TaxMTD vs the rest
How does TaxMTD stack up against Sage, FreeAgent, Xero, QuickBooks, Crunch, Zoho Books, and IRIS? We're not hiding anything - here's every feature, good and bad, side by side.
11
Features unique to TaxMTD
2
Coming soon
vs 82 missing on Crunch
£12/mo
Essential plan from £12/mo (annual)
The UK Accounting Software Landscape in 2026
With Making Tax Digital for Income Tax Self Assessment (MTD ITSA) going live on 6 April 2026 for self-employed individuals earning over £50,000, choosing the right accounting platform has never mattered more. Every platform listed here is rushing to be MTD-ready, but they differ wildly in pricing, AI capabilities, and who they're actually built for.
TaxMTD was designed from scratch for UK sole traders and small limited companies. We built AI categorisation into the core (not bolted on), added Universal Credit tools that no other platform offers, and priced four plans from just £12/mo (annual). But we're honest about what we don't have yet - and the table below hides nothing.
Who are the competitors?
- Sage - The UK's largest accounting brand. Their cloud product (Accounting Start at £18/mo) targets everyone from sole traders to mid-size companies. Includes Sage Copilot AI assistant. Free sole trader plan available.
- FreeAgent - Popular with freelancers at £19/mo (free with NatWest/RBS/Mettle). Unlimited users on every plan. Strong time tracking and project management. Includes payroll for free.
- Xero - Global heavyweight, UK plans from £7/mo (Simple, very limited). Full features start at £37/mo (Grow). Has the largest app marketplace with 1,000+ integrations. Rolling out JAX AI assistant.
- QuickBooks - Intuit's UK offering at £12/mo for sole traders. Strong US heritage, solid construction industry (CIS) support. Recently renamed "QuickBooks Sole Trader" plan.
- Crunch - Hybrid accounting software + accountant services. Free software tier, but limited company accounting starts at £83.50+VAT/mo because it bundles human accountant access. Best for contractors who want someone else to do the work.
- Zoho Books - Part of the Zoho ecosystem (2,000+ apps). UK plans from free (1 user, 1,000 invoices/yr) to £24/mo (Elite). Strong inventory and multi-currency. Professional plan and above for most advanced features. No UK payroll.
- IRIS - The UK's largest accountancy software provider. Their ecosystem includes KashFlow (end-user bookkeeping from £12.50/mo) and IRIS Elements (practice compliance suite covering SA, CT600, iXBRL, AML, and company secretarial). KashFlow offers 50+ reports, stock control, mileage, and payroll for up to 5 employees. No AI copilot, no time tracking, and no e-commerce integrations.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
Every feature across all eight platforms. Green = included, red = missing, amber = paid extra or partial support.
Pricing & Plans
| Feature | TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free plan available | ||||||||
| TaxMTD Starter plan is free forever for non-VAT sole traders. Sage free for sole traders. FreeAgent free only with NatWest/RBS/Mettle bank accounts. IRIS/KashFlow has no free tier. | ||||||||
| Sole trader from | ||||||||
| TaxMTD: Free / £12/mo (annual) · Sage: Free / £18 · FreeAgent: £19 · Xero: £7 · QuickBooks: £12 · Crunch: Free / £24.50 · Zoho: Free / £12 · IRIS/KashFlow: £12.50 | ||||||||
| No credit card for trial | ||||||||
| TaxMTD free Starter plan needs no card; paid plans require card for 14-day trial. IRIS/KashFlow offers a 30-day free trial. | ||||||||
| Unlimited users on all plans | ||||||||
| TaxMTD: 1-10 team members depending on plan (unlimited on Practice). Competitors vary. | ||||||||
| Mid-cycle plan changes | ||||||||
| TaxMTD supports instant plan upgrades and downgrades via Stripe with prorated billing - no waiting until next cycle | ||||||||
| Capacity add-ons | ||||||||
| TaxMTD lets you purchase extra entities, employees, or OCR bundles without changing plan. IRIS Elements modules are purchased separately. | ||||||||
| Usage dashboard & limits | ||||||||
| TaxMTD shows real-time usage vs plan limits with progress bars, warnings at 80%, and blocks at limit. Limits enforced server-side. | ||||||||
Bank & Payment Feeds
| Feature | TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Open Banking (any UK bank) | ||||||||
| CSV import | ||||||||
| PayPal integration | ||||||||
| IRIS/KashFlow supports PayPal via bank feed only, not direct API integration | ||||||||
| Stripe integration | ||||||||
| Wise import | ||||||||
| TaxMTD has built-in Wise multi-currency import | ||||||||
| Revolut import | ||||||||
| Duplicate / double-count detection | ||||||||
| Bank rules / auto-matching | ||||||||
| TaxMTD auto-learns merchant rules from AI categorisation and manual corrections | ||||||||
| Reconciliation reports | ||||||||
| Multi-bank dashboard | ||||||||
| TaxMTD shows all accounts in a unified dashboard with per-bank balances. KashFlow supports multiple accounts but lacks a unified dashboard. | ||||||||
| Manual journal entries | ||||||||
| TaxMTD supports balanced debit/credit journal entries with post, reverse, and auto-numbering | ||||||||
Multi-Currency
| Feature | TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Multi-currency support | ||||||||
| TaxMTD supports 16 currencies with live exchange rates plus Wise/Revolut import. KashFlow includes multi-currency. | ||||||||
| Multi-currency invoicing | ||||||||
| TaxMTD invoices can be issued in any of 16 supported currencies | ||||||||
| Auto exchange rate fetching | ||||||||
| TaxMTD fetches live exchange rates automatically on import and invoicing | ||||||||
| Foreign currency bank accounts | ||||||||
| FX gain/loss reporting | ||||||||
| TaxMTD provides a dedicated FX gains/losses report with currency breakdown and per-transaction analysis | ||||||||
AI & Automation
| Feature | TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AI transaction categorisation | ||||||||
| TaxMTD uses Gemini AI with HMRC-specific categories; Sage uses Copilot; Xero has JAX AI. IRIS Elements has AI anomaly detection; KashFlow has basic auto-categorisation. | ||||||||
| Merchant memory / learning rules | ||||||||
| TaxMTD learns from corrections and builds auto-rules for future imports - manageable via Expense Rules page | ||||||||
| AI receipt OCR | ||||||||
| FreeAgent charges £5/mo for unlimited Smart Capture; Crunch charges £5/mo for SNAP. KashFlow has receipt capture but limited OCR. | ||||||||
| AI copilot / assistant | ||||||||
| TaxMTD AI Assistant provides conversational access to your financial data - supports Gemini, Claude, and OpenAI | ||||||||
| Bulk transaction processing | ||||||||
Invoicing & Payments
| Feature | TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Professional invoicing | ||||||||
| Unlimited invoices | ||||||||
| Sage free plan: 5/mo; Xero Simple: 20/mo; KashFlow Starter: 10/mo (unlimited on Business) | ||||||||
| Estimates / quotes | ||||||||
| TaxMTD estimates can be accepted and auto-converted to invoices | ||||||||
| Recurring invoices | ||||||||
| TaxMTD supports weekly/monthly/quarterly/yearly recurrence with one-click generation | ||||||||
| Payment reminders | ||||||||
| TaxMTD logs reminders with email provider integration ready | ||||||||
| In-invoice payment links | ||||||||
| TaxMTD generates Stripe Payment Links for direct invoice payment. IRIS Pay has limited payment link support. | ||||||||
| PDF export | ||||||||
| Credit notes | ||||||||
| TaxMTD credit notes link to original invoices with auto-numbering (CN-XXX) | ||||||||
| Invoice template designer | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes a full drag-and-drop designer with Stripe, Modern Glass, and Classic styles | ||||||||
| Custom invoice branding | ||||||||
| TaxMTD supports logo upload, custom fonts, colour palettes, and section reordering. KashFlow supports practice branding. | ||||||||
| Multiple invoice templates | ||||||||
| TaxMTD lets you create and switch between unlimited invoice templates | ||||||||
Expenses & Receipts
| Feature | TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Expense tracking | ||||||||
| Receipt capture (photo/upload) | ||||||||
| Transaction splitting | ||||||||
| TaxMTD supports business/personal % splits per transaction | ||||||||
| Mileage tracking | ||||||||
| HMRC mileage rates auto-calculated | ||||||||
| Purchase orders | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes full PO workflow - draft → sent → received | ||||||||
| Bill entry & tracking | ||||||||
| TaxMTD bills include KPIs, aging, and supplier breakdown | ||||||||
| Recurring bills | ||||||||
| TaxMTD auto-generates recurring bills on schedule with line item cloning | ||||||||
| Mobile app for expenses | ||||||||
| TaxMTD native apps for iOS, Android, macOS, and Windows are in development - currently web-only with responsive mobile layout. KashFlow has a mobile app. | ||||||||
Tax & HMRC Compliance
| Feature | TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MTD for ITSA (quarterly updates) | ||||||||
| IRIS Elements Tax is MTD for ITSA ready with direct HMRC API connections | ||||||||
| Self Assessment (SA103) | ||||||||
| TaxMTD auto-fills SA103 on all plans; yearly SA103S submission requires Essential (£14/mo). Sage free includes SA103S submission. Crunch charges £200 for filing. IRIS requires Elements Tax module (from £10/mo). | ||||||||
| SA102 (employment income) | ||||||||
| TaxMTD auto-fills employment income from PAYE data. IRIS via Elements Tax. | ||||||||
| SA105 (property income) | ||||||||
| TaxMTD supports UK property income with automatic expense allocation. IRIS via Elements Tax. | ||||||||
| SA106 (foreign income) | ||||||||
| TaxMTD covers foreign income, double taxation relief, and foreign tax paid. IRIS via Elements Tax. | ||||||||
| SA108 (capital gains) | ||||||||
| TaxMTD auto-calculates CGT with annual exemption allowance. IRIS via Elements Tax. | ||||||||
| Direct HMRC submission | ||||||||
| VAT returns | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes full 9-box VAT return with standard and flat rate scheme support | ||||||||
| VAT Flat Rate Scheme | ||||||||
| TaxMTD supports FRS with automatic rate application | ||||||||
| VAT reverse charge | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes full CIS reverse charge with self-accounting, VAT return integration, and compliance guide. KashFlow is CIS Domestic Reverse Charge compliant. | ||||||||
| Corporation Tax (CT600) | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes full CT600 with complete tax calculation chain (Boxes 165→528), R&D/creative relief section (CT600L), all 17 supplementary page checkboxes, capital allowances (AIA, WDA, full expensing), loss relief, marginal relief, straddling period support, and iXBRL tagging. FreeAgent includes CT600 for limited companies. IRIS via Elements Accounts Production (from £4/mo). | ||||||||
| Capital allowances (AIA) | ||||||||
| TaxMTD auto-calculates AIA via the fixed asset register. IRIS via Elements Tax. | ||||||||
| CIS returns | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes subcontractor management, CIS300 returns, and deduction calculations. IRIS via Elements Tax. | ||||||||
| Real-time tax forecast | ||||||||
| TaxMTD shows live income tax, NI, and payment-on-account estimates | ||||||||
| Tax year progress tracker | ||||||||
| Unique to TaxMTD - visual progress bar showing where you are in the tax year | ||||||||
| Companies House filing | ||||||||
| TaxMTD supports CS01, AD01, AP01/TM01 filings with deadline tracking. IRIS via Elements Company Secretarial (from £6.45/client). | ||||||||
| Annual accounts (iXBRL) | ||||||||
| TaxMTD generates iXBRL-ready accounts with P&L, balance sheet, auto-fill from reports, and print preview. IRIS via Elements Accounts Production (from £4/mo) with FRC taxonomy. | ||||||||
Universal Credit
| Feature | TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UC payment calculator | ||||||||
| Unique to TaxMTD - calculates UC based on MIF, work allowance, and 55% taper | ||||||||
| UC Optimiser | ||||||||
| Suggests expense timing to maximise UC payments | ||||||||
| UC Auto-Filler (Chrome extension) | ||||||||
| Auto-fills the gov.uk UC portal with your income & expenses via Chrome extension + WebSocket bridge | ||||||||
| UC history & assessment periods | ||||||||
| UC period filtering | ||||||||
| Filter dashboard by UC assessment period for accurate income/expense tracking | ||||||||
| UC statement OCR | ||||||||
| Upload UC payment screenshots - AI extracts all figures automatically | ||||||||
Reports & Analytics
| Feature | TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & Loss | ||||||||
| Balance Sheet | ||||||||
| Cash flow forecast | ||||||||
| TaxMTD projects cash flow for 3/6/12 months with bar chart and cumulative balance | ||||||||
| Trial balance | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes a full double-entry trial balance with period comparison and account grouping | ||||||||
| Aged debtors / creditors | ||||||||
| TaxMTD groups by aging bucket (current, 30, 60, 90+ days) with colour severity | ||||||||
| Budgeting & forecasting | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes budget vs actual tracking with progress bars and overspend alerts | ||||||||
| Project profitability | ||||||||
| TaxMTD shows revenue, hours, rate, and profit per project with budget tracking | ||||||||
| Custom report builder | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes a report builder with custom columns, filters, grouping, sorting, and CSV export | ||||||||
| General ledger report | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes a full general ledger with per-account drill-down, running balances, and search/filter | ||||||||
| VAT summary report | ||||||||
| TaxMTD generates VAT summary from the VAT return history | ||||||||
| PDF report export | ||||||||
Time & Projects
| Feature | TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time tracking | ||||||||
| Built into TaxMTD Pro; Xero/QuickBooks charge extra. Neither KashFlow nor IRIS Elements includes time tracking. | ||||||||
| Project tracking | ||||||||
| Billable hours → invoices | ||||||||
| TaxMTD converts tracked time entries into invoice line items grouped by project with hourly rates | ||||||||
| Project profitability report | ||||||||
| TaxMTD shows revenue, hours, rate, and profit per project with budget tracking | ||||||||
| Project budgets | ||||||||
| TaxMTD shows % budget used per project with visual progress bars | ||||||||
| Timing app import | ||||||||
| Unique to TaxMTD - import time entries from macOS Timing app via Web API or CSV file export with automatic project mapping and deduplication | ||||||||
Payroll & HR
| Feature | TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Payroll | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes full payroll with PAYE calculations, payslips, P60, pension auto-enrolment, and RTI submission. KashFlow includes payroll for up to 5 employees. | ||||||||
| PAYE submissions | ||||||||
| TaxMTD calculates PAYE, NI, student loan deductions per payslip with YTD tracking. KashFlow payroll limited to 5 employees. | ||||||||
| RTI FPS/EPS submissions | ||||||||
| TaxMTD generates RTI Full Payment Submission data and submits via MTD. KashFlow payroll limited to 5 employees. | ||||||||
| Payslip generation | ||||||||
| TaxMTD generates detailed payslips with earnings, deductions, YTD totals, and print support. KashFlow payroll limited to 5 employees. | ||||||||
| P45/P60 production | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes full P45 leaver flow (Parts 1/1a/2/3 with auto RTI leaver indicator) and P60 year-end summary. KashFlow payroll limited to 5 employees. | ||||||||
| P11D - Benefits in Kind | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes full P11D benefits tracking across 13 HMRC categories (cars, medical, loans, etc.) with automatic Class 1A NIC calculation at 13.8% and per-employee summary for P11D(b) return. IRIS via Elements Payroll. | ||||||||
| Pension auto-enrolment | ||||||||
| TaxMTD assesses eligible employees, calculates contributions, manages scheme settings with compliance guide | ||||||||
| Director salary optimisation | ||||||||
| Unique to TaxMTD Business plan - optimises director salary vs dividends | ||||||||
| Dividend tracking | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes dividend vouchers, tax year grouping, and estimated tax calculation | ||||||||
| Shareholder management | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes a full shareholder register with share classes, ownership %, voting rights, and nominal values | ||||||||
| Director's loan account | ||||||||
| TaxMTD tracks DLA with running balance, S455 tax calculation, and transaction categorisation | ||||||||
Contacts & CRM
| Feature | TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Customer database | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes customer/supplier/both contact types with company and address tracking | ||||||||
| Supplier database | ||||||||
| Contact search & filtering | ||||||||
| TaxMTD supports debounced search and type filtering (customer/supplier/both) | ||||||||
| Customer statements | ||||||||
| TaxMTD generates PDF customer statements with invoice history and balance outstanding | ||||||||
| Contact activity history | ||||||||
| TaxMTD shows a timeline of all invoices, bills, and estimates per contact with totals | ||||||||
Inventory & Stock
| Feature | TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic stock tracking | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes products, stock movements, and cost/retail value tracking. KashFlow includes stock control. | ||||||||
| Low stock alerts | ||||||||
| Stock valuation | ||||||||
| TaxMTD tracks cost and retail value per product with stock movement history | ||||||||
| Product categories | ||||||||
| Multi-location warehouse | ||||||||
| Full warehouse management with per-location stock levels, reorder points, and dashboard | ||||||||
| Transfer orders | ||||||||
| Move stock between warehouses with draft/ship/complete workflow | ||||||||
| Stock takes | ||||||||
| Physical inventory counting with automatic variance adjustment | ||||||||
| Per-warehouse reorder points | ||||||||
| Set low-stock alerts per product per warehouse location | ||||||||
| Stock valuation report | ||||||||
| Weighted average valuation by warehouse, product, or category | ||||||||
| Movement audit trail | ||||||||
| Full history with filtering by warehouse, type, and date range | ||||||||
| Barcode scanning | ||||||||
| Store and look up products by EAN/UPC barcode | ||||||||
Platform & Integrations
| Feature | TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Native mobile & desktop apps | ||||||||
| TaxMTD native apps for iOS, Android, macOS, and Windows are in development - currently accessible via responsive web. KashFlow has a mobile app. | ||||||||
| API access | ||||||||
| TaxMTD provides a public REST API with API key authentication for transactions, invoices, contacts, and more | ||||||||
| App marketplace / add-ons | ||||||||
| TaxMTD marketplace with 12+ integrations including Stripe, PayPal, Amazon, Shopify, WooCommerce, GoCardless, Square. IRIS Elements is modular - each product is a separate purchase. | ||||||||
| Accountant / Practice portal | ||||||||
| TaxMTD Practice portal - firm dashboard, multi-client KPIs, upcoming HMRC deadlines, one-click switch into any client book. Included on Practice plan. IRIS Elements Practice Management from £27.20/user/mo. | ||||||||
| Multi-user roles & permissions | ||||||||
| TaxMTD supports Administrator, User, Accountant, and Viewer roles with team management, email invitations, and per-entity permissions. KashFlow Business plan includes multi-user. | ||||||||
| Multi-entity / multi-business | ||||||||
| TaxMTD includes 1-25 entities depending on plan, with extra entity add-ons available (5 entities for £5/mo) | ||||||||
| Fixed asset register | ||||||||
| TaxMTD tracks depreciation, disposal, and category breakdown with AIA support. IRIS via Elements Tax module. | ||||||||
| Two-factor authentication | ||||||||
| TaxMTD supports TOTP (authenticator app) and email OTP - both methods can be enabled simultaneously | ||||||||
| Import from other platforms | ||||||||
| TaxMTD imports contacts, products, invoices, and subscriptions from 14 platforms via API or CSV - FreeAgent, Stripe, Shopify, WooCommerce, Xero, QuickBooks, Sage, and more | ||||||||
| FreeAgent integration | ||||||||
| TaxMTD connects to FreeAgent via OAuth and imports contacts, invoices, bills, expenses, projects, and time entries - one-click migration for accountants | ||||||||
| Stripe customer/product sync | ||||||||
| Import Stripe customers, products, invoices, and subscriptions into your accounting data - no manual re-entry | ||||||||
| Data export (CSV/PDF) | ||||||||
| Audit trail / activity log | ||||||||
| TaxMTD logs all mutations across 69+ endpoints with filterable audit trail viewer in settings | ||||||||
| Blog / Knowledge base | ||||||||
| TaxMTD blog covers HMRC law changes, tax guides, IT security, and economics with SEO-optimised internal linking to documentation | ||||||||
Data Retention & Privacy
| Feature | TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Post-cancellation data retention | ||||||||
| TaxMTD: 7 years (HMRC compliant). Sage: 6 months. FreeAgent: 1 year. QuickBooks: 12 months. Zoho: 120 days. IRIS/KashFlow: varies by product. | ||||||||
| Read-only access after cancellation | ||||||||
| Account reactivation | ||||||||
| TaxMTD: anytime within 7 years. FreeAgent: within 1 year. QuickBooks: within 12 months. Sage: within 6 months. Zoho: within 120 days. | ||||||||
| GDPR data export (Article 20) | ||||||||
| GDPR right to erasure (Article 17) | ||||||||
| Financial records retained under legal obligation (HMRC). Personal data anonymised on request. | ||||||||
| HMRC-compliant record keeping (6+ years) | ||||||||
| HMRC requires 5-7 years. Most competitors delete data well before this period. | ||||||||
| 30-day deletion grace period | ||||||||
| Undo account deletion within 30 days with all data intact. | ||||||||
| Two-factor authentication | ||||||||
| Audit trail | ||||||||
| End-to-end encryption | ||||||||
E-commerce & Industry
| Feature | TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon seller integration | ||||||||
| TaxMTD imports Amazon Seller Central orders, fees, refunds, and FBA settlements with profit/loss per product | ||||||||
| Amazon buyer integration | ||||||||
| Unique to TaxMTD - imports Amazon purchase history, matches items to bank transactions, and auto-categorises business purchases vs personal | ||||||||
| FBA settlement reconciliation | ||||||||
| TaxMTD auto-matches Amazon settlement payouts to bank credits and tracks per-settlement P&L | ||||||||
| Amazon fees breakdown | ||||||||
| Unique to TaxMTD - imports referral fees, FBA fees, advertising fees, and fee adjustments as categorised expenses | ||||||||
| Per-product profit/loss | ||||||||
| Unique to TaxMTD - combines sale price, Amazon fees, cost price, and refunds to show profit per ASIN | ||||||||
| Shopify integration | ||||||||
| TaxMTD syncs Shopify orders, products, and payments with automatic transaction creation | ||||||||
| WooCommerce integration | ||||||||
| TaxMTD imports WooCommerce orders via REST API with consumer key authentication | ||||||||
| GoCardless Direct Debit | ||||||||
| TaxMTD imports GoCardless mandates and payment collections | ||||||||
| Square POS integration | ||||||||
| TaxMTD syncs Square POS transactions and inventory | ||||||||
What We Have That They Don't
TaxMTD's unique advantages that no other UK accounting platform offers.
Universal Credit Calculator
No other platform calculates UC payments with MIF, work allowance, and 55% taper rate built in.
UC Optimiser
Suggests when to time expenses to maximise your UC payment. Completely unique to TaxMTD.
UC Auto-Filler Extension
Chrome extension that auto-fills your income and expenses directly into the gov.uk UC portal. No copy-pasting.
Download ExtensionTax Year Progress Tracker
Visual progress bar showing exactly where you are in the tax year with payment timeline.
Director Salary Optimisation
Calculates the optimal split between director salary and dividends to minimise tax.
Free Inventory Management
Product stock tracking, low-stock alerts, and stock movement history included at no extra cost. Sage, Xero, and QuickBooks charge extra.
Free VAT with Flat Rate Scheme
Full 9-box VAT returns with both standard and flat rate scheme support - included on all plans. Most competitors charge extra.
Invoice Template Designer
Drag-and-drop invoice designer with Stripe, Modern Glass, and Classic styles - logo upload, custom fonts, colour palettes, and unlimited templates.
SA102/105/106/108 Form Coverage
TaxMTD covers employment, property, foreign income, and capital gains supplementary SA forms - broader coverage than most competitors.
Budgeting & Forecasting
Set spending budgets by category and track actuals vs planned with visual progress bars. Sage and QuickBooks charge £40-59/mo extra for this.
Project Profitability
Revenue, hours, rate, and profit per project with budget tracking - included free. Xero and QuickBooks charge extra.
Amazon Seller Integration
Full Amazon Seller Central import - orders, fees, refunds, and FBA settlements with profit/loss per product. Only Xero and QuickBooks offer this elsewhere.
Amazon Buyer Integration
Unique to TaxMTD - imports your Amazon purchase history, matches items to bank transactions, and auto-splits business vs personal. No other platform does this.
What's Coming Next
We've closed every major feature gap. The only remaining item on the roadmap is native apps.
Native Apps - iOS, Android, macOS & Windows
Every major competitor has native mobile apps with receipt scanning, mileage GPS tracking, and push notifications. TaxMTD is currently web-only with a responsive mobile layout. Native apps for all four platforms are in active development.
In DevelopmentPricing at a Glance
Monthly cost for a sole trader with full features (ex. VAT where applicable)
| TaxMTD | Sage | FreeAgent | Xero | QuickBooks | Crunch | Zoho Books | IRIS | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Free | £0 | NatWest only | - | - | £0 | £0 | - |
| Sole trader (full) | £12/mo | £18/mo | £19/mo | £37/mo | £12/mo | £24.50/mo | £12/mo | £12.50/mo |
| Limited company | £39/mo | £39-59/mo | £19/mo | £50-65/mo | £16-36/mo | £83.50/mo | £18-24/mo | From £4/mo |
| Payroll included | ✓ Included | Add-on | ✓ Free | 1 person | Add-on | Add-on | - | 5 employees |
The Verdict
If you're a UK sole trader or freelancer who wants AI-powered categorisation, MTD compliance, and UC tools - all from just £12/mo -TaxMTD is the best value on the market.
TaxMTD has closed every major feature gap. The platform includes estimates, recurring invoices, credit notes, purchase orders, bills, recurring bills, inventory with multi-warehouse management, fixed assets, cash flow forecasting, aged debtors/creditors, VAT returns with flat rate scheme, VAT reverse charge, dividend tracking, multi-currency support, FX gain/loss reporting, payment reminders, a customer/supplier contacts database, budgeting & forecasting, project profitability analysis, a full invoice template designer, in-invoice payment links, and a drag-and-drop custom report builder.
On accounting, TaxMTD features manual journal entries, a trial balance, a general ledger report, and billable hours to invoices - matching the bookkeeping depth of established platforms.
On the tax front, TaxMTD covers SA102, SA105, SA106, SA108 supplementary forms, capital allowances (AIA), VAT Flat Rate Scheme, CIS returns, Companies House filing, and iXBRL annual accounts generation. Broader Self Assessment and compliance coverage than most competitors.
On payroll, TaxMTD includes full PAYE payroll with payslip generation, P60 production, RTI FPS submission to HMRC, pension auto-enrolment, shareholder management, and director's loan account tracking with S455 tax calculations.
On e-commerce, TaxMTD includes full Amazon Seller Central integration (orders, fees, FBA settlements), a unique Amazon Buyer integration, plus Shopify order sync, WooCommerce REST API import, GoCardless Direct Debit payments, and Square POS transactions - matching the breadth of Xero and QuickBooks.
With team management (7 roles, invitations, accountant portal), an AI copilot with multi-provider support, a public REST API, 12+ marketplace integrations, and comprehensive reporting - TaxMTD matches or exceeds every competitor on features. FreeAgent is the strongest all-rounder for freelancers (especially free with NatWest). Xero wins on sheer integration breadth. Sage has a mature AI copilot. QuickBooks is solid for construction. IRIS dominates practice compliance (SA, CT600, iXBRL, AML, company secretarial) but KashFlow lacks AI, time tracking, and e-commerce integrations - it's built for traditional bookkeeping, not modern sole traders.
Where TaxMTD stands alone is in Universal Credit - no other platform even attempts to calculate UC payments, optimise expense timing, or auto-fill the gov.uk portal. The UC Auto-Filler Chrome extension submits your income and expenses directly into the UC portal with one click. For the 1.7 million self-employed people claiming UC, this is a game-changer.
The only remaining gap is native apps. TaxMTD is currently web-only, but native apps for iOS, Android, macOS, and Windows are in active development - bringing receipt scanning, GPS mileage tracking, and push notifications to every device.
We'll keep updating this page as we ship native apps and deepen existing integrations.
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