Accounting

How to choose

If you have employees, QuickBooks Online is our top pick, largely because it sells its own Canadian payroll add-on (Core from CAD $30/month plus $5 per employee). Xero charges no per-user fees on any plan, which suits bigger teams, but its CAD $25 Starter plan is capped at 20 invoices and 5 bills a month. Sage is the only tool we reviewed with an English and French interface and support on every plan, which matters for Quebec. Wave's free Starter plan works for a sole proprietor who can do without automatic bank imports and accountant access.

One thing none of the six tools we reviewed does is file your GST/HST return with the CRA. They prepare a return report, and you enter the figures yourself.