Small Business Bookkeeping Software Monthly Cost Calculator

Getting a monthly cost takes six quick entries. The tool adds the plan, the payroll add-on and the other extras into one monthly figure.

1. Enter the monthly price of your bookkeeping plan, before any first year discount. QuickBooks Online Simple Start is $38 a month at its regular price.
2. Enter the number of users on the plan, so the tool can work out the cost per user.
3. Enter the payroll add-on base fee per month, the employees you pay through payroll, and the fee per employee.
4. Enter any other monthly add-ons, such as receipt scanning or advanced reporting. Press Calculate, or press Enter. The monthly cost appears first and large, with the yearly cost, the payroll cost and the cost per user below. Press Reset to clear the form and start over.

The formula is one addition. Monthly cost = base plan + payroll base fee + employees x fee per employee + other add-ons. Annual cost = monthly cost x 12, and cost per user = monthly cost / users. Payroll is almost never included in a bookkeeping subscription, which is why the payroll add-on is a separate line. In the worked example, Xero Established at $90 a month plus Gusto payroll at $36 a month plus $6 for each of 5 employees is $90 + $36 + $30 = $156 a month.

Always use the regular price, not the first year promotion, because the promotion expires and your books do not. A plan that costs $19 a month for three months and $38 after that costs $38 a month for the business, not $19. Our salary calculator helps you work out what the payroll itself costs once the software is in place.

A five person business uses Xero Established at $90 a month, with Gusto payroll at a $36 base fee plus $6 per employee, and no other add-ons. Here is exactly what the calculator does.

1. Payroll cost: $36 + 5 x $6 = $36 + $30 = $66.00.
2. Monthly cost: $90 + $66 + $0 = $156.00.
3. Annual cost: $156.00 x 12 = $1,872.00. Cost per user: $156.00 / 1 = $156.00.

As a second check, QuickBooks Online Simple Start at $38 a month with no payroll and no add-ons costs $38 a month and $456 a year. A free plan such as Wave, with a $25 payroll add-on and $10 of other extras, costs $35 a month.

Entry plan prices from the vendors own pricing pages in 2026, at regular rates, are shown below. Prices change often, so treat these as a starting point and check the vendor page before you buy.

Done for you bookkeeping services are a different price band. Bench starts at about $199 a month and Pilot at about $200 a month, because a real bookkeeper does the work instead of software you operate. Enter the service price as the base plan if you compare one against software. Our budget calculator helps you fit the monthly cost into the rest of the business budget.

Payroll is the surprise that costs owners more than any feature comparison. Xero prices payroll through Gusto at $36 a month plus $6 for each employee or contractor paid. Wave payroll starts at $25 a month. Patriot Software is the cheapest combined route, with accounting from $20 a month, Basic Payroll at $17 a month plus $4 per employee, and Full Service Payroll at $37 a month plus $5 per worker paid.

Count everyone you pay, including part time staff and contractors, because the per employee fee applies to each person paid. A five person business on Xero Established with Gusto payroll pays $90 plus $36 plus $30, which is $156 a month, and the payroll part alone is $66. If you run payroll yourself, our freelance rate calculator is a useful check on what your own time is worth against the add-on price.

Match the plan to the work, not to the brand. A solo business with a handful of invoices a month does fine on a free plan. A business with stock, several users or project tracking needs a mid tier plan such as QuickBooks Online Plus or Xero Established. Paying for features you never open is the most common waste in this category.

Check the user limit before you buy. QuickBooks Online Simple Start covers one user, while Xero plans include unlimited users, so the cost per user changes a lot between plans. Try the free trial with your real books, not with the demo data, and check the price after the trial ends. Switching later costs time and clean-up, so a careful choice now is worth an hour of testing.