Finding the right accounting software is crucial, but most options can be complex and expensive for small businesses.
However, SlickPie aims to simplify accounting and make it accessible even for early-stage companies, with a free core plan packed with handy features.
In this post, we’ll provide an overview of SlickPie’s key strengths around ease of use and basic accounting, along with current limitations to consider as your needs evolve. We'll also compare top alternative options like Wave, QuickBooks Online, and FreshBooks to help assess the best fit as you scale.
Introduction to SlickPie
SlickPie is a free online accounting software designed for small businesses and solopreneurs to manage their finances. With an easy-to-use interface, it provides tools to create professional invoices, track expenses, generate financial reports, and more without requiring formal accounting knowledge.
What is SlickPie?
SlickPie is a cloud-based accounting solution that helps small businesses and freelancers track their money in one place. Key features include:
- Invoicing: Create, customize and send professional invoices. Get paid online via PayPal, Stripe or bank transfers.
- Expense Tracking: Log business expenses like office supplies, travel costs, etc. Attach receipts and keep everything organized.
- Financial Reports: Generate real-time reports like profit and loss, balance sheet, cash flow statements to understand your finances.
- Integrations: Connect to business apps like PayPal, Stripe, MailChimp, Google Workspace and more.
With an intuitive dashboard, SlickPie makes accounting easy for non-accountants.
Key Features and Tools
As a free accounting software, SlickPie provides several essential small business tools including:
- Invoicing
- Expense tracking
- Quotes
- Basic financial reporting
- Multi-user access
- PayPal & Stripe integrations
- Receipt scanning
- And more
It lacks some advanced capabilities like payroll, inventory management or POS systems which are mostly required by larger, complex businesses.
Ease of Use
SlickPie is designed for simplicity. The user interface is clean and intuitive, allowing new users to quickly find their way around without formal training. Within minutes, you can:
- Create professional invoices
- Log expenses
- Connect bank accounts
- Generate financial reports
With predefined templates and categories, repetitive tasks become easier over time. The self-help guides and multi-channel customer support also facilitate the learning process.
Pricing and Plans
The SlickPie core features are 100% free without any trial limitations. For storage and user needs beyond that, paid upgrades are available which provide:
- More storage space
- Additional user seats
- Advanced reporting
Starting at $12 per month, the paid plans are affordable for most small business budgets. And all plans come with awesome customer support.
With essential accounting tools and an easy learning curve, SlickPie is ideal for small businesses, freelancers, startups and side hustlers looking to better manage their finances.
Pros of Using SlickPie
SlickPie stands out for its free robust core feature set, ease of use, and scalability.
Completely Free Core Accounting
SlickPie offers full-featured accounting fundamentals like invoicing, reporting, and tracking for free without any trial limitations. The software includes unlimited invoices and estimates, income and expense tracking, financial reports, and more. This allows small businesses and solopreneurs to handle their basic accounting needs at no cost.
Unlike other platforms with free trials, SlickPie has no user or time restrictions on its free plan. Users can continue using the core features indefinitely, making this a great starting point for early-stage businesses looking to minimize overhead costs.
Simple and Intuitive Interface
SlickPie uses a user-friendly dashboard interface designed for simplicity. With clear menus, data visualizations, and an uncluttered layout, most users can navigate the accounting system intuitively without formal training.
This simplifies adoption for non-accounting personnel. Owners and employees can quickly learn to create invoices, reconcile bank feeds, and review financial snapshots on their own. The easy-to-use interface also reduces the learning curve for onboarding new team members.
Scales With Business Growth
While SlickPie starts out free, it provides paid upgrades to scale up features for growing businesses. The Plus and Pro plans add storage space, user seats, integration with other software platforms like PayPal, Stripe, and Bill.com, as well as advanced tools for custom reports, purchase orders, and inventory management.
Upgrading to premium plans allows businesses to expand their usage of SlickPie along with the growth of their company. This path helps minimize disruption from changing platforms. Businesses can continue relying on a familiar accounting system while unlocking additional capabilities over time.
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Cons of SlickPie
Potential downsides to weigh include the lack of phone support, limited payment options, and missing some advanced accounting tools.
No Phone Support
SlickPie relies on email and documentation for customer support. Phone assistance is only available on higher-tier paid plans. As a free tool, SlickPie does not offer phone support, which can be frustrating for some users if they encounter issues and need urgent assistance.
Having to submit support tickets and wait for email responses may not be ideal, especially when dealing with time-sensitive accounting matters. For those wanting phone access to the SlickPie team, it requires upgrading to a paid subscription.
Limited Payment Options
SlickPie supports credit card payments and PayPal. It lacks support for ACH or other payment methods some clients may prefer.
The payment options are relatively limited with SlickPie. For businesses or clients that need to pay invoices directly through the software, the only options are credit card or PayPal. Support for bank account transfers, checks, or other methods is not built-in.
This could present challenges for users that do not have credit cards or PayPal accounts, or clients that would rather pay via ACH or check. It may require integrating a third-party payment processor.
Missing Some Advanced Features
While SlickPie handles essential accounting needs, advanced tools like payroll, POS, CCA allocation, or extensive customization are only available via third-party integrations or upgrades.
As a basic free accounting platform, SlickPie does not have some more complex capabilities that businesses may eventually need as they scale. This includes advanced reporting, customizable charts of accounts, POS integration, payroll management, and other robust features.
Achieving that level of customization and integration requires upgrading to SlickPie's paid plans or integrating compatible third-party services. So businesses with more niche needs may outgrow the free features over time.
Alternatives to Consider
Top competitors to compare include Wave, QuickBooks Online, Zoho Books, and FreshBooks.
Wave
Wave offers 100% free accounting similar to SlickPie but with phone support and invoicing through PayPal, credit cards, or bank payments.
Some key features of Wave include:
- Free unlimited accounting and invoicing
- Bank connectivity and transactions
- PayPal, credit card, and eCheck payments
- Phone, email, chat, and community support
- Simple reporting and financial dashboards
For very small businesses and freelancers, Wave provides a full-featured accounting solution at no cost. The lack of customization and scalability may become limitations over time.
QuickBooks Online
QuickBooks Online provides robust accounting tools for a monthly fee. It offers phone support, payroll, time tracking, reporting, and customization lacking in SlickPie.
Some advantages of QuickBooks Online:
- Scalable from small business to enterprise
- Customizable invoices, estimates, bills, etc.
- Automated workflows and approvals
- Robust reporting and analytics
- Payroll, payments, and tax support
The monthly fees provide increased capabilities but can become expensive for very small businesses. QuickBooks Online offers a 30-day free trial to test it out.
Zoho Books
Zoho Books has a free plan comparable to SlickPie but charges monthly fees for additional features, support, and customization. It also provides payroll and time tracking.
Some key highlights of Zoho Books:
- Free basic accounting for up to 2 users
- Invoicing, expense claims, purchase orders
- Bank connectivity and reconciliation
- Custom fields, tags, and reporting
- Zoho Payroll, Subscriptions, and CRM integrations
For small companies wanting basic accounting with room to scale up features over time, Zoho Books balances capabilities with affordability.
FreshBooks
FreshBooks is paid software starting at $15/month aimed at freelancers and very small businesses. It focuses specifically on time tracking, project expense management, and invoicing.
Some notable aspects of FreshBooks:
- Streamlined time tracking and invoicing
- Easy client dashboard for payments
- Expenses automatically tied to clients
- Mileage, hours, and expenses reporting
- Integration with payment gateways
For freelancers and solopreneurs, FreshBooks provides specialized capabilities around getting paid quickly. The focus on billing and client management differentiates it from more general accounting solutions.
Conclusion and Recommendation
SlickPie provides free basic accounting software designed for very small, early-stage businesses. Its strengths lie in its simplicity and ease of use for non-accountants who need to track income, expenses, invoices, and other financial data.
Key strengths include:
- Free access to core accounting features like income statements, balance sheets, invoicing, and more
- Intuitive and easy to use interface aimed at non-accountants
- Ability to scale as your business grows
However, SlickPie does have some limitations to be aware of:
- No phone support or live chat for assistance
- Limited payment options and accounting customizations
- Lacks some advanced accounting tools bigger companies may require
Remember Key Strengths
If you're a solopreneur or very small business, SlickPie provides the basic accounting fundamentals you likely need for free. Making it an accessible starting point to understand your finances.
Understand Current Gaps
As your business scales, the inability to customize reports, limited payment options, and lack of live support may necessitate upgrading to paid software.
Assess Alternatives as You Grow
Consider exploring platforms like QuickBooks Online, Xero, or Sage as potential alternatives if you outgrow SlickPie's capabilities over time. Evaluating your changing needs and size will determine if migrating to a more customizable, scalable solution is right for your business.
