Comparing accounting services in Europe: find the right solution

Choosing the best accounting software solution in Europe for your business

Choosing the right accounting software is not simply an operational decision and merely selecting the first one that appears, the cheapest, or the most heavily advertised on the market is not sufficient. Choosing accounting software is a strategic investment that has long-term repercussions. The right accounting tool not only facilitates the recording and control of financial operations but also optimizes processes, ensures compliance with local and European regulations and provides essential information for decision-making.

For this reason, before committing to a solution, it is important to take the time to carefully evaluate whether the selected software meets your present and future needs. The right choice should consider factors such as scalability, integrations with other systems, ease of use, technical support, the availability of constant updates in response to legal changes and, of course, the long-term cost.

To facilitate the choice, below are presented some of the best accounting software in Europe, highlighting some of their main features, advantages and disadvantages and an idea of the price range.

QuickBooks Online

QuickBooks Online is Intuit's cloud-based accounting software, designed to manage finances, invoicing, expenses, bank reconciliations and generate real-time reports for small and medium-sized businesses.

Intuit was founded in 1983 by Scott Cook and Tom Proulx in California, first launching Quicken in 1984 and then QuickBooks in 1992, which quickly became popular among small businesses. QuickBooks has been on the market for more than 30 years since its launch and Intuit has been operating for more than 40 years, which speaks to its track record and experience.

QuickBooks experienced significant growth in its early days and became one of the most important business accounting packages on the US market, accounting for over 85% of the small business accounting software market. Nowadays the company has a global reach and continues to lead the SME accounting market with a user base of around 6 million.

Some of its main features include:

• Invoicing and budgeting, with sending and customization of invoices and estimates.
• Tracking of income and expenses, with bank synchronization for automated reconciliations.
• Real-time financial reports and customizable reports.
• Inventory and budget management in higher plans.
• User roles and permissions, with multiple user management depending on the plan.

This solution stands out for being easy to use and for having a complete set of features that cover invoicing, bank integration, tax management and report generation, as well as cloud availability and a large ecosystem of integrations with other applications. All this makes QuickBooks Online a particularly useful tool for entrepreneurs and small and medium-sized businesses. In terms of pricing QuickBooks Online operates on a subscription basis with different price tiers ranging from 18 euros per month to 63 euros per month.

Sage

Sage is a British business software company founded in 1981 in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, so it has been in the market for over 40 years developing accounting solutions that grew from solutions for home PCs to become a global provider listed on the London Stock Exchange and a member of the FTSE 100, offering one of the best accounting services in Europe. The company has millions of customers worldwide and is recognized as one of the largest providers of software for small and medium-sized businesses.

Sage offers several accounting and management solutions, which are presented below. However, Sage covers areas beyond accounting, such as retail operations, construction and real estate management and payroll/HR as add-ons.

• Sage 50: accounting for small businesses that includes options for 1 to multiple users with billing, banking, inventory and reporting functions.
• Sage 100: ERP for SMEs, especially in the distribution and manufacturing areas, which includes finance, inventory and industry-specific capabilities.
• Sage Intacct: Cloud finance for small to medium-sized organizations that require multi-entity, project and dimensional reporting.
• Sage x3: ERP for medium-sized businesses that includes financial management, supply chain management and industry-specific features.

The main advantages of Sage lie in its broad and diversified portfolio of solutions capable of adapting to companies of different sizes, sectors and industries. In addition, it offers flexibility of implementation both in the cloud and on-premise, allowing organizations to choose the model that best suits their needs.

In terms of price ranges Sage 50 starts at approximately 19 euros per month and goes up to 142 euros per month depending on the plan and number of users.

EasyBiz 

When talking about cloud accounting software in Europe, it is impossible to ignore solutions specifically tailored to the particularities of specific countries. This is the case with EasyBiz, a Luxembourg-based company that combines cloud accounting software with fiduciary services (accounting, taxes, payroll and incorporation), focused on simplifying the creation and management of companies in the country.

The company offers its own platform alongside a local accounting team and positions itself as a provider specializing in compliance and financial operations for SMEs and international founders entering the Luxembourg market. The company was founded by Daniil Kirikov, a serial investor with 12 years of experience in innovative products and is headed by Aurore Calvi, a tax expert, accountant and financial advisor with 25 years of experience in fiduciary services.

Some of the features included in the EasyBiz platform are as follows:

• Intuitive tools for managing invoices and documents by automatically linking bank transactions and contacts.
• Bank integration and automatic transaction categorization.
• Payroll management and payslip support from the app.
• Ensuring tax compliance with reminders and assistance in filing tax and VAT returns. 
• Interactive real-time reports to provide clarity on the company's cash flow and financial status.
• Focus on security and storage of all documents in accordance with the GDPR.
• Live chat support provided by expert accountants.

Among the advantages of EasyBiz stands out the support of a local accounting team that answers questions, reduces errors and management time, as well as the possibility of using fiduciary services that go beyond what conventional accounting software provides. It is important to note, however, that the service is clearly optimized for the regulatory framework of Luxembourg, so its applicability outside the country is limited.

In terms of pricing, EasyBiz offers plans ranging from 90 euros per month to 810 euros per month or even more for customized solutions.

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SAP

SAP is a German company founded in 1972 by five former IBM employees, thus boasting more than 50 years of experience in business software development. The company is currently one of the most important business software providers on the market with a customer base of more than 440,000 clients in over 180 countries.

SAP is one of the world's leading providers of ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) solutions, a type of software that allows organizations to centralize and manage all their key processes on a single platform: from finance, purchasing, sales and production to logistics, human resources, supply chain and project management. An ERP such as SAP integrates information from all areas into a common database, facilitating real-time data flow, improving coordination between departments and providing tools for more effective decision-making based on unified and accurate information.

SAP goes then far beyond what accounting software is and accounting is only one of its components within the Finance module and its financial suite. This approach allows financial processes to be orchestrated in real time and with integrated data from other areas of the business.

SAP stands out for offering a comprehensive solution that connects all areas of the company in a single system, allowing information to flow automatically between different departments. In addition, its experience in different sectors means that it has specific functions for many industries and its long history positions it as a solid and trusted brand worldwide. However, its wide scope implies complex implementation processes, high costs and the need for consultants or experts to get the most out of it.

SAP is particularly suitable for medium and large companies and organizations with complex processes that require a comprehensive and scalable ERP. Prices vary greatly depending on the edition (public or private), scope and number of users, but given the scope of its solutions, a large budget is generally required.

Freeagent

FreeAgent is a British company founded in 2007 in Edinburgh by three small business owners who wanted to simplify day-to-day financial management and since 2018 it is part of the NatWest group. Its solution is designed specifically for freelancers, small business owners and their accountants and is now used by over 200,000 businesses. It stands out for having received several awards and recognitions, such as Best Practice Software at the British Accountancy Awards and multiple awards at the Software Satisfaction Awards.

Among the main features of FreeAgent software are:

• Automatic invoicing with reminders and recurring invoices.
• Receipt capture and expense tracking with mobile app and categorization.
• Bank connection with automatic feeds and agile reconciliation.
• Taxes and compliance in the United Kingdom: MTD VAT, Self Assessment and RTI payroll.
• Dashboard with cash flow and 90-day forecast, projects and time tracking.

FreeAgent software provides excellent accounting tools for small businesses in Europe and its main advantages include usability for non-accountants, day-to-day automation, a focus on UK taxation with direct submissions to HMRC and free access for certain NatWest group customers. On the downside, its coverage is very UK-focused and the solution may fall short in advanced features compared to more complex ERPs or suites. Prices range from 22 to 220 euros per month. 

Conclusion

In short, the European accounting software market offers a wide variety of solutions that can be adapted to different types of businesses, from solutions for freelancers and micro-businesses looking for simplicity and low cost, such as FreeAgent, to solutions for SMEs that need a balance between functionality and scalability, such as QuickBooks Online, Sage, or EasyBiz and even large corporations that require a comprehensive ERP such as SAP.

There is no “one size fits all” option, the choice will depend on the size of the organization, its budget, the national regulatory requirements and the level of automation and integration it seeks. The important thing is to carefully analyze your needs and the different solutions on the market in order to determine the solution that best suits your needs.

And if you happen to live in Luxembourg and are looking for an accounting software solution, don't hesitate to contact us. Remember that EasyBiz is here to help you, even if you're not sure whether the EasyBiz solution is right for you. We can help you see more clearly and make an informed choice.