Cheaper alternatives to Xero and QuickBooks for Making Tax Digital
Xero starts at £7 a month + VAT if you are not VAT registered and £18 + VAT if you are. QuickBooks starts at £10, or £16 if you need to send VAT returns. If you are a sole trader or landlord who mainly needs MTD for Income Tax, you may pay less — or nothing.
Find the cheapest product that covers all your income
Our 2-minute check matches every HMRC-recognised product with your situation: salary, dividends, rental income and more.
The alternatives, cheapest first
Show products that handle…
15 of 15 products
| Software | From | Self-employment | UK property | Foreign property | Other tax return items | MTD for VAT | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 My Tax Digital (Free) | Free optionUnlimited businesses and individuals | Ready now | Ready now | Ready now | 15 of 16 ready | Ready now | Website |
 Clear Books | Free option£5/month + VATFree plans: unlimited transactions, no bank feeds/invoicing | Ready now | Ready now | Ready now | 15 of 16 ready | Ready now | Website |
 Pandle | Free option£5/month + VAT | Ready now | Ready now | Not included | 14 of 16 ready | Ready now | Website |
 TaxNav | £6/month + VAT | Ready now | Ready now | Ready now | 0 of 16 ready | Ready now | Website |
 Sage Sole Trader & Landlord | Free option£7/month + VAT25 auto-categorised transactions, 1 bank account, 5 sales invoices a month | Ready now | Ready now | Not included | 0 of 16 ready | Not included | Website |
 Hammock for landlords | £8/month + VAT | Not included | Ready now | Ready now | 0 of 16 ready | Not included | Website |
 Provestor for Landlords | £8.25/month, VAT not stated | Not included | Ready now | Not included | 14 of 16 ready | Not included | Website |
 Keepr | Free option£9/month, VAT not statedUnlimited clients, invoices, expenses | Ready now | Not included | Not included | 0 of 16 ready | Not included | Website |
 Monzo | Free option£9/month, VAT not statedRequires a Monzo Business account | Ready now | Ready now | Not included | 0 of 16 ready | Not included | Website |
 FreeAgent | Free option£10/month + VATFree only through partner bank accounts (NatWest, RBS, Ulster Bank, Mettle) | Ready now | Ready now | Not included | 16 of 16 ready | Ready now | Website |
 Crunch | Free option£10/month + VAT | Ready now | Not included | Not included | 0 of 16 ready | Ready now | Website |
 untied | £10.83/month, VAT not stated | Ready now | Ready now | Ready now | 15 of 16 ready | Not included | Website |
| Free option£12/month + VAT1 user + 1 accountant; up to 1,000 invoices and 1,000 expenses a year; 50 receipt autoscans a month | Ready now | Ready now | Not included | 9 of 16 ready | Ready now | Website | |
 Coconut | £12.99/month, VAT not stated | Ready now | Ready now | Ready now | 0 of 16 ready | Ready now | Website |
 IRIS Kashflow | £13.50/month, VAT not stated | Ready now | Not included | Not included | 0 of 16 ready | Ready now | Website |
“From” = cheapest monthly plan that includes MTD for Income Tax on the provider's own pricing page, checked on 9 October 2026; prices we could not confirm are not shown. “Other tax return items” = salary, dividends, pensions, capital gains and the other items HMRC lists for the final return.
How the cheapest plans compare
| Situation | Xero | QuickBooks |
|---|---|---|
| Not VAT registered | Simple: £7 + VAT (£8.40 with VAT), quotes and 10 invoices a month | Sole Trader Plus: £10 (VAT not stated on the pricing page) |
| VAT registered | Ignite: £18 + VAT, quotes and 20 invoices a month | Simple Start: £16 |
| First 6 months (new customers) | 90% off: £0.70 or £1.80 a month + VAT | 90% off: £1 or £1.60 a month |
| Foreign property (HMRC list) | Ready now | Not included |
| Other tax return items ready (HMRC list) | 4 of 16 | 15 of 16 |
Every Xero plan and add-on · Every QuickBooks plan · Xero vs QuickBooks, feature by feature
When Xero or QuickBooks is still the better choice
- Your accountant already works in it. Sharing one product saves time and fees at year end. Ask before you move.
- You have rental income abroad. HMRC lists foreign property as ready in Xero; only 6 of the cheaper products above say the same.
- You need payroll, several users or multiple currencies. Those features sit in Xero's and QuickBooks' higher plans: check whether a cheaper product offers them before you switch.
Before you switch
- Check your whole tax return. Cheap products often list salary, dividends or capital gains as “in development”: see the “Other tax return items” column, or run our check.
- Pick your moment. Each quarterly update covers the tax year so far, so the simplest time to change product is before the first update of a tax year. If you switch mid-year, ask the new provider how it brings in your figures for the year so far.
- Export and keep your old records. You must keep your records for at least 5 years after the 31 January submission deadline of the tax year they relate to.
- Watch the introductory price. Compare the regular price, not the first 6 months: Xero and QuickBooks both discount 90% for 6 months, then charge full price.
Sources: HMRC software finder for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (Open Government Licence v3.0), checked 9 October 2026; providers' pricing pages (links on each profile), checked 9 October 2026: Xero, QuickBooks; GOV.UK — how long to keep your records. HMRC does not recommend any product. Clarpilot is independent; commissions never change the order, which is by price.