# The best bookkeepers and accounting firms tools (2026): cost at 100 transactions a month

> Source: https://tickmarkbooks.com/best/accounting-firms/cost-100 (curated, re-verified)

The best bookkeepers and accounting firms tools in November 2026 are **Manager.io, ZipBooks and Akaunting**. Manager.io is the pick for small businesses and accountants keeping many client books in one flat-priced account. We read the price of 17 of the 18 on their own sites.

By [Tick Mark Books Research](https://tickmarkbooks.com/authors/research.md).

18 ranked · 17 checked against their own site 26–28 October 2026

### 16 of the 17 tools that publish a monthly price start under $100 a month. The median first paid plan is $23.

*Bookkeepers and accounting firms tools, first paid plan, November 2026*

- Under $25: 9
- $25 to $99: 7
- $100 to $299: 1
- $300 or more: 0

- **18** ranked
- **$23** median first paid plan
- **5** of the 18 have a free plan

First paid plan from each tool's own pricing page, read 26–28 October 2026.

## The short answer

**Manager.io** ranks first. It has a free plan, and paid plans start at $59 a month.

**ZipBooks** ranks second with a free plan, then $15 a month, and **Akaunting** third with a free plan, then $12 a month.

Half of the 17 tools with a monthly paid plan charge $23 a month or less.

5 tools here have a free plan to try before you pay. The highest ranked are Manager.io, ZipBooks and Akaunting.

## Pick by what you need

- A free plan before you pay: [Manager.io](https://tickmarkbooks.com/manager-io.md), Free, then $59 a month
- Small businesses and freelancers wanting free invoicing: [ZipBooks](https://tickmarkbooks.com/zipbooks.md), Free, then $15 a month
- Freelancers and small businesses: [Akaunting](https://tickmarkbooks.com/akaunting.md), Free, then $12 a month
- Ranked fourth: [Webgility](https://tickmarkbooks.com/webgility.md), From $79 a month
- Lowest monthly price in the top five: [Uncat](https://tickmarkbooks.com/uncat.md), From $9 a month
- The lowest monthly price we found: [Pennylane](https://tickmarkbooks.com/pennylane.md), From about $7.82 a month

## All 18 picks at a glance

| # | Name | Best for | Starts at |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1 | [Manager.io](https://tickmarkbooks.com/manager-io.md) | small businesses and accountants keeping many client books in one flat-priced account | Free, then $59 a month |
| 2 | [ZipBooks](https://tickmarkbooks.com/zipbooks.md) | small businesses and freelancers wanting free invoicing and books in one place | Free, then $15 a month |
| 3 | [Akaunting](https://tickmarkbooks.com/akaunting.md) | freelancers and small businesses that want open-source books they can host themselves | Free, then $12 a month |
| 4 | [Webgility](https://tickmarkbooks.com/webgility.md) | multichannel ecommerce sellers reconciling Amazon and Shopify payouts in QuickBooks | From $79 a month |
| 5 | [Uncat](https://tickmarkbooks.com/uncat.md) | accounting firms chasing clients for missing transaction detail at month end | From $9 a month |
| 6 | [Botkeeper](https://tickmarkbooks.com/botkeeper.md) | accounting firms taking on more client bookkeeping without hiring | From $149 a seat a month |
| 7 | [Xero](https://tickmarkbooks.com/xero.md) | small businesses wanting the whole team and their advisor on the books, no per-user fees | From $27 a month |
| 8 | [FreshBooks](https://tickmarkbooks.com/freshbooks.md) | service businesses and freelancers who bill clients and want their books in the same place | From $23 a month |
| 9 | [Digits](https://tickmarkbooks.com/digits.md) | A US startup or small business that wants its own AI-kept ledger in place of QuickBooks | From $65 a month |
| 10 | [Cranston](https://tickmarkbooks.com/cranston.md) | CPA firms that want returns and monthly books drafted inside their own software | From $30 a month |
| 11 | [fileLedger by fileAI](https://tickmarkbooks.com/fileai.md) | small accounting firms drowning in client invoices and statements that already run on Xero | From $13 a month |
| 12 | [SimpleAI](https://tickmarkbooks.com/simpleai.md) | accounting firms and finance teams processing high volumes of invoices and bank statements | From $79 a month |
| 13 | [Pennylane](https://tickmarkbooks.com/pennylane.md) | small businesses in France and their accounting firm working in one shared file | From about $7.82 a month |
| 14 | [Inkle](https://tickmarkbooks.com/inkle.md) | US-incorporated startups and foreign founders needing books and US filings together | Free, then $30 a month |
| 15 | [Double](https://tickmarkbooks.com/double.md) | accounting firms closing many QuickBooks Online and Xero client files each month | From $10 a month |
| 16 | [Zoho Books](https://tickmarkbooks.com/zoho-books.md) | small businesses and startups that want one ledger plus the wider Zoho app suite | Free, then $20 a month |
| 17 | [FreeAgent](https://tickmarkbooks.com/freeagent.md) | UK sole traders and small limited companies filing their own VAT and Self Assessment | From about $13 a month |
| 18 | [Booke AI](https://tickmarkbooks.com/booke-ai.md) | A business or bookkeeping firm already on QuickBooks Online or Xero | Price not established |

Checked between 26 October 2026 and 28 October 2026. “About” figures are converted at the European Central Bank rate of 30 October 2026.

**18 tools, ranked.**

18 of 33 bookkeepers and accounting firms tools match “Cost at 100 transactions a month”. Of the rest: 0 on some plans only, 0 no, 15 unknown.

How the bookkeepers and accounting firms tools matching “Cost at 100 transactions a month” differ: 18 of 18 also match “Cost at 500 transactions a month”, against 0 of 15 in the rest of the category.

## The ranking

### 1. Manager.io

**A free plan before you pay**

**Best for:** small businesses and accountants keeping many client books in one flat-priced account

- Price: Free, then $59 a month ([source](https://www.manager.cloud/))
- [Read the review](https://tickmarkbooks.com/manager-io.md)

### 2. ZipBooks

**Small businesses and freelancers wanting free invoicing**

**Best for:** small businesses and freelancers wanting free invoicing and books in one place

- Price: Free, then $15 a month ([source](https://zipbooks.com/pricing/))
- [Read the review](https://tickmarkbooks.com/zipbooks.md)

### 3. Akaunting

**Freelancers and small businesses**

**Best for:** freelancers and small businesses that want open-source books they can host themselves

- Price: Free, then $12 a month ([source](https://akaunting.com/plans))
- [Read the review](https://tickmarkbooks.com/akaunting.md)

### 4. Webgility

**Best for:** multichannel ecommerce sellers reconciling Amazon and Shopify payouts in QuickBooks

- Price: From $79 a month ([source](https://www.webgility.com/pricing))
- [Read the review](https://tickmarkbooks.com/webgility.md)

### 5. Uncat

**Lowest monthly price in the top five**

**Best for:** accounting firms chasing clients for missing transaction detail at month end

- Price: From $9 a month ([source](https://support.uncat.com/help/articles/0868810-uncat-has-a-free-7-day-trial))
- [Read the review](https://tickmarkbooks.com/uncat.md)

## Side by side

| Feature | Manager.io | ZipBooks | Akaunting | Webgility | Uncat | Botkeeper | Xero | FreshBooks | Digits | Cranston | fileLedger by fileAI | SimpleAI | Pennylane | Inkle | Double | Zoho Books | FreeAgent | Booke AI |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Description | Double-entry accounting that is free forever installed, or one flat cloud price for unlimited users and businesses. | Free-forever double-entry books whose machine learning categorizes transactions and learns from your corrections. | Open-source small-business books you host free yourself or run on its cloud, extended by 50+ paid apps. | Posts every marketplace order, fee and payout into QuickBooks or Xero at line-item level, not as a summary. | Asks your clients to explain uncategorized transactions, then syncs their answers back into the books. | Bookkeeping automation an accounting firm runs itself, priced by client entity inside QuickBooks Online or Xero. | Small-business ledger with a JAX assistant that answers questions in plain language; unlimited users on every plan. | Double-entry small-business ledger built around invoicing, with a read-only Claude connector for questions. | AI-native general ledger that books and reconciles itself, replacing QuickBooks or Xero for US businesses. | AI prepares draft returns and monthly books inside a firm's own QuickBooks, Xero and tax software. | Agent plans that read invoices and bank statements and post them into your Xero or QuickBooks books. | AI agents that extract, classify and reconcile accounting documents, then publish them into Xero or QuickBooks. | AI-native invoicing, accounting and business banking for small businesses and their accounting firms. | US accounting software with AI categorization, plus bookkeepers, tax filing and compliance in one app. | Month-end close platform for accounting firms, built on QuickBooks Online and Xero. | Cloud accounting ledger with Zia AI, bank feeds, sales tax and 1099 e-filing, from $20 a month. | UK cloud accounting with HMRC filing, bank feeds and AI receipt capture, priced per business type. | An AI bookkeeper that works inside QuickBooks Online and Xero to categorize transactions and match documents. |
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## Questions buyers ask

### How much do bookkeepers and accounting firms tools cost?

The median first paid plan is $23 a month, across the 17 of the 18 that publish a monthly price. They run from $7.82 to $149.

### Which bookkeepers and accounting firms tools have a free plan?

5 of the 18 have a free plan.

### How current are these figures?

The prices were read 26–28 October 2026.

## Sources and method

Every price was read on the maker's own pricing page.

### Pricing pages (17 read)

- [Manager.io](https://tickmarkbooks.com/manager-io.md): [manager.cloud](https://www.manager.cloud/), checked 28 October 2026
- [ZipBooks](https://tickmarkbooks.com/zipbooks.md): [zipbooks.com/pricing](https://zipbooks.com/pricing/), checked 28 October 2026
- [Akaunting](https://tickmarkbooks.com/akaunting.md): [akaunting.com/plans](https://akaunting.com/plans), checked 28 October 2026
- [Webgility](https://tickmarkbooks.com/webgility.md): [webgility.com/pricing](https://www.webgility.com/pricing), checked 28 October 2026
- [Uncat](https://tickmarkbooks.com/uncat.md): [support.uncat.com/help/articles/0868810-uncat-has-a-free-7-day-trial](https://support.uncat.com/help/articles/0868810-uncat-has-a-free-7-day-trial), checked 28 October 2026
- [Botkeeper](https://tickmarkbooks.com/botkeeper.md): [botkeeper.com/pricing](https://www.botkeeper.com/pricing), checked 28 October 2026
- [Xero](https://tickmarkbooks.com/xero.md): [xero.com/us/pricing-plans](https://www.xero.com/us/pricing-plans/), checked 28 October 2026
- [FreshBooks](https://tickmarkbooks.com/freshbooks.md): [freshbooks.com/pricing](https://www.freshbooks.com/pricing), checked 28 October 2026
- [Digits](https://tickmarkbooks.com/digits.md): [digits.com/pricing](https://digits.com/pricing/), checked 27 October 2026
- [Cranston](https://tickmarkbooks.com/cranston.md): [cranston.ai/pricing](https://cranston.ai/pricing), checked 27 October 2026
- [fileLedger by fileAI](https://tickmarkbooks.com/fileai.md): [file.ai/platform/fileledger](https://www.file.ai/platform/fileledger), checked 28 October 2026
- [SimpleAI](https://tickmarkbooks.com/simpleai.md): [simpleaiworks.com/en/pricing](https://simpleaiworks.com/en/pricing), checked 27 October 2026
- [Pennylane](https://tickmarkbooks.com/pennylane.md): [pennylane.com/fr/tarifs](https://www.pennylane.com/fr/tarifs), checked 27 October 2026
- [Inkle](https://tickmarkbooks.com/inkle.md): [inkle.ai/pricing](https://www.inkle.ai/pricing), checked 27 October 2026
- [Double](https://tickmarkbooks.com/double.md): [doublehq.com/pricing-plans](https://doublehq.com/pricing-plans/), checked 27 October 2026
- [Zoho Books](https://tickmarkbooks.com/zoho-books.md): [zoho.com/us/books/pricing](https://www.zoho.com/us/books/pricing/), checked 26 October 2026
- [FreeAgent](https://tickmarkbooks.com/freeagent.md): [freeagent.com/pricing](https://www.freeagent.com/pricing/), checked 26 October 2026