The Best Construction Accounting Software: Top 10 Compared for 2023

The best construction accounting software helps streamline your construction operations through comprehensive job costing, project profitability calculations, and live project cost tracking. These tools come with special accounting functions that let you generate various compliance and financial reports, track vendor payments, and reduce accounting errors.

However, selecting the best accounting software for construction contractors can be challenging, given the variety of options available. To help, we’ve found and compared the 10 best construction accounting software solutions based on criteria like pricing, integration options, compatibility, features, and ease of use.

Read on to learn how each of the market’s most trusted accounting tools can help your business.

Ranking of the Best Accounting Software for Construction Companies

As the best construction accounting software, FreshBooks stands tall with elegant invoice templates, great payment tracking features, and reliable customer support.

Having said that, other accounting software tools on our list are just as good, catering to various needs and budgets. Here are your best options ranked:

1. FreshBooks — Overall, the best construction accounting software with loads of invoice templates, complete invoice flow, and project profitability capabilities.
2. Oracle NetSuite — Ideal for construction companies looking to streamline tax compliance. It comes with a robust fixed asset management tool along with detailed tax audit features.
3. Zoho Accounting — Best construction accounting software for small businesses, ideal for managing daily transactions. It also offers dedicated client and vendor portals for process integration.
4. Xero — A capable accounting software recommended for international construction businesses with 160+ currency options and over 1,000 third-party integrations.
5. Bonsai — Great for building lawyer-approved contracts with over 100+ templates. Plus, there’s also support for subcontractor onboarding to make collaboration easier.
6. Sage — The only contractor accounting software with a dedicated Contractor plan that allows intensive inventory management. Approval by the AICPA is the cherry on top.
7. QuickBooks — An incredibly well-known accounting software solution with a mobile card reader for convenient payments, irrespective of where you are.
8. Turbotax — A tax accounting software tool that simplifies the tax filing process for contractors and also provides one-on-one assistance with an in-house expert.
9. Melio — Offers a unique Pay Over Time feature that lets you pay your vendors in instalments. Plus, it doesn’t charge any platform fee for ACH bank transfers.
10. Wave — A free forever accounting software solution that comes with all the basic accounting tools, making it a delight for small construction businesses.

Is Construction Accounting Software the Same as General Accounting Systems?

Of course, you will find some differences between general accounting systems and construction ones, but all the solutions on our list offer the core functionality construction companies need.

This includes job costing, project management, contract billing, and cost tracking for labor, materials, and equipment. These are specifically designed to address the complexities of any industry, including for construction projects.

The Accounting Features Construction Companies Need

For construction companies, having the right accounting features is crucial for effective financial management. These specialized features cater to the unique demands of the construction industry, allowing companies to accurately track project costs, manage contracts, and handle job-specific billing.

Here we’ll walk you through some important accounting features to consider:

• Job Costing: This is an essential tool that enables construction companies to accurately track and allocate costs to specific projects. This allows you to monitor expenses related to materials, labor, equipment, and subcontractors.
• Invoicing and Billing: The construction industry is complex due to the different project structures and timelines. Robust invoicing and payment features streamline these processes with accurate invoices, payment milestone tracking, and easy order changes.
• Payroll Management: This streamlines the complexities of payroll calculations, tax deductions, and compliance. It ensures accurate payments to employees and subcontractors, reducing the risk of errors and legal issues.
• Project Management Integration: This bridges the gap between financial data and project progress, enabling real-time insights into project costs, timelines, and budgets. Syncing these helps track resources, detect delays, and prevent cost overruns.
• Compliance and Taxation: Construction accounting software should address industry-specific compliance requirements, such as sales tax on construction materials and payroll taxes.
• Actionable Data Analytics: Data-driven insights are key to making informed decisions. With in-depth analytics, you can delve beyond numbers and gain insights into project profitability, resource allocation, cost trends, and financial health.
• Customization: Pick software that lets you tailor the system to your specific workflows, terminology, and business rules. Customization enhances efficiency, accuracy, and user adoption by providing a solution that aligns precisely with your needs.

Top 5 Reasons You Need Construction Accounting Software in 2023

Discover the top five reasons why incorporating construction accounting software into your operations is more than just an option — it’s a critical move toward achieving outstanding construction management.

1. Error Reduction: Construction accounting software is important in reducing errors. For instance, it automates the reconciliation process with bank and credit card statements — minimizing errors from manual data entry and improving data accuracy.
2. Effective Project Management: Integrated construction software simplifies project management by overseeing all aspects, including document management, resource allocation, and project delivery. With the advantage of cloud storage, recording and accessing project details is effortless.
3. Task Scheduling: Keeping the entire team well-informed is paramount in an industry where slight deviations can lead to significant delays. Construction management software offers real-time project maps and schedule updates — and even sends reminder alerts for deadlines and updates.
4. Improved Communication: Construction management software centralizes project data and streamlines communication, eliminating the need for multiple communication channels and ensuring everyone is on the same page. Moreover, they facilitate teamwork with sharing and commenting capabilities.
5. Saves Time: Keeping track of finances, monitoring expenses, and creating reports can be very time-consuming when done manually. However, accounting software automates numerous tasks, such as data entry, invoicing, payroll calculations, and financial reporting to streamline your administrative processes.

The Top Contractor Accounting Software Solutions Reviewed 

Excited to find the best accounting software for your construction business? Read on as we’ll now discuss in detail each of our top recommendations, including their best features, pros, cons, and pricing. If you’re after an overview of just the key details, feel free to skip ahead to our comparison table.

1. FreshBooks — Overall, the Best Construction Accounting Software

FreshBooks takes the cake for the best construction accounting software solution with impressive collaborative features that let you share files and updates with team members and clients from one place. It makes staying up-to-date with the project a breeze with its project management tools.

Invoicing is the strongest suit of FreshBooks. There are several templates to choose from in different formats — including Word, PDF, and Excel. You can very easily customize your invoices to include discounts, business logos, and due dates. What’s more, you will receive updates whenever your invoice is viewed or paid.

Construction contracts usually take a lot of time to get done, and in the meantime, it can get a little tedious to keep track of the expenses and where you stand. FreshBooks takes this recurring calculation out of the picture and, with its project profitability features, breaks down all the income, costs, and unbilled hours at your disposal.

You can create rich proposals with detailed timelines, get these proposals e-signed, and even convert them into invoices. FreshBooks also comes with a handy Chrome extension for tracking time inside some of the best project management apps, like Asana and Trello, at the click of a button.

Simply download and install the extension, login to your FreshBooks account, and start recording job time. You can choose the client or project you’re working on and even choose whether the logged-in time would be billable or non-billable. This makes sure you don’t end up paying for non-eligible tasks.

2. Oracle Netsuite — Ideal Accounting Construction Software for Managing Taxes

Oracle Netsuite is a cloud-based ERP business software solution that doubles up as construction CRM software with its flexibility and customization options.

Among its advanced features is its automated reconciliation feature that uses an intelligent rules engine to match bank data to existing transactions so that you don’t have to waste time reconciling entries and finding exceptions.

For example, if there’s an invoice for $2,000 and a recent deposit of the same amount in your bank account, it might suggest matching the two entries. You just have to press the “OK” button, and the transaction will be reconciled automatically.

Recording transactions and staying ahead of taxes and payables is as easy as it gets with Oracle’s simplified real-time financial data handling. You can connect your bank and credit card account to Netsuite to import data directly for increased accuracy and real-time cash insights.

We love Netsuit’s tax management features available under SuiteTax, which help you calculate taxes under different jurisdictions. It also comes with a built-in tax calculator, which determines the taxability of each transaction.

Unlike FreshBooks and QuickBooks, Oracle NetSuite allows unlimited users to access the software. This becomes especially important in construction businesses since multiple people work on different aspects of the same projects simultaneously, and providing access helps keep everything in sync.

3. Zoho Accounting — Best Accounting Software for Small Construction Businesses

Zoho is a comprehensive accounting software tool for users who don’t want to waste time handling daily accounting tasks. It handles everything right from the negotiation stage to the final invoicing and everything in between.

With its quote templates, you can create quotes immediately as soon as a deal is signed and add the saved contact and item details into them effortlessly. Your clients will also be able to collaborate with the quotes and approve them through the customer portal.

You can create a recurring profile for your regular customers and have the transactions sent out to them automatically when they’re due. In addition to this, there are also auto-charge cards in which you can store all the payment details of a client in one place.

The vendor portal is also especially great for construction services as it eliminates unnecessary emails and calls by onboarding the vendors to self-manage the transactions in their own time. To make sure you don’t miss anything, Zoho sends you a notification when a supplier views your transactions or adds a comment to a document.

To keep better track of what you put into a project, you can also log the amount of time you spend on each task. With this timer widget, you can record the time with ease to ensure accurate billing and to make sure you never miss the deadline.

Like most accounting software solutions, taxation services are included in the package. However, Zoho goes one step ahead in making things easier for construction businesses by tracking the payments made to contractors required to file the annual 1099s using the Tax 1099 account.

4. Xero — Construction Company Accounting Software with 1,000+ Integrations

Xero offers budget-friendly cloud-based accounting software and is a great choice if you’re looking to scale your construction business or take it international. There are over 160 currency options to choose from for instant conversions, and you’ll be updated about how the currency market influences your cashflows.

It surpasses competitors with its extensive integration options. For example, you can integrate Gusto’s construction payroll software to automate payroll filings, W-2s, 1099s, and direct deposit payments. Alongside this, there are hundreds of other app options for integration.

Xero Projects is yet another Xero feature contractors will love. It allows you to track each job with either a start-stop timer or location-based tracking. This helps you avoid paying for unproductive labor hours and keep track of every dollar spent.

Like Oracle NetSuite, Xero also allows you to connect your bank account to stay on top of transactions — providing the convenience of having the bank feeds automatically updated and reconciled.

What’s more is that all the data collected is transformed into actionable reports and financial summaries that depict the financial health of your business, including outstanding invoices and overdue bills. Not just that, there’s a dedicated page that tells you how future bills will affect your bank balance over time.

With the Xero accounting app, you can stay connected to your business’s finances at all times, irrespective of where you are, too. You can do everything from checking outstanding invoices to analyzing your cash flow statement while on the go.

5. Bonsai — Construction Accounting System With 100+ Lawyer-Approved Templates

Bonsai is the best wingman for managing your business, with a huge library of contract and proposal templates to choose from, and your clients will be able to approve them directly via Bonsai.

Within the proposal, you can lay out pricing packages with a proper breakdown for clients to get a clear idea of your service prices from the outset. Also, all the contracts on Bonsai are vetted by actual lawyers — simply pick a default template that fits your needs, and you’re good to go.

And, if you want to create a custom contract, that’s an extremely easy 4-step process with Bonsai — 1) pick a template, 2) make the edits, 3) e-sign the contract, and 4) send it to the client. You’ll also be notified when a client approves the contract.

If you usually work with an installment payment system, the recurring invoices feature will be a lifesaver for you. Bonsai will automatically send out an invoice on the 1st of every month (or whatever time gap you set) to the selected client. The payment method selected by the client will be automatically billed on the file.

It’s a little outside the norm that tax management isn’t included. You’ll have to buy an extra top-up on your base subscription fee to get tax services. It is worth it though, as it’ll remind you when taxes are due, and you can even download your tax forms from its portal.

Overall, Bonsai is a solid construction invoicing software option with easy invoicing and scheduling features, along with great templates for invoices and contracts. It can be a little expensive for some, but the feature-to-price value is superb.

6. Sage — AICPA-Approved Accounting Software for Contractors

Sage’s intuitive software is simple at its core. It doesn’t have any over-the-top frills, but you’ll find everything you need to manage and analyze your construction business accounts in one place.

There’s a dedicated Sage Intacct Construction plan for construction businesses, which provides construction finance management services that use the leading JBKnowledge construction technology to generate reports and streamline processes.

Sage is also classified as an American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) – preferred accounting solution. For context, AICPA is the most prominent accounting body in the USA — a great testimonial to Sage’s quality and goodwill standing.

As a cloud solution, it ensures that your data is backed up at all times, so you don’t lose any important information. In addition to that, Sage Security Shield provides cyber protection and prevents identity theft — so you don’t need to worry about adding one of the best antivirus software solutions to your monthly bills.

Contractors and real estate developers also get the required control over projects with Sage Intacct Contruction’s real-time visibility and insights on the dashboard, and work efficiency can be increased by a projected 20-40% by automating AR/PR processes.

It gets better too. With over 1,400 pre-built report formats and customizability features, you’ll have all the critical business and construction project management information needed to make informed decisions at all times.

7. QuickBooks — A Complete Construction Accounting Software Solution

QuickBooks is among the most popular small business construction accounting software solutions. It lets you sync your accounting data with apps like Corecon, Buildertrend, and AutoEntry to easily track leads, schedule projects, and manage field services.

As we went over in our in-depth QuickBooks review, it also allows you to create batch invoices with the Advanced package and forward them to all the workers on the same level to save time. Moreover, all your data is stored on a secure cloud, which makes accessing and updating financial data on the go a breeze.

When you make payments through QuickBooks, they’re automatically recorded and matched for you. Testifying its quick services, all eligible payments are deposited by the next business day. However, there is a minimal fee of 1% deducted.

Making estimates and determining job costing is a hard nut to crack, and messing that up means you’re setting yourself up for failure. Just like FreshBooks, there’s a profitability tracking feature that gives you valuable insights to help you make better decisions while selecting projects.

Construction projects are often located in far-off areas. In that case, companies may decide to pay travel allowance based on the miles traveled for a particular project.

With the QuickBooks Mileage tracker, you can categorize personal and business trips and get a shareable report that breaks down the miles driven according to your smartphone’s GPS tracker.

The platform is pretty easy to understand, and the learning curve is negligible — you can set up the software and get it running yourself. However, if you still need assistance, you can reach out to professional bookkeepers to configure the software for you.

8. Turbotax — A Tax-Focused Construction Business Accounting Software 

Turbotax, as the name suggests, is primarily tax management software. Just like QuickBooks, it’s one of Intuit’s products and goes above and beyond to simplify the process for you.

It doesn’t just calculate taxes for you; it ensures you get the maximum refund through deductions and credits through its Refund Estimator feature, which gives you an idea of how much tax can be saved every time you update the figures.

Turbotax offers three plans. The first is where you do all your taxes with audit support and scan, upload, and import options. The expert-assisted plan is a mix of DIY and expert assistance, with unlimited help from real tax experts.

The top-tier plan is where Turbotax takes care of all your tax work. A dedicated expert does taxes for you and even signs and files your return. This is a big plus, but it gets better. Each plan can be further customized according to your situation.

For example, if you select the “I am a freelancer option”, you’ll see that the base plan costs you $129. In this case, Turbotax would assign a freelance tax expert to help you navigate tax complications. Similarly, here are some other options you can select:

• Maximize deductions
• Own a rental property
• Receives unemployment income
• Sell stocks or crypto

We also found a bunch of tax calculators that’ll help you streamline and plan your taxes, such as a self-employed tax calculator, tax bracket calculator, and a bonus tax calculator, amongst others.

However, Turbotax won’t help you with accounting or construction management. Features like bookkeeping, time tracking, payroll, and the like are missing, which makes the tool one-dimensional, but a real asset for peace of mind during every tax season.

9. Melio — Cost-Effective Software for Construction Companies

Melio is more of a payable software service for managing business payments with lots of powerful integration options like QuickBooks and Xero. When you collect payments through Melio, the data can be directly connected to these integrations eliminating the need for double entry or reconciliation of bills and payments.

The best part about Melio is that it doesn’t charge any fees upon the payments via ACH bank transfers done through the platform — something that most platforms, including QuickBooks, do.

ACH bank transfers are usually used for payroll functions in a construction company., meaning you can send out salaries to your workers and employees without losing anything in transit. We also love the recently introduced Pay Over Time feature, which lets you make vendor payments over a period of time.

However, the vendors are paid instantly by Melio. Here, Melio acts as a facilitator and extends you a couple of days’ credit — a feature that’ll be loved by new contractors who often face liquidity issues. One thing to note here is that, unlike others on our list, Melio isn’t a complete accounting software solution.

You can schedule payments, add team members to the account, send invoices, and get approval from the client using this platform. However, if you expect high-end analytics and tracking features, this one might not be the one for you.

Overall though, Melia is highly recommended for construction companies with a large workforce and ample clientele for its unlimited user accessibility and advanced payment management solutions.

10. Wave — Best Free Home Builder Accounting Software

Wave is a super capable free accounting solution that offers all the accounting assistance you need in one place. The process of starting a free account is super simple, just enter a few details about your construction business, and you’re covered.

Despite being free, Wave provides excellent construction billing software. You can set up recurring invoices and automatic credit card payments for regular transactions. Also, switching between automatic and manual billing is a breeze.

It takes care of bookkeeping by syncing all the invoices with the matching payments received to your account. Once you connect your bank accounts, the transactions are automatically updated in the system.

Wave’s smart dashboard segregates incomes, expenses, payments, and invoices for smooth and hassle-free tax filing. Plus, you can identify cash flow trends and understand where you stand by comparing the monthly and yearly accounting reports.

While the basic accounting and invoicing tools are free of cost, you’ll need to purchase the payroll feature separately. The catch here is that the live chat features are only available if you purchase one of the paid products.

If you don’t need that, don’t worry, there’s still chatbot support, and you can always email them your queries. Overall, Wave is the best free accounting software for small construction businesses that need pompous tools and have decent account management needs.

Compare the Best Construction Business Accounting Systems

Here’s a brief snapshot of the critical differences between each of our top recommendations to help you make an informed yet quick decision:

What’s the Best Free Construction Billing Software?

Zoho Accounting Software is the best free construction accounting software. It offers a free plan designed to provide basic accounting functionalities for small businesses, including expense tracking, invoicing, basic reporting, and bank reconciliation.

Sure, the free version has limitations compared to the paid plans, but it’s a valuable option for businesses with simple accounting needs.

That said, for construction companies seeking sustained growth and comprehensive financial management, we recommend upgrading to a paid plan as it comes with advanced features such as predefined user roles, project profitability, and custom buttons.

While free versions can provide a glimpse into the software’s capabilities, premium offerings come with access to a wider range of features, enhanced customer support, and the capacity to accommodate the increasing demands of your business.

How to Choose the Best Accounting Software for Your Construction Company

Choosing the appropriate accounting tool is essential for the growth and success of your construction business. Here are the essential factors that’ll assist you in selecting the best accounting software to efficiently manage your construction projects and financial procedures:

Scalability 

As your projects, clients, and operations expand, the software you choose should be able to handle more transactions and meet the needs of multiple users.

By selecting a software solution with various features and strong scalability, you can ensure your financial management processes can grow alongside your business’s success.

Compatibility 

Before making a decision, verify that the software seamlessly integrates with the other tools your firm employs, such as payroll software, tax software, and financial management systems.

Ensuring compatibility prevents potential pitfalls, including data entry errors and report mismatches. Investing in software that interacts with your existing systems promotes streamlined workflows, accurate data sharing, and efficient collaboration.

Security 

Investigating the vendor’s past incidents of data breaches or cyber-attacks can give you an idea of how seriously they take protecting your information. Thankfully this isn’t a concern you’ll have with any of our top 10 picks, as we took these factors into account when compiling and ranking our list.

Strong software security not only safeguards your business but also demonstrates to your clients that you handle their financial information responsibly.

Price 

When it comes to software, the price can vary greatly, with some options being free and others costing a significant amount of money. It’s important to determine your company’s budget and choose software within that range.

However, simply choosing the cheapest option may not always result in the best quality or features — it all depends on your needs. On the other hand, it’s often wise to invest in a higher-priced solution for advanced features that’ll benefit your construction business in the long run.

This doesn’t need to be the initial investment, but it’s important to keep your business’ scaling needs in mind to ensure the tool offers what you need at a price you’re willing to pay.

Usability

Choose software with a user-friendly interface, easy navigation, and necessary features matching your operational requirements. Reliable customer support is also equally important, ensuring your team receives timely assistance.

Features 

The right features can significantly impact your ability to effectively manage finances, projects, and operations. Features like job costing, project management integration, invoicing, expense tracking, and compliance management cater specifically to the unique demands of the construction industry.

Each feature contributes to streamlined processes, accurate reporting, and overall efficiency. Carefully consider the features offered to ensure that the solution meets your business needs and enables you to effectively manage the complexities of this field.

FreshBooks | The Best Accounting Software for Construction Companies in 2023

Our list of the best construction accounting software is a one-stop solution for all construction bookkeeping needs. From affordable software with free plans to high-end accounting solutions with advanced features, there’s something for everyone.

However, FreshBooks is an all-purpose pick for comprehensive construction accounting. With tons of templates and features like project profitability tracking, comprehensive client management, and customized onboarding service, there’s virtually no wiggle room for shortcomings. The best part? You get the cushion of a 30-day money-back guarantee, allowing you to try all the features risk-free.

Contractor Accounting Software FAQs

Krishi Chowdhary

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Krishi Chowdhary

Krishi is an experienced B2B and B2C content writer who reviews and compares different software to help both individuals and businesses find the right programs for their needs. Krishi's specialized writing educational material on customer relationship management (CRM) software and project management tools, but he also covers many other software topics for Techopedia, including antivirus programs.

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