More and more of us work on the move these days. Whether you’re a freelancer or just an on-the-go business owner who needs constant access to your accounts, there’s a ton of great iPad accounting software out there to help you manage accounts.
Whether it’s creating and sending invoicing, tracking billable hours, managing expenses, or even handling payroll, the App Store is chock full of iOS accounting apps. The top iPad apps for accounting are generally free to download, though they are tied to a subscription model through a cloud-based accounting solution. However, if you need to track your accounts on your mobile, it’s well worth it.
Here are 7 of the best iPad accounting software solutions that can help you whip your accounts into shape while you’re on the go:
FreshBooks
FreshBooks for iPad is a dream to use. FreshBooks is simple to understand, even if you haven’t used any accounting software before. FreshBooks features an easy-to-understand dashboard and brilliant visualizations, which make it rewarding to use.
The FreshBooks iPad app allows you to quickly create professional-looking invoices and set up credit card payment support. Other features include the ability to capture photos of your expense receipts and categorize spending, billable time tracking, and a calendar view to see time spent by project.
Price: Free app, subscription from $9.99 per month
FreshBooks for iPad
Xero
Xero is an online accounting application that’s designed to offer a more efficient and enjoyable way for a small business to manage its accounts. The app imports all your financial transactions into its database and links them to the corresponding accounting transactions.
Xero for iPhone’s dashboard allows you to get a complete, easy-to-view picture of all your bank accounts, credit card and PayPal balances, income and expense claims, and pending invoices. The plush Xero iPad app has bank feed notifications, which alert you when bank transactions have been updated.
Price: Free app, subscription from $29.99 per month.
Xero for iPad
FinancialForce Accounting
FinancialForce Accounting is ideal for small business owners who hate bookkeeping largely because it plays so nicely with SalesForce.com. As a matter of fact, FinancialForce is made for SalesForce integration. If your business is one of the many using Salesforce for customer relationship management (CRM), you owe it to yourself to check out FinancialForce Accounting.
FinancialForce Accounting has two companion apps: FinancialForce Expenses, which offers you the ability to track and record billable project expenses, review receipts and create expenses offline; and FinancialForce Timecards for keeping professional services road workers connected at all times.
Price: Both apps are free to download
FinancialForce Timecards
FreeAgent Mobile
FreeAgent makes it easy to invoice customers, track expenses, manage projects, and even chase payments, all from one intuitive interface.
FreeAgent offers excellent user support on demand, and the app backs up your data regularly so that you never have to worry about losing it. The FreeAgent iOS app allows you to manage your cashflow by automatically importing transactions from your bank account so you can see at-a-glance who owes you money.
“I have been using another app (Mobileagent) for the last year or so,” writes user Sam on the App Store. “I like the native FreeAgent app better but the developer must add recording of time to it”.
Price: Free app, subscription from $24 per month
FreeAgent Mobile
Nutcache
If you’re looking for an online app for invoicing and time management, Nutcache is worth a nibble. It allows you to create an unlimited number of invoices, adding your logo, and sending them in bulk to your various clients.
The Nutcache Timelogger app for iOS enables easy time-tracking from your mobile. You can link the timer to any of active invoices and projects, keeping the running and recording time in the background, even when your phone is switched off. You can pause and resume the timer whenever you need.
Price: Free (Nutcache subscription starts at $14 per month)
Nutcache Keylogger
Zoho Books
Zoho Books is another super simple accounting app. Zoho Books also benefits from integrating with Zoho’s other business apps, which are perhaps the most notable alternatives to Google Apps for Business. Zoho Books, together with the other apps in Zoho’s growing Web app ecosystem, can help you keep it simple at every stage of small business accounting.
The Zoho Books iPad app allows you to create and send invoices from your phone. You can record expenses and bills through the app and categorize them. Zoho Books for iPad also features time tracking support, so you can log how much time you spend on projects.
Price: Free, subscription from $9 per month
Zoho Books for iPad
QuickBooks Online
QuickBooks Online handles accounting, billing, and invoicing, all from the same spot. Its colorful, user-friendly interface is home to a powerful set of features. These include estimates invoicing, time tracking, accounts payable, reporting, inventory, contacts, sales, and tax.
The QuickBooks Online iPad app allows you to create and send invoices, manage sales and expenses, run payroll, and manage bank transactions. The application is free to download, although you need a subscription for QuickBooks to use it.
Price: Free, subscription from $9.99 per month
QuickBooks for iPad
For more information about the top cloud-based apps for accounting, visit our sister site GetApp and compare the top accounting applications. Be sure to let us know which accounting apps you prefer, too!
