Quickbooks<\/a> has been around for a long time, first as a desktop version and now as online accounting software.<\/p>\nQuickbooks have heavily invested in their AI and automation features to help you quickly tag and categorise your invoices and expenses so you can see what you’re really making and spending<\/p>\n
Connecting QuickBooks to your bank account and credit card accounts, and let QuickBooks do the work for you. You’ll eliminate tons of data entry, and your books will always be up to date and accurate.<\/p>\n
For expenses, QuickBooks fills in who you paid and what it was for. You can change this information if you need to. This is where QuickBooks starts to help you out. It can find other expenses that look like the one you just added, and assign them all the same category.<\/p>\n
QuickBooks can also automatically categorise client payments to a sales account. If QuickBooks isn’t sure about a category for an expense, it’ll leave it as uncategorized. You can pick a category or choose Ask My Accountant to file it away to go over with your accountant later.<\/p>\n
QuickBooks lets you know if you have any expenses that need to be reviewed. As you categorize more expenses, QuickBooks learns from you so it can help. A transaction in green means QuickBooks recognizes that you categorized a similar transaction in the past. So it automatically assigns the same category for you.<\/p>\n
Reports like the profit and loss report show you more detail about how your expenses are categorized. You can even see your expenses as a percentage of your income. This is very helpful in understanding where your money is going.<\/p>\n
You can even explore QuickBooks for yourself with a free product test drive.<\/p>\n
QuickBooks Features<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n- Automates standard bookkeeping tasks such as entering transactions, performing calculations, and organizing data to keep your books balanced.<\/li>\n
- Automatically Imports your bank transactions and organizes them<\/li>\n
- Built-in sales tax calculator that calculates sales tax based on where you are, what you sell, and the address on the sales receipt or invoice<\/li>\n
- Track business expenses all year to get every deduction at tax time.<\/li>\n
- Automatically sorts expenses into expense categories and keeps them organized for you.<\/li>\n
- Track your bills and their due dates in one place so that you always pay on time and avoid late fees.<\/li>\n
- Set up automatic payments so that your bills are paid for you<\/li>\n
- Use the QuickBooks app to turn your phone\u2019s camera into a receipt scanner. Snap a photo of a receipt and QuickBooks will attach it to the expense in your books<\/li>\n
- Create custom, professional business reports, access your balance sheet, cash flow statement, income statement, and over 50 other reports<\/li>\n
- Create professional estimates and quotes for a prospective customer<\/li>\n
- Create invoices and get paid fast via credit card, debit card, Apple Pay, and more<\/li>\n
- Bill incrementally and get paid throughout the course of the job or project<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Quickbooks Pros<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n- One of the easiest online accounting software to use \u2018out of the box\u2019.<\/li>\n
- Links directly to your bank account for reconciliation.<\/li>\n
- A very capable product with some great features<\/li>\n
- Suitable for small businesses with only one currency who are happy to pay PayPal’s premium rates for payment processing.<\/li>\n
- The customer support is fast, friendly and efficient.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Quickbooks Cons<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n- Some have found the interface to be slow and confusing<\/li>\n
- Lack of payment processors: PayPal is the only option<\/li>\n
- No helpdesk support system for tickets<\/li>\n
- Direct Bank Feeds can take from 5 days to several weeks to set up<\/li>\n
- Invoice Templates are very basic<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
What freelancers think of Quickbooks<\/strong><\/h3>\n\u201cGood platform and great support – would definitely recommend to anyone looking for any easy to use accounting platform.\u201d – Virginia<\/p>\n
\u201cGreat software, wish i started using it earlier. A lot to get your head around, but they are a phone call away if you get stuck.\u201d – Seun<\/p>\n
\u201cI’ve been a QuickBooks user for a lot of years and was very pleased when the online version became available. I’ve had a couple of hiccups and the initial response wasn’t particularly impressive. However, when I eventually got connected to the right person in Technical Support, I have to say, I couldn’t fault his commitment to sorting out my issues.\u201d – Sean<\/p>\n
Sign up to a free 30-day trial to Quickbooks at quickbooks.com<\/p>\n
Read our full Quickbooks review<\/p>\n
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<\/span>Hello Bonsai<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
\n- 14-day free trial<\/li>\n
- From $16\/month<\/li>\n
- Sign up at hellobonsai.com<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
What is Hello Bonsai?<\/strong><\/h3>\nHello Bonsai isn’t strictly accounting software, though we did include it in our best online accounting software review roundup.<\/p>\n
Unlike some other options, like Freshbooks or Quickbooks,\u00a0Hello Bonsai\u00a0is intuitive and easy to use.<\/p>\n
Hello Bonsai\u2019s founder Matt Brown said he built it to \u201cmake that annoying and confusing contract for freelance dev and design work easier to create, understand, and sign.\u201d<\/p>\n
Matt\u2019s hope is that Hello Bonsai helps build better relationships with clients and gives you one less thing to worry about when freelancing.<\/p>\n
You can even send your clients automated reminders to help you get paid faster.<\/p>\n
Hello Bonsai Features<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n- Read-receipt notifications<\/li>\n
- Auto reminders<\/li>\n
- Client management<\/li>\n
- Project management<\/li>\n
- Secured messaging<\/li>\n
- Multiple currencies<\/li>\n
- Data export & import<\/li>\n
- Chat support<\/li>\n
- Weekly reminders<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Hello Bonsai Pros<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n- Streamlined and simplified client onboarding process.<\/li>\n
- Excellent client contracts and invoice system:\u00a0clients sign their contracts and pay their invoices quickly and easily<\/li>\n
- The software will tailor your contracts specific to the project you have at hand.<\/li>\n
- Nice to streamline the filling and e-signing of a contract<\/li>\n
- Invoicing with Bonsai is robust without making its UI all that cluttered<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Hello Bonsai Cons<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\n- Limited language settings: you\u2019re not going to get much use out of it if you\u2019re not in an English-speaking country<\/li>\n
- Limited customisation options for contracts generated through their system<\/li>\n
- Freelancers and small business may find more complete accounting packages elsewhere<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
What freelancers think of Hello\u00a0<\/strong>Bonsai<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n\u201cThe best part of it all: you can send a W-9 to clients. Having that on board will be so helpful during tax season!\u201d \u2013 So Am I Write<\/p>\n
\u201cHello Bonsai is a really great tool for freelancers and agencies. You can keep all your project\u2019s contracts and billing in one place.\u201d \u2013 Crafting Hands<\/p>\n
"After you have your contract templates set up, it\u2019s just a few clicks and your contract is on its way to your client\u2019s inbox. And after sending my clients their contracts and invoices, most of them (if not all) signed and paid their deposit the next day<\/em>." – Molly<\/p>\nGet a free two week trial of Hello Bonsai at HelloBonsai.com<\/p>\n
Read our full Hello Bonsai Review<\/p>\n
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<\/span>What features does the best online accounting software have?<\/span><\/h2>\nThere are plenty of other options out there, but these picks meet a couple of critical criteria:<\/p>\n
\n- Avaikable online 24\/7:<\/strong>\u00a0Back when accounting software was desktop-based, you need costly servers and other infrastructure that you are unlikely to have. Thankfully today most accounting software is cloud-based software, which means you can work from any device – mobile, tablet or desktop – at any time, and you don\u2019t have to take care of any of the website hosting or any upgrades that might be needed – it\u2019s all handled by the accounting software<\/li>\n
- Integration with banks:\u00a0<\/strong>By automatically connecting to your business banking, you are increasing thr accuracy of the data passed between your accounting software and your bank. Even better, you\u2019re saving massive amounts of time compared to entering data manually or fixing mistakes if you find you\u2019ve added something to the system incorrectly .<\/li>\n
- Easy to understand dashboards and reports:<\/strong> The best online accounting software helps you manage \u00a0income and expenses in such a way that it is easy to see how your business is performing at a glance and report to any governmental departments, such as HMRC in the UK and the IRS in the US. This is why a personal financial tracking system like Mint doesn\u2019t work for a freelance business\u2014you need to track and report on your financials with recognized business accounting best practices.<\/li>\n
- Low cost and scalable monthly fees:<\/strong>\u00a0Each of these online accounting software services provide a low cost starting monthly fee which is more than workable for a freelancer or small business that are just starting up. You can then scale and access more complicated features once your business is established and you can afford the higher fees.<\/li>\n
- Professional Support from trained accountants: <\/strong>if there is\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0a time when you need help with your accounting, then these online accounting software choices provide much needed support, either internally from their own accountants, or by linking you up with external bookkeepers and business consultants. Don\u2019t use a system that nobody is going to be able to help you with – you\u2019ll need someone to turn to when you need help with you books!<\/li>\n
- Mobile Apps: Being able to snap an expense or check on the invoice while on the move is getting increasingly valuable as our phones get more and more powerful. While not a deal breaker, using accounting software with a powerful and integrated mobile app will help make your work life easier when you\u2019re away from the office.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
<\/span>Which is the best online accounting software for you?<\/span><\/h2>\nThe best online accounting software for you depends on where you are in your freelance journey and how you’ve set up your small business.<\/p>\n
Just starting out as a freelance consutlant or small business? Try Hello Bonsai.<\/p>\n
Lots of clients and invoices, for example a design studio that has a high turnover of projects? Use Freshbooks.<\/p>\n
And if you have grown to the point where you are ready for an accountant or bookkeeper, choose Quickbooks – it\u2019s a powerful tool but needs an accountant to help make the most of it.<\/p>\n
Whichever of these options is the best online accounting software for you, you can feel confident that you have the best freelance tools to keep your freelance finances in order so that you can and get back to the freelance work you love.<\/p>\n
Which online accounting software do you use? I\u2019d love to hear your thoughts and experiences in the comments.