Houston Bookkeepers Tip – 7 Amazing Online Accounting Tools for Small Businesses

We’ve previously discussed 8 places to get free bookkeeping forms and were amazed with the tons of free and paid resources there are on the web that make life so much easier. Even if you have a professional bookkeeper or accountant, you’ll be impressed with what we were able to find.

1. Best Business Planning Calculators: BPlans

Did you know that many businesses that go under do not do so because of profit issues? It is more likely due to a cash flow issue, i.e. having assets tied up in the wrong place simply because owners don’t know where it is, how to get it, or what to do with it. But you’re in luck! The site B Plans has tons of useful tools for business owners, including these business planning calculators. Choose from tools like cash flow, starting costs, and many others.

2. Best Bank Tools: Bank Rate

We all need banks, but which is the best? With Bank Rate, you can find the most current rates banks in your area are offering, not just in Houston. The homepage prompts you to make choices in mortgages, auto loans, CD rates, checking and savings accounts, and much more. They also have tons of calculators as well, and be sure to stick around to read an article or two from their banking and market experts.

3. Best Business Credit Card Ranker: CreditCards.com

Those little plastic devils can be tempting, but which is right for you? Save yourself the trouble of researching each card individually and visit CreditCards.com. This particular section lists the best offers in business credit cards today, and the site is updated daily. They clearly highlight which cards are featured, aka the business behind the card has paid some fee to be on the site, but they also list their cards in order of their preference, which seems to be fairly impartial.

4. Best Tax Tools: IRS (we don’t like it any more than you do)

Tax time can be difficult no matter what the size of your business. And if you have questions before, during, or after the filing process, stop by this page from the IRS. It has several tax tools that help answer many common questions such as when your refund will arrive, an electronic filing PIN request, and even the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS) – a free tax payment system that allows you to pay your federal taxes by phone or online.

For more free tax tools on the lighter side, try efile.com with cute items such as the DEPENDucator to let you know if someone can be counted as a dependent. They also offer a Head of Household calculator, information on the Earned Income Credit (EIC), and how to get your filing status.

5. Best Spreadsheets: Google Spreadsheets

What would a good accountant be without tons of spreadsheets? No need to worry about the answer given that Google Docs allows you to create, edit, share, download, and embed their spreadsheets as you see fit. You never have to “save” your files and you can access them anywhere you’d like – all from your Google account. They also have an app to make it possible to edit spreadsheets from your phone. You don’t have to pay for MS Excel anymore, but even if you do have it, Google Spreadsheets can be saved and imported with its compatible formats.

6. Best Business Budgeting Tool: Personal Capital

While there’s no doubt that there are tons of finance sites that are great for personal budgeting, this site goes above and beyond by being more business centered. For starters, the site allows you to access all your important accounts on one little tool. It also tracks everything from budgeting to credit card expenditures and even your investments. Personal Capital will also make suggestions on what to spend your capital on and has tons of other expert advice.

However, if you want something a tad simpler that does just about the same, there’s no beating Mint.com. It also allows you to link all of your accounts and automatically incorporates each transaction into your account, so no more searching for what you bought and when or who paid you and how.