As a business owner, you likely want to run your business rather than spend all your time on accounting. However, accounting is a necessity. You may wonder whether you’ll find Mac-compatible options when you have a Mac.
However, as with most things, it depends on your specific needs in your overall business. Let’s walk through 9 types of accounting software that might fit your Mac bookkeeping software platform preferences.
- Freshbooks: Best for Small Business Owners
- NetSuite ERP: Best for Mature Businesses
- Gusto: Best for Payroll Features
- QuickBooks Online: Best Overall
- Sage Intacct Business Cloud Accounting: Best for Freelancers
- Zoho Books: Best for Inexpensive Pricing Plan
- Zoho Expense: Best for Tracking Expenses
- Sage 50cloud: Best for Security
- Xero: Best for Analytics
| Number of users | Cost | Free trial | Customer support | |
| Freshbooks | Unlimited | $8.50 per month to custom pricing, depending on the level chosen | 30 days | FreshBooks Sales available 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. EST toll free, chatbot available |
| Netsuite ERP | Unlimited | Varies | None | Toll free help for critical concerns through NetSuite Basic Support 24/7 and online support for defects through SuiteAnswers |
| Gusto | Unlimited | $40 to varied pricing, depending on level | Set up for free, do not have to pay until you run payroll | Toll free help 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. MST Monday through Friday, or can submit an online form |
| Quickbooks Online | Five billable users + one accountant user | Simple Start: $15 per monthEssentials: $27.50 per month; Plus: $42.50 per month; Advanced: $100 per month | 30 days | Instant, real-time help from the QuickBooks Online Community and fast answers via phone or chat with 24/7 technical support for preferred customers |
| Sage Intacct Business Cloud Accounting | Depends on company size | Custom pricing | 30 days | Paid support, phone, and self-help library |
| Zoho Books | Standard plan: three users, Professional plan: five users, Premium plan: 10 users. | Standard: $15; Professional: $40; Premium: $60 | 14 days | Email, call, weekly webinar sessions |
| Zoho Expense | Unlimited | Free; Standard: $3 per active user for a minimum of three active users; Premium: $5 per active user for a minimum of three active users; Enterprise: $8 for a minimum of 200 active users | 14 days | Email, 24/7 phone support |
| Sage50 Cloud | Up to 40 users | Pro Accounting: $462.40 per year for one user; Premium Accounting: $739.20 per year for one to five users; Quantum Accounting: $1,226.40 for up to 40 users | 30 days | Phone, through other business builders and social media |
| Xero | Unlimited | Early: $6.50; Growing: $18.50; Established: $35 | 30 days | Xero Central support articles, email and phone |
Best Accounting Software for Macs
The best accounting software for you depends on your specific needs, level of comfort with a complex interface, customer support opportunities, and more. Take a look at the following options.
FreshBooks: Best for Small Business Owners
FreshBooks, a cloud-based accounting option ideal for freelancers and solopreneurs, can create personalized, professional invoices for their businesses with FreshBooks’ invoice generator. Customers can pay you directly and record each payment in your account. FreshBooks’ seamless integration offers secure, integrated, and quick invoice tracking solutions and offers some of the best Mac accounting software for self-employed available.
Pros
- Intuitive user interface
- Looks professional
- Affordable
- Accounting software ideal for one business operator
Cons
- Not ideal for large businesses
- Fewer customization options
- No inventory management or 1099 reporting
Top Features
FreshBooks allows for a wide range of organization options, keeping track of payments, track bills, track project profitability capability, and sending unlimited invoices. FreshBooks also protects personal and client information with industry-standard SSL and encryption.
Cost
The costs vary, depending on the level you choose:
- Lite: Five billable clients, $8.50 per month
- Plus: 50 billable clients, $15 per month
- Premium: Unlimited billable clients, $27.50 per month
- Select: Unlimited billable clients and specialized features, custom pricing
Why consider?
Individuals, including freelancers and sole proprietors, can manage finances and bookkeeping on a Mac. You can also access a suite of business tools, including add-ons for customization. You can even access mileage tracking, run business health reports, and get a comprehensive business overview with financial and accounting reports.
NetSuite ERP: Best for Mature Businesses
NetSuite ERP, an all-in-one cloud business management offers an integrated suite of applications for more than just account management — it offers a clear overview of the business, including order processing, inventory management, and more.
Pros
- Comprehensive business management on a single platform
- Excellent billing opportunities
- Great for scaling
Cons
- Subscription changes over time
- Limited customer support
- Challenging to customize support
Top Features
NetSuite ERP offers advanced features such as automating business tasks like payroll, order processing, invoicing, reporting, and more. Rather than spending all your time on manual data entry, you get automated data analysis, excellent reporting, and tracking. You can easily activate new modules and add users as your business grows.
Cost
You subscribe to NetSuite for an annual license fee based on the core platform, optional modules, and number of users. You also pay a one-time implementation fee for the initial setup.
Why consider?
If you have mature business challenges and need Mac bookkeeping software, between 50 to 200 employees and $1 million to $10 million in revenue, you may want to consider NetSuite. From planning and preparation to data management, NetSuite offers a wide number of configurations for business platform management. NetSyncX keeps your Apple Mac synced with NetSuite.
Gusto: Best for Payroll Features
Gusto, a cloud-based payroll, benefits and human resource management software, simplifies payroll, benefits, and HR, all while providing expert support. It offers payroll capabilities, including W-2s and 1099s, hiring and onboarding tools, health insurance administration, employee financial benefits, payroll and time-off reports, time tracking, expense management, and more.
Pros
- Offers an all-in-one system, from employee benefits to taxes, hiring, and benefits
- Well-designed interface
- Synchronizes payroll management with HR activities for contractors
- Moderate pricing scheme
Cons
- Per-person pricing can get pricey for large companies
Top Features
Gusto’s ease of use for quarterly taxes, onboarding, easy payroll, and benefits, access to HR experts, compliance support, and more makes Gusto a top option for Mac bookkeeping software and other to-dos.
Cost
- Simple: $40 per month, plus $6 per month per person, which includes Gusto’s automatic payroll features and benefits integrations.
- Plus: $80 per month, plus $12 per month per person, which includes comprehensive payroll, benefits, and HR tools
- Premium: Varies, which includes scalable payroll and benefits, human resources, and support for growing teams.
Why consider?
Gusto’s comprehensive suite of tools offers a wide range of opportunities and automations to service your business, from payroll to hiring and compliance. A great option for small businesses, Gusto also files local, state, and federal tax forms as well. The company can even help you regulate breaks and hour requirements to comply with state laws.
You can enhance your experience with the Gusto desktop app for Mac on WebCatalog to manage it successfully.
QuickBooks Online: Best Overall
QuickBooks Online offers cloud-based account management, banking, manages expenses and vendors, invoices and payments, reports, and sales — in short, it offers everything you need to run the accounting side of your business. The Simple Start plan offers income and expense tracking, invoices, tax deductions, reports, receipt capture, mileage tracking, sales and sales tax, and more.
Pros
- Excellent reporting tools and customization options
- Can integrate invoicing and payments with the system
Cons
- Sometimes has a learning curve
- Monthly plans can be expensive
Top Features
QuickBooks Online’s feature set goes beyond the basic in-and-out of cash. You can get customization and premium support with access to third-party apps.
Cost
The cost depends on the package you choose, and right now, you can save 50% for three months.
- Simple Start: $15 per month
- Essentials: $27.50 per month
- Plus: $42.50 per month
- Advanced: $100 per month
Why consider?
If you need to send customizable invoices, manage accounts payable and accounts receivable, inventory, and learn project profitability for your business, you may want to consider QuickBooks Pro. It also offers advanced invoicing and payment processing capabilities.
Sage Intacct Business Cloud Accounting: Best for Freelancers
Sage Intacct Business Cloud Accounting is a cloud-based accounting software for small businesses. You can tap into invoice and bill tracking, bookkeeping and accounting features, purchase order and approval, expense management, inventory management, fraud protection, comprehensive reporting inventory tracking, and more.
Pros
- Simple setup: Sage offers effortless setup and it’s also easy to use. You can work on a wide range of devices, no matter where you work.
- Great for basic features: Sage offers a wide range of basic features for companies that need accounting software as well as Mac compatibility.
Cons
- Limited integrations: Third-party integrations cannot always connect to Sage, such as external payroll programs or other integrations.
Top Features
When searching for the best accounting software Mac options, Sage offers options for unlimited users, making it ideal for small and medium businesses with an interactive mobile app. It also offers an ASC 606 revenue recognition standard for accounting and billing that helps businesses recognize revenue consistently.
Cost
Custom pricing depends on company size.
Why consider?
If you have limited time on your hands, consider Sage Intacct to automate key processes like AP approvals and invoicing.
Zoho Books: Best for Inexpensive Pricing Plan
Zoho Books, an online accounting software, automates business workflows and helps you tackle your company bills and invoices, reconcile your bank statements, control spending, oversee projects, and handle sales tax compliance.
Pros
- Free pricing plan: If your company makes less than $50,000 per year, Zoho Books is free, for managing clients and invoices, has a customer portal, online/offline payments, automated payment reminders, recurring invoices, mileage and expense tracking, reports, and more.
- Advanced features: Zoho Books offers advanced features like purchase approvals, vendor portals, and customizable modules.
Cons
- Limited integrations: While you get access to 50 third-party apps, you’ll see limited choices on certain features, such as direct payroll and point-of-sale (POS) integrations.
- Limits on users: Zoho Books gives you several plans to choose from but restricts the number of users you can have on an account.
Top Features
With a 14-day trial, you can try Zoho Books before you purchase. You can also choose a free pricing plan if you fit below the $50,000 limit. The company also offers great customer support, including email support, 24/5 phone, and live chat. The 14-day trial can help you decide whether it’s one of the best Mac accounting software for self-employed options.
Cost
- Standard: $15, for three users
- Professional: $40, for five users
- Premium: $60, for 10 users
Depending on the level you choose, you’ll have a wide variety of options, from bills, sales and purchase orders, timesheet approval, retainer invoices for projects, to advanced analytics like real-time reports and dashboards, and key financial metrics for Mac bookkeeping software.
Why consider?
If you’re looking for a quick way to handle accounting a wide variety of tasks for a handful of users, Zoho Books may end up being an ideal Mac bookkeeping software for your needs.
Zoho Expense: Best for Tracking Expenses
Zoho Expense, also under the Zoho umbrella, is an online expense reporting software that automates expense recording from receipts, simplifies expense reporting, streamlines the approval process, provides control over business expenditures, and helps automate many processes.
Pros
- Automated expense control: From start to finish, Zoho Expense has expenses down to a science. Employees can report expenses quickly and efficiently, simplifying approvals, and quick reimbursements.
- Travel management: Beyond expenses, you can also make travel reservations and manage travel offline as well by creating travel itineraries and profiles, enabling a seamless travel experience.
- Analytics: You won’t get stuck just watching money coming in and out
Cons
- Learning curve: Inexperience with accounting might mean you experience a bit of a learning curve.
Top Features
Zoho Expense’s receipt and expense management, mileage tracking, corporate card integration and reconciliation (automated reconciliation between expenses and card transactions), expense report automation, and management stand out specifically for expense tracking software. Custom approvals also ensure that all features route to the appropriate individual.
Cost
- Free: The free plan costs $0 for up to three users for 5 GB of receipt storage, 20 receipt autoscans, multicurrency expenses, mileage expenses, project and customer tracking and accounting integration. If you’re looking for the best free accounting software for Mac, this level could be a winner.
- Standard: The standard plan costs $3 per active user per month and offers everything on the free plan, plus 20 receipt autoscans per user, corporate card reconciliation, cash advances, multilevel approval, access delegation, and more for unlimited users.
- Premium: The premium plan costs $5 per active user per month and gives you everything on the standard plan, plus receipt autoscan, travel and purchase requests, advanced approval, per diem automation, and advanced customization.
- Enterprise: The enterprise plan costs $8 per active user per month and includes everything in the premium plan as well as advanced integrations, a dedicated account manager, and advanced audit trail reports.
Why consider?
If you have a need to solely track expenses, Zoho Expense could be the ticket.
Sage 50cloud: Best for Security
Sage 50cloud’s benefits include many perks, including its invoicing system, payments and banking features, inventory management, and more.
Pros
- Well-recognized: A company with a wide variety of products and services, Sage is a well-branded machine. The company can deliver exactly what consumers want.
- Inventory tracking: It’s easy to track inventory with Sage 50cloud and learn about your company availability right off the bat.
- Secure: Remote cloud servers keep security a top priority with Sage 50cloud. Users can also set up permissions for specific users.
Cons
- Pricy options: At $1,226.40 per year, Quantum costs a lot compared to other accounting options.
Top Features
Great comprehensive features put this Mac bookkeeping software front and center for businesses. It’s easy to use and offers several options for various levels.
Cost
Software options include:
- Sage 50cloud Pro Accounting: Pro Accounting includes invoice and bill tracking, purchase order and approval, expense management, bank reconciliation, reporting, inventory management, job management, and fraud protection and costs $462.40 per year for one user.
- Sage 50cloud Premium Accounting: For one to five users, you’ll get all the same perks as Pro, in addition to purchase and change orders, multiple companies, advanced budgeting and reporting, inventory tracking, and more. It costs $739.20 per year.
- Sage 50cloud Quantum Accounting: Quantum Accounting includes the same features as Premium, though it’s for up to 40 users. Quantum Accounting also creates, sends and tracks invoices, tracks money owed, and offers mobile-ready accounting and on-the-go reporting for Mac bookkeeping software. It costs $1,226.40 per year.
Why consider?
If you need an efficient digital accounting software for Mac solution, consider the various levels within Sage 50cloud.
Xero
Xero’s cloud-based accounting software system allows small businesses to manage data entry and reports, and track and pay bills on time. It also offers a birds-eye view of accounts payable and cash flow, claim expenses, as well as the ability to connect banks, accept payments, track projects, report, and send invoices.
Pros
- Analytics: In order to see the full picture of your business, you can use Xero’s analytics features, which allow you to zero in on future cash flow, financial health, and track metrics. To get more analytics, you’ll need to upgrade to Analytics Plus.
- Free and unlimited online customer support: Xero subscribers get support for free through email and if you leave a phone number. The company does not publish a phone number.
Cons
- Learning curve: You may prefer some training to get used to using Xero, because it could require you to learn how to use the system.
- Gusto for payroll: You must use Gusto payroll to pay employees and use it to integrate with Xero for all things regarding pay.
Top Features
Xero allows developed and integrated third-party apps into its Mac bookkeeping software, which can include hundreds of third-party apps for various tasks, such as inventory tracking, time management, expenses, and more. If you have an app you love, you may not have to sacrifice it or switch back and forth when using Xero.
Cost
- Early: $6.50; currently 50% off the current price of $13 per month for three months.
- Growing: $18.50; currently 50% off the current price of $37 per month for three months.
- Established: $35; currently 50% off the current price of $70 per month for three months.
Why consider?
If you want a jack-of-all-trades best accounting software for a Mac, consider Xero.
Methodology
We analyzed a dozen Mac accounting software options for the best overall user experience, looking primarily at pricing, features, user reviews, and ratings.
We considered accounting software with many features, those for small businesses with an interface that works well for Macs. In addition, we also examined each software, product, and users’ potential learning curve.
Consider the Best Accounting Software for Mac
Like peanut butter and jelly, you and your Mac may be inseparable. Therefore, it’s a no-brainer that you have to find the right Mac accounting software.
The best accounting software for Mac involves careful research on your part, so we’ve simplified the process by comparing and contrasting the best accounting software for a Mac so you know what fits you. (For example, you may want the accounting software for Mac desktop version.) Getting it exactly right makes a huge difference.
If you’re wondering whether you can get accounting software for Mac for free, some of these programs even offer free options, and many offer free trials.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use a Mac for accounting?
Absolutely! You can use accounting software for Mac and Mac bookkeeping software. However, every company has a different interface, costs, integrations, and the number of individuals who can use it. It’s up to you to determine whether the right software offers the right materials for your business. Don’t forget to check out the 38 key accounting software terms to learn more about your needs.
