5 Best Small Business Accounting Software 2025

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QuickBooks – best overall accounting software

4.7

Try QuickBooks

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Xero – perfect for hospitality businesses

4.6

Try Xero

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Clear Books – great software for stores and shops

4.2

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Finding the right accounting software for your business can seem like a daunting task. In today’s unpredictable economy, you don’t want to be stuck in the wrong – potentially years-long – software contract. You need to be confident about choosing a brand before you invest precious time and money.

That’s why our expert research team rigorously tested the top options and found that QuickBooks is the best overall small business accounting software for 2025. It’s affordable, with regular deals and discounts, and you get first-class tax and forecasting features for simplified cash flow management.

For a quick overview of the best-performing brands available on the market (including their cost and top features) use our handy 🔍accounting software deals finder. Or, read on for a longer, detailed breakdown of the results of our extensive research and user testing.

Best accounting software at a glance

QuickBooks – best for forecasting cash flow (90% off for 7 months)
Xero – best for hospitality businesses
Clear Books – best for brick-and-mortar businesses
Zoho Books – best for professional service teams
FreshBooks– best for services selling add-ons

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BEST OVERALL
QuickBooks	Xero	Clear Books	Zoho Books	FreshBooks
Price From ~~£10 per month~~ 90% off for 7 months	Price From ~~£16 per month (excl. VAT)~~ 75% off for 6 months	Price From ~~£13.50/mo~~ £6.75/mo *first 3 months (excl. VAT)	Price From Free, or £10 per month (excl. VAT)	Price From £15 per month
Rating 4.7	Rating 4.6	Rating 4.2	Rating 4.0	Rating 4.0
Free Trial	Free Trial	Free Trial	Free Trial	Free Trial
Visit Quickbooks	Visit Xero	Compare Deals	Compare Deals	Compare Deals

This article will cover:

1. QuickBooks: best for forecasting cash flow
2. Xero: best for hospitality businesses
3. Clear Books: best for brick-and-mortar businesses
4. Zoho Books: best for professional service teams
5. FreshBooks: best for service businesses selling add-ons
Buying guide: How to choose the right small business accounting software
How we test accounting software

1.🥇 QuickBooks: best for forecasting cash flow

Quickbooks allows users to track and review cash flow over several months to create a future forecast. Image source: quickbooks.intuit.com

During our testing process, we found QuickBooks came out on top for two major reasons. Firstly, how affordable it is. The platform’s cheapest tier costs £5 per month, per user, for the first six months. QuickBooks also offers regular deals and discounts for entrepreneurs; you can currently purchase a QuickBooks plan for 90% off for 7 months.

With QuickBooks you’ll also get an extensive range of features that answers small business owners’ big software concerns. There’s live chat and phone support if you run into trouble, an intuitive mobile app for on-the-go expense tracking, plus integrations with over 700 apps.

Crucially, QuickBooks was one of only three platforms we tested that permits cash flow forecasting on its cheapest plan. This involves estimating your future sales and expenses, and it’s a must-have if you plan on adopting a lean, efficient business model to save on costs.

QuickBooks pros

Compliant with Making Tax Digital for VAT
Easy to use app, even for those with no accounting knowledge
Integrates with over 700 third-party apps and financial institutions

QuickBooks cons

Some users have reported challenges with QuickBooks' customer support, including long response times
Advanced, specialist features are reserved for QuickBooks' paid-for plans

What are QuickBooks’ drawbacks?

QuickBooks is an excellent, broad option. However, businesses based in certain industries might need to prioritise more specific, specialist features. For example, retailers will want to make use of inventory management tools to track stock levels and sales targets.

QuickBooks does not offer either budget planning features nor inventory management on its two cheapest paid-for tiers. Brands requiring these features, such as project management teams, will find FreshBooks more suitable as it offers both functions in its cheapest package at just £15 per month.

QuickBooks’ pricing

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	BEST VALUE
Plan Sole Trader	Plan Simple Start	Plan Essentials	Plan Plus	Plan Advanced
Cost ~~£10 per month~~ (excl. VAT) 90% off for 7 months	Cost ~~£16 per month~~ (excl. VAT) 90% off for 7 months	Cost ~~£33 per month~~ (excl. VAT) 90% off for 7 months	Cost ~~£47 per month~~ (excl. VAT) 90% off for 7 months	Cost ~~£115 per month~~ (excl. VAT) 90% off for 7 months

QuickBooks is one of the few accounting software providers to offer a dedicated Sole Trader plan (costing £5 per user, per month, for the fist six months), however, this tier is almost exclusively designed for those who need self-employed accounting software to submit a self-assessment tax return. SMEs will find it severely limiting.

Small businesses should instead begin with the QuickBooks Simple Start plan (£8 per user, per month, for the first six months). This gets you features like income tax estimates, VAT error checker and pay-enabled invoices. For a more in-depth look, you can check out our guide to QuickBooks’ pricing.

Who do we recommend QuickBooks for?

In truth, QuickBooks is a strong all-around performer, but it particularly excels at forecasting cash flow, a critical feature for firms in today’s economy. We’d recommend it to budget–minded businesses and startups just starting with financial planning.

2. Xero: best for hospitality businesses

The Xero dashboard gives you an at-a-glance view of your finances, invoices, and even business performance for informed budget planning. Image source: xero.com/uk

Xero is an excellent accounting software solution for pubs, restaurants, and bars. Unlike QuickBooks, its easy-to-use budget creator is available on every pricing tier. This is invaluable for hospitality businesses that often operate on tight margins and require meticulous planning.

Xero also excels in asset management. Its ability to record fixed assets on all plans is a big advantage, which simplifies the tracking of valuable equipment. This is essential to the hospitality sector – if you’re renting expensive fridge equipment or air conditioning units, for example.

To streamline operations, Xero seamlessly integrates with leading hospitality point-of-sale (POS) systems such as Square, EPOS Now, and Lightspeed. This interconnected approach allows restaurant owners to sync their accounts; simplifying data entry and helping to reduce errors.

Xero pros

Compliant with Making Tax Digital for VAT
Excellent multi-currency support
Integrates with leading POS software including hospitality POS leader, Lightspeed

Xero cons

Xero's pricing is higher than some of its competitors
No cash forecasting tool is available with Xero, unlike QuickBooks
Some users have reported mixed experiences with Xero's customer support

What are Xero’s drawbacks?

While Xero claims its support channels are open 24/7, we found that you’ll have a hard time getting advice from a human. Xero does not have a support phoneline or live chat (unlike QuickBooks). Instead, users submit a query via an online webform, or have to rely on online guides and videos. Some disgruntled customers report waiting several hours for a response.

Xero is also missing some sophisticated accounting features, which might be an issue for users based in professional service sectors. Agencies, or those planning campaigns, will have to fork out for Xero’s most expensive plan to access its project tracking features, for example.

Xero’s pricing

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Plan Ignite	Plan Grow	Plan Comprehensive	Plan Ultimate
Cost £16 per month (plus VAT) 75% off for 6 months	Cost £33 per month (plus VAT) 75% off for 6 months	Cost £47 per month (plus VAT) 75% off for 6 months	Cost £59 per month (plus VAT) 75% off for 6 months

Xero’s Ignite plan (£16 per user, per month) offers businesses access to a range of features, such as the ability to create invoices and quotes and reconcile bank transactions. Crucially, you’ll also be able to submit VAT returns to HMRC.

However, this plan does also come with some strict usage limits – you can only send 20 invoices and quotes, and enter five bills per month. Go above this, and you’ll need to start paying for the Grow plan (£33 per user, per month). That’s a pretty steep increase, especially given that the Grow plan only offers a couple of extra features (including payroll for a single user, and expenses and mileage claims for a single user).

Who do we recommend Xero for?

Pubs, restaurants and bars should go for Xero. Unlike QuickBooks, every Xero plan offers a user-friendly budget creator. This is crucial in the hospitality industry, where margins are tight. Xero can also integrate with hospitality POS systems, which can help minimise bookkeeping errors.

3. Clear Books: best for brick-and-mortar businesses

Clear Books’ simiplified layout gives brick-and-mortar businesses an easy, spreadsheet-style layout to input finances into. Image source: clearbooks.co.uk

What Clear Books is great at is prioritising simplicity. Its intuitive design allows users to quickly and easily enter data, such as sales, purchases, and expenses. Essentially, it’s bookkeeping that you don’t need a maths degree to understand. This is particularly handy for brick-and-mortar stores that need to handle a high volume of transactions.

A feature we really liked was the bank feed. Meaning the software can connect with all major banks, automatically importing transactions that come into your business account. This doesn’t just ensure accuracy, but also speeds up the fiddly process of bank reconciliation (comparing transactions and accounting records to check for discrepancies).

Clear Books boasts some pretty impressive functions even on its cheapest plan, whereas competitors like Xero keep them locked behind higher tiers. For example, it provides an accounts payable functionality to help you keep track of what you owe vendors; helpful for retailers or food store owners who take regular deliveries.

Clear Books pros

Compliant with Making Tax Digital, so you can use it to submit a VAT return to HMRC
Strong VAT management tools
Ability to assign different access levels and permissions to users

Clear Books cons

Compared to some competitors, Clear Books may lack certain advanced features needed by larger businesses
While it's generally user-friendly, new users might find it takes some time to get accustomed to it
Lacks scalability; its Small plan is affordable, but costs at the higher tiers add up fast

What are Clear Books’ drawbacks?

As this is more on the basic end of the spectrum, Clear Books is limited on advanced features. Its cheapest plan does not permit third-party integrations, or provide budgeting and cash flow tools, so scaling businesses might struggle to set growth and profits targets.

Unfortunately, our expert researchers also found that it tends to have a steeper learning curve compared to rivals. Some users told us that it can take some time to get used to the software’s interface and functionality, which can be more complex than other options on the market.

However, once you’ve got to grips with it, Clear Books proves to be a robust and effective accounting solution.

Clear Books’ pricing

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Plan Small	Plan Medium	Plan Large
Cost £13.50 per month (excl. VAT) 50% off for 3 months	Cost £29 per month (excl. VAT) 50% off for 3 months	Cost £36 per month (excl. VAT) 50% off for 3 months

At £13.50 per user, per month (though you can currently get it for £6.75 per month for the first three months), the entry-level Small plan makes for a wallet-friendly option for small businesses. While it will do nicely for brick-and-mortar firms that aren’t looking to expand, scaling businesses might want to find an accounting software that’s more suitable to their requirements.

Clear Books’ next tier up, Medium, jumps up to £29 per user, per month (currently available for £14.50 for the first three months) . It arguably doesn’t provide a convincing enough package compared to QuickBooks or Xero to justify the cost, with only a few added benefits (like budgeting tools) on offer.

Who do we recommend Clear Books for?

A simple, user-friendly system for brick-and-mortar SMEs, such as high street shops or food trucks, Clear Books is great for core features such as VAT management and bank transaction imports (though it will probably underwhelm you if you already have extensive IT knowledge).

4. Zoho Books: best for professional service teams

Zoho Books accounting software for small businesses

Zoho Books’ dashboard provides a transparent look at your project progress and budget for the entire team to view. Image source: zoho.com/uk

Zoho Books makes it easy to manage projects and be paid on time, all without spending a fortune. Our researchers found that it makes it possible for you to oversee multiple projects at once, and gives you the ability to assign specific tasks to your employees.

This is superb for consultancy firms or agencies who bring multiple team members together to fulfil one project goal. Within the project, businesses can manage expenses, track the time an employee has spent working on specific client tasks, and calculate profitability for each completed campaign.

Zoho Books also boasts an impressive suite of accounts receivable tools, with users having the ability to send up to 5,000 invoices annually to an unlimited number of clients. The software’s integration with various payment processors also allows you to offer clients flexible payment options.

Zoho Books pros

Compliant with Making Tax Digital for VAT
Zoho Books seamlessly integrates with other Zoho integrations, providing a unified ecosystem
Client portal for customers to view invoices and make payments

Zoho Books cons

It doesn't have as many third-party integrations as QuickBooks
Zoho Standard is only available for up to three users

What are the drawbacks of Zoho Books?

Zoho Books integrates well with the entire Zoho business product ecosystem, but the Standard plan will only do the trick for very small professional service teams as it has a user cap of three. If you’re a business with bigger aspirations, you will need to upgrade to the next payment tier up to access timesheets and manage retainers.

Zoho Books’ pricing

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Plan Free	Plan Standard	Plan Professional	Plan Premium
Cost Free	Cost £10 a month (excl. VAT)	Cost £20 per month (excl. VAT)	Cost £25 per month (excl. VAT)

After Zoho Books’ free plan, which we made our number one free accounting software pick, Standard costs £10 per user, per month. It allows up to three users to track, reconcile, and budget with ease, from a smartphone or computer. You can stay on top of your projects and timesheets, and manage up to 5,000 invoices.

The Professional plan costs double this amount (£20 per user, per month), caters to up to five users and adds more complex functions such as multi-currency handling. However, Standard is a perfectly suitable option for SMEs with fewer than three employees who are willing to forego fancy features to keep costs low.

Who do we recommend Zoho Books for?

Professional service teams like consultancies or agencies with three or more staff members. Even the Standard tier allows users to oversee multiple projects, assign tasks, and create invoices, which makes it ideal for teams collaborating on client projects.

5. FreshBooks: best for service businesses selling add-ons

FreshBooks makes it simple to add new billable items to your inventory, and track them across invoices. Image source: freshbooks.com

FreshBooks is a fantastic accounting tool that stands out for its inventory tracking features. Unlike Zoho Books, Xero, QuickBooks, and Clear Books, FreshBooks includes inventory management in even its most basic package, so sellers can effortlessly monitor their stock levels.

While retailers or dropshippers will want a specialist inventory tool for their product list, FreshBooks is a smart option for anyone selling limited ‘run-on’ items, such as a hairdresser offering shampoo with every sale. FreshBooks will even send an automated warning if a user tries to add too many items to an invoice.

It’s also super easy to connect your online store to FreshBooks, thanks to its in-built integrations with popular ecommerce builders. Whether you use Shopify, Squarespace, or BigCommerce, you can effortlessly sync your stock data – rather than keeping a note of it on your phone – to get an instant understanding of how each sale impacts your inventory.

FreshBooks pros

Compliant with Making Tax Digital for VAT
Can automatically pull data from ecommerce platforms Shopify and Squarespace
Offers a mobile app, allowing users to manage their finances on the go

FreshBooks cons

Lacks some of the advanced accounting features required by larger or more complex businesses
Not the best choice for rapidly growing companies with evolving accounting needs
FreshBooks Lite only permits up to five billable clients, which makes it only suitable for micro-businesses

What are the drawbacks of FreshBooks?

FreshBooks doesn’t offer tools that help you plan for the future, like budgeting or cash flow forecasts, so we don’t recommend it to companies with multiple departments, locations, or product lines that may need sophisticated financial support (QuickBooks is the best alternative).

It’s a good option for small, localised businesses. However, if you have a lot of clients – or you’re a startup hoping to take on a lot of new business this year – you’ll need to pay for the most expensive plan, as the FreshBooks Lite tier is limited to just five billable clients.

FreshBooks’ pricing

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50% OFF DEAL
Plan Lite	Plan Plus	Plan Premium
Cost ~~£15 per month~~ 50% off for 3 months	Cost ~~£25 per month~~ 50% off for 3 months	Cost ~~£35 per month~~ 50% off for 3 months

FreshBooks’ basic plan, Lite (£15 per user, per month), is one of the most generous we’ve come across… however, you’re limited to five billable clients only. Upgrading to Plus (£25 per user, per month) adds unlimited proposals, and allows you to automate recurring invoices. It also extends your client limit to 50.

Adding extra team members costs £8 per person, per month – so we don’t recommend it for larger teams. FreshBooks’ more advanced payment features will also incur a fee of £15 per month. For a further breakdown, visit our guide to FreshBooks’ pricing.

Who do we recommend FreshBooks for?

Service businesses selling add-ons will get the most out of FreshBooks. FreshBooks boasts inventory management and integrates with popular ecommerce apps — though it is expensive for those with scaling client bases.

Buying guide: How to choose the right accounting software for your small business

Here’s an in-depth look at the key factors and features small businesses should consider when choosing accounting software:

1. Pricing: consider your budget and the scalability of the software as your business grows. Ensure the chosen plan aligns with your financial goals.

2. Bookkeeping capability: the core function of any accounting software is efficient bookkeeping. Look for software that simplifies the recording and categorisation of transactions.

3. Accounts payable: managing payments is crucial for SMEs. Look for features that streamline invoice processing, support timely payments, and provide insights into cash flow.

4. Accounts receivable: opt for accounting software that facilitates smooth invoicing, helps track customer payments, and provides reminders for overdue invoices.

5. Financial reporting: choose software that offers a range of customisable reports. Access to real-time insights empowers informed decision-making and strategic financial planning.

6. Integrations: seamless integration with banking, payment gateways, and CRM systems enhances efficiency as you can share relevant information across multiple systems.

7. Mobile capabilities: a user-friendly app lets you access key financial information and perform essential tasks anywhere; valuable for SME owners on the move.

8. Help and support: live chat, phone or email support, and forums help you and your team to more quickly find solutions to software issues or queries.

January marks the start of the tax filing season for entrepreneurs. It’s crucial to get your accounting software in order to streamline the process of gathering and organising your financial records, ensuring a smooth tax return filing.

We always recommend you avoid being trapped in a bad contract by thoroughly researching and comparing software before making a decision. Our free cost comparison tool can help. Or, you can download any of our listed systems to start a free trial today.

How we test accounting software for UK small businesses

At Startups, it's important to us that the product recommendations we make to small UK businesses are useful, accurate, and based on thorough product testing.

We tested ten market-leading accounting software platforms across four main categories of investigation and 24 subcategories – all in all, we covered 111 areas of investigation. Next, we gave a ‘relevance weighting' to the final product category scores - this ensures the products' final ratings perfectly reflect the specific needs and requirements of Startups readers.

Our main testing categories for accounting software are:

Help and Support: Help and support refer to the assistance and resources available to users when they encounter issues or need guidance while using the accounting software.

Pricing: Pricing refers to the cost associated with using the accounting software. It includes factors such as licensing fees and subscription plans.

Main functions: This represents the key areas of accounting that the software focuses on. This includes functionalities such as financial statement preparation, income and expense tracking, and managing vendor and customer accounts.

Software Functionality: Refers to the software capabilities such as integrations, mobile capability, and confirming any additional features outside of accounting.

The Startups product testing process

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