Free bookkeeping software can remove a monthly subscription, but the useful question is whether you can finish your books with the free offer. Check ongoing access, purchase records, bank processing, reports and exports before comparing prices. A free trial, a starter promotion and a permanent free plan are three different offers.
This guide is for freelancers and small businesses considering a Dutch administration in euros. It includes a reusable comparison worksheet and the current scope of PayRequest Bookkeeping. Free access to PayRequest Bookkeeping is planned; the current beta requires a Business account. Creating a Free account does not unlock the ledger yet.
First, identify which kind of free offer you are comparing
The word “free” tells you little without the time limit and included workflow. An ongoing free tier might cover your needs for years. A generous trial may be better for evaluating a product, but it is not a zero-cost long-term plan. A starter promotion depends on eligibility rather than how much bookkeeping you do.
Check the offer directly with the provider. Our source check on 31 October 2026 found these different models:
| Software | Offer | Decision to make |
|---|---|---|
| Wave | Free Starter plan; bank automation and receipt capture are Pro features | Does the free workflow cover your country and required work? |
| Moneybird | A 60-day trial followed by paid packages | Which transaction, user and bank-connection limits fit your activity? |
| e-Boekhouden.nl | Free starter access until 15 months after business registration | How much of the eligible period remains for your business? |
| PayRequest | Free bookkeeping access planned; Business beta available now | Is the Dutch EUR invoice-basis scope suitable, and do you currently qualify for access? |
Sources: Wave pricing, Moneybird packages and e-Boekhouden.nl's starter terms. These are offer structures, not a claim that the products have identical accounting capabilities.
Use one month of your own workload as the comparison
Compare the same work in every package. A freelancer who issues few sales invoices can still have many supplier bills and bank movements. A limit on processed bank transactions can therefore matter more than an invoice limit.
Here is an original, fictional worksheet you can copy. Replace the quantities with your activity and fill in the answer from each provider's current terms.
| Work in the example month | Quantity | What to verify |
|---|---|---|
| Sales invoices | 18 | Can you record sales and credit notes without retyping? |
| Supplier bills | 12 | Can you retain evidence and enter actual VAT per line? |
| Bank movements | 40 | Are imports, matching and transfers covered? |
| Provider settlements | 4 | Can fees and invoice amounts be reconciled separately? |
| Accountant handoff | 1 | Can you export the ledger and supporting figures? |
| Quarter-end review, when due | 1 | Which checks exist, and does the software actually file the return? |
Keep three answers beside every row: included, paid extra, or handled elsewhere. This is more useful than adding checkmarks for features you will never use. If your accountant requires XAF, a CSV-only export is a workflow gap even if the subscription costs nothing.
Separate software cost from payment-acceptance cost
A bookkeeping subscription and collecting online payments are different services. Keep provider fees, platform fees, optional bank connections and accountant work in separate columns of your budget. Do not assume that a zero software price makes those costs disappear.
For a concrete PayRequest example, consider 20 successful standard payments of EUR 50 each on the Free payment plan. At its published 2% standard platform fee, that is EUR 1 per payment, or EUR 20 in total, before payment-provider fees. The EUR 25 cap applies per successful payment, not to the month. This illustrates payment acceptance pricing; it is not a charge for each ledger entry.
See PayRequest's current plans and fee conditions when comparing options. Paid plans and commission-payment exceptions have separate terms. For a bank connection, use the applicable current quote rather than assuming every advertised bookkeeping price includes it.
Check the connection between invoices, payments and reports
The most useful advantage of one workspace is the connection between records. An invoice explains what you sold. The bank transaction explains what money arrived. A provider statement explains a withheld fee. Treating all three as independent sales would inflate your revenue.
PayRequest Bookkeeping lets you review existing PayRequest sales invoices for the ledger, add supplier documents and allocate bank transactions to posted documents. Partial payments and separately recorded provider fees help explain differences. It uses explicit previews and confirmation rather than silently turning every incoming payment into revenue.
That connection also has a boundary: matching a bank transaction in the ledger does not mark the original PayRequest invoice paid or stop its reminders. Invoice settlement uses a separate reviewed workflow. The distinction matters when comparing software: ask what each “matched” status actually changes.
Check the country, VAT and handoff requirements
An English interface does not make a product suitable for every country's tax rules. PayRequest's current ledger supports Dutch bookkeeping in EUR using the invoice basis. It offers a VAT overview, quarter review, balance sheet, profit and loss and CSV reports. VAT filing, payroll, automatic depreciation, multi-currency bookkeeping and XAF export are outside the current module.
Evidence still matters in any package. The Dutch Tax Administration's input-VAT guidance explains that deduction depends on the applicable conditions and that foreign purchases can have different treatment. A familiar supplier name is not enough to choose Netherlands 21% VAT.
Before switching, give your accountant one representative export and explain how you retain the source invoices. Check that they can work with the format. A free tool can be useful even if your accountant completes a separate filing step, provided that handoff is clear from the start.
Choose the workflow you can maintain
A suitable free package is one that covers your recurring work with acceptable limits and an understandable handoff. A paid package can still be the better choice if it removes a recurring gap you would otherwise handle manually. Neither conclusion follows from the headline price alone.
For the PayRequest route, inspect the Bookkeeping dashboard and current availability, then read the monthly bookkeeping routine. Check access and fit before moving your administration. The current beta is Business-only; the planned free rollout is not an entitlement granted by a Free signup.
*Method: official offer pages checked 31 October 2026; the workload and fee worksheet are hypothetical examples, not a competitor benchmark or savings claim. Product statements were checked against the current Bookkeeping forms. AI assisted the text and cover illustration.*
