Zoho Books review

Zoho Books gives freelancers the most accounting for no money. The free plan, aimed at solopreneurs and micro businesses, lets you create invoices, quotes, expenses and journals, autoscan receipts, track mileage, accept online payments, open a self-service customer portal, automate payment reminders, reconcile the bank, set up recurring invoices and prepare and file 1099s, with profit and loss, balance sheet and more than 50 reports. It allows 1 user and 1 accountant. Standard, $15 per organization a month billed annually or $20 monthly, adds bank feeds, sales and use tax tracking, 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC e-filing, custom reports and 3 users. Professional at $40 adds multi-currency, timesheet billing and project profitability, which matters if you bill foreign clients by the hour. It scores lower on ease of use because it is real double-entry accounting with journals and period locking, so it takes longer to learn than a tax-focused app.

Who it is for

Freelancers who want real accounting, 1099 filing and a client portal on a free plan or at a low annual price.

Price

Free plan; Standard $15 per organization per month billed annually ($20 monthly).

STANDARD Efficiently organize your transactions, accounts, reports, and books $ 20 $ 15 Price/Org/Month
Quoted from the vendor pricing page on November 6, 2026.

Key features

• Invoices, quotes, expenses and journals on the free plan
• Receipt and document autoscans and mileage tracking
• W-9 management, 1099 contractor tracking and 1099 filing
• Customer portal, payment reminders and recurring invoices
• Profit and loss, balance sheet and 50+ reports

Strengths and weaknesses

• Strength: The free plan includes bank reconciliation and recurring invoices
• Strength: 1 user plus 1 accountant on the free plan
• Strength: Standard adds bank feeds and 1099 e-filing for $15 a month billed annually
• Weakness: Bank feeds need a paid plan
• Weakness: More accounting terms to learn than freelancer-first apps
• Weakness: Multi-currency and project billing start on Professional at $40

Key facts

• Free plan: Yes, 1 user plus 1 accountant
• Paid tiers: Standard $15, Professional $40, Premium $60 per org per month billed annually
• Users on Standard: 3

Where it ranks

Zoho Books is No. 3 in our Best Accounting Software for Freelancers verdict and No. 7 in Best Accounting Software for Nonprofits and No. 2 in Best Accounting Software for Small Business.