VAT and MTD
If your business turnover is GBP85,000 or more per year you’ll need to register for VAT – value added tax. And, from April 2021, all VAT registered businesses in the UK must hold and submit their VAT records online, using software which meets MTD – making tax digital – requirements. That means you’ll want to find free accounting software which is MTD compliant, even if your company isn’t quite turning over enough to need to register for VAT yet.

Quote management
Quote management functions allow you to generate client quotations more easily, as well as keeping records of your quoted prices. Some accounting software options allow you to automate some or all of the quote generation process, and may also provide ways to manage your business leads before you get to the quote stage.

3rd party app integrations
Choosing a small business accounting program which can integrate with other systems you use makes sense. So for example, if you sell online, you’ll want accounting software which can talk to the same platform you use to receive payments. If you’re sending and receiving international payments, you’ll want an accounting system which integrates with your multi-currency business account. And if you use a CRM system, pick a program that supports your chosen CRM package.

Multiple currency support
If you work with international suppliers, or sell to customers based overseas, you could be better off with a smart multi-currency account to send, hold, and receive payments in foreign currencies. Check out Wise for business for free online accounts with no minimum balance or monthly fee, which let you hold 50+ currencies, and switch between them using the mid-market exchange rate. And when you select your free accounting software, don’t forget to check it can cope with multiple currency accounting to keep things running smoothly.