Accounting Software for Freelancers Made Easy

Small and medium businesses remain the backbone of the economy in different countries and need accounting software. Given that accounting is an integral part of any business, companies from different areas are always looking for opportunities to streamline their accounting tasks. They can track their payable and receivable accounts, prepare for tax season, evaluate the profitability, and separate business and personal cash flow.

Fortunately, several types of income accounting software can help companies deal with all these tasks. So if you are a web designer or a blogger, your freelance company needs to get a solution for invoicing, track income and expenses.

Thanks to the vast variety of freelance accounting software, every company can choose a solution that fits its best objectives and the specifics of its niche. You can also choose different options and different levels of customization for your accounting software. For instance, small business owners often use out-of-the-box programs because they may not need too multiple customization features.

Something else to consider is how long it takes for the payment to reach your bank account. However, when your business grows, so do your accounting needs, so you may decide to choose what makes business easier. Most software does have a one-month free trial, so you should take advantage to test them out to watch your expenses.

 

 

Choosing the Right Accounting Software

On the one hand, having various options available is great because you can choose a solution that corresponds to your needs. On the other hand, it may also be much more difficult to make a choice. “New products appear all the time, there are thousands of online offerings that look very interesting, and it can be challenging to navigate among applications with similar functionality and similar prices,” notes Valerie Perkins, an accountant at a writing review website Best Writers Online.

To choose the best business expenses software for freelancers, you should understand some basic principles of accounting and analyze the accounting of your expenses need to track your money.

What Makes Great Accounting Software for Freelancers?

First of all, you should consider your business’s managerial and financial needs. You need to undertake a broad analysis, considering both questions that have obvious answers and those that require thorough consideration from different departments. We recommend that you don’t rush and take your time to analyze what is substantial and detailed enough.

Sometimes, companies think about an upgrade because of unexpected growth so you may feel tempted to solve this issue quickly. The main thing, however, is to ensure that you won’t need to change the chosen software any time soon.

To choose the best accounting software for freelancers, you should also be financially literate.

Quite often, decision-makers think that they don’t need to know a lot about financial accounting because they expect modern software to enable them to automate all the tasks and to be easy to understand. Of course, not all self-employed small business executives and entrepreneurs are proficient in accounting or tracking expenses.

However, they need to figure out what data they should keep ensuring an effective decision-making process. You should also understand what reports you will need for the state tax authorities and the Internal Revenue Service.

Invoicing is a critical part of freelancing, so that is something that needs to be considered. The proper invoicing will aid your bookkeeping receipts to be a lot more organized. Without proper invoicing, it will make your freelance business more difficult to understand the financial situation, watch expenses, and your financial income.

What do you need from your bookkeeping software?

It’s also important to understand your type of freelance business. Different types of self-employed companies may need different add-ons or modules to operate specific types of data.

For example, manufacturers should understand inventory and labor, and retailers may need to approach their catalog through the best point-of-sale solutions and their expenses. A doctor’s office might also need bookkeeping software that will aid with billing associated with insurance companies. We recommend that you consider all the specifics of your business carefully to make sure that the chosen solution will meet your specific needs and think about income tax time.

It’s also important to ensure effective communication. If you have an accountant, whether it be an in-house accountant or outsourced consultant, you should talk to them before choosing your new accounting software for freelancers. “You need to make sure that the chosen solution will perfectly integrate with applications that are already used by your accountant,” explains Jess Haynes, an accountant at a custom writing services review website Online Writers Rating. Your accountant may also assist you to understand what data you need to gather.

In addition, you should talk to your IT department. When choosing software, you should take into account your hardware. Quite often, freelance accounting solutions work with massive databases that include multiple data tables, all of which might work together.

Therefore, it’s especially important to ensure that you will have enough disk space unless you opt for a cloud solution. We also recommend that you keep in mind that your accounting data will grow so it will need more and more room. “Being able to track expenses is critical for our business”, the owner of WordPress Maintenance Packages told us. Not paying attention to your taxes and expenses, is one of the top reasons freelancers stop failing.

Top 5 Best Programs for Business Accounting That Makes it Easy

1. LessAccounting: Is the Best For getting Paid Faster And It Makes Accounting Easier With Our Services

LessAccounting is the best accounting software is designed to simplify a variety of accounting tasks for freelancers. It is the easiest online accounting software specifically designed for freelancers, self-employed, consultants, and small businesses. This accounting software for freelancers enables you to go through years of your expenses in less than an hour thanks to artificial intelligence and machine learning. It enables you to create professional new invoices in just a few seconds.

Thanks to this solution, you can receive payments directly from PayPal, Stripe, Square, or other systems. If your client forgets to pay, the software is designed to make it easy and will notify them automatically. Sending an invoice has never been so easy and time-saving.

This accounting solution also includes tools that will enable you to create proposals. There are many templates, and you can customize them according to your specific needs. When you’re ready to send invoices to your clients, you can quickly turn these proposals into new invoices. LessAccounting also includes contact management features that will support you to keep track of all of your contacts. You can easily import them from Gmail, Basecamp, and other mobile apps. On top of all that, this software will assist with your schedule. This is the right accounting software for self-employed and freelancers.

Usually, accountants have to deal with many repetitive tasks. Thanks to LessAccounting, you can save time by using simple workflows based on automation. A lot of accounting tasks that would take hours when performed manually can be completed in just a few minutes. This accounting software for freelancers also includes a track mileage feature that will save some money by counting business trips as business expenses. During tax time you will be glad you saved time by being able to pull the financial reports and personal expenses that make accounting so much easier.

LessAccounting offers a 30-day free trial. If you enjoy using this accounting software in free trial mode, you can choose the Lite or Team package. The Lite package is a good solution for self-employed professionals. It costs $24 monthly and includes unlimited track expenses, cash flow, tracking invoices, mileage tracking, budget tools, tax reports, and running your business finances.

The Team package will be a perfect choice for growing businesses. It supports multiple locations, and it also includes bookkeeping guidance, time tracking, and unlimited proposals. The Team package costs $36 monthly. Besides, LessAccounting offers nice annual discounts, makes accounting easy, and with great customer service to save you time. This online software makes tax time a breeze, and you can access it from anywhere.

With LessAccounting, you can easily manage your business and expenses, track your time and mileage, invoice your clients, and even get your taxes done. It is the best online accounting software for freelancers and small businesses. Stop wasting time and start growing your business!

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2. QuickBooks Self-Employed: Overall Popular Accounting Software for Freelancers

Quickbooks online is a good solution for small companies, which is very popular among accounting professionals. This is one of the most common solutions of this kind. You can easily access all the tools and features on a single dashboard so that bookkeeping will be easier than ever. Besides, you might appreciate dozens of forums and training sources. QuickBooks online also do a good job handling income, expenses, sending invoices, on the web, or even with the easy-to-use mobile app.

This solution is used by both bookkeeping and tax experts. It’s cloud-based so you can access it anytime you need it from a desktop or smartphone. With QuickBooks Self Employed, you can easily collaborate with your accountant. You can opt for a 30-day trial period and choose from among three different plans. QuickBooks has two options plans. The basic Start plan costs $25, the Essentials plan costs $40, and the Plus and Advanced plans will cost you $70 and $150 per month, respectively. Usually, the company offers nice discounts for the first few months. Just note that the first invoice sent to a customer will take

Each of these plans offers different features. Advanced features include time tracking, budgeting, and multi-user support. If you have a service-based small business, Simple Start will likely satisfy all of your needs. If you’re selling products, you might choose the Plus or Essentials plan. And the mobile app can also track your income and expenses for your freelance business, as well as track your quarterly taxes. While they estimated quarterly tax calculations, be warned that it is just a bookkeeping estimation.

As your business grows, you can upgrade your subscription plan. Besides, there are customization options available as well. You can use your QuickBooks mobile accounting software app to check reports, receive payments, track your business mileage, and make screenshots of receipts. If you need a payroll solution, you can also use QuickBooks Payroll, which fully integrates with QuickBooks Online. The Advanced plan is powered by Fathom — an advanced report analysis tool used by big companies from all over the world. All plans support integration with PayPal and Stripe.

 

3. Freshbooks: Good for a Freelance Company With Fewer Clients

Freshbooks is another good solution that offers numerous invoice customization opportunities and mobile app or on the web. Invoicing is one of the main selling points of this accounting software. Freshbooks will assist you to pay, print, receive, and send invoices. However, Freshbooks invoicing isn’t the only area of application of this solution, as it will also assist you with bookkeeping tasks.

Thanks to Freshbooks, you can send and receive payments, send proposals, request deposits, track time on different projects, and collect client retainers. FreshBooks connects directly to your bank accounts or credit card accounts, you won’t have to waste time tracking it down. Bank and credit card accounts can be connected to import and transactions into Freshbooks. Freshbooks also lets you track time against specific clients, which may be helpful. Whether you are a photographer, an architect, or run a small eCommerce business.

You can choose from among four plans for Freshbooks: Lite ($15 per month), Plus ($25), Premium ($50), and Select. If you choose a Freshbooks annual plan, you can also get a 10% discount. Besides, you can get a 60% discount for the first six months. Freshbooks also has a one-month free trial to test their invoicing with the bookkeeping app with will free features.

Freshbooks plans are based on the number of clients that can be billed on the monthly basis. For instance, if you work with less than 50 clients, you can opt for the Freshbooks Lite plan, while the Premium plan supports up to 500 clients. The Select plan allows you to bill an unlimited number of clients. You will have to pay an extra $10 so that multiple members of your team can use the Freshbooks accounting software for freelancers.

For an additional $20 Freshbooks allows you can use the advanced payment feature. This way, you’ll be able to charge credit cards in real-time and set up recurring credit card charges. FreshBooks also integrates with third-party accounting software mobile apps or on the web, including G Suite, Gusto, Shopify, and Stripe. If you are trying to connect to third-party apps, then you can look at Zoho Books too.

 

4. Wave: Good Accounting Software for Freelancers to send invoices

If you are looking for free accounting software as a freelancer or a self-employed person then Wave is the perfect choice for you. It is a great solution for companies that send simple new invoices and don’t need lots of additional functionality. If you have a small business or work as a freelancer, Wave will probably satisfy all of your accounting needs, and you will only have to use free features. At the end of the year, you can use Wave to get all the necessary reports to prepare a tax return. If invoicing is important to you, take a look at Zoho Books as well. Wave has a free trial you can use with will free features.

The basic accounting tools include features that will be appreciated by small and mid-size corporations, such as invoicing, expense tracking, receipt scanning, and financial reporting with Wave. These features are free. Wave also has additional premium features.

Wave doesn’t require you to subscribe to a certain tariff plan. Instead, it makes money on transactions. Transactions for Mastercard, Visa, and Discover cost 2.9% plus 30¢, and transactions for American Express cost 3.4% plus 30¢. Wave solution also charges a 1% fee for processing ACH bank account payments.

To use additional services, you can subscribe to one of the two tariff plans with Wave. The first plan costs $20 monthly plus $6 per contractor or employee. This plan will help you get payroll tax calculations and process payroll. However, with Wave, you will need to prepare and submit your tax forms manually. If you pay $35 and $6 per contractor or employee, Wave will manage all payments and tax filings completely.

 

5. Xero: Good for Freelancers With Sales Tax

If you’re looking for simple accounting software, Xero is one of the best options. This app has a simple interface and it easily integrates with some types of third-party payroll services. Thanks to the integration with GoCardless and Stripe, you can collect payments online. This solution also has a mobile accounting software app so that you can keep track of your finances from anywhere, at any moment.

Xero has three monthly subscription plans: Early ($9 plus sales tax), Growing ($30), and Established ($60). Therefore, you can upgrade your subscription plan as your business grows with its mobile app. There is also a full-payroll option that will cost you $39, and $6 per employee. The company also offers a free 30-day trial and a 50% discount for the first two months, plus sales tax.

The Early plan includes five bills, five invoices, and reconciliation of up to 20 transactions per month. Therefore, this plan will be appreciated by the sole proprietor with a few high-ticket transactions monthly. Both Established and Growing plans enable you to work with unlimited transactions, bills, and invoices. The only difference between these two plans is that the Established plan has a multi-currency feature. It also includes financial reports, project costing, and expense tracking.

Wrapping Up!

Income Accounting Software is crucial for any business so there’s no surprise that companies are always looking for solutions that can simplify and streamline accounting processes. Thanks to the best accounting software, you can save a lot of time on data entry and sync their bank accounts with cloud-based apps. Various apps can handle all types of transactions and help you create invoices and your taxes.

One last accounting software worth mentioning is Zoho books. Zoho Books can collections and payments are tracked by item. Small business owners who have billable clients can use Zoho Books. They also have a free one-month trial for their software to test their invoicing.

Choosing reliable tools on the web can be a challenging task so we hope that our list of the best accounting programs will help you choose a solution that fits your needs. I’m sure you want to save money and test out different invoicing software or a bookkeeping app. Most of them have a one-month free trial and sending an invoice and your taxes are important for your company.