Accounting software is an automated system that helps accountants and accounting professionals report and document a company's financial transactions. Accounting software is a must in today's business world because almost all businesses use them. It's a much easier solution to manually track your financial transactions, as accounting software are automated systems that instantly report transactions for you. Thanks to accounting software you save precious time, energy and money. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay When selecting small business accounting software, there are a few things you need to consider. According to Angeles S. (2016), a good way to help you decide is to ask yourself these three questions: 1. How much are you willing to pay? 2. Why do you need accounting software? And 3. What features does your business require in an accounting software program? Cost is a major factor in almost every business decision, and when choosing accounting software to purchase it's no different. Accounting software programs obviously vary in price depending on the packages and features you choose. Almost all programs use a monthly subscription for the package level you choose. The more frills, the more expensive the program will be per month. They range from less than $10 to around $50 for an executive package. The second question: “Why do you need accounting software?” is important because it will help you determine the best accounting software for your specific small business. Below are some things to think about when determining the answer to this question: Is your business growing? Have you just started? Do you want instant access? Is the accounting system you currently use too complicated for you? The final question: “What features does your business need in an accounting software program?” can be answered by researching as much as possible about accounting software. This question will help you determine which package you need. Maybe you just need the cheapest and most basic package, or maybe you need to add some extensions to the program, it all depends on what you need. Intuit QuickBooks Online is an accounting software program that you can choose to use. QuickBooks features a wide range of features for all types of small businesses. Some of the advantages of QuickBooks include: Very intuitive and easy to use, affordable, flexible, you can customize almost everything, reliable and scalable (The Pros and Cons (2016)). Some of the cons of QuickBooks include things like: Expensive upgrades that include training, setup, and implementation, and while QuickBooks is very flexible, sometimes users get into trouble because QuickBooks allows them to do something that shouldn't be done (The pros and against (2016)). Another accounting software used by many businesses is Xero. Xero is nice because it only costs $9 per month for the basic package, which includes unlimited users. This package, however, according to J. Marsan (2016), limits you to 5 invoices and 20 bank transactions. While it doesn't have as many features as QuickBooks, Xero gives you invoicing, payroll, payment processing, and automation. Another good thing about Xero is the number of other integrations that come with it. Xero is combined with Salesforce, Base CRM, Shopify, Right Signature and many others (J. Marsan (2016)). People say it's a good alternative to QuickBooks; it's all a matter of preference. The third alternative accounting program I studied was Wave. Second.