Of all the reasons your startup may fail, accounting shouldn't be one of them. Entrepreneurs have to juggle many tasks. Fortunately many of these tasks can be streamlined and even completely automated thanks to software. One of the most important tasks startups can automate is accounting. Not every startup has the budget to hire an accountant or the knowledge to perform all of their accounting tasks on their own. This is where using accounting software can become invaluable. Not only can poor business accounting lead to backlogs it can also create legal concerns and damage your business reputation.
Here are some great examples of accounting software to help you focus more on your business and worry less about accounting:
Wave offers a series of cloud-based, integrated software modules designed specifically to help small businesses, entrepreneurs, and freelancers with everyday accounting tasks such as invoicing, receipts, payments, payroll, and basic accounting and budgeting. The best part about Wave is that they offer most of this software for free, making it a very cost-effective solution for small business owners and entrepreneurs alike.
Fresh books is not free but is very inexpensive, with pricing plans ranging from $10.00-40.00 per month. It is a bit more elaborate than Wave and offers interrogations with multiple other software platforms such as MailChimp and Basecamp. They also offer a lot of customer support and host webinars.
Ballpark is a great invoicing and time tracking application that integrates well with several other applications and services such as Freshbooks, Paypal, and Stripe. The thing that makes Ballpark unique is that its reports can help you determine how much time and money you are spending on specific projects and it has CRM features/integrations. This is ideal for companies who have several clients and projects and need to determine where there efforts are being focused.
As the title indicates, this software is ideal for business owners who dislike accounting and want to keep it as simple as possible. The application is great for bookkeeping. It allows you to import data from your bank account and add contacts from your email, Basecamp etc. This reduces the amount of data entry and having to enter your contacts list redundantly. In addition to offering simplicity it offers a lot of support and guides for small business owners.
Intacct is unique in that it designed specifically for businesses and startups that want more insights into their growth. This makes Intact ideal for scaling businesses and early-stage startups.
Accountedge is a great desktop application for Mac or Windows that is best suited to retail environments due to its inventory tracking, sales, and purchasing capabilities. So if you are a brick & mortar startup looking for something easy to implement in your locations then you may want to take a look at this one.
FreeAgent is free accounting software that is ideal for freelancers, consultants, and very small businesses. There are also subscriptions available for teams, so if you start of using FreeAgent you can scale it up as your needs dictate.
Hiveage is an inexpensive accounting platform that allows you to pick and choose your features so that you only pay for what you use. It offers all of your basic accounting services and plans range from free to $50.00/month.
Tallie has been designed for company expense tracking and is ideal for expense tracking on the go. It enables you to track mileage while driving, take photos of receipts and forward them, and submit expense reports. This is great for businesses that have a lot of workers out in the field or employees that are travelling a lot.
This application is a bit more advanced, but is great if you are looking for something that helps your business budget, manage debts, and prepare for taxes.
If you can't find a commercial software platform that suits all of your needs, keep in mind that you can always have a custom software platform built or a commercial application integrated or added-to. Contact us at Gravit-e Technologies to ensure your accounting software is tailored to your unique needs.