7 Best Budget Software For Small Businesses In April 2022

Budgeting is the foundation for the success of any business. And for many businesses and freelancers, using online business budget software is essential to automating their financial tasks. From expense tracking to report generation, the right budget software can significantly improve the efficiency of your business.  

With so many different solutions to choose from, it can be difficult to find the best fit for you. To guide you in your search, Black Forest Global has compiled a list of seven of the best budgeting and accounting software options available today. 
 
QuickBooks 

While QuickBooks is labeled as accounting software, it can automate virtually every aspect of your financial business, from invoicing and billing to expense tracking. The simple interface makes budgeting and expense tracking a breeze. A significant selling point for small businesses is the ability to create custom reports or use one of the pre-built reporting options, which simplifies the process of generating profit and loss statements and other critical financial reports. 

Pricing: Self-Employed ($15 per month), Simple Start ($25 per month), Essentials ($50 per month), Plus ($80 per month), and Advanced ($180 a month).  
 
Key Features: 

• Invoicing and payments 
• Income and expense management 
• Track sales and sales tax 
• Capture and organize receipts 
• Run standard reports 

 
What’s Good  

• Easy to navigate 
• Various price points 
• Customizable reports 
• Multiple users 
• Can separate personal and business expenses

 
What’s Bad 

• Can be pricey 
• Difficult for non-finance professionals 
• Hard to set up

 
Xero 

Xero Accounting is ideal for business owners who require full-service accounting software but lack the funds to hire a CPA. This all-in-one small business accounting software solution includes a comprehensive chart of accounts, financial reports, bank reconciliation, and payroll capabilities. Additionally, Xero has enhanced its expense and project management modules, which are both extremely useful for budgeting. 

Pricing: Early ($9 per month), Growing ($30 per month), and Established ($60 per month). 
 
Key Features: 

• Comprehensive accounting program 
• Easily manage multiple business accounts 
• Customizable chart of accounts 
• Bank reconciliation 
• Complex financial reports 
• Create and send invoices 
• Send quotes 
• Payroll processing 
• Accepts multiple currencies 

 
What’s Good 

• Excellent integration capabilities 
• Affordable 
• Accessible user interface 
• Strong customer service 
• Unlimited users 

 
What’s Bad 

• Limited reporting options 
• Not ideal for larger businesses 

 
FreshBooks 

With their expense tracking system, this category leader for freelancers and small business owners allows you to efficiently control your budget. While the software cannot handle complex budget planning, it is simple to use and convenient for logging expenses, creating invoices, and recording payments on the go. 

Pricing: Lite ($15 per month), Plus ($25 per month), Premium ($50 per month) 
 
Key Features:  

• Simple time tracking 
• Easily create estimates 
• In-depth financial reporting 
• Multiple payment processing 
• Excellent customer service 
• Amazing mobile app 
• Capability to take pictures of receipts 

 
What’s Good 

• Easily integrates with other web services 
• Very easy to navigate 
• Sophisticated reporting 
• Simple invoice creation 

 
What’s Bad 

• Can get very expensive with higher plans/adding team members 
• Doesn’t allow for complex budgeting 

 
PlanGuru 

PlanGuru's scalability enables it to generate simple small-business budgets as well as highly detailed operating budgets. The software includes robust forecasting and analytics capabilities, with over 20 forecasting methods available. This enables small businesses to easily budget and forecast up to ten years in advance. 

Pricing: $99 per month with additional users being an extra $29 per month 
 
Key Features: 

• In-depth financial forecasting 
• Easy ledger imports 
• Unlimited budgeting flexibility 
• Strategic scenario analysis  
• Specialized reporting tools

 
What’s Good 

• Integrates with Excel, QuickBooks, and Xero 
• Provides integrated balance sheets, income statements, and cash flow statements 
• Strong product support 
• Comes with additional analytics tools

 
What’s Bad 

• Limited reporting flexibility 
• No remote access for Desktop 

 
Float 

This award-winning business budgeting and cash flow forecasting app is available as an add-on for businesses using Xero, QuickBooks Online, or FreeAgent. Float provides users with real-time visibility into their cash flow, making it an ideal tool for budgeting. Additionally, it will notify users when cash flow is low or when there is a cash surplus, providing businesses with actionable insights.

 
Pricing: Essential ($69 per month), Premium ($119 per month), and Enterprise ($249 per month). 
 
Key Features: 

• Simple cash flow software 
• Real-time insights 
• Easy scenario planning 
• Accurate forecast estimates 
• Create and send invoices 
• Budget management 

 
What’s Good 

• Easily integrates with top accounting systems 
• User-friendly 
• Automatically imports data 
• Quick set-up

 
What’s Bad 

• No consolidated cash flow 
• Difficult to import large amounts of data 
• No mobile app 

 
Wave Accounting 

Wave Accounting is an all-inclusive integrated platform designed for small businesses and is one of the most comprehensive freemium systems for basic accounting needs. Accounting, payroll, invoicing, payments, bills, and other financial processes will be maintained by users.

 
Pricing: Basic Invoicing & Accounting (Free), Credit Card Processing & Bank Payments (Pay-Per-Use), Payroll ($35 per month base fee for tax service states & $20 base fee per month for self-service states).  
 
Key Features:  

• Personal finance budgeting software 
• Etsy shop and PayPal integrations 
• Credit card processing 
• Simple invoicing features 
• Take pictures of receipts 
• Payroll processing 

 
What’s Good: 

• User-friendly mobile app 
• Pay-as-you-go 
• Comprehensive for price 

 
What’s Bad: 

• Limited focus geared toward smaller businesses with <10 employees 
• In-app ads and pop-ups  

 
GoDaddy Bookkeeping 

GoDaddy Bookkeeping is a great tool for freelancers and contractors because it calculates estimated taxes for each quarter. Over time, the site has progressed to include invoicing tools as well as integration with eBay, Etsy, and Amazon, making it simple for small and part-time merchants to link their sales on those platforms to its bookkeeping engine. The interactive dashboard allows you to easily add invoices and accounts, review data, and track time. 

Pricing: Get Paid ($4.99 per month), Essentials ($9.99 per month), Premium ($14.99 per month). 
 
Key Features: 

• Payment processing 
• Automatic creation and sending of invoices. 
• Current-year business reports, including profit and loss. 
• Calculates estimates for quarterly taxes 
• Direct integration with Amazon, eBay, Etsy, and PayPal 
• Customizable invoices 

 
What’s Good: 

• Simple set up 
• Amazing mobile app 
• Round-the-clock customer support

 
What’s Bad: 

• No free trial 
• Lacks multicurrency support 
• No project tracking 
• Limited client record details 

 
With so many budgeting software options available, determining which solution is the best fit for your company can be difficult. Whatever you decide, don't forget to take advantage of free trials and research a platform before committing to a paid subscription. Contact our BFC team for additional information and assistance on how to achieve your business goals.

By: Victoria Harris