Independent · sourced · Updated June 2026
Best Accounting Software (2026)
The cheapest accounting software is Wave at $0/mo. 2 offer a free tier (Wave, Zoho Books). This page compares 8 options on entry price, free tier, HIPAA/SOC 2 and best-for — every figure linked to its source, updated June 2026.
8 options compared on price, free tier, compliance and fit — ranked cheapest-first. Every figure links to the vendor's own page and the date we captured it; quote-only tiers show “—”, never a guess.
Key takeaways
- Cheapest: Wave at $0/mo (Starter (Free)).
- Typical paid price: from $19/mo, median $21.50/mo, up to $399/mo — across 8 with published pricing.
- Free tier: Wave, Zoho Books.
- HIPAA-ready: Zoho Books.
- Tracked: 8 vendors, data current through 2026-06-15.
Comparison
| # | Accounting Software | Entry price | Free | HIPAA | SOC 2 | Best for | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wave | $0/mo Starter (Free) | Yes | — | — | Freelancers and micro-businesses wanting $0 accounting software | waveapps.com |
| 2 | Zoho Books | $0/mo Free | Yes | Yes | Yes | Businesses already using Zoho CRM or the broader Zoho suite | zoho.com |
| 3 | Patriot Software Accounting | $20/mo Accounting Basic | No | — | — | Small US businesses wanting tight payroll-accounting integration at low cost | patriotsoftware.com |
| 4 | QuickBooks Online | $20/mo Solopreneur Lite | No | — | — | Small businesses wanting the broadest accountant network | quickbooks.intuit.com |
| 5 | FreshBooks | $23/mo Lite | No | — | — | Freelancers and service businesses billing by client | freshbooks.com |
| 6 | Xero | $25/mo Early | No | — | — | Teams with many users wanting flat per-org pricing | xero.com |
| 7 | Bench | $199/mo Bookkeeping Grow | No | — | Yes | Small business owners who want to fully outsource bookkeeping | bench.co |
| 8 | Bookkeeper360 | $399/mo Monthly Bookkeeping | No | — | — | eCommerce, SaaS, healthcare, or real estate businesses wanting outsourced bookkeeping | bookkeeper360.com |
Prices are the lowest published self-serve monthly rate as captured on the linked source. Annual-billing and usage details are on each vendor's record in our open dataset.
Alternatives
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Frequently asked questions
What is the cheapest accounting software?
Wave has the lowest published entry price at $0/mo (Starter (Free)), as of 2026-06-15.
How much does accounting software cost per month?
Across the 8 accounting software with published paid pricing, the median starting price is $21.50/mo, ranging from $19/mo to $399/mo, as of 2026-06-15. 2 also offer a free tier.
Which accounting software have a free plan?
Wave, Zoho Books offer a free tier.
Which accounting software support HIPAA?
Zoho Books state HIPAA support (a BAA). Always confirm current scope with the vendor.
More software comparisons
How we compiled this
Published self-serve pricing was collected directly from each provider's pricing page on the accessed date of 2026-06-13, except where the vendor page blocked automated access (Intuit/QuickBooks and Xero both returned HTTP 503/timeout to automated fetch), in which case figures were taken from clearly-cited corroborating sources that quote the published list rates. Prices are recorded as the regular published monthly USD rate (not introductory/promotional discounts); per-seat or per-additional-user pricing is noted in billingModel and notes. Quote-only / 'Let's Talk' / 'contact sales' tiers carry a null monthlyUsd, and call-center metrics (minutes, calls, overage) are null because they do not apply to accounting software.
Last verified 2026-06-15. We re-check published prices and compliance on a recurring cadence and update this page when they change.
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