Top 10 Accounting tools for SMEs and Start-ups

Accounting and book keeping is the back bone of any business, be it a Start up or SME.  By the way of keeping the books of accounts clean and neat one can satisfy all the compliance requirements without any hassles. If you are a small business owner, maintaining your business accounts and ensuring proper compliance is the most significant aspect of your operations.

In this technologically advanced era, there are number of accounting tools, which can help small business owners and Start-ups in maintaining proper books of accounts and fulfilling the various compliance aspects. Here I discuss top 10 accounting tools for SMEs and small business owners.

1. Quick books

Quick books is a cloud software for small businesses, which helps to manage invoices, pay bills, and track cash flows. Quick books is also useful in generating month-end and year-end financial reports as well as prepare quarterly or annual business taxes. It is a very easy-to-use GST software.

With Quick Books you can,

• Automate Payment Reminders.
• create customized GST invoices matching the GST format
• Track employee and billable hours with ease.

2. Xero Books:

Xero books is a small business accounting software that’s beautifully simple. Xero’s secure online accounting software lets you work from anywhere, share with your employees and collaborate with your advisors. Just add apps to create a complete solution for your business.

Xero has many interesting features, which help to

• Keep your cash flow healthy by sending online invoices with payments.
• Keep track of the money in and out with daily updates and simple bank
• reconciliation.
• Easily record, claim, and manage expenses and receipts online.

3. Fresh Books:

Fresh Books is an accounting software that makes running your small business easy, fast and secure. Fresh books help business owners spend less time on accounting and more time doing the work they love.

Fresh Books helps with,

• Tracking all expenses online
• Time-Tracking added directly to the invoice.
• Advanced and Accurate Accounting Reports.
• Secure Payment and Accounting.

4. Tally ERP 9

Tally.ERP 9, a sophisticated accounting software, which can be a perfect companion for small businesses. You are assured that your needs, as you grow are easily handled. With Tally, you can manage multiple companies and incrementally add features such as multiple go-downs, multi-currency, order process, cost centres etc. This helps you get rid of complexities, and in turn, focus on business growth.  

5. ZipBooks

ZipBooks is a simple accounting software that makes you even smarter. Simple beautiful, and powerful, ZipBooks gives you the tools and intelligence to take your business to the next level. ZipBooks helps in sending professional invoices in seconds. Book keeping and reporting are smarter in ZipBooks with simple reconciliation, a full suite of reports, auto categorization and intuitive color-coding.

ZipBooks makes leaving reviews easy for your best customers. Smart insights and reports help you retain your most profitable customers

6. Wave Accounting

Wave is an award-winning financial software designed for entrepreneurs. Wave Accounting is a web-based integrated accounting solution exclusively designed for small businesses, freelancers, and consultants. Wave accounting system also provides an invoicing tool to collect money, and users can choose the template of their choice as per the organization’s needs.

With wave accounting you can,

• Create and Send Professional invoices
• Scan receipts anytime, anywhere, right from our phone
• Payroll Management
• Recurring billing for repeat customers

7. Sage Accounting

Sage Business Cloud Accounting is a modern, cloud-based approach to small business bookkeeping. It offers core accounting, project accounting, expense management and compliance management within a suite.

With Sage Accounting you can,

• Create invoices online and send them to your customers in seconds.
• Accept and receive payments with multi-currency functionality.
• Compliance and accounting management
• Set automatic reminders for payments.

8. Bench accounting

Bench Accounting is an online service that does your bookkeeping for you so that you can focus on running your small business. Your Bench bookkeeper will categorize your transactions, reconcile your bank accounts, and prepare financial statements on your behalf.

The Bench online accounting app gives you monthly financial statements and expense overviews to keep you in control of your money. At-a-glance visual reports help you see the big picture and give you actionable insights to help you grow your business.

9. Accounting EDGE PRO

Accounting Edge is a complete small business accounting and management solution for your Mac office, with everything you need to make sales and purchases, track and build inventory, bill for time, and manage contacts.

With Accounting EDGE PRO you can,      

• Easily track reimbursement activities.
• Managing all your Credit card, Banking and Expense accounts.
• Set up your recurring transactions once.

10. Zoho Books

Zoho Books is an online accounting software that manages small businesses’ finances with ease. It helps the business to be GST complaint. It automates business workflows and helps the business work collectively across departments. It is an integrated platform with an end to end accounting solution.

Zoho books has got number of interesting features. For example, Zoho books helps the businesses to,

• Keep track of the payments that have been made.
• Set reorder levels and replenish stock when it gets low on hand.
• Make and collect payments directly with partner bank integrations.
• Track unbilled hours and expenses

If a right software product or App is used for accounting and book keeping, running a business will never be a hassle anymore and it will just be a cake walk. Hope this blog would have helped you to choose a right kind of product to best suit you for your book keeping and accounting requirement.