Although each review speaks to only one person’s experience, horror stories and effusive praise are both worth keeping in mind. We collaborate with business-to-business vendors, connecting them with potential buyers. In some cases, we earn commissions when sales are made through our referrals.
Create Moxie times worked for new Clockify time entries
Freelancers and solopreneurs who travel frequently for work are eligible for tax reimbursements per miles traveled. If you drive for hours each month, you’ll want to capitalize on that reimbursement—and QuickBooks Self-Employed can help. With built-in mileage tracking and report generation, QuickBooks simplifies the reimbursement process so you can get that gas money back a little faster.
However, this shouldn’t pose too much of an issue for self-employed workers using the software to manage simple tasks like keeping track of financial data and creating invoices. However, self-employed workers with advanced accounting needs could be left short-changed when using FreshBooks. Unlike top services Xero and Quickbooks, FreshBooks has no budgeting or cash-flow projection tools, making it harder for users to gain a clear overview of their future finances. When it comes to customer support, options include live chat and phone in addition to email, which means that Zoho Books gives customers more support channels than Xero or FreshBooks.
Send Stripe customers to FreeAgent as new contacts
If you do run into difficulties, another limitation of the platform is the support hours. Support is only available 9am to 5pm on weekdays, so if you need support outside of traditional working hours, you’ll be out of luck. Clear Books can help you simplify tax calculations, reducing manual effort and ensuring accuracy. The search function, for example, is incredibly intuitive, and we really liked the ‘pop-up’ approach to project creation.
With plans starting at $15 a month, FreshBooks is well-suited for freelancers, solopreneurs, and small-business owners alike. The five accounting software picks listed above are our favorites, hands down. But if you didn’t find your match, you aren’t out of options—our self-employment honorable mentions each have something to offer. If QuickBooks Self-Employed was made specifically for self-employed freelancers, why does it only get an honorable mention while QuickBooks Online makes our top five? FreshBooks’ $15 plan does several times the work of QuickBooks Self-Employed, as does Xero’s $13 plan. Unless your top priority is capitalizing on tax deductions and easily filing through TurboTax, QuickBooks Self-Employed isn’t the best pick for most freelancers.
The platform helps sole proprietors track expenses, maximize tax deductions, manage invoices, capture and upload receipts, log mileage, run expense reports, and calculate estimated quarterly taxes owed. Solo entrepreneurs and freelancers needing robust reporting and cash flow management tools in their self-employed accounting software. Self-employed professionals have several effective options for overseeing their finances in 2025. The tools presented each offer distinct advantages whether in ease of use, affordability, or broad functionality.
Xero – Best for sole traders with high turnovers
Each invoice has its own payment link, so your clients can view and pay it online. The user interface has a lot of open space, showing the preview of every document as you’re filling it out. And you can best bookkeeping software for self employed access reports directly on the Insights tab, showing relevant stats like net income, time worked, and your true hourly rate.
Clear Books – Best for managing complex tax processes
- In summary, Zoho Books combines flexibility and depth, making it a top choice for self-employed individuals and small businesses alike.
- Small business accounting no longer needs to be a complex and frustrating aspect of running your business.
- The mobile app automatically tracks the miles you drive for work, making end-of-year tax write-offs as simple as possible.
It suggests actions you can take to keep your finances sharp, such as nudging clients to pay invoices, taking care of your bills, and viewing the status of your bank accounts. Boasting 700,000+ users, OneUp is another player in the accounting software industry, although less known than its competitors like QuickBooks. Some of the features you’ll find with this software include accounting, invoicing, inventory and CRM, and are fully available on both mobile and desktop. What’s more, Zoho Books integrates seamlessly with other Zoho products like Zoho CRM and Zoho Recruit, and Zoho Inventory.
QuickBooks Self-Employed: Honorable mention
In summary, FreshBooks is an excellent option for freelancers and small businesses looking for a straightforward accounting solution. It combines essential features with a user-friendly interface, making it a top choice for many self-employed individuals. With its intuitive design, FreshBooks is incredibly easy to use and will meet the needs of most small businesses or freelancers.
The good news is you can quickly move up to the more robust version, Sage Accounting, anytime. Using the receipt capture feature, you can take pictures of your receipts and upload them to Sage. All the receipt information will be automatically extracted and categorized.
FreshBooks: Best for Freelancers and Service-Based Businesses
However, you might prefer desktop solutions like Quicken if you have limited internet connectivity, specific security requirements, or need to maintain local control over your financial data. Consider your business needs, internet reliability, and security requirements when making a choice. A. Yes, most modern accounting software allows you to export your data in standard formats, making it easier to switch platforms. However, some customizations, historical project management data, and specific reports might not transfer perfectly. Switching at the end of a financial quarter or year is best to maintain clean records. A. Most self-employed accounting software providers offer regular updates every 1-3 months.
Is Clear Books a good choice for the self-employed?
This software calculates estimated taxes automatically and even tracks your mileage using GPS. So, if you’re tired of manually logging miles and guessing your tax bill, QuickBooks Self-Employed could be just the solution. All employed people, whether self-employed or working full-time for a company, pay taxes.
- This makes bank feeds an important accounting tool — they’re how you quickly review all your cash inflows and outflows.
- With Wave, you get invoicing, expense tracking, receipt scanning, and integration with bank accounts and online platforms such as PayPal—all for free.
- Bonsai is built for self-employed professionals who are balancing multiple clients and projects.
- Just don’t ask Ruby complex stuff like the meaning of life—it’ll only drone on about capital assets.
- The user interface is simple, which helps in quick adoption and effective tracking of finances.
We put ourselves in the shoes of business owners as we judge each product’s performance, weigh its costs and analyze how it compares to competing options. Time tracking works really well, with a start button accessible from the top menu. You can add a description and a project, see a list of all the time logs, or see it spread throughout the week. To get a deep view into how things are working out, you can run a report to see where your work time is going.