Accounting & invoicing
How to choose accounting software: the regular price, the five basics and how you leave
Quick answer
Compare accounting software on its entry plan's regular price, not the introductory discount, and check that plan includes the five basics: unlimited invoices, bank feeds, receipt capture, bank reconciliation and a profit and loss and balance sheet. Then check how many users it includes and what happens to your data when you cancel. Entry plans we compare run from $0 (Wave) to $38 a month (QuickBooks Simple Start).
Accounting software plans look alike on a pricing page and differ in the fine print. We compare 10 products on their entry plan, using only what each company publishes on its own pages. Here is what we weigh, why, and the traps we found. Prices were read between Sep 25 and Oct 1, 2026.
What we weigh, and why
Our methodology scores each entry plan on six things:
| Criterion | Weight | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Regular price | 30% | What you pay once any discount ends |
| Price after the introductory offer | 10% | Whether the page shows the real price beside the offer |
| Included on the entry plan | 30% | Unlimited invoices, bank feeds, receipt capture, reconciliation, reports |
| Users | 10% | Whether your bookkeeper or partner can log in |
| Leaving | 10% | Whether you can cancel and still get your data |
| Free plan or trial | 10% | Whether you can try it before paying |
Price and what's included carry most of the weight because they decide the bill and whether the cheap plan does the job.
The price range you'll see
Entry plans run from free to $38 a month at regular prices. Wave Starter is $0. Akaunting Standard Cloud is $12 a month. ZipBooks Smarter is $15. Zoho Books Standard and Patriot Software Accounting Basic are $20. FreshBooks Lite is $23. Bonsai Essentials is $25 and Xero Early $27. Kashoo is $30 and QuickBooks Online Simple Start is $38.
Trap 1: the introductory price
Four companies lead with a discount. QuickBooks Simple Start shows $19 a month for 3 months, then $38. Patriot shows 30 days free, then $10 for 3 months, then $20. FreshBooks sells Lite at $1 a month for the first year, then $23. Xero's prices rose on October 1, 2026 (Early from $25 to $27), and new US customers now get 80% off for the first 3 months ($5.40 a month on Early), then $27; Xero can change or cancel that offer at any time. Judge each on the regular price you'll pay in month 13.
Where a company's own pages disagree, we use the worse reading. FreshBooks lists Lite at $17 on a comparison page and $23 on its pricing page; we use $23. Patriot's pricing page shows 50% off for 3 months while its hidden data says 6; we use 3.
Trap 2: caps on invoices and clients
"Unlimited invoices" isn't universal:
- Xero Early: "Early limits to 20 invoices", per Xero's comparison page.
- Zoho Books Standard: up to 5,000 invoices a year.
- Akaunting Standard Cloud: 1,000 invoices.
- FreshBooks Lite: unlimited invoices, but to only 5 billable clients.
Trap 3: a basic missing from the entry plan
Check each of the five basics against the entry plan, not the product:
- Bank feeds. Wave Starter has no bank connections (FAQ); Akaunting keeps bank feeds for Premium and up (plans help).
- Reconciliation. FreshBooks puts it on Plus and up (help). ZipBooks' pricing page lists it on Sophisticated at $35. Bonsai's pages don't mention it.
- Receipt capture. Patriot's receipt management is Premium only. FreshBooks' receipt scanning starts at Plus. Wave sells it as an add-on on Starter.
- Balance sheet. FreshBooks Lite and Akaunting Standard don't include one.
Kashoo and QuickBooks Simple Start include all five in our research. Xero Early and Zoho Books Standard have four each, missing only unlimited invoices.
Trap 4: paying per user
Bonsai charges per user: three people on Essentials cost three seats. FreshBooks Lite is the owner only, with team members at $11 a month each. QuickBooks Simple Start has 1 billable user. At the other end, Xero, Kashoo and Patriot include unlimited users on the entry plan, and Zoho Books Standard includes 3.
Trap 5: what happens when you leave
Every company lets you cancel, but notice and keeping your data differ:
- Xero needs one month's notice, charges for it, then archives the data.
- Kashoo's help centre says you lose access to the data when you cancel.
- Akaunting says you lose all business data unless you download it first.
- Zoho Books keeps it read-only.
- QuickBooks gives a year of read-only access.
- Patriot turns the account read-only.
Freelancers and contractors
If you bill by the hour, check time tracking and projects on the entry plan. ZipBooks Smarter, FreshBooks Lite and Bonsai Essentials include them. Zoho Books, QuickBooks and Xero put them on bigger plans. Our list for freelancers ranks on those features. Contractors should read our guide to job costing, progress invoicing and 1099s by plan and our list for construction and trades.
Checklist
- Write down the regular monthly price, not the offer.
- Check invoice, client and user limits on that plan.
- Tick off bank feeds, receipt capture, reconciliation and a balance sheet on that plan.
- Price every extra user, add-on and payment fee you'll need.
- Read the cancellation page: notice, fees and whether your data stays readable.
- Use the free plan or trial to run one month's books before you pay.
See how the 10 products compare in our accounting software ranking.