EasyFarm Review: Pricing and Features for 2022
This article is part of a larger series on Accounting Software.
What We Recommend EasyFarm For
We recommend EasyFarm for independent farmers and ranch managers who want to track their household or personal expenses and farm expenses using the same platform. It’s an integrated accounting and farm management program, which means that you can use it to handle sales, expenses, and other financial transactions while also having the ability to manage crops, livestock, and other operations that aren’t necessarily related to bookkeeping.
EasyFarm is a self-learning program with a variety of preset calculations and reports that make it easy for you to remember your actions, such as categorizations you made previously.
EasyFarm Is Especially Good For
- Unincorporated farmers: Self-employed farmers can use EasyFarm to manage their farm accounting as well as report their income or loss from farming on Form 1040, Schedule F. EasyFarm has a unique interface and uses jargon related to farming, making it understandable to farmers that spend time learning the program. EasyFarm is one of our choices for the best farm accounting software.
- Farmers who mix personal and farm funds: EasyFarm provides a single platform where you can manage both farm funds and nonfarm family living expenses in the same bank account.
- Farmers seeking management software in addition to bookkeeping: In addition to its accounting features, EasyFarm also supports crop and livestock management.
EasyFarm Is Not a Good Fit For
- Farmers who need to track unpaid bills and issue invoices to customers: EasyFarm doesn’t allow you to track unpaid bills and requires an additional fee to send and track invoices. If your farm business needs to send invoices and track unpaid bills, we recommend QuickBooks Online.
- Agricultural companies with in-house accounting pros: The interface is designed for farmers, so professional bookkeepers may find it clumsy and inefficient. If you’re working with a bookkeeper, CenterPoint Accounting can be a good alternative.
- Farmers looking to grow larger: Farm accounting is difficult, and as you grow larger it becomes harder to manage both your farm and your books. FinancePal is an online bookkeeping, accounting, and tax firm with agricultural accounting specialists that will custom-tailor a plan to manage your books and free up your time to do what you love: manage your farm.
Are you looking for something different? If you think your farm business can benefit from general-purpose accounting software, check out our guide to the best small business accounting software.
EasyFarm Pros and Cons
PROS | CONS |
---|---|
Unique program specially designed for farmers | Cannot track unpaid bills |
Can import bank transactions automatically | Requires additional fee to send and track invoices |
Unique input screens for easy data entry once the program is mastered | Payroll withholds tax at a flat percentage rate, which isn’t IRS-compliant |
Can manage both personal and farm funds | A bit expensive compared to other similar software |
EasyFarm vs Competitors (FSB Rating)
We evaluated EasyFarm and two of their competitors across five categories discussed in our article on the best farm accounting software. The software is rated from 1 to 10—10 being the highest.
Based on our scoring system, EasyFarm has excellent farm-specific accounting features on par with FarmBooks. It’s slightly more expensive than FarmBooks, but its one-time fee of $509 is easier to maintain than QuickBooks Online’s $25 per user, per month. Despite its low scores on general accounting, ease of use, and expert analysis, it’s still an ideal choice for self-employed farmers with no bookkeeping experience.
EasyFarm Pricing
EasyFarm is available in five editions with prices that start at $509 for a perpetual license, including one year of support. You’ll need to pay additional fees if you need support after one year. EasyFarm also offers several add-on modules, with prices ranging from $159 to $595.
EasyFarm Program Editions
Prices & Features | EasyFarm 8.3 Lite | EasyFarm 8.3 Plus | EasyFarm 8.3 Pro Livestock | EasyFarm 8.3 Pro Crops | EasyFarm Premier |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
License Fee | $509 | $595 | $800 | $800 | $1,100 |
Farm Accounting | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Inventory | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Check Writing | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Cost Centers | N/A | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
FINPACK Reports | N/A | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Crop & Field Records | N/A | N/A | N/A | ✔ | ✔ |
Livestock Manager | N/A | N/A | ✔ | N/A | ✔ |
EasyFarm Add-ons
Add-on Module | Pricing | Add-on To |
---|---|---|
Co-op Inventory Management Software | $159 | All Editions |
Accounts Receivable (A/R) | $169 | All Editions |
Oil Sales & Royalty Payment Distribution | $229 | EasyFarm Plus and Pro |
EasyFarmHand Mobile App | $339 | Crop and Field Manager |
Crop and Field Manager | $595 | Can be purchased as a standalone program |
EasyFarm Manuals and Device
- Reference and Training Manual ($25): This includes step-by-step guides on how to use the features of the program.
- Crop and Field Manual ($25): This shows detailed instructions on how to use the Crop & Field Management software module.
- Anhydrous Management Manual ($25): This guide explains how to use and run the anhydrous management software.
- USB Flash Drive ($15): You can use this 8GB flash drive to store your backup files or transfer data between computers.
EasyFarm 8.3 Lite
EasyFarm Lite is designed for farmers and ranchers who need a simple accounting and farm management solution. It can be used to print checks, record deposits, and generate reports on farm expenses, sales, and other activities. The Lite version can also be used to keep track of inventory, crop, livestock, or dairy production and sales.
EasyFarm 8.3 Plus
EasyFarm Plus is made for farmers who need access to a payroll service on top of farm management and accounting services. It can be used to manage employees, including payroll recordkeeping and check writing. However, we don’t recommend EasyFarm for processing payroll because it withholds federal income tax at a flat percentage rate, which isn’t IRS-compliant.
EasyFarm 8.3 Pro Livestock
EasyFarm Pro Livestock offers the same features as EasyFarm Plus but also comes with a livestock manager, a separate program for taking control of livestock production and sales.
EasyFarm 8.3 Pro Crops
EasyFarm Pro Crops offers the same benefits as EasyFarm Plus. The only difference is that it comes with a crop and field manager, which allows users to take control of their farm and field production.
EasyFarm Premier
EasyFarm Premier is for farmers who want total control over their enterprise, payroll, and farm operations. It comes with a multiple profile manager for managing multiple farms and comes with both the livestock manager and the crop and field manager.
EasyFarm Features
EasyFarm has almost all the critical features that small farmers need, including crop and financial management modules and an asset account ledger to manage multiple books. To get a glimpse of what EasyFarm can do, watch our video explaining the program’s core accounting features:
New Features in 2022
- Electronic banking: EasyFarm now lets you import your files of bank transactions to EasyFarm. The program currently doesn’t support a direct connection with your bank, but you can import your transactions manually using a comma-separated value (CSV) file.
- Upload PDF documents: This new feature allows you to upload a PDF version of a stored receipt or document and then attach it to a transaction in EasyFarm. You can scan the receipt directly within EasyFarm or upload a PDF file from your computer.
- Bar and quick response (QR) code scanning: EasyFarm has improved its A/R feature with its bar and QR code scanning feature. A bar code or QR code added to an invoice will make it easy for your customers to pay their bills. This feature is especially useful for farmers who sell products like dried fruits, corn, soybeans, cattle, and hogs.
EasyFarm Core Features
EasyFarm Dashboard
EasyFarm has a minimalistic dashboard that’s very easy to navigate. The uncrowded layout only includes important tabs, such as the account ledger, contacts, and reports:
EasyFarm Dashboard
(Source: EasyFarm)
Single Entry Input
EasyFarm highlights its “single-entry input” approach when recording transactions. This means that you can record multiple items and put them on inventory in a single entry, reducing data entry time. For instance, if you purchase items like chemicals and seeds, the system will collect the information to add them to supplies inventory in the same entry that records the cash spent. Single-entry input is achieved with a very specific chart of accounts that indicates to the system the information that needs to be collected for a particular transaction.
Pick Lists
EasyFarm includes preloaded pick lists that you can use, or you can customize your own. Pick lists are useful to simplify the entry of data into the system. Pick lists in EasyFarm include crops, crop type, crop stages, seasons, seed treatment, fertilizer, scouting problems, herbicides, insecticides, chemical application methods, operators-truckers, and more.
Chart of Accounts
The program includes a chart of accounts already set up for the agricultural industry, but it’s flexible enough to fit your needs. You can create as many transaction accounts as needed, and you can add and edit subaccounts under each account easily:
EasyFarm Chart of Accounts
(Source: EasyFarm)
EasyFarm’s chart of accounts is unique in the way that it has very specific account types. The different account types allow the program to understand the transaction you’re entering and will collect the unique information for that transaction. For instance, if you choose “Purchase Calves,” the program won’t only reduce your checking account for the expenditure but will also provide a tab within the check-writing window where you can record quantity and weight purchased for inventory purposes.
Accounts Receivable
The A/R module allows you to issue and track invoices and then subsequently track payments against them. It’s offered as an add-on to any version of EasyFarm. Some small farmers may consider this a major drawback of EasyFarm, considering that other similar programs include a built-in A/R module for free:
Sample Invoicing Form
(Source: EasyFarm)
Inventory
EasyFarm will track both the quantity and weight of your inventory as you make purchases and sales. Based on the account type you select when writing a check, EasyFarm provides a tab to collect quantity and weight and will adjust the correct inventory automatically. It’s very important that you set up your chart of accounts correctly so that you have accounts available for purchases and sales of each inventory item.
Check Writing
You can record and print checks to send to your suppliers and vendors. You can find the check register on the Transactions menu on your EasyFarm dashboard. From your check register, you’ll find your list of transactions that you can sort by date and vendor. To create a new check, click on the New button under the Checking tab and provide the required details, like vendor, date, and amount. You can then print your check, or delete or void it, if needed:
Check Writing in EasyFarm
Bank Account Reconciliation
EasyFarm allows you to reconcile your books to your bank statements to make sure that your accounts are accurate. Click on the checkbox next to the transaction item that has cleared the bank, and then click on the Reconcile button.
Cost Centers
EasyFarm lets you assign expenditures to cost centers or enterprises. You can create a cost center to track your income and expenses by fields, herds, and other elements specific to your farm. Cost centers help you allocate your farm resources strategically.
FINPACK Exports
You can export your data easily to Excel or FINPACK for further analysis. FINPACK is a financial and credit analysis software for farm and agricultural producers, professionals, and lenders.
EasyFarmHand Mobile App
EasyFarmHand is a companion app to the Crop and Field Manager, and it’s designed to help you enter crop and field records anytime and anywhere. It doesn’t provide bookkeeping features. The app is available on Google Play but isn’t available for iPhones.
Reports
EasyFarm has a good selection of reports, and each report can be customized to include only the accounts you need. Available reports include income and expense, cash flow statements, and a balance sheet:
Sample Balance Sheet in EasyFarm
Customer Service and Ease of Use
The unique one-entry method is challenging to learn but makes EasyFarm quick and easy to use once mastered. We expect that experienced bookkeepers will be frustrated with the very unique workflow, but farmers without bookkeeping knowledge seem to love it.
If you need help with the program or you have questions or concerns, you can talk to EasyFarm support over the phone or email them during their regular support hours. For more in-depth guides, all software comes with a reference and training manual, plus one free year of software support. You can check out EasyFarm’s product demo, tutorial videos, and downloadable materials to see how the program works before buying it.
EasyFarm Alternatives
Best for: Farmers who need A/P and A/R | Best for: Agricultural companies with in-house bookkeepers | Best for: Farmers who need farm management billing features |
Software from: $25 per month | Custom quote | Custom quote |
Bottom Line
Overall, EasyFarm is an ideal solution for self-employed farmers who want to track their personal and farm funds in one account. If you only want to stay on top of your farm income and expenses and keep your books organized without needing to track unpaid bills, then EasyFarm is a great choice. If you need to bill customers, you’ll have to add the A/R module for an additional $169 fee or try a general bookkeeping program like QuickBooks Online.