12 Best Cloud Accounting Software & Platforms

Cloud accounting software offers tons of benefits to business owners and independent accountants.

It automates tedious data entry and delivers financial information in real-time, allowing you to maintain books of accounts from anywhere, anytime.

Most of the ERP apps have cloud accounting functions. If that’s something you want to explore, you don’t have to purchase a separate product for bookkeeping.

But if you’re looking for standalone software, I have reviewed some of the top platforms for you below.

What Is Cloud Accounting Software and What Are the Best Apps

Cloud accounting software is a SaaS product that enables you to do bookkeeping online.

It provides the same functions you get from traditional on-premise software, but your data is stored on a cloud server instead of the company’s hardware, making it accessible and cost-effective.

Top Features to Look for In Cloud Accounting Software;

• Income and expense recording.
• Workflow automation.
• Bank/ payment gateway integration.
• Real-time reports.

In the below list, you’ll discover the 12 best cloud accounting software products. I have selected the apps based on their popularity, features, and prices.

1. Sage Intacct

Sage Intacct is an excellent option for growing and established companies. It provides AI and automation tools to make bookkeeping easier and faster.

Core capabilities of Sage Intacct are automatic payable and receivable, cash management, financial statements, and business insights. You can create entries in multi-currency and consolidate financial reports.

Some extended features, like fixed asset management and human resources, are also available. If your product is project-based or requires a subscription pricing model, you can manage it via Sage as well. It has project, subscription, and spend management tools.

Core Features

• Payables and receivables.
• Cash management.
• Financial statements.
• Business insights and real-time reporting.
• AI and automation.
• Global coverage.
• PO and inventory management.
• Advanced functionality.
• Third-party integration.

Price

Sage shares prices on request. Contact sales for the quotes.

2. ZOHO Books

ZOHO Books is popular for its versatility. The software is well-designed, providing a wide range of user-friendly tools for small businesses.

Notable features of ZOHO Books are invoicing, bill recording, online and offline payments, and taxes. You can generate purchase and sales orders and monitor your inventory to maintain your stock.

If you typically take project-based jobs, you can run multiple projects and track billable hours.

With automation and reporting, you can simplify your workflows and keep an eye on your business activities.

One more thing. ZOHO provides both customer and vendor portals to facilitate communication. You can also integrate other ZOHO apps to streamline your workflows.

Overall, it’s a good app for all business sizes.

Core Features

• PO, quotes, SO, and invoices.
• Auto-scan documents.
• Expense and income recording.
• Payments and taxes.
• Project tracking.
• Bank integration.
• Automation.
• Analytics and reports.
• Vendor and customer portals.
• Third-party integration.
• Mobile app.

Price

ZOHO sells several premium packages ranging between $12 and $250. You can sign up for free.

3. Wave

Wave is designed for solopreneurs and small business owners in the US and Canada region. It allows you to generate invoices for services rendered and do your own bookkeeping.

You can create one-time and recurring invoices and set automatic payment reminders. To record sales, you can integrate your bank and automatically sync transactions.

For expenses, Wave provides a mobile app. You can take a picture of receipts to upload information and create general entries. You can also automatically generate payroll and make salary deposits.

Core Features

• Invoicing.
• Recurring bills.
• Free bookkeeping software.
• Bank integration.
• Payroll.
• Receipt capture tool.
• Automation.
• Expert advice.
• Mobile app.

Price

Wave bookkeeping software is completely free. It only charges for its paid tools. The premium features’ prices start from $8.

You may also have to pay transaction charges.

4. Quickbooks

QuickBooks is one of the oldest and most widely used accounting software globally. With this app, small businesses can easily keep books of accounts online and track their financial activities.

Here, you can scan receipts and create expense vouchers, track your inventory and sales, manage all the payments and taxes, and generate P&L reports.

If you are an accountant, you can manage multiple clients from your account.

You can connect QuickBooks with your banks to synchronize your data and monitor your transactions in real-time. You can also access the software from your smartphone.

Core Features

• Receipt capture.
• Income and expense recording.
• Full and partial invoices.
• Taxes and payments.
• Inventory management.
• Time tracking and bill automation.
• Reports and insights.
• Job costing and budgeting.
• Multi-currency.
• Mobile app.
• Third-party integration.

Price

QuickBooks charges $18 to $38 for its small business package and $17 to $36 for the accountant plan.

The good news is that you’ll be charged a minimal amount for the first three months before receiving the full monthly bill.

5. NetSuite

NetSuite is ideal for mid to large-size organizations. Its cloud accounting software covers all the core areas, such as payables, receivables, cash flow, and fixed assets.

You can automate manual tasks like general entries to save time and maintain accurate records. With NetSuite’s close management feature, you can reconcile bank transactions and consolidate financial statements.

If your sales come from both physical and e-commerce stores, you can integrate online payment to facilitate customers. NetSuite supports checks, direct deposits, and credit card transactions, making it easier to process payments.

Core Features

• Expense and income recording.
• Cash flow.
• Account reconciliation.
• Tax management.
• Consolidated statements.
• Asset cycle tracking.
• Multiple payment gateways.
• Client portal.
• Automation.
• Reporting.

Price

NetSuite charges annual subscriptions and a one-time implementation fee. Contact sales for the prices.

6. XERO

XERO is a small business software that helps you record bills, manage payments, track projects, and reconcile accounts.

You can automatically capture data from the receipts and feed it into the system to create general entries. Via Inventory and asset modules, you can add items and keep track of your current and fixed assets.

With online invoicing features, you can send bills, set auto-reminders, and receive payments.

If you have payroll software, you can connect it with XERO to sync the data. You can also connect other third-party applications to extend the functions. Here’s a list of platforms you can integrate.

Core Features

• Quotes, PO, invoices, bills, and claims, taxes. 
• Automatic data capture.
• Bank reconciliation.
• Short-term cash flow reports.
• Inventory tracking.
• Multiple payment gateways.
• Project costing.
• Fixed asset management.
• Multi-currency.
• Contact management.
• Payroll integration.
• Mobile app.

Price

XERO prices start from $29. You can take a 30-day free trial.

7. FreshBooks

FreshBooks delivers accounting, payroll, and client communication tools. Freelancers, contractors, and small business owners can use it to do their accounting and taxes.

You can generate one-time and recurring invoices, track your expenses and income, connect your bank for payments, and generate financial statements. With its operation tools, you can collaborate with clients, create estimates, and manage your projects.

FreshBooks also offers bookkeeping services. You can handle your bills and payments via the cloud platform and let the FreshBooks team maintain the books of accounts for you.

If you already work with an accountant, you can provide access to FreshBooks. This feature, however, is available in advanced plans only.

Core Features

• Time tracking and invoices.
• Receipt capture and expense recording.
• General entire and financial reporting.
• Accountant access.
• Bookkeeping services.
• Automation.
• Client and team collaboration.
• Project management.
• Payroll.
• Global coverage.
• Mobile app.

Price

FreshBooks offers three pricing tiers:

1. Lite at $21.00 USD/month ($226.80 USD/year)
2. Plus at $38.00 USD/month ($410.40 USD/year)
3. and Premium at $65.00 USD/month ($702.00 USD/year). All annual plans include a 10% discount.

You can start with a 30-day free trial.

8. FreeAgent

FreeAgent is also a good option for contractors and freelancers. You can generate invoices and keep a record of your expenses and income.

Here, you can create estimates, oversee your projects, track billable hours, and send recurring invoices to clients. Via dashboard you can keep an eye on your cash flow and stay updated.

With bank integration, you can automatically import data and reconcile your transactions. Multi-currency transactions are also accepted by FreeAgent.

You can use FreeAgent on both desktop and mobile phones, and integrate third-party applications.

Core Features

• Project estimates.
• Receipt scanning and data capture.
• Recurring invoices.
• Time tracking.
• Expense recording.
• Automation.
• Bank integration.
• Sales tax.
• Finance insights.
• Mobile apps.

Price

FreeAgent charges $20 per month. You can get a 50% discount for the first six months.

A 30-day free trial option is available to new customers.

9. Kashoo

Kashoo covers expenses, sales, and financial reports. You can use it to generate invoices, record entries, collect payments, and reconcile bank transactions.

The software automatically tracks your invoices and sends reminder emails for payments. Once the amount is deposited, it extracts data from your bank and automatically matches transactions.

You can integrate online payment for customers and connect your payroll software to manage salary expenses. For other business expenses, you can set up a budget and let Kashoo monitor your spending.

If your business requires frequent traveling, you can access Kashoo from your smartphone to oversee your financial activities.

Core Features

• Invoices.
• Checks and online payments.
• Automatic data entry.
• Bank reconciliation.
• Financial reports.
• Income and expense tracking.
• Budgeting.
• Payroll integration.
• Mobile app.

Price

Kashoo charges yearly subscriptions. Its annual packages start from $216.

You can take a 14-day free trial.

10. Docuphase

Docuphase helps you automate and document your expenses and income.

You can manage AR and AP processes, create approval workflows, set repetitive processes on autopilot, and store business documents. With its OCR technology, you can easily capture receipts and reduce manual data entry.

You can connect your bank and other payment gateways with Docuphase to automate payments and invite your team to monitor transactions. If you use any popular ERP software, you can integrate it with Docuphase.

Core Features

• Account payables.
• Account receivable.
• Payment automation.
• Invoice capture tool.
• Web forms.
• Workflow automation.
• Financial document management.
• Business insights.
• ERP integration.

Price

Docuphase shares prices on request. Book a demo to know more.

11. Odoo

Odoo is an open-source platform that provides various business management applications, including cloud accounting software.

Some of the things it covers are AP and AR, online payments, bank reconciliation, and fixed asset management. You can make batch transactions to save time and enable mobile payments to make things easier for vendors and customers.

If you manage a petty cash account or sell goods in cash, you can track entries with Odoo. You can also set up alerts to keep an eye on your receivables and outstanding payments.

You can connect Odoo with third-party applications or get its other apps to extend the functions.

Core Features

• Account receivables and payables.
• Batch transactions.
• Online payments.
• Petty cash.
• Fixed asset management.
• Bank reconciliation.
• Automation.
• Multi-currency.
• Integration and API.
• Mobile friendly.

Price

Odoo Accounting software is free. It only charges when you use more than one app. The premium subscriptions range between $8 and $11.

12. HostBooks

HostBooks provides essential accounting features for both small and established businesses.

You can create PO and invoices, automate data entry, monitor your inventory, and manage your cash flow. Banking transactions are automatically imported, categorized, and matched with your invoices, saving you from entering each entry manually.

You can download the general ledger for review and generate custom reports for your team. Or, you can invite your team and set up permission levels to control access. HostBooks allows up to 10 users.

If you have a small setup, you can track day-to-day expenses with HostBooks and get real-time reports to monitor your business spending.

Core Features

• Income and expense recording.
• Purchase order.
• Automatic data entry.
• Bank reconciliation.
• Inventory management.
• Payroll.
• Multi-currency.
• Business intelligence.
• Financial reports.
• Team invitation.
• Mobile app.

Price

HostBooks sells three subscription packages, ranging between $33 and $44.

Payroll, taxes, and payment integration are add-on features.

Conclusion

Cloud accounting software is best for any business size or industry.

Whether you are a sole proprietor, own a small company, or run an established organization, you’ll find the subscription package in your budget.

For instance, Odoo is an excellent option for solopreneurs, QuickBooks is built specifically for small businesses, and NetSuite is ideal for established companies.

Explore multiple platforms, get more details from their websites, and shortlist applications that match your requirements.