Why your accounting software choice matters
Accounting software is the system everything else in a small business plugs into. Your bank and card feeds land there, your invoices and bills live there, payroll posts to it, and at tax time your accountant works from it. Picking the wrong one rarely breaks anything on day one. The cost shows up later: a plan that caps you at three users when you hire a fourth person, an invoice limit you hit in your busiest month, or a migration project when you outgrow the tool.
This guide compares seven tools on what they cost a US small business today and what each plan actually includes. Prices and plan details come from each vendor's own US pricing pages and help centers, checked in October 2026. Prices change often in this category, and almost every vendor runs an introductory discount, so we list the regular price and the intro offer separately.
Two changes from older guides are worth knowing:
- Sage Accounting (the cloud product) is no longer sold in the US. Sage says Sage Business Cloud Accounting (US) was retired on December 31, 2024, and access ended January 31, 2025. The Sage product for US small businesses is now Sage 50, which we review here.
- Kashoo is not in this list. Kashoo is still on sale, but its pricing page did not show a clear current price when we checked, and the company now promotes a separate product, TrulySmall. We replaced it with Patriot Software, a US accounting and payroll provider with plain published pricing.
What to look for in small business accounting software
1. User limits. This is the biggest hidden cost. QuickBooks Online caps users on every plan (1, 3, 5 or 25). Zoho Books includes 3 to 15 users and sells more. FreshBooks charges $11/month per extra team member. Xero, Patriot and Wave Pro do not charge per user.
2. Invoice and bill caps. Xero Early allows 20 invoices and 5 bills a month. Zoho Books caps invoices and bills per year on every plan. FreshBooks limits the number of clients you can bill on Lite and Plus. If you invoice a lot, check these first.
3. Bank feeds and reconciliation. Automatic bank imports save the most time. Wave and Zoho Books only include them on paid plans, and QuickBooks Free connects one bank.
4. Payroll. QuickBooks, Wave, FreshBooks, Patriot and Sage sell their own payroll. Xero's payroll is powered by Gusto. Zoho Books does not include payroll. Payroll often costs more than the accounting plan itself, so price both together.
5. Inventory, multicurrency and projects. These features are usually gated to mid-tier plans. QuickBooks needs Plus ($140/month) for inventory; Zoho Books needs Professional ($40/month billed annually). Xero includes basic tracked inventory, but multicurrency and projects need Established.
6. Your accountant. If you already work with a bookkeeper or CPA, ask what they use. Accountant access is included on most paid plans here, but a tool your accountant knows well will cost you less in their time.
QuickBooks: full review
What it is. QuickBooks Online is Intuit's cloud accounting product and the default choice for many US small businesses and their accountants. It covers invoicing, bills, bank feeds, reporting and sales tax, and Intuit sells payroll, payments and bill pay inside the same product.
Key features.
- Bank feeds and automation. Every paid plan connects bank and card accounts and auto-categorizes transactions. The Free plan connects one bank.
- Invoicing and payments. Invoices on every plan. QuickBooks Payments rates on Intuit's rates page are 2.99% for invoiced card payments, 2.5% for swiped or tapped cards, 3.5% for keyed cards and 1% for ACH bank transfers, with no monthly fee.
- Bill pay. All paid plans can pay vendors by standard ACH for free up to a monthly allotment, then $0.50 per ACH payment. Bill Pay Premium ($15/month) and Bill Pay Elite ($45/month) add more, and Elite is included with Advanced.
- Multicurrency from Essentials. Intuit warns that once you turn it on you cannot turn it off, and that Bill Pay and QuickBooks Payments are not compatible with multicurrency.
- Inventory from Plus, valued with FIFO, plus purchase orders, budgets, project profitability and up to 40 combined classes and locations.
- Advanced adds custom user permissions, workflow automation, Excel sync, batch invoices and expenses, unlimited classes and locations, free 1099 e-filing with Bill Pay Elite, and priority support.
Pricing. US list prices, billed monthly, no annual contract:
| Plan | Regular price | Intro offer | Users | Accountant users |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | n/a | 1 | None |
| Simple Start | $38/month | $19/month for 3 months | 1 | 2 |
| Essentials | $85/month | $42.50/month for 3 months | 3 | 2 |
| Plus | $140/month | $70/month for 3 months | 5 | 2 |
| Advanced | $340/month | $170/month for 3 months | 25 | 3 |
The Free plan allows 2 invoices a month (unlimited if you take payments through QuickBooks Payments), one bank connection and the top three reports, with no mobile app, integrations or accountant access. A 30-day free trial is available on paid plans.
Payroll is sold as QuickBooks Workforce bundles that include the accounting plan: Workforce Payroll + Simple Start at $88/month plus $6.50 per employee, Workforce Payroll + Essentials at $125/month plus $6.50 per employee, and Workforce Premium + Plus at $203/month plus $10 per employee. Each bundle is 50% off for the first 3 months. All three include full-service payroll with tax calculation and filing; the Essentials and Plus bundles offer same-day direct deposit, and the Plus bundle adds HR tools.
Pros. Most US accountants and bookkeepers know it. Payroll, payments and bill pay are built in. The plans scale from one person to 25 users. There is a free plan for very light use.
Cons. It is the most expensive cloud option per user. Every plan has a hard user cap, so hiring a fourth or sixth person forces an upgrade. Inventory and budgets need Plus.
Who it is for. Most US small businesses, especially those that work with an outside accountant, plan to run payroll, or expect to need inventory.
Who should skip it. Teams with many part-time users in the books, which will pay less on Xero or Zoho Books, and solo owners who only send invoices, who can start on Wave.
Xero: full review
What it is. Xero is a cloud accounting platform from New Zealand with a large US presence. Its biggest difference from QuickBooks is pricing: every plan includes unlimited users at no extra cost.
Key features.
- All plans: invoices and quotes, online invoice payments, bank reconciliation, Smart Document Capture, real-time reports, W-9 and 1099 management, sales tax, and free standard ACH bill payments.
- Growing removes the invoice and bill caps, includes auto-reconcile, custom dashboards, financial health scorecards, 3 budgets and a 60-day cash flow forecast.
- Established adds multicurrency, project time and cost tracking, employee expense and mileage claims, KPI and ratio analysis, industry benchmarking, international bill payments and a 180-day forecast.
- Inventory. Xero's built-in tracked inventory handles up to 4,000 items with automatic cost of goods sold. Inventory Plus, an add-on for Growing and Established, connects Shopify and Amazon FBA stores and adds purchase orders, reorder points and shipping.
- Apps. Xero says it connects to more than 1,000 certified apps.
Pricing. US list prices, billed monthly:
| Plan | Regular price | Intro offer (80% off, 3 months) | Invoices and bills |
|---|---|---|---|
| Early | $27/month | $5.40/month | 20 invoices, 5 bills a month |
| Growing | $59/month | $11.80/month | No cap |
| Established | $97/month | $19.40/month | No cap |
The intro offer applies to a customer's first organization only, needs Xero's US offer code, and does not cover add-ons. Add-ons: auto-reconcile on Early $5/month; Xero Payroll powered by Gusto $36/month plus $6 per employee or contractor. Xero lists Inventory Plus as optional on Growing and Established but does not show its price on the pricing page.
Pros. Unlimited users. No invoice or bill caps from Growing. Free ACH bill payments on every plan. Free guided onboarding for the first 90 days.
Cons. Early is too limited for most businesses past the first few months. Multicurrency and projects need the $97 plan. Payroll is a separate Gusto-powered add-on.
Who it is for. Small businesses with several people who need access (owners, staff, bookkeepers), and businesses that want to keep monthly costs down.
Who should skip it. Businesses that want payroll, payments and bill pay from one vendor, or that need multicurrency but not the rest of Established.
Zoho Books: full review
What it is. Zoho Books is the accounting app in Zoho's suite of business software. It is the cheapest way in this list to get multicurrency, inventory and automation.
Key features.
- Free plan (businesses under $50K yearly revenue): invoices, quotes, expenses, bank reconciliation, recurring invoices, online payments, a customer portal and 1099 tracking. No bank feeds.
- Standard adds bank feeds, sales and use tax, 1099 e-filing, period locking and custom fields.
- Professional adds multicurrency, inventory tracking, sales and purchase orders, timesheet billing, project profitability, approval workflows and custom roles.
- Premium adds budgets, cash flow forecasting, fixed assets and a vendor portal. Elite adds warehouses and serial and batch tracking.
Pricing. US prices per organization:
| Plan | Billed annually | Billed monthly | Users | Invoices a year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 | $0 | 1 + 1 accountant | 1,000 |
| Standard | $15/month | $20/month | 3 | 5,000 |
| Professional | $40/month | $50/month | 5 | 10,000 |
| Premium | $60/month | $70/month | 10 | 25,000 |
| Elite | $120/month | $150/month | 10 | 100,000 |
| Ultimate | $240/month | $275/month | 15 | 100,000 |
Extra users cost $2.50/user/month billed annually or $3 billed monthly. There is a 14-day free trial.
Pros. Strong value. A real free plan. Multicurrency and inventory at $40/month billed annually. Good fit with Zoho CRM and other Zoho apps.
Cons. Invoice and bill caps on every plan. No bank feeds on the free plan. No payroll in Zoho Books. Fewer US accountants use it.
Who it is for. Cost-conscious businesses, importers and exporters who need multicurrency, and teams already on Zoho.
Who should skip it. Businesses that want payroll in the same product, or whose accountant only supports QuickBooks or Xero.
FreshBooks: full review
What it is. FreshBooks started as invoicing software for freelancers and has grown into accounting for service businesses. Invoicing, time tracking and client payments are still its strengths.
Key features. Invoices, estimates, proposals and retainers; card, ACH, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Buy Now, Pay Later payments; expense tracking; accounting reports and accountant access from Plus; bill scanning and project profitability on Premium.
Pricing. US list prices, billed monthly: Lite $23/month (5 billable clients), Plus $43/month (50 clients), Premium $70/month (unlimited clients), Select custom. FreshBooks currently offers 80% off for 4 months, an extra 10% off for yearly billing, a 30-day free trial and a 30-day money-back guarantee. Add-ons: team members $11/user/month, Advanced Payments $20/month, payroll $40/month plus $6 per user. Card payments cost 2.9% + $0.30 and ACH 1%.
Pros. Polished invoicing and payments. Time tracking and retainers built in. Easy for non-accountants.
Cons. Client caps on Lite and Plus. Per-person fees for team members. Financial reports and accountant access need Plus.
Who it is for. Consultants, agencies, designers and other service businesses that bill clients for time and projects.
Who should skip it. Product businesses and teams with several people doing bookkeeping.
Wave: full review
What it is. Wave offers free invoicing and bookkeeping for very small businesses, with a low-cost Pro plan and paid payroll.
Key features. Unlimited invoices, estimates, bills and bookkeeping records on the free Starter plan; mobile invoicing; Pro adds automatic bank imports through Plaid, auto-categorization, unlimited receipt capture, automatic late payment reminders and extra users.
Pricing. Starter is $0. Pro is $19/month billed monthly (currently $9.50/month for the first 3 months) or $190/year billed annually. Card payments cost 2.9% + $0.60 (Amex 3.4% + $0.60); on Pro, the first 10 card payments each month have no fixed fee (2.9% + $0). Payroll is $40/month plus $6 per active employee and $6 per contractor paid, and Wave files state and federal payroll taxes in all 50 states.
Pros. A free plan with no invoice cap. Pro is cheap. Payroll in the same product.
Cons. You type in or upload bank transactions on the free plan. No inventory or projects. Support is by chat and email on weekdays.
Who it is for. Sole proprietors and very small service businesses.
Who should skip it. Anyone with inventory, several staff in the books, or an accountant who expects deeper reporting.
Sage 50: full review
What it is. Sage 50 is Sage's accounting product for US small businesses. It is available as Sage 50 Cloud (with remote access and automatic updates) or as a locally installed desktop version. Since Sage retired its US cloud product (Sage Business Cloud Accounting), Sage 50 is the Sage option for most small businesses; Sage Intacct targets larger, multi-entity companies.
Key features. Inventory with FIFO and LIFO costing and assemblies, job management and job costing, purchase orders, automated bank reconciliation and cash flow management on every plan. Premium adds multiple companies, advanced budgeting, serialized inventory, advanced job costing and audit trails. Quantum adds role-based permissions, workflow management and industry features for construction, manufacturing and distribution.
Pricing. Sage 50 Cloud, minimum one-year commitment, auto-renewing:
| Plan | Paid yearly | Paid monthly | Users |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pro Accounting | $1,448/year | $132.17/month | 1 |
| Premium Accounting | $1,947/year (1 user) to $5,358/year (5 users) | $182.50 to $493.83/month | 1 to 5 |
| Quantum Accounting | $2,841/year (1 user), more per user | $271.17/month (1 user) | 1 to 40 |
Payroll is a do-it-yourself module priced by employee count, sold by phone. Sage 50 Desktop bundles with payroll start at $1,155/year (Pro, 1 to 10 employees). Sage offers a 30-day test drive and a full refund within 30 days of purchase, and it imports QuickBooks data for free.
Pros. Deep inventory and job costing. Unlimited phone and chat support. Desktop option.
Cons. The most expensive option here for one user. Yearly commitment. Payroll priced by phone.
Who it is for. Construction, manufacturing, distribution and other product-heavy businesses that need costing depth more than a modern interface.
Who should skip it. Service businesses and anyone who just needs invoicing and bank feeds.
Patriot Software: full review
What it is. Patriot Software is a US company that sells online accounting and payroll for small businesses, with published prices and US-based support.
Key features. Unlimited customers, invoices, vendors and users; automatic bank imports; account reconciliation; Stripe card, Apple Pay, Google Pay and ACH payments; departments; 1099 and 1096 forms with optional e-filing (Patriot says nominal fees may apply); data import of your chart of accounts, trial balance, customers and vendors. Premium adds estimates, recurring invoices, payment reminders, receipt storage, user permissions, subaccounts and customer statements.
Pricing. Accounting Basic $20/month and Accounting Premium $30/month, billed monthly. The current offer is 30 days free plus 50% off for 3 months. Payroll: Basic Payroll $17/month plus $4 per worker paid; Full Service Payroll (Patriot files and deposits federal, state and local payroll taxes) $37/month plus $5 per worker paid. A bookkeeping service starts at $100/month plus a one-time onboarding fee.
Pros. Low price with unlimited users. Full-service payroll from the same vendor. US-based support by phone, chat and email on weekdays.
Cons. No inventory or multicurrency listed. No native mobile app. Fewer integrations than the larger platforms.
Who it is for. US service and small retail businesses with straightforward books that want accounting and payroll for under $100 a month.
Who should skip it. Businesses that sell physical products from stock, or that rely on many third-party apps.
What it really costs: three small business scenarios
All figures below use regular prices (after intro offers end), in USD, from each vendor's US pricing page. Payment processing fees and taxes are extra.
Scenario 1: five people need access to the books, no inventory or payroll.
| Tool | Plan | Monthly cost | Yearly cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wave | Pro (monthly) | $19 | $228 ($190 if paid yearly) |
| Patriot Software | Basic | $20 | $240 |
| Zoho Books | Professional (5 users), billed annually | $40 | $480 |
| Xero | Growing (unlimited users) | $59 | $708 |
| FreshBooks | Plus + 4 team members at $11 | $87 | $1,044 |
| QuickBooks | Plus (5 users) | $140 | $1,680 |
| Sage 50 | Premium, 5 users, paid yearly | n/a | $5,358 |
Scenario 2: owner-run business with 5 employees on payroll.
| Tool | What you buy | Monthly cost |
|---|---|---|
| Patriot Software | Accounting Basic $20 + Full Service Payroll $37 + 5 x $5 | $82 |
| Wave | Pro $19 + payroll $40 + 5 x $6 | $89 |
| Sage 50 | Pro Accounting with Payroll (desktop, 1-10 employees), $1,155/year | about $96 |
| FreshBooks | Plus $43 + payroll $40 + 5 x $6 | $113 |
| QuickBooks | Workforce Payroll + Simple Start $88 + 5 x $6.50 | $120.50 |
| Xero | Growing $59 + Gusto payroll $36 + 5 x $6 | $125 |
Zoho Books is left out because payroll is not part of it. The QuickBooks Simple Start bundle covers one accounting user; for three users, the Essentials bundle is $125 + 5 x $6.50 = $157.50/month.
Scenario 3: you need multicurrency. The cheapest plans with multicurrency are Zoho Books Professional ($40/month billed annually), QuickBooks Essentials ($85/month) and Xero Established ($97/month). Wave and FreshBooks can also send invoices in a foreign currency without a plan upgrade (FreshBooks adds 2% when a client pays in a currency other than your account currency). Patriot does not list multicurrency.
Switching from your current software
Most businesses pick accounting software once and keep it for years, so it is worth planning the move.
Pick a clean cut-off date. The end of a quarter or fiscal year is easiest, because payroll tax filings and sales tax returns line up with it. Switching mid-quarter usually means entering year-to-date payroll totals by hand.
Use the vendor's migration help. Xero offers a free migration of your current and prior fiscal year of QuickBooks data through its partner Jet Convert, and says payroll data does not migrate. Intuit uses Dataswitcher to bring Xero data into QuickBooks Online, with two fiscal years of core data converted at no charge; the QuickBooks company file must be empty first. Sage says it imports QuickBooks data into Sage 50 for free, and Patriot lets you import your chart of accounts, trial balance, customers, vendors and contractors.
Reconcile before you export. Xero's and Intuit's migration guides both ask you to reconcile bank accounts first, and Xero also asks you to check receivables, payables, inventory and sales tax. Errors in the old file come across to the new one.
Keep read access to the old system. Some history, such as attachments, reconciliation reports and payroll records, does not convert. Export the reports your accountant needs, and keep the old file or account available for at least the current tax year.
How to choose
- Ask your accountant first. If they run their practice on QuickBooks Online or Xero, start there.
- Count the people who need logins. Three or fewer: any tool works. Four or more: Xero, Zoho Books or Patriot will usually cost less than QuickBooks.
- Decide whether you need payroll in the same product. QuickBooks, Wave, Patriot and FreshBooks sell their own; Xero uses Gusto.
- Check the gated features you need. Inventory: QuickBooks Plus, Zoho Books Professional, Xero (basic, built in) or Sage 50. Multicurrency: see Scenario 3.
- Price the full year. Intro offers are generous (50% to 80% off for 3 or 4 months), but you pay the regular price for the rest of the year.
- Use the free trial with real data. Connect your bank, send a test invoice and run a profit and loss report before you commit.
Conclusion
For most US small businesses, QuickBooks is the safest choice: it does the most, it bundles payroll, payments and bill pay, and your accountant probably already knows it. Its weakness is price per user. If several people need access, Xero gives unlimited users and no invoice caps for $59/month. Zoho Books is the best value if you need multicurrency or inventory on a tight budget. FreshBooks suits service firms that live in invoices and time tracking, Wave is the best free start, Sage 50 is the pick for inventory and job costing depth, and Patriot Software is the cheapest way to get accounting and full-service payroll from one US vendor.
Emily Rodriguez