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Bookkeeping is often considered one of the most laborious aspects of running a small business. For startups, freelancers, and solopreneurs balancing many market responsibilities, evidence-based and easy bookkeeping is the small-but-ultimate difference between knowing where the money goes and where it went. Fortunately, 2025 provides an array of simple accounting tools made with non-accountants in mind.
Whether you’re in the market for bookkeeping software for beginners or cloud-based software or simply want to know what the easiest bookkeeping software for small businesses is, this guide has you covered with your best bet.
What Is Simple Bookkeeping Software?
Simple bookkeeping software is created to assist small business owners in managing income, expenses, and invoices—and sometimes also payroll—without requiring an accounting degree. These tools prioritise
- User-friendliness
- Affordability
- Cloud accessibility
- Mobile functionality
- Basic reporting features
- It’s really just bookkeeping for dummies.
How to Select the Best Bookkeeping Software
When choosing an accounting application that works best for you, keep the following factors in mind:
Criteria to Choose the Simplest Bookkeeping Software
When selecting an accounting tool for your business, consider the following:
| Criteria | Why It Matters |
| Ease of Use | User-friendly dashboards, lack of jargon, and automation features. |
| Cost-Effectiveness | Free or affordable levels for startups and solopreneurs. |
| Cloud Access | Sign in from anywhere and connect with banks to securely record transactions across devices for personal and business data. |
| Mobile App Availability | Track expenses and send invoices from anywhere. |
| Scalability | The platform scales as your company grows, so you don’t have to hop from tool to tool. |
| Integration | Easy links to CRM, e-commerce, payroll, and more. |
Top 7 Simplest Bookkeeping Tools for 2025
Wave Accounting is Best for Freelancers and startups that watch every dollar.
Why It’s Simple: Core features are 100% free, the interface is friendly, and invoicing comes built in.
- Pricing: Everything is free except a small fee when you process payments or run payroll. Cloud-Based: Yes,
- Mobile App: Yes
- Bonus: No trial to worry about, no unexpected charges.
QuickBooks Simple Start Best for: New business owners who prefer step-by-step help
Why It’s Simple: Guided workflows, smart automations, and tons of integrations
- Pricing: Plans start at 20 a month, and discounts pop up regularly.
- Cloud-Based: Yes
- Mobile App: Yes
- Bonus: Reach QuickBooks-certified advisors when you need them.
Zoho Books is best for small firms that love customising their tools
Why It’s Simple: Clean layout, handy automations, and a client portal
- Pricing: Free for revenue below 50 lakhs in India; paid plans kick off around 15 months.
- Cloud-Based: Yes
- Mobile App: Yes
The bonus is that it works well with Zoho CRM and other Zoho applications.
Xero is best for teams that share bookkeeping access with multiple users
Why It’s Simple: Intuitive dashboard, real-time bank feeds, and unlimited user seats on higher plans Modern UI, smart reconciliation, and project tracking.
FreshBooks is best for service-based pros.
Why It’s Simple: Built for people who hate numbers, it nails invoicing.
- Pricing: From $19/month.
- Cloud-Based: Yes.
- Mobile App: Yes.
Bonus: Time tracking and expense logging are readily available.
Sage Accounting is ideal for small teams and businesses that are expanding.
Why It’s Simple: Easy menus, auto bank feeds, and VAT caring are always on.
- Pricing: From $10/month.
- Cloud-Based: Yes.
- Mobile App: Yes.
Bonus: Deep help docs and live training keep you moving.
The ZipBooks app Ideal for: New businesses aiming for streamlined dashboards.
Why It’s Simple: Polished design, smart tagging, and a strong free tier shine.
- Pricing: Free plan waits; paid options from $15/month.
- Cloud-Based: Yes.
- Mobile App: Yes.
Bonus: Colour-coded scoring makes performance easy to spot.
Who Should Use These Tools?
| User Type | Recommended Tools |
| Freelancers | Wave, FreshBooks, ZipBooks |
| Solopreneurs | QuickBooks, Zoho Books |
| Service Providers | FreshBooks, Sage |
| Product Sellers | Xero, QuickBooks |
| Tech Startups | Zoho Books, Xero |
Final Recommendation Based on Business Type
- Just starting out? Try Wave or ZipBooks—you don’t pay a dime.
- Need structured guidance? Beginners go with QuickBooks Simple Start.
- Already using the Zoho ecosystem? Stick with Zoho Books.
- Handling projects or hourly clients? Go for FreshBooks.
- Working as a team? Xero or Sage Accounting includes more collaboration features.
Conclusion: Want a Human Touch? Outsource Bookkeeping with Velan
The simplest accounting software still has a learning curve. And if you prefer to focus on expanding your business and let someone else do the books, Velan’s outsourced bookkeeping services can be a good fit. From QuickBooks Online pros to catch-up bookkeeping and monthly reconciliations, we have you covered.
Bookkeeping Software FAQs
What is the simplest bookkeeping software for beginners?
Easy bookkeeping software for beginners is Wave or QuickBooks Simple Start. In contrast, QuickBooks provides guided processes and sophisticated automation, making it an excellent choice for those who are not familiar with the software. The Wave software is a free program that is perfect for independent contractors or small businesses. Scant accounting experience is necessary for either software.
Is Wave accounting really free?
You can keep tabs on your income and expenses, send out invoices, and scan receipts with Wave Accounting—all for free. Paid add-on services are available for payroll and online payments. It’s also one of the best free bookkeeping software for startups that are strapped for cash.
In the case of small firms, which accounting software is the most user-friendly?
The best small business software solutions are really subjective to your needs. Wave and ZipBooks are good choices for very small teams and freelancers. It offers some more structure and expandability without being too hard to learn, and QuickBooks Simple Start and Zoho Books manage to get a tad more structured and scalable while still being quite easy to use.
Can I do account without a degree?
Absolutely. Most basic bookkeeping software at the moment is written thinking of the non-accountant. They also provide users with user-friendly interfaces, mobile apps, and automation so that you can more easily do things such as track expenses, create invoices and prepare financial reports, even if you’ve never done bookkeeping before.
What is the best bookkeeping software for freelancers?
Freelancers often make beneficial use of products such as FreshBooks, Wave, or ZipBooks. These apps are geared toward service-based businesses, come with billing features you can use to invoice clients, and sometimes track time, too. And they are cheap and scalable as you grow your freelance business.
Benefits of Outsourcing Bookkeeping to India
