Overview

Clear Books is UK-focused accounting software for sole traders, landlords and organisations that need bookkeeping alongside invoicing and tax support. It suits people whose work fits one of its specialist free plans or who need its paid VAT and company tools. The trade-off is that the free options have a narrow purpose, while broader accounting features start at a monthly cost plus VAT.

Key features

Branded invoices, recurring billing and automated late-payment reminders make Clear Books a practical fit for businesses that invoice regularly. Receipt capture and inventory tracking support everyday record-keeping, and Small adds sales and purchase tracking with a full reporting suite. These tools cover routine accounting needs, but the plan distinction matters: bank feeds with automated matching are included in Small, Medium and Large, not stated for the cheaper sole-trader and property paid plans.

Clear Books is HMRC recognised and MTD-ready for UK businesses. It supports VAT submissions, MTD Income Tax and quarterly updates; Sole Trader Plus specifically adds MTD VAT reporting, the flat-rate scheme and VAT Domestic Reverse Charge. That makes it a stronger match for UK tax workflows than a general-purpose bookkeeping choice, especially for VAT-registered sole traders.

Paid plans include unlimited users, accountant invitations and accountant tools, which helps when an adviser needs account access. Small, Medium and Large also include integrations and an API; Stripe and GoCardless are built in. Support ranges from self-service and email to phone and email support, with UK-based support.

Pricing

Clear Books uses a freemium model. Sole Trader Free and Property Free are forever-free with no card needed and no transaction limits, but each is tied to its stated audience: the former is for sole traders, while the latter covers one property or grouped properties. Foreign Property Free is also forever-free, covers one overseas property and has no transaction limits. These plans are useful for limited setups, not a substitute for broader organisation-level accounting.

Sole Trader costs £5 per month plus VAT, billed monthly, for self-employed people without VAT. Sole Trader Plus costs £15 per month plus VAT, billed monthly, and adds MTD VAT reporting, the flat-rate scheme and VAT Domestic Reverse Charge. The £5 per month Property plan is aimed at landlords managing multiple properties; the £5 per month Foreign Property plan is for landlords with multiple overseas properties. Both are billed monthly plus VAT and include unlimited users.

Small costs £16 per month plus VAT, billed monthly, and is aimed at limited companies, sole traders, partnerships and charities. It is the first plan in the range that specifies bank feeds with automated matching, sales and purchase tracking, invoice creation and email, a full reporting suite, integrations and an API, and user permissions. Medium costs £34 per month plus VAT, billed monthly, for businesses filing VAT and CIS; it adds unlimited budgets. Large is for growing businesses with complex needs and has custom pricing; its two-year billing rate is £35.20 per month and yearly billing is £39.60 per month, plus VAT.

Paid plans include a full-access 30-day free trial, which can be cancelled anytime without payment; subscriptions can also be cancelled anytime. Annual billing saves 10%, while two-year billing saves 20% on All Organisations plans. Customers can pay by direct debit, credit card or debit card.

Platforms

Clear Books is available through browser-based software and mobile apps for Android and iOS. That gives users a web option alongside mobile access, though the plan details—not platform availability—are what distinguish its feature set.

Who it's for

Clear Books is best suited to UK sole traders, landlords and small organisations that want accounting tied to their particular tax or property setup. The free plans can work for a sole trader or a landlord with one property, while VAT-registered sole traders, multi-property landlords and organisations needing bank reconciliation have paid options tailored to those needs. It is a less natural fit for anyone who needs a single broad package without plan-specific scope.

Pros and cons

Pros: Forever-free plans with no transaction limits give sole traders and landlords a low-commitment starting point, provided their setup fits the plan’s scope.
Pros: UK tax support includes VAT submissions, MTD Income Tax and quarterly updates, with a dedicated VAT option for sole traders.
Pros: Unlimited users and accountant tools on paid plans support collaboration with an external adviser.
Cons: Bank feeds and automated matching are specified for Small, Medium and Large, leaving lower-priced paid plans without that stated convenience.
Cons: The free plans are deliberately narrow, and broader organisational features require a paid plan plus VAT.

Alternatives

Choose FreeAgent instead if its freemium offer and sole-trader or partnership pricing better match your needs; its plans include Sole trader at £10.00 GBP per month and Partnership or LLP at £19.00 GBP per month.

ZipBooks, BUSY, Odoo Accounting, Dolibarr, Tryton, Zoho Books and Wave are other accounting options to compare.

For a category-focused shortlist, browse Bookkeeping Software, Gym Accounting Software or Salon Accounting Software.

Verdict

Clear Books is a strong choice for UK sole traders, landlords and small organisations that want its MTD and VAT support matched to their business type. Its most compelling advantage is the combination of specialist free plans and paid UK tax tools; the main reason to look elsewhere is that bank feeds and broader company features sit above the cheapest tiers.

	Bexio	Clear Books
Free plan	No	Yes
Free trial	Yes	No
Paid from	CHF 35/mo	£5/mo
Open source	No	No
Platforms	Android, api, iOS, Web	Android, iOS, Web
Free plan	No	Yes
Accounting basis	cash	—
Bank feeds	Yes	Yes
Receipt capture	Yes	Yes
Invoice management	Yes	—
Payroll	Yes	—

Bexio vs Clear Books

Bexio

Clear Books