How much you should pay for accounting software is certainly a question with a variety of answers. Obviously, the larger your organization, the more features you’re interested in, and the less manual labor or time needed, the more you’re going to pay. On the other hand, if you are willing to give up on certain features or don’t need various services, you can reduce the overall costs.

One thing is for certain, though; accounting software is a must in the 21st century. So, regardless of which price range fits your budget, be sure to secure your business standing with a solid app.

Accounting Software Price Ranges

It’s tough to pin an exact amount on an accounting software, partially because there are so many different brands, plans, and service options. Additionally, companies like to offer customized pricing for a more tailored fit with their services. That makes it even harder to give you an accurate guesstimate. You can get accounting software for as little as $5 a month with companies like KPMG Spark. Meanwhile, other players in the field might charge as much as $500 and upwards for their services. So the range is pretty wide.

For SMBs, you can definitely settle for a smaller scale version of accounting software. Your books aren’t going to require the extensive knowledge and detail that a larger company’s will. So, why waste your money on a lot of fancy features that you’ll never end up using? Which brings us to another important question. Which accounting software is right for which types of business? Let’s talk about that for a minute.

The Right Size Fit: SMBs Vs Big Dogs

The accounting software that’s right for a major corporation won’t be an appropriate match for a small business owner. If you have 5 employees and churn out a modest $5,000 a month, you certainly don’t need the extensive capabilities (nor the price tag that comes along with them) that a multi-million dollar corporation does. Ideally, you want to look at your operations to determine which accounting software is right for you.

For SMBs, the most important thing to look for is:

• User-friendly dashboard and actions
• Mobile app or cloud-based software
• If you’re in Ecommerce, only payment acceptance
• Partial tax compliance services
• Payroll, if you want to alleviate this headache
• And, of course, an affordable price tag

Also read up on the various options. Many accounting software options will specifically gear their offerings towards smaller businesses. That’s an easy way to narrow down your options. You can also find industry-specific services that will better cater to your business (Ecommerce, restaurants, retail, warehouse, etc.)

For larger corporations, you’ll want to focus on:

• Integrations
• Number of clients or team members
• Onboarding and training
• Dedicated accounting point person or team
• Unlimited feature counts
• Complete tax preparations and payroll services
• Inventory, customer, and vendors management

And it’s always a good idea to get your accountant’s opinion if you have one.

Accounting Software: What You’ll Get for Your Money

So what is accounting software good for anyway? Well, here are some of the labor-intensive tasks a good app will take off your shoulders:

• Expense tracking
• Invoice creation and management
• Inventory management
• Vendors management
• Customer management
• Reporting and insights
• Send estimates
• Track sales
• Calculate sales tax
• Manage 1099 contractors
• Generate W-2 and EOY
• Manage and pay bills
• Track time
• Track project profitability
• Full bookkeeping and accounting services

And that’s not the whole list. Bottom line, accounting software is extremely useful for any size business. So the question really is, can you afford not to have this necessary business management solution in your tool kit?

Free Account Software Options

There are also some free accounting software options out there, including xTuple PostBooks, ZipBooks, Wave, and Brightbook. But we can’t in good conscience recommend any of them. It’s as it is with most things: you get what you pay for. So, you can opt for a freemium version, but you won’t get the same level of professionalism, accuracy, or security, or nearly the same depth of features as you will with a paid-for plan. And since plans start at just $5 a month, there’s no reason not to splurge.