decision. If you want access to assisted bookkeeping and strong A/R features are important to you, then you’ll appreciate Sunset’s capabilities. If you’re a desktop user that could benefit from add-ons like inventory tracking, then NCH Express Accounts is an excellent choice.

ZipBooks and Wave are both cloud-based accounting programs, and both offer a free option. Wave is a better choice for companies that have transactions in multiple currencies. ZipBooks is better for service firms that bill clients by the hour. While ZipBooks doesn’t currently have a mobile app, Wave has two mobile apps that allow you to create invoices and accept payments. Also, ZipBooks allows you to track time and track income and expenses by project, and Wave does not. When to Use ZipBooks ZipBooks is a web-based accounting program that provides an accessible and user-friendly way for small business owners to manage their essential bookkeeping and accounting tasks. It’s ideal for sole proprietors and microbusinesses that are looking for an affordable accounting software option. ZipBooks is one of our choices for best free Accounting software article due to its simple invoicing feature. ZipBooks offers a free plan and two fee-based plans. ZipBooks is better for: Freelancers and solopreneurs: ZipBooks’ free plan is good for one user only, making it suitable for self-employed individuals who manage their books. Upgrading and scaling: Once your business grows, it’s easy to scale up with ZipBooks. From the free version, you can either upgrade to Smarter or Sophisticated plans and get additional features not present in the free version. In Wave, scaling is impossible since it’s totally free software with no higher paid plans. Tagging expenses: ZipBooks allows you to create custom tags for enhanced tracking of expenses. You can create tags based on location, projects, or departments within your company. When to Use Wave Wave is a cloud-based accounting solution and our choice for best free accounting software for companies needing more than one user. It offers free invoicing and receipt scanning and, because of its built-in integration, Wave Payments, it’s a great option for businesses that need to accept online payments. Because of its simplicity, sole proprietors and freelancers on a budget may find that this software suits their needs. Wave also offers credit card processing and payroll services for an additional fee. Wave is better for: Businesses looking for a free accounting software program with unlimited users: ZipBooks’ free plan is good for one user only. Wave is a better choice for unlimited users. Sending recurring invoices: ZipBooks doesn’t include recurring invoices unless you pay for the Smarter plan. We recommend Wave over ZipBooks if you prefer a free accounting software program with advanced features like recurring invoices. Modifying the chart of accounts (COA): Wave allows you to add new accounts or modify the existing ones. In ZipBooks, this feature isn’t present in the free plan—only users of the Sophisticated plan can modify the COA. Business looking for a native payroll service with tax assistance: Wave Payroll is a payroll assistance add-on to the free accounting service of Wave. Wave Payroll offers payroll and tax assistance to Wave users. It offers a fully automated tax feature for tax service states—Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin. For the rest of the states, Wave Payroll can only compute taxes but you’ll have to do the payment and filing yourself. When to Use an Alternative ZipBooks and Wave both offer useful accounting features. They can help users track invoices and bills and manage payments. However, both of these software programs have limitations that might call for an alternative. Inventory tracking: Tracking inventory stock levels and determining cost of goods sold (COGS) and ending inventory is essential for merchandising businesses. We don’t recommend ZipBooks or Wave for inventory concerns. The best alternative for inventory needs is , our choice for best small business accounting software. Businesses that need a full-featured mobile app: Accessing your books through your smartphone or tablet is a convenient way to stay on top of expenses, view company performance while away, and track time worked. offers a great mobile app that can assist in keeping your books updated while you’re out of the office. Zoho Books is available for free for businesses with less than $50,000 in annual revenues. Fit Small Business Case Study We used our FSB case study to evaluate ZipBooks and Wave across the 11 key areas that we want to see in small business accounting software. You can read the full ZipBooks Review and Wave Review for detailed analysis and information. Here are the results: In the chart above, we compared ZipBooks Starter (ZipBooks’ free version) and Wave. These two free software products seem to be on a par with each other, except for some features: Wave excels in banking, inventory, and tax while ZipBooks does better in project accounting and customer service. But in the areas of A/P, A/R, and reporting, ZipBooks and Wave are about even. The choice between ZipBooks and Wave depends on your needs. If you’re a project-based business, ZipBooks is the better choice. But if you need advanced banking features like payment and credit card processing, Wave is preferable to ZipBooks. ZipBooks vs Wave at a Glance ZipBooks Pricing vs Wave Pricing Businesses that are looking for an affordable option will be satisfied with either ZipBooks or Wave, which both offer the most basic bookkeeping services for free. But while ZipBooks’ pricing increases based on the number of users and available features, Wave opts instead to provide free accounting, invoicing, and receipt scanning and focuses its charges on credit card processing, bank payments, and payroll services. ZipBooks Pricing ZipBooks’ pricing may make it attractive to sole proprietors and microbusinesses. It offers a free starter plan and three paid plans, including an accountant version, which start at $15 per month, depending on the number of users and features required. The Accountant version allows you to manage clients from one dashboard. Starter: Free for one user Smarter: $15 for five users Sophisticated: $35 for unlimited users Accountant: Custom priced for unlimited users ZipBooks is a great accounting program for growing businesses. Businesses using the free version can upgrade to Smarter or Sophisticated anytime the need arises. And accountants who offer bookkeeping and accounting services on ZipBooks can connect to your ZipBooks account easily. Wave Pricing Wave’s basic accounting functions, which include invoicing and receipt scanning, are absolutely free. There are additional charges for credit card and payroll processing, which are described below: Accounting, invoicing, and receipt scanning: $0 Credit card processing: 2.9% plus 30 cents per transaction for most cards, 3.4% plus 30 cents per transaction for American Express Bank payments: $1 per transaction Payroll: Starts at $20, plus $6 per employee, per month, in self-service states and $35 plus $6 per employee, per month, in states where federal and state payroll taxes can be filed electronically ZipBooks vs Wave: Features ZipBooks vs Wave: Accounts Payable ZipBooks’ accounts payable (A/P) features work great for recording unpaid bills. Users can create vendors, designate vendors as 1099 contractors, and assign bills to expense accounts. The form layout of ZipBooks’ bill creation window is simple and easy to understand. You can add attachments to support your entry and even enter the payment terms. Since ZipBooks doesn’t have inventory tracking, the software doesn’t ask for quantities of goods ordered. You’ll need to use a spreadsheet to keep track of inventory units and costs. Wave shares the same features as ZipBooks and is also a great application for tracking and managing unpaid bills. Unlike ZipBooks, Wave asks about the quantity of the goods you ordered. This feature puts Wave at a slight advantage over ZipBooks since it shows the number of units, which can be vital for manually tracking units. ZipBooks vs Wave: Accounts Receivable In accounts receivable (A/R), we’re looking for invoice customization and invoice management features. ZipBooks doesn’t offer a lot of customization options for invoices. There’s no option to change the layout or color of the invoice. However, you can add your logo and include a personalized message. ZipBooks compensates for this missing feature by allowing unbilled expenses to be added to invoices. This feature is often reserved for the higher and more premium plans of accounting software like QuickBooks Online Plus. If you like this feature, you must upgrade to Sophisticated. For only $35 a month, you get a flagship feature for an extremely low price. Wave takes the lead in terms of invoice customization. There are different templates to choose from, plus the ability to modify invoice colors. When creating invoices, you can directly add a new customer, which makes Wave easier and more efficient to use. It also includes premium features, like creating recurring invoices and detailed tax reports, which aren’t present in ZipBooks unless you upgrade to ZipBooks Sophisticated. ZipBooks vs Wave: Sales & Income Tax You can add sales tax items in ZipBooks by jurisdiction and then add them to your invoices but, first, you need to encode sales tax rates in the settings. In ZipBooks Starter, you can include 1099 classification for independent contractors and charge sales taxes to invoices. Wave also shares the same features, plus creating sales tax adjustments on credit memos and viewing sales tax liabilities in detail. However, you can’t file sales tax returns and pay sales tax liability within ZipBooks or Wave. ZipBooks vs Wave: Ease of Use Both ZipBooks and Wave are designed for the accounting novice, and both make it easy to find what you’re looking for without the need to spend much time learning the software. ZipBooks Ease of Use Upon sign-in, ZipBooks displays a financial performance dashboard that provides a summary of all recent expense and invoicing activity. An intuitive user interface means less time learning the application. Navigation is easy, with the vertical menu to the left of the main screen offering quick access to all system functions: Home: The navigation bar on the left side gives you access to Invoices, Transactions, Reports, Contacts, Tracking, and Payroll. You can also access these at the top of the page. Financial performance: This report is shown in graph format and is a summary of your business’ revenue, expenses, and net income. Finish setup: This is displayed to show your progress with tasks needed to set up your account, including adding an address and phone number, adding a logo, and connecting a bank. Expenses: After you connect your bank account, your transactions will be downloaded and displayed here automatically. Tracked time: This feature summarizes your unbilled time so that you can see the status of what is yet to be invoiced. There is also a timer at the top of the page, which you use and then import into ZipBooks. Sending a Simple Invoice Because the Starter version doesn’t use items on its invoices, you type the description you want on each line of the invoice. For this reason, we included it as the best free software for simple invoices in our review of the best free accounting software. However, while it’s simple, it’s also inefficient because you’ll need to retype product and service descriptions in each invoice. Wave Ease of Use Wave also has a dashboard that displays current business performance along with a cash flow graph, a two-year net income summary, and a graph that illustrates expenses by category. You accept credit cards on invoices by going through the setup process on this page: Left navigation bar: Use this section to navigate to various sections of the software, including Sales, Purchases, Accounting, Banking, Payroll, Reports, Wave Advisors, and Tax Filing. Accept payments: This feature walks you through accepting credit card payments on your invoices and signs you up for Payments by Wave. Cash flow: This report reflects the cash going in and out of your business. Profit and loss: This report shows income and expenses only, including unpaid invoices and bills. Payable and owing: This section summarizes both invoices payable to you and unpaid bills, broken down by aging periods. Net Income: This is a two-year comparison that shows income, expense, and net income figures. Expense breakdown: This graph illustrates your expenses by category so that you can view what percentage is spent in each. ZipBooks vs Wave: Assisted Bookkeeping ZipBooks offers bookkeeping and tax services for an additional monthly fee, providing you with a dedicated bookkeeper and online support. Prices range from $125 per month for Simple Bookkeeping to $145 per month for more advanced bookkeeping. Form 1099 reporting and preparation starts at $175 per month and includes all features of Simple Bookkeeping. The bookkeeping plans already include a ZipBooks plan. Wave Advisors assist with bookkeeping, accounting coaching, and taxes. You can hire Wave Advisors to handle bookkeeping tasks such as categorizing bank transactions, performing bank reconciliations, and tax planning. Bookkeeping and payroll support: For $149 per month, Wave Advisors will categorize transactions, perform account reconciliations, and take care of your payroll. Tax service: For $899 per year, Wave Advisors guarantee accurate income tax filing and review of the profit and loss report. Accounting and payroll coaching: For $229 for one hour, Wave Advisors will help you set up your Wave account and teach you how to do the bookkeeping yourself. This price also includes 30 days of email support from your coach. ZipBooks vs Wave: Integrations Neither ZipBooks nor Wave offers an extensive list of integrations, but with the addition of Zapier, Wave has significantly more offerings. However, the dozen integrations that ZipBooks offers cover basic business needs such as business management, payment acceptance, and appointment scheduling. ZipBooks Integrations ZipBooks currently has 12 integrations, which include: Payments and ecommerce: PayPal, Square POS, Square for Retail, and Square Payments Customer relationship management (CRM): Spiceworks Network Monitor Appointment scheduling: Square Appointments Business management and automation: Slack, Asana, Google Drive, and Google Workspace Payroll and human resources (HR): GrandMaster Suite and eNETEmployer Wave Integrations Wave offers a limited number of integrations that include PayPal, Etsy, and Shoeboxed. It also supports a Zapier integration, which connects Wave with more than 1,000 add-ons. These include: Payments and ecommerce: Shopify, Square, Stripe, PayPal, and Etsy CRM: HubSpot, Pipedrive, and Harvest Email marketing: Automational, Mailchimp, and SendPulse Appointment scheduling: Calendly and Acuity Scheduling Business management and automation: Slack, ShipStation, FormStack Document, Google Sheets, and Approval Donkey ZipBooks vs Wave: Mobile App Until ZipBooks updates its mobile app, you can use your device’s browser to access ZipBooks, which is very mobile-friendly. For an extra timesaver, you can create a shortcut on your phone for easier access. The Wave app is limited to sending invoices, receiving payments, and capturing receipts. ZipBooks vs Wave: Customer Support Support is limited for both ZipBooks and Wave. ZipBooks offers a chatbot, live chat, and self-help information on their Help Center. Wave offers chatbot assistance only and self-help information. Overall, both software service providers have poor customer support. We recommend for the best customer support because users have multiple ways of contacting support. Bottom Line Both and offer free plans for basic accounting needs, but ZipBooks has paid plans if you want more advanced features. ZipBooks can also track time and manage 1099 contractors, two features that aren’t available with Wave. Wave can handle multiple currencies, while ZipBooks cannot. While Wave has two mobile apps for functions such as invoicing customers and receiving payments, ZipBooks’ app is currently discontinued.

A certified bookkeeper is someone who has demonstrated that they have the knowledge, skills, and work experience to perform the duties required of a bookkeeper. Clients often look at certifications to verify a level of experience and expertise when selecting a bookkeeper. The two top professional bookkeeper organizations, the and the , both offer nationally recognized certification programs. You can also become certified through local or online college courses or specialize in particular accounting software. We have evaluated each of these programs to help you determine the best one for you. Here are the steps to follow to become a certified bookkeeper. Step 1: Assess Your Current Level of Education It’s important to first assess your current level of education when deciding how to become a certified bookkeeper. Two goals of your education should be to learn the skills to become a competent bookkeeper and meet the education requirements of the certification program. Evaluate whether you currently have the knowledge to be an efficient bookkeeper or if you have formal education or equivalent experience that could be applied toward certification. If you’re looking for a program that teaches you bookkeeping in addition to providing certification, you may also want to cultivate other specialties, such as QuickBooks, which will help you to further your career. Step 2: Address Your Need for Credibility As a financial professional, your credibility is key and a major factor in attracting or retaining clients. The primary purpose of becoming a certified bookkeeper is to enhance your credibility. Before selecting a certification program, you need to decide exactly what type of credibility you’re seeking. Do you want to be more credible across bookkeeping in general, or just for a particular software program, like QuickBooks or Xero? This will assist in determining the best type of certification for you. Step 3: Assess Your Available Time and Money Time and money are valuable resources, and you want to spend both wisely. Think about how much time you have available on a weekly basis and during the duration of the course, and whether a self-paced or structured schedule is best for you. Also worth considering is whether the exam itself is scheduled online or in person, and how often it’s administered. The cost of the exam—including the enrollment fee, course materials including workbooks, and any administrative fees—should also be taken into account. Step 4: Choose Your Bookkeeper Certification Program There are several bookkeeper certification programs available. You can opt for a professional organization, such as AIPB or the NACPB, which offer rigorous training programs and the distinction of a certified bookkeeper (CB) or certified public bookkeeper (CPB) title upon successful completion of the program. Alternatively, you can locate a suitable online or traditional college course that will provide you with certification along with a thorough bookkeeping education. If you’re an efficient bookkeeper, you may want to focus on one particular accounting software program. Becoming a certified bookkeeper is recommended as the first step in our article about how to start a bookkeeping business. The following are the most popular types of bookkeeper certification programs: : Best for individuals who don’t have a formal education in bookkeeping : Best for individuals with a bachelor’s or associate degree in accounting Online and traditional college courses: Best for individuals who want to expand their bookkeeping knowledge and prefer to have access to an instructor while they learn Accounting software certification: Best for individuals who specialize in a particular accounting software application and want to be certified as an expert Comparison Table AIPB In 1997, the established the first national standard for bookkeepers: the Certified Bookkeeper program. Available in every state, this certification displays a mastery of key bookkeeping concepts and skills, establishing national credibility. These credentials demonstrate proficiency and assure potential clients that you’re capable of completing required tasks. Requirements certification consists of five steps: Submit an application Meet the work experience requirement Pass the four-part certification exam Adhere to the code of ethics Complete an average of 20 hours of CPE each year The certification exam consists of four parts. Parts 1 and 2 must be taken at a testing center and parts 3 and 4 are “take-home” exams that you can complete at your own pace and mail to the AIPB for grading. You must earn a grade of 75% for parts 1 and 2 and 70% for parts 3 and 4 to achieve certification. The final step is key to maintaining your certification. As with most certification programs, certified bookkeepers must acquire 60 continuing professional education credits over a three-year period from the anniversary of the last certification test passed―or from the date that you satisfy the experience requirement if this requirement is met after you pass the exam―and every three years thereafter. Expert Opinion Once you have successfully met all certification requirements, you’ll receive a certificate of completion, and you also can put the letters “CB,” which stands for certified bookkeeper, after your name. You can then use this in your email signature, on your business cards, social media sites, and other marketing materials. This will let potential clients know that you’re qualified, which will generate new leads and allow you to negotiate higher billing rates. NACPB The is ideal if you already have some kind of formal education, such as an associate or bachelor’s degree in accounting. It’s also best for someone who has a minimum of two years (4,000 hours) experience working as a bookkeeper. Since it’s a nationally recognized organization, obtaining certification through NACPB will afford you credibility among potential clients. The organization offers both a bookkeeper license program and a bookkeeper certification. Similar to AIPB’s bookkeeper certification program, NACPB’s requirements to obtain licensure include accounting or bookkeeping experience, passing an exam, and maintaining the license by completing CPE credits. Training is also available through NACPB, which includes free bookkeeper webinars, courses, and videos. You can also purchase bookkeeper guidebooks. Other free resources include bookkeeper news and updates, a dictionary of terms, and a bookkeeper support video knowledge base. Requirements To obtain certification through the , you can choose one of two paths: license by education or license by work experience. If you already have a bookkeeper’s certificate from an accredited school or an associate’s or bachelor’s degree in accounting, then you qualify to apply for your license through the education path; this means that the knowledge and skills that you have already achieved are enough for you to apply for a license without any prior experience working as a bookkeeper. If you have more work experience than you do education as a bookkeeper or accountant, then you should apply for your license through the work experience path. This means that you must have at least two years (4,000 hours) of experience working as a bookkeeper or accountant. Here are the steps you need to take to complete either the license by education or license by work experience path: Pass the exam Agree to abide by the Code of Professional Conduct Obtain 24 hours of CPE each year Submit the CPB application for licensure This is a self-paced program that requires discipline to study and learn the course material on your own. If you thrive in this type of environment, then you’ll enjoy the flexibility of learning on your own time. The coursework includes exercises and quizzes to ensure that you have mastered the material. After you have completed everything, you’ll schedule the certification exam. You can take online and in-person courses to achieve the required CPE credits each year. You can also continue your professional education with NACPB CPE courses in bookkeeping, payroll, QuickBooks, accounting, accounting analysis, tax, and business communication. Two of these courses—Bookkeeping with QuickBooks Online and Payroll with QuickBooks Online Payroll—are free for NACPB members. The Accounting with QuickBooks Online Accountant course is free to pro members. Expert Opinion After successfully passing the exam and meeting all of the requirements, you’ll receive a certificate of completion. You’ll also be able to put the letters “CPB,” which stand for certified public bookkeeper, behind your name. You can include this in your email signatures, on business cards, social media sites, and all of your marketing materials to promote your achievement. Online and Traditional College Courses There are several additional bookkeeper courses and certification programs that will provide certification. One benefit to this type of study is that you’ll have access to instructors while you learn. Available courses include and . Unlike the AIPB and NACPB certifications, you won’t earn the certified bookkeeper or certified public bookkeeper distinction when you complete these courses. However, you’ll receive a certificate from an accredited institution that shows you have the knowledge and skills to perform the duties required of a bookkeeper. Bookkeeping Specialization: UCLA Extension The four-course Bookkeeping Specialization program is offered by UCLA Extension. It’s designed for experienced bookkeepers as well as office managers or those who are looking to make the transition to a career in bookkeeping or accounting. While this course is offered by UCLA, which is located in Westwood, California, classes are offered both online and in-person. The total cost of the program is $3,060. As long as you maintain a GPA of 2.5 or higher in each course, you’ll receive a certificate upon completion of all courses in the program. Below is a list of the courses that are included in the : Bookkeeping and Accounting Essentials I Bookkeeping and Accounting Essentials II Accounting Using QuickBooks Payroll Tax and Accounting Bookkeeping Specialist: U.S. Career Institute The U.S. Career Institute is an online educational institute that provides affordable, real-world training designed specifically for the distance learner. They offer a certificate that includes, but isn’t limited to, the following: Accounts Receivable Accounts Payable Computerized Bookkeeping Financial Statements Closing the Books The total cost of the program is $589 if the tuition is paid in full upfront. You can also opt for automatic monthly payments of $639 total or mail-in payments of $689. The program can be completed at your own pace, and you can email or call your instructor with any questions. Requirements Online and traditional college courses differ in terms of their requirements for education and experience. It’s important to examine the details for each to determine if the program fits your individual needs. Expert Opinion While you won’t receive the type of certification that allows you to put a “CB” or “CPB” behind your name, completing a bookkeeping course at an accredited institution will equip you with the knowledge necessary to service your clients and give you access to a pool of resources that will ultimately help you to further your career. Accounting Software Certification Programs If you already have the bookkeeping knowledge you need, you might choose to grow your business around a particular accounting application by becoming certified in that software. By getting certified, you’ll have a better understanding of the software so that you can support your small business clients. You’ll also have added credibility and increased visibility from being listed in advisor directories so that potential clients can find you easily. Below we’ve included a few details on the certification programs available for three of the top accounting software programs. QuickBooks ProAdvisor is the most popular accounting software used by small businesses. There are many benefits that come with this program, such as a ProAdvisor certification badge that you can include on marketing materials like your business cards and website. In addition, you’ll be listed on the Find-a-ProAdvisor website so that small businesses that need to hire a QuickBooks Pro can find you. If you’re interested in learning more, read our article about how to become a QuickBooks ProAdvisor. Xero Advisor is a great alternative to QuickBooks. To achieve certification, you must complete a four-hour certification course. As a certified Xero Advisor, you’ll have an account manager assigned to you to answer questions, you’ll have access to free software, and you’ll be listed in the Xero Advisor Directory so that potential new clients can find you. Zoho Books Advisor is one of a suite of business apps offered by Zoho. To become a certified Zoho Pro, you just have to complete a one-hour webinar. As a Zoho Books Advisor, you’ll receive free software, tech support when you need it, and a listing in their Zoho Advisor directory so that small businesses that need help can find you. You can also network, with exclusive access to Zoho’s partner portal and events that are conducted worldwide. Requirements You don’t need an accounting or bookkeeping background or any type of formal education to become a . Plan to invest at least 12 to 16 hours of study time to prepare for the exam, which consists of 80 questions. You must receive a passing score of 80 percent or better, and you can take it up to three times if you don’t pass on your initial attempt. For more information, read our article about how to become certified as a QuickBooks ProAdvisor. certification shows you how to use all of the core features of the software, from setup to bank reconciliation and reporting. To complete the course and become certified, you must attend both the live consecutive sessions and complete the two assessments. The course is worth 4 CPE credits. To become a , you simply need to register for the Zoho Consulting Partner Program and attend the free one-hour webinar. Zoho will also provide training materials to help you master the software. You’ll receive free access to the Zoho Books premium plan and a dedicated account manager who’ll serve as a single point of contact. Expert Opinion Becoming certified in accounting software, such as QuickBooks, Xero, or Zoho Books, is a wise decision, especially when the majority of your clients use that particular software. Although you won’t earn a more general bookkeeping certification, you’ll receive access to free resources such as software, tech support, and a free listing in member directories. QuickBooks ProAdvisors will also be able to use a certification badge on all marketing materials. Bottom Line The right certification for you’ll depend on your level of education and experience, your need for credibility, time and financial resources, and the type of accounting software you wish to specialize in. Two popular options are certifications and/or licenses available through the American Institute of Professional Bookkeepers and the National Association of Certified Public Bookkeepers. Other options include online and traditional college courses and accounting software certification programs.

Both Sunrise and GnuCash are free accounting software programs that offer a useful set of accounting features. Sunrise has better accounts receivable (A/R) functions while GnuCash excels with its bank reconciliation features. In this article, we compare Sunrise and GnuCash to determine which of these two free accounting software programs is the best option for your business. We incorporate the results of our internally developed case study throughout the article to provide you with a more detailed comparison of these two accounting applications. When to Use Sunrise Sunrise by Lendio is a free cloud-based accounting application that has a wide range of features, including invoicing, tracking expenses, creating quotes and estimates, and financial reporting. Available in both a free version and a paid version that includes payment integrations and customizable invoices, it’s a great option for freelancers and companies with multiple entities. It’s one of our picks for the best free accounting software because of its mobile app capabilities. Sunrise is better for: Companies looking for a remote solution: Sunrise is cloud-based and has a powerful mobile app that makes it ideal for businesses that work remotely or are often on the go. Businesses that want user-friendly accounting software: Sunrise isn’t only user-friendly, but it also has intuitive navigation that makes it accessible even for novice users. Setting up your account is quick and easy as is using the program on a day-to-day basis. Freelancers: Many features that are useful to freelancers—such as creating quotes and estimates and tracking expenses, recurring invoices, and payment processing—are available with Sunrise. Sunrise is one of or picks for the best free accounting software for freelancers. When to Use GnuCash GnuCash is a free open-source desktop accounting software that tracks users’ bank accounts, income, expenses, and investments. It also offers basic accounting functionality for small businesses to manage invoicing, bill payment, and payroll. It has useful features, such as the ability to set reminders for certain transactions and an account reconciliation tool that lets users compare an account’s transactions against their bank statement. GnuCash is one of our picks for the best free accounting software for experienced bookkeepers. GnuCash is better for: Users who want customizable open-source software: GnuCash is ideal for programmers, as it makes its source code available to anyone who wants to modify it. Programmers can customize the software to include specific accounting flows or functions. The source code can also be enhanced to protect your financial data. Budget-minded businesses that want to track cash flow: GnuCash rates high for its cash management features which let you track income and expenses and reconcile checking accounts. It also offers helpful data visualization of your budget with graphs and reports. Experienced bookkeepers: Since the initial setup process can be difficult, it’s better suited to experienced bookkeepers and those who are familiar with double-entry accounting. When to Use an Alternative Sunrise and GnuCash are both effective accounting software programs. However, they both have limitations. Businesses that would be better served with an alternative include: Companies that need to track inventory: There’s no way to track inventory with either Sunrise or GnuCash. If this is a feature that you’re looking for, you may want to consider , which integrates with . This inventory and order management software lets you centralize your inventory system and automate your company’s order-to-cash process. Businesses that use project accounting, such as construction: Neither Sunrise nor GnuCash allow you to track costs by project. For an effective solution, we recommend a more powerful accounting software with this feature, such as , which we selected as our overall best small business accounting software. Ecommerce companies: Many of the features designed to support ecommerce companies, such as point-of-sale (POS) functions and Shopify integration, are lacking in both Sunrise and GnuCash. For a budget-friendly alternative, we recommend . Fit Small Business Case Study Our case study evaluates Sunrise and GnuCash across 11 categories. The results show Sunrise’s dominance in almost every category (with the exception of Banking, in which GnuCash excels). In a couple of categories, such as A/P and Tax, they ranked essentially the same. You can see the detailed results of our case study in our Sunrise review and GnuCash review. The graph below summarizes our case study: Sunrise vs GnuCash at a Glance Sunrise vs GnuCash: Pricing Both Sunrise and GnuCash offer a free plan, but Sunrise also allows you to upgrade to a paid plan that gives you access to additional features for $19.99 per month. Both applications’ free plans only allow one user, but Sunrise’s paid plan allows for unlimited users. Sunrise Pricing Sunrise offers both a free self-service plan and Sunrise Plus, a paid plan for $19.99 per month. The self-service plan includes most of the same features as the paid plan, but Sunrise Plus includes automatic expense categorization in your bank feed and additional payment integrations. Sunrise has its own integrated payment gateway, Sunrise Pay, and Sunrise Plus users also receive a 1% savings on their Sunrise Pay transactions. Free Self-Service: Free forever, but limited to one user Sunrise Plus: $19.99 per month for unlimited users GnuCash Pricing GnuCash is an open-source, locally installed platform, and is completely free to users. It’s available to download for Microsoft Windows, Linus, and Mac OS X devices. Its team of volunteers also created a for those who want to contribute. Takeaway: Depending on your needs, Sunrise may be a better option if you anticipate needing to upgrade to a plan that allows for unlimited users or an integrated payment gateway. Sunrise vs GnuCash: Features Both Sunrise and GnuCash share many important features, such as the ability to create invoices and track unpaid bills. However, there are also some important differences between the two. The table below shows how Sunrise measures up to GnuCash in terms of features. Based on our case study, we’ll discuss in detail three key features of Sunrise and GnuCash that are significantly different. Sunrise vs GnuCash: General Features Both Sunrise and GnuCash have strong general features but also lack some that are only included in higher-priced software, such as . These missing features include the ability to create classes and locations and track inventory. Neither GnuCash nor Sunrise have dedicated time or project tracking features, and there are minimal fields in the contact and product records. Also, both GnuCash and the free version of Sunrise restrict you to only one user. While Sunrise and GnuCash lack many of the same features, they also have a few differences. For example, GnuCash allows you to create recurring transactions that will post automatically on a specified date. You can also schedule an automatic reminder when a transaction is due. Some of Sunrise’s features, such as the ability to auto-categorize bank transactions, create recurring invoices, and track 1099 payments, are only available with the paid version. Sunrise vs GnuCash: Banking GnuCash excels with its banking and cash management features. While both Sunrise and GnuCash have automatic reconciliation features that will help to ensure that your books and bank account match, Sunrise won’t let you reconcile periods where there are timing differences, such as outstanding checks. This is a major problem if you issue paper checks. Unlike with GnuCash, with Sunrise you aren’t able to view outstanding transactions, enter the monthly service fee, or save the in-progress reconciliation and return later. In contrast, GnuCash’s checkbook-style register allows you to easily manage different financial transactions, such as income, credit cards, and stocks. The register allows you to enter split transactions into multiple accounts, mark a transaction as reconciled or cleared, and autofill transactions. Sunrise doesn’t let you combine multiple checks into a single deposit transaction. Sunrise vs GnuCash: Accounts Receivable Our case study shows that one of Sunrise’s strongest features is A/R. It allows you to create and send invoices to customers, and the paid version includes invoice customization features. You can create sales tax items and even add inventory to an invoice, even though Sunrise lacks inventory tracking functionality. Both programs let you generate credit memos as well as view outstanding invoices without generating a report. In contrast, GnuCash doesn’t allow for invoice customization, such as uploading a logo or changing invoice colors. You can only print invoices, not email them, whereas Sunrise allows you to do both. And while you can create quotes and estimates with Sunrise, this feature isn’t available with GnuCash. Takeaway: Sunrise has better overall features than GnuCash, except in the area of banking and cash management. GnuCash allows you to print checks from the program and reconcile your checking account while written checks are still outstanding. Sunrise vs. GnuCash: Ease of Use There is a large difference between Sunrise and GnuCash when it comes to ease of use, with Sunrise being much more user-friendly and intuitive. While GnuCash’s open-source code allows for customization, this would require a programmer’s assistance, and it isn’t ideal for someone with minimal bookkeeping experience. Sunrise Ease of Use Sunrise is very easy to navigate, and all features are marked on the dashboard. Even users with little or no bookkeeping experience will find the software is user-friendly. Setting up your account can be done quickly, as it only takes a few steps to enter your company information. When you log into your account, your dashboard will show an overview of your financial health as well as links to customize invoices and connect your bank accounts. GnuCash Ease of Use GnuCash has a steep learning curve and its user interface could be more intuitive, so it’s best suited to users with bookkeeping experience. Its initial setup can be confusing, and it doesn’t offer formal product support options. Even the live connection with bank and credit card accounts requires some configuration, although you can still import your transactions using a CSV file to perform a complete bank reconciliation. Takeaway: Unless you’re an experienced bookkeeper or someone with programming knowledge, Sunrise is a better choice because of its accessibility and intuitive interface. Sunrise vs GnuCash: Integrations Both Sunrise and GnuCash have little to no integration, but Sunrise’s integration with Zapier gives you access to over 3,000 apps (it requires you to build Zaps to control the information between programs). Because GnuCash is open-source software, an experienced programmer should be able to customize it to accommodate any desired integrations. If integrations are important to you, we highly recommend QuickBooks Online, as it has hundreds of integrations that can be initiated from within QuickBooks. Takeaway: Sunrise does have useful integrations, such as Gusto for payroll. Its ability to integrate with Zapier makes it a clear winner over GnuCash. Sunrise vs GnuCash: Mobile App Both Sunrise and GnuCash offer mobile apps for iOS and Android, but GnuCash’s app is much more limited in its capabilities. Some key features, such as collecting payments and organizing receipts, are available with Sunset but not GnuCash. Sunrise also ranked slightly higher than GnuCash based on user ratings from the Apple Store and Google Play. Sunrise Mobile App Sunrise’s mobile app is available for both iOS and Android, and it allows you to collect payments, manage invoices, categorize bank feed transactions, and organize receipts. But it lacks some important features, such as time tracking, reporting, project management, and mobile reporting. GnuCash Mobile App While there is a GnuCash mobile app available in both the App Store and Google Play, it’s extremely limited and doesn’t connect to your GnuCash program. It helps you to create a spreadsheet of transactions that can then be manually imported into GnuCash. Takeway: If you’re looking for a capable mobile app that’s user-friendly and will assist you with basic bookkeeping functions, Sunrise is the better option. Sunrise vs GnuCash: Customer Support For a company that offers free software, Sunrise is exceptional in its customer support options. Neither Sunrise nor GnuCash offers the ability to contact an agent by phone, but Sunrise does have a quick and responsive live chat and email feature. GnuCash’s customer support is limited to self-support tools on its website. Sunrise Customer Support Although Sunrise doesn’t offer the ability to contact customer support by phone, it’s easy to contact the company via live chat or email, and the responses are extremely quick. When you open the live chat feature, you’ll reach “Sunny,” an automated assistant who offers resources and answers to frequently asked questions (FAQs). If your question is more complex, Sunny will connect you with a live representative. A contact form is also available on the website as well as a blog that provides useful information related to bookkeeping, accounting, taxes, and small business. GnuCash Customer Support GnuCash has very limited customer support options with no way to contact them via email, phone, or live chat. Whereas most web-based accounting software platforms include some form of customer support, GnuCash, which is free open-source software, only offers online self-support tools. However, the online documentation is quite extensive and includes a help manual, tutorial, a concepts guide, and a FAQs page. Takeaway: GnuCash’s lack of customer support options makes it difficult for users to receive help in a timely manner. Sunrise, on the other hand, offers a couple of support options, including live chat and email. Bottom Line There isn’t too much of a difference between Sunrise and GnuCash in terms of their features, although each has its strong points. Both are great options for freelancers or businesses looking for a free accounting solution, but there are important factors to consider that will influence your decision. While GnuCash is restricted to desktop users, Sunrise is cloud-based and much more user-friendly with its intuitive interface. If you’re a freelancer that values customer support as well as strong A/R features, then you’ll appreciate Sunrise’s capabilities. If you’re an experienced bookkeeper and aren’t daunted by a steep learning curve, then desktop-based GnuCash is a good choice because of the ability to customize the software with the help of a programmer.

Extending credit to customers allows them to purchase goods and services and pay for them later on. Offering credit is often a win-win for both merchants and buyers and having a formal credit policy is among the most important best practices for managing accounts receivable. Customers have more purchasing power and tend to buy more if they aren’t limited to the cash they have at the time of the sale. Extending credit can benefit your company by establishing trust with your customers and increasing customer loyalty. To establish an effective credit policy, it’s important to communicate your credit terms clearly and do your due diligence in terms of only lending to credible customers. Invoice factoring might be used in conjunction with customer credit to facilitate cash flow. Pros & Cons of Extending Credit to Customers Extending credit to customers can bring you increased sales, a competitive edge, and stronger customer relationships. However, you run the risk of not getting paid. The key is to stay on top of unpaid invoices so they don’t become delinquent. Factors to Consider When Extending Credit Every business has customers who are more loyal and trustworthy than others. Fortunately, you can ultimately determine which companies you want to extend credit to. Two factors you should consider before extending credit are customizing the payment terms for each customer and creating a credit policy. Customize the Payment Terms for Each Customer If a customer has good credit and has historically paid their bills on time, it’s likely that they’ll pay you on time as well. However, if a customer has poor credit or a past history of delinquency, you may want to investigate further by looking into their financial history. A credit report will cost between $29 and $229, depending on which reporting agency you use. Check out our business credit report guide to learn more about the credit agencies, how to pull a credit report, and what to look for. After reviewing the credit report, set payment terms based on the information you discover. Traditionally, customers with good credit will receive longer payment terms than customers who have had issues paying their bills on time. While the industry standard is to offer Net 30 payment terms, you can choose to offer different terms. Your best customers might deserve 60- to 90-day terms while new customers might start out with 30-day terms. Look at our invoice payment terms guide to learn how to select the right terms for your business. Create a Credit Policy Before extending credit to customers, you need to have a documented credit policy in place. Your credit policy should address payment terms, penalties, interest for late payments, and the collection process for delinquent invoices. In addition, a list of acceptable payment methods, along with detailed instructions on how to remit payment, should be included. You should review the policy with your customers and have them acknowledge that they agree to the terms prior to providing products or services on credit. A credit policy should include: Contact information: Include detailed information on how the customer can reach you, which includes your business telephone number, email address, website, and physical address―unless you have a home office Payment terms: This is when the payment will be due, such as Net 30 or 2/10 Net 30 Interest and penalties for late payments: Detail what interest rate or late fees will be charged and when these charges will kick in, such as two weeks after the due date or in one month Acceptable forms of payment: Let the customer know if you accept cash, credit or debit cards, checks, automated clearing house (ACH) transactions, or wire transfers; for credit and debit card payments and wire transfers, be sure to include instructions on how customers can make these payments like online or telephone Remit to address: Include the mailing address where customers can mail checks Delinquent payments: Indicate when a payment is considered delinquent, such as 60 days after the invoice due date Collection process: This is the process you’ll follow to collect payment on delinquent accounts, which may involve you requesting payment from the customer via email or telephone and following up by writing a collection letter; it might also include engaging the services of third-party collection agencies. Use Invoice Factoring to Help With Cash Flow Extending credit to customers can help your business grow in the long term, but cash flow gets a bit messy when there’s a time lag between purchase and payment. Invoice factoring is one way to plug the gaps in cash flow. It advances your capital right away in exchange for assigning unpaid invoices to the factoring company. It’s a good solution for businesses that want to offer credit to customers but need help in stabilizing their cash flow. Invoice factoring companies typically advance 70% to 90% of the invoice value upfront. The cost of your capital being tied up in the invoices is often more than the fees charged by the invoice factoring company. Recourse vs Nonrecourse Factoring One of the most important conditions to consider when negotiating an invoice factoring arrangement is whether it’s a recourse or nonrecourse factoring arrangement. Recourse factoring: This allows the factoring company to seek repayment of its advance if your customer fails to pay its invoice. With this type of arrangement, if the customer fails to pay, you would be responsible for paying the invoice. Nonrecourse factoring: The factoring company would be responsible for the invoice if the customer fails to pay it. Most nonrecourse agreements apply if your customer can’t pay due to insolvency, which usually means bankruptcy. Some factors have more flexible definitions of insolvency than others, such as if a customer closes its doors without declaring bankruptcy. We selected as one of the best invoice factoring companies, which is partly due to its quick application and funding process. For more information about FundThrough and our other recommendations, check out our article on the best invoice factoring companies. Bottom Line For many small businesses, extending credit to customers is essential to business growth. When developing a credit policy, set clear terms, track payment deadlines, and only extend credit to customers you trust. If cash flow is a concern, consider using invoice factoring to support your cash flow when you extend terms to customers.

Rigbooks is a cloud-based trucking management system (TMS) that helps you manage and track orders, trips, expenses, and fuel mileage, as well as send invoices and prepare International Fuel Tax Agreement (IFTA) taxes. Its main features include detailed load tracking, fleet maintenance, billing and invoicing, and document management. Rigbooks’ Basic Entry plan starts at $19 per month. You can try it for free for 30 days before buying the product. What We Recommend Rigbooks For Rigbooks is ideal for trucking companies that operate up to five trucks. It’s used by truckers to understand which of their loads are the most profitable based on cost per mile, which is often a struggle with other accounting software. If you’re a fleet manager or driver who clocks thousands of miles and needs to keep a tally of travel reasons, dates, odometer readings, and other data needed for tax deductions, then Rigbooks is a great choice for you. Rigbooks Is Best For Small trucking companies that need affordable load tracking: With Rigbooks, you can track cost per mile, profit per mile, and average miles (to help you understand which loads are the most profitable) for as low as $19 per month. Because of this, Rigbooks earned a spot in our best trucking accounting software guide. Truckers that need an easy-to-use TMS: Rigbooks has the simplest and easiest-to-use interface among the trucking accounting software we’ve reviewed, making it an ideal choice for truckers who don’t have much bookkeeping experience. Trucking companies that need easy IFTA calculation: Rigbooks imports mileage entries and the latest fuel tax rates automatically for all jurisdictions for easy IFTA reporting. Rigbooks Is Not Right For Large trucking companies with many trucks: Rigbooks can be expensive for large companies with many trucks. Its most expensive plan, which costs $149 per month, supports up to five trucks only. Adding trucks to each plan is an additional charge. A cheaper alternative is , which supports more than eight trucks for only $79 per month. Trucking businesses that need a complete bookkeeping and trucking management solution: While Rigbooks provides billing and invoicing, it doesn’t have the core features of a bookkeeping program, like the ability to reconcile bank accounts, track assets and liabilities, and print a balance sheet. If you need a complete bookkeeping solution without giving up specialized trucking features, you can integrate with for a powerful accounting and trucking management solution combined. QuickBooks Online, when integrated with TruckingOffice, is our choice for the best trucking accounting software. Owner-operators that book loads directly from carriers: Unlike Rigbooks, has a dedicated portal that allows your carriers to access available loads, amounts you owe to them, and shipments you have dispatched with them. If you think general bookkeeping software may meet your trucking accounting needs, check out our article on the best small business accounting software. Rigbooks Pros and Cons Rigbooks Pricing Rigbooks is available in four packages with prices that start at $19 per month for a single truck. All plans include Rigbooks’ core features, such as expense tracking, mileage tracking, and IFTA reporting. If you need additional functionality like customer invoicing, you’ll need to upgrade to the Independent plan. Users that need driver record management should subscribe to Small Fleet. You can try Rigbooks for free for 30 days to decide if it’s a good fit for you before buying it. Rigbooks Features Rigbooks offers plenty of features that help owner-operators and fleet managers track different aspects of their trucking business, including orders, expenses, trips, fuel purchases, and maintenance. Below is a list of some of Rigbooks’ most notable features. Dashboard Rigbooks has a very simple and neat interface that’s extremely easy to navigate. The dashboard provides quick links to all the features you may need, as well as shortcuts for instantly adding new transactions like trips, trucks, revenues, expenses, and fuel purchases. There’s a function checklist at the top that lets you see your progress. The left-hand navigation menu is well organized, and the + buttons next to each menu make it easy to initiate a transaction. The forms are very comprehensive and can be completed in a few seconds, as long as you have the required details ready for input. Order Tracking The order management module helps you track all your loads and track the progress of each shipment. You can monitor loads based on status, and each status has a separate tab for easy tracking. Orders in Rigbooks are tracked based on the following statuses: Entered: Loads that are waiting for confirmation on rates Confirmed: Loads that are confirmed and are ready to dispatch Dispatched: Loads that are dispatched but not yet in transit In-Transit: Loads that are being delivered to the recipient Delivered: Loads that are successfully delivered to the receiver but not yet invoiced Completed: Loads that are invoiced Canceled: Loads canceled by the shipper or receiver To add a new order in Rigbooks, you can click on the Add Order button on the Orders screen or tap the + button next to Orders in the left navigation menu. The Add an Order screen will appear, asking for details such as order number, order status, frequency, and contracting parties. Expense Tracking You can use Rigbooks to track fixed and variable tracking costs. Fixed costs are expenses that are incurred whether you’re driving or not. Examples of fixed costs include equipment loan payments, permit costs, and accountant costs. Variable costs like fuel, maintenance, and tire repairs change depending on how many miles you drive. You can track expense totals on a weekly, monthly, quarterly, or yearly basis. To record a new expense, click on the Add Expense button on the upper right-hand part of the Expense screen, or select the + button next to the Expenses menu on the left navigation menu. Expense details, like cost, description, and category, are needed to complete the Add New Expense form. Notice that Rigbooks doesn’t track the checking or credit card account used when recording an expense. This means that you won’t be able to compare your bank or credit card statement to your expense records easily to verify you’ve captured all expenses. While this makes for an easy-to-use system, it provides room for errors when receipts are lost. We recommend a double-entry accounting system like to avoid omitting expenses unintentionally. Invoicing Rigbooks has a very simple invoicing feature, which helps you collect payments from customers. You can create an invoice from existing trip records, including partial payments and private notes. With Rigbooks, you have the option to enter a customer to bill for the load, as well as a third-party company like a factoring company, through the Contracting Parties section in the invoice form. On the downside, Rigbooks isn’t as comprehensive as QuickBooks Online in terms of invoicing. For instance, you can’t set up recurring invoices, and it can’t calculate sales tax automatically to apply to an invoice like QuickBooks Online. Note that the invoicing feature is only available in the Independent and Small Fleet plans. Fuel Purchase Recording Fuel purchases often account for a large portion of a trucking business’ total expenses, making it extremely important to track. With Rigbooks, you can record the details of your fuel purchases for each truck to help you track oil and gasoline costs. It also helps you keep detailed records of truck mileage to simplify tax reimbursement. The Fuel Purchase form can be accessed from the Add Fuel Purchase button on the Your Fuel Purchases screen or the + button next to the Fuel menu on the left navigation bar. To complete the Add Fuel Purchase form, you need to provide fuel and mileage information. Document Management The document management module provides an easy way to store, organize, and manage drivers’ paperwork and expense receipts. This feature allows you to attach bill of lading (BOL) documents to your loads, and then generate an invoice in a few seconds. Rigbooks’ document management system is compatible with most mobile scanning applications, like Adobe Scan and Microsoft Office Lens. Fleet Maintenance Recording This feature helps you stay on top of your preventive maintenance (PM) needs. Rigbooks provides an easy way to record and organize your maintenance procedures and monitor maintenance records by category, such as oil change, service motor, and tire and wheels. Maintenance reports can be generated on a weekly, monthly, quarterly, or yearly basis. Settlements Rigbooks lets you pay your drivers and agents by mile, load percent, or flat rate per trip. You can add and track the pay for all the trips associated with a settlement. The settlements in Rigbooks let you enter additional expenses that should be paid by the driver, reimbursements owed to the driver, and additional driver pay, which is commonly used for adjustments that aren’t connected to a trip. To access the Add New Settlement form in Rigbooks, click on the Settlement menu on the left navigation bar, and then click on the Add Settlement button on the Settlement screen. IFTA Reporting Just like other trucking software, Rigbooks is compatible with the International Fuel Tax Agreement (IFTA). It helps you stay compliant with the IFTA by tracking mileage per jurisdiction. It makes reporting easy by providing detailed information on mileage and fuel purchases per jurisdiction. The IFTA reporting feature in Rigbooks shows the total miles traveled in all jurisdictions, total fuel consumed in all jurisdictions, and average miles per gallon. IFTA reports can be downloaded as a PDF or Excel file. Reports Rigbooks generate several reports, including profit and loss statements, expense reports, fuel mileage, maintenance reports, settlement reports, and trip reports. All the reports can be printed and downloaded in PDF or Excel format. Rigbooks Customer Support Rigbooks provides a toll-free hotline if you need customer support. You can also send an email with your query and wait for an answer from one of its agents. We tried sending an email, and it took about seven hours to get a response. One of the things we like best about Rigbooks is that it has a vast which you can access on the main menu bar of the website’s homepage easily. The resource center includes useful tips and information about the trucking business. For instance, it has some informative blogs about how to start a trucking business, the best places to buy fuel, and how to track miles for IFTA reporting. Rigbooks Alternatives Bottom Line Whether you’re an owner-operator or a small trucking fleet owner with no more than five trucks, can be a great choice. It has the tools you need to dispatch and track your loads, track fuel and other expenses, bill customers, and stay compliant with the IFTA. It’s very easy to use, and it has simple yet powerful cost-per-mile reporting that helps trucking companies understand the profitability of every load they dispatch.