10 Best Accounting Software for Nonprofits in 2024

The best accounting software for nonprofits not only simplify financial management, but they're also equipped with specific features for donation, volunteers, and grant management.

Nonprofit organizations need to be compliant with the requirements of the Financial Accounting Standards Board, and this is where nonprofit accounting software come in.

Depending on the size and approach of your organization, the software you need might differ. I've taken the time to review the best tools that would suit different types and sizes of nonprofits.

I've considered their prices, features, and usability and laid these out so you can easily compare and discover the best nonprofit accounting software for you. 

Best Accounting Software for Nonprofits

The following are the best accounting software for nonprofits:

• QuickBooks Enterprise Nonprofit
• Sage Intacct
• AccuFund Accounting Suite
• Aplos
• Financial Edge by Blackbaud
• Sumac by Silent Partner
• Araize FastFund Accounting
• Denali Fund by Cougar Mountain Software
• MoneyMinder
• MIP Fund Accounting

1. QuickBooks Enterprise Nonprofit

Best Accounting Software For Medium to Large Nonprofits.

QuickBooks immediately stands out as the best accounting software for nonprofits because it's an incredibly robust platform with suitable programs for nonprofits of all sizes.

Smaller organizations watching out for price and ease of use can use simpler and cheaper versions like QuickBooks Online.

But if you're after a powerful, all-purpose program that can meet vast accounting needs for nonprofit organizations, then you have to consider QuickBooks Enterprise Nonprofit. It's a great option if your organization is mid-to-large or is experiencing major growth.

Best Features

• Donation and Grant Management: With Quickbooks, you can track grants, expenses, and donations.
• Contact and Donor Management: Users can store and manage donor and vendor information. Offering an invoicing software solution, the platform also lets you generate invoices and send them to contacts.
• Fundraising Integrations: One of QuickBooks' most exciting features is its ability to integrate with fundraising software like NeonCRM and Kindful. Streamlining your fundraising campaigns with these integrations will make the process more efficient.
• Complex Reporting: Apart from simplifying tax reports, Quickbooks nonprofit accounting software helps you create specific, advanced reports for stakeholders, donors, or for needs that pertain to your organization.
• Payroll Automations: What some might consider a bonus feature but is really a load of convenience is the platform's ability to automate payroll services. You can pay your staff directly through the app, but you need to upgrade to the Gold, Platinum, or Diamond plans to access this function.

Pros

• Offers several nonprofit-specific features like donor management, expense management, donations tracking, advanced reports, and volunteer time-tracking.
• Integrates with fundraising software like NeonCRM and Kindful.
• Automates payroll services with upgrades.
• Offers online backup and data storage.

Cons

• Might be expensive for small nonprofits. Quickbooks Online is a cheaper alternative for small nonprofits.
• Many convenient features, like payroll automation, remote access, and unlimited employee access, are only available with paid-for upgrades.
• Doesn't offer a free trial, unlike QuickBooks Online.
• It's pretty complex, unlike Quickbooks Online, especially for novice users, and takes some getting used to.

Pricing

• Unlike some cheaper versions like Quickbooks Online, QuickBooks Enterprise Nonprofit doesn't have a free trial. You have to buy it off the rack at a monthly fee of $112.50.
• There are also premium plans with advanced features like Gold, Platinum, and Diamond. To access the Gold plan, you need to pay $1489.50 per year. The Diamond plan costs $3618 per year.

You can start with Quickbooks Online or skip to Quickbooks Enterprise. Either way, you'll find a good Quickbooks for nonprofit plan for your business.

2. Sage Intacct

Best Nonprofit Accounting Software For Tailor-Made Services

The unique value of Sage Intacct is that it's a vast platform with unique accounting solutions tailored to suit various types of nonprofit organizations.

Healthcare organizations, religious ministries, educational institutions, and NGOs benefit from Sage Intacct's flexible bookkeeping services.

Best Features

• Real-time Reporting: The program provides real-time financial reports for establishments like churches that might have to deal with a consistent flow of donations and expenses.
• Robust Automations and Streamlining: Sage Intacct's advanced accounting system automates accounting tasks, transactions, reports, fixed assets, donation tracking, and bill management. Comprehensive features like one-click commands, simplified dashboards, and automatic workflows make the platform intuitive and user-friendly.
• Budget and Performance Tracking: The system is equipped with tools for creating and managing budgets. You can also monitor revenue and the performance of projects.
• Flexible Integrations: Sage Intacct can offer such a streamlined and fast workflow because of its vast capacity for integrations. The program is web-based and has an open API architecture, so it's possible to integrate it with many software used by nonprofits, including enterprise resource planning solutions for large non-profit organizations.

Pros

• Has an automated workflow that generates live reports and monitors transactions.
• Handles foreign and international transactions and supports multiple currencies.
• The software integrations are very flexible.
• Manages payroll.
• Processes bank reconciliations.
• Offers complete security and membership management.
• Offers remote access.

Cons

• It might be complex for novice users.

There are no standard pricing plans available on the website. To use the product, you have to reach out to sales to get a customized plan that suits your budget and needs.

3. AccuFund Accounting Suite

Best Accounting Software For NonProfits and Governmental Agencies.

AccuFund Accounting Suite is the best accounting software for nonprofits and government agencies that need a full-on, customizable solution.

With a core infrastructure that provides anything from cash receipts and general ledgers to essential features like flexible financial reporting, seamless integrations, and easy bank reconciliation, it's a standard choice for any nonprofit.

Best Features

• Robust Customizations: Depending on the accounting needs of your organization, you can always add new modules and functions such as payroll automation, grant accounting, and more.
• Flexible Reporting: AccuFund Accounting provides the ability to customize reports as needed as well as a genuinely robust reporting platform for specific internal and external compliance reports. This makes the software solution a great option for nonprofit organizations and government entities that run strict accounting processes and require utmost transparency.
• HR and Payroll: With AccuFund Accounting, you can handle payroll, track employee time, and streamline HR management.
• Government Accounting: You can develop and manage budgets, donations, expenses, and loans. The app also handles utility bills, tax reports, and licenses for government agencies.
• Convenient Migration and Integrations: The program provides comprehensive access to hundreds of users and allows for a fair number of seamless integrations with apps like Zoho and Expensify. Basically, if your organization is a first-time user, you can quickly transfer and automate your existing operations and completely onboard your staff.

Pros

• Financial reporting is robust and customizable.
• AccuFund Accounting’s custom modules and integrations make it very adaptable.
• Supports payroll and human resources management.
• Provides bank reconciliations and compliance reporting.
• Offers data storage and robust security to protect financial information.
• Can be accessed remotely.

Cons

• Might be complicated for novice users.
• Doesn't offer a free trial.
• The pricing model makes it expensive for small nonprofits

The pricing model is flexible and consultation-based. You can sign up for a demo and pay for features as you need.

4. Aplos

Best Nonprofit Accounting Software For Churches

Nonprofit organizations like churches often need nonprofit software that lets them accept donations and track and allocate funds for their ministry. Aplos is specifically designed to serve those functions and more.

Multiple organizations and faith-based nonprofits often depend on the ability to raise money and convince donors. Aplos's donor and event management features are powerfully equipped for that purpose.

Best Features

• Gift Automation: Aplos has a gift automation process that facilitates repetitive contributions.
• Fund Accounting: The platform provides features for grant and expense tracking and budget optimization.
• Donations and Fundraising: The program is particularly great for managing donations, as not only can you track donations, you can apply them to specific budgets as needed. Accufund is also equipped for registering, managing, and tracking events and fundraisers.
• Contact and Volunteer Management: You can store, access donors, and manage their profiles. You can also create and manage teams and volunteer groups.
• Robust Communication System: With the ability to integrate with several CRM software and the features like mass emails or texts, it gives you the option to increase cooperation from team members, partners, and contributors.
• Bank Integrations: As far as bank integrations go, Aplos is partnered with financial services like Plaid and Finicity to synchronize your bank interactions. Some organizations might need more sophisticated bank integrations.

Pros

• Provides donor access and management.
• Facilitates collaboration with CRM integrations, team management, and communication tools like emails and texts.
• Tracks donations and promotes gift-giving.
• Manages events and facilitates fundraisers.
• The features are accessed and automated from a central location, so the workflow is streamlined and easier.
• It can be accessed remotely since it's cloud-based.

Cons

• The integrations are not as flexible and sophisticated as some users might like.

Pricing

• Aplos offers a 15-day free trial, after which you have to subscribe to one of its pricing plans.
• There are three plans available, with the most basic one starting at a monthly fee of $29.50.

You can get started with Aplos on a 15-day free trial.

5. Financial Edge by Blackbaud

Best Cloud-based Accounting Solution for Enterprise-Level Nonprofits.

Financial Edge is the best accounting software for nonprofits that need enterprise-level accounting solutions and a high level of connectivity and transparency across the board.

Designed by Blackbaud, a company that has provided cloud-based software for nonprofits for up to three decades, Financial Edge has a nice combination of accounting and communication features useful to nonprofits with large networks.

Best Features

• Fund Accounting: The typical accounting features are cutting-edge, with fund accounting features that monitor grants and allocated budgets and ensure reporting that meets FASB (Financial Accounting Standards Board) standards.
• Robust Reporting: The software provides customizable reporting, so you can input and track financial data unique to your organization. Plus, it offers real-time reporting and intelligent analytics that cover your finances and interactions with your donors and volunteers.
• Powerful Automations: Financial Edge can automate manual processes and streamline your entire accounting workflow because of its integrations and a full suite of modules.
• Robust Communications: Marketing and communication tools to boost outreach and interact with supporters and employees. The marketing and communication tools enable you to interact with your donors and respond to their actions with automated emails. That's not all, Blackbaud goes as far as to offer a custom-built website that would integrate with your nonprofit software and streamline your communication channels.
• Standard Security: Financial Edge offers fairly standard data security. Naturally, you can grant user access to your team members and utilize the platform's communication tools to ensure collaboration, but you maintain complete security over the software and the control to grant specific approvals or permissions for multiple users.

Pros

• Integrates with Raiser's Edge CRM software to optimize the fundraising process.
• Provides donor management capabilities and unique insights like donor persona.
• Inbuilt communication and marketing tools.
• Provides security to protect your financial information and processes.
• It's a cloud-based software.

Cons

• It's expensive, especially for small organizations, and the upgrades could be costly.

Pricing is not readily available on the website, but you can request a demo to get a feel of the software. You might find the upgrades and services to be quite costly.

6. Sumac by Silent Partner

Customizable Accounting and CRM Software for Growing Nonprofit Organizations.

Sumac is ideal for small to mid-sized nonprofits that need CRM capabilities to streamline their accounting and fundraising tasks.

The product is offered by Silent Partner, a nonprofit-specific software company that has tailored solutions for nonprofits for almost three decades.

Best Features

• Robust Contact and Donor Management: Sumac is, first and foremost, a CRM software, so it's been built for managing your contacts and donors as well as their lifecycle.
• Donation Management: The software can also be used to process your online donations and manage payments so it can keep track of the critical aspects of your financial operations.
• Superb Flexibility: A significant advantage users of Sumac enjoy is that it's highly customizable. The program allows the use of add-ons that can be tweaked to capture information that is unique to your organization.
• Integrations: Sumac integrates with accounting software like Quickbooks so that it can streamline your reporting tasks. A website integration feature lets you customize donation pages that can be featured on your website. These pages can then be used to collect donor information.

Pros

• Offers a customizable CRM solution.
• Integrates with accounting services like Quickbooks.
• Builds custom donation pages with website integration feature.
• Offers PA-DSS compliant donation processing.
• It's cloud-based.

Cons

• The pricing model might make it harder for small nonprofits to scale with the software.

You have to contact sales to get pricing.

7. Araize FastFund Accounting

Best Fund Accounting Software for Small to Medium Nonprofit Organizations.

FastFund Online is a full suite of integrated services offered by Araize, a nonprofit-specific software provider.

One of such services is FastFund Accounting, a cloud-based fund accounting software that provides all the essentials for nonprofit accounting, including fund accounting and fundraising.

Best Features

• Compliance Reporting: The program is well-equipped for compliance reporting, so you can quickly generate financial statements that meet the guidelines of FASB, including the ASU 2016-14 directive. You can also use it to complete IRS-compliant forms like the 990, 990 N, and 990 EZ.
• Importing and Exporting: FastFund Accounting lets you import cash receipts, journal entries, client or vendor information, and other financial data incurred from your transactions, like your vendor invoices and client bills. The supported export modes are Excel, PDF, CSV, and HTML files.
• Customizations: FastFund Accounting offers customizable modules that can manage data and generate reports unique to your organization, besides providing expense and grant management for projects and activities. As intended, it's a complete accounting solution for managing your cash flow.
• Fund Accounting: Users get automatic fund balancing, account reporting, and transparent and accurate audit trails. There are reporting features for projecting and reporting revenues.
• Integrations: FastFund Accounting integrates with Araize's fundraising and payroll software so you can get the whole nonprofit accounting experience. Features like cost allocations, accounts payable, and accounts receivable are also made available through integrations.

Pros

• Provides a full-on accounting suite with essential features like budget creation, accounts payable and receivable, and income and expense tracking.
• Offers rich compliance reporting features.
• The data exporting supports various formats, plus the data importing is fast and convenient.
• Setup is free.
• It's cloud-based.

Cons

• It's a fast-developing software, but it's not as functional as more robust, enterprise-level programs.

Pricing

• FastFund Accounting has a standard price plan of $42 per month.
• There is a fundraising service with a monthly fee of $42.

Get started with any of FastFund Accounting’s plans.

8. Denali Fund by Cougar

Best Accounting Software To Aid Growing Nonprofits

Denali Fund is one of Cougar Mountain Software's suite of accounting solutions products.

The software solution is ideal for small to mid-sized organizations that need standard nonprofit fund accounting to manage and track their accounting processes.

Best Features

• Streamlined Accounting: With essential components like a secure audit trail, general ledger, accounts payable module, and more, you can maintain a transparent outlook on your finances. You can also manage grants, donations, and contacts.
• Flexible Infrastructure: As a growing nonprofit, your organization will significantly benefit from Denali Fund's growth-oriented model. The software has the option to integrate or remove extra modules, so you can adjust and add more robust features as you scale.
• Custom Reporting: The report writing is customizable so that you can track and manage data unique to your operations.
• Business Suite: The Denali business suite provides the best of Denali's accounting solutions. This service lets you manage your accounting with convenient features like intelligent analytics, pulse alerts, and multi-location inventory management.

Pros

• Integrates customizable modules and provides custom reporting.
• Has the option of adding extra and advanced modules to support scaling.
• Offers a standard payroll system as an add-on.
• Offers a business suite that provides intelligent analytics and inventory management.
• Allows a free trial.
• Offers a cloud-based model.

Cons

• Denali Fund is not cheap. Adding features or new users quickly gets expensive.

Pricing is not readily available on Cougar Mountain's website, so you have to contact the company to book a demo or get a price quote. However, new users get a 60-day free trial.

9. MoneyMinder

Best Accounting Software for Volunteer Groups

MoneyMinder is the best accounting software for nonprofits that wish to flee from the complicated maneuvers of enterprise-level or standard nonprofit software.

It's a simple and easy-to-use cloud-based accounting solution designed for volunteer-led organizations whose members are not so adept at or thoroughly committed to bookkeeping.

Best Features

• Streamlined Accounting: The software helps you handle your transactions and track your payments, expenses, and donations. It keeps a tail on your fundraising cash flow and lets you reach out to donors. MoneyMinder also handles bank reconciliation.
• Streamlined Reporting: True to its purpose, MoneyMinder makes it easy to record figures with quite comprehensive one-click reports. This convenience also extends to running your audits and creating accurate reports at the end of your fiscal year.
• Flexible Budgeting: Volunteer groups often organize events, so MoneyMinder lets you manage and create budgets that can be tailored to suit your unique plans and activities.
• Robust Integrations: MoneyMinder integrates with up to 12,000 different banks and popular payment services like Paypal and Square. A very convenient feature for volunteers and nonprofits is the option to create and integrate an online store with MoneyMinder. This online store can serve as a front for your fundraising campaigns and create a seamless link between payments/donations and the app.

Pros

• The program is elementary and straightforward to use.
• Integrates with multiple bank accounts and payment services.
• Offers an online store to help fundraising.
• Has a usable free version.
• Setup is free.
• It's cloud-based.

Pricing

MoneyMinder has a great free tool, but to get the best of the software, you need to upgrade to MoneyMinder Pro, which starts at an annual price of $179.

10. MIP Fund Accounting

Best Fund Accounting Software for Organizations with Vast and Complex Operations.

Nonprofits that have a strict focus on their fund accounting needs and want a cutting-edge accounting solution to effectively manage every single stage of their financial management should consider MIP Fund Accounting.

The program's vast functionalities are equipped to track every transaction and handle complicated finances.

Best Features

• Robust Reporting: With its multi-dimensional chart of accounts, intuitive dashboards, and custom report writing feature, you can create unique reports and effectively monitor every aspect of your financial operations. The system's extensive suite allows users to report on the expenses and accounting processes of multiple cost centers and departments within an organization at the general ledger level.
• Flexible Funding: MIP Fund Accounting removes the limit on the number of funding sources you can track. This flexibility also applies to your budgeting, so you can draw up and analyze unlimited budgets.
• Predictive Analytics: Apart from keeping a tight hold on complex financial activities unique to your organization, MIP Fund Accounting also provides predictive analytics. This means you can forecast financial scenarios and add an edge to your decision-making.
• HR and Payroll: There are payroll and HR management functionalities such as timekeeping and attendance tracking.

Pros

• Provides a full-on fund accounting service that manages your entire financial operation.
• Contains a multi-dimensional chart of accounts.
• Tracks unlimited funds and allows unlimited budgeting.
• Offers predictive analytics.
• Offers a payroll and human resource management platform.
• Has a cloud-based model.

Cons

• It's a complex program, so it might sometimes be challenging or time-tasking to work with.

MIP Fund Accounting offers the choice of an on-premise or cloud-based model. As for pricing, you can request a demo and get a quote for the accounting features that suit your needs.

How to Choose the Right Accounting Software for My Nonprofit Organization

While choosing the best nonprofit accounting software for your nonprofit organization can be overwhelming, you can save yourself from a lot of hassle by taking the following factors into consideration:

• Your most needed features.
• Your technology limitations and requirements.
• Your long-term budget (recurring subscriptions, upgrades, training costs).
• Whether you need a cloud-based or on-premise software.

Once you have a clear picture of your organization’s nonprofit accounting needs and capacity to adopt a new system, you can start shortlisting and comparing your options.

However, comparing the several available nonprofit software on the market consumes time and energy, and sometimes even money.

You can expedite the process by taking the following steps:

1. Determine Why You're Getting a New System: With the participation of board members, the accounting team, and relevant personnel, outline the problems the nonprofit software will solve for you.
2. Consider Your Most Needed Features: Your preferred solution will not provide you with every feature under the sun. But asides from basic features, the accounting system should have functionalities you consider paramount.
3. Consider Your Current Resources, and Scalability: Your preferred nonprofit accounting software should be compact enough to match your resources, but also flexible enough to scale as you grow.
4. Draw Up a Budget That Works in Your Favor: The total cost of ownership goes beyond the purchase or subscription fees. Consider recurring fees, implementation, and support costs.
5. Shortlist Solutions That Most Closely Meet Your Expectations: Read online reviews, comparison articles, online forums, watch product demos, and ask sales or customer support specific questions. With the info you’ve gotten from this research, trim your list down to the best 3 options.
6. Plan for Possible Shortcomings: Anticipate possible challenges to encounter while setting up the system and this will help you deal with them effectively if they ever arise.
7. Make Your Decision: Involve board members and all stakeholders when reviewing your options and make sure all parties have a say in the final decision as well.

It's essential to go for a solution that suits your size and infrastructure, as not choosing the right nonprofit accounting software could lead to inefficient operations and waste of resources.

Large organizations are better off with enterprise resource planning software than small business accounting software and vice versa.

Choosing nonprofit software that doesn’t match your resources can compromise the financial goals you've set and delay your true mission: helping people.

FAQs

Which Nonprofit Accounting Software Should I Pick?

Picking the right nonprofit accounting software depends on your organization's accounting needs.

Watching out for the scalability of your chosen solution is even more critical if you're a small to medium nonprofit organization aiming for growth.

One of the worst things that can happen is to exhaust a software solution too quickly and realize you'd have to waste more time and resources to adopt a larger nonprofit software.

The best accounting software for nonprofits let you upgrade and add more necessary features as you scale.

Here are some solutions that could be a great fit whether you're a small, big, or growing nonprofit.

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