Akaunting is a cloud-first (with a free self-hosted On-Premise option) accounting platform built to scale from one freelancer to a multi-company, multi-user…
Best for Akaunting: Akaunting fits a small business that wants a hosted, multi-user cloud option (Standard Cloud from $8/month) with room to add payroll, CRM, inventory, and POS apps as it grows, or that wants to self-host the free On-Premise Standard plan on its own server.
Best for Frappe Books: Frappe Books fits a freelancer or very small business that wants zero subscription cost, full offline/local control of their financial data, and doesn't need multi-user cloud access or add-on apps like payroll or CRM.
Akaunting: Akaunting offers both a free self-hosted On-Premise Standard plan and paid Cloud plans ($8-$145/month) hosted by Akaunting.
Frappe Books: Frappe Books is a desktop-only Electron app for Windows, macOS, and Linux with no official hosted cloud version.
Teams that want to avoid managing servers or need remote/multi-device access need a hosted option, which only Akaunting provides.
Multi-User and Multi-Company Scaling
Akaunting: Akaunting's cloud tiers scale from 1 company/1 user (Standard, $8/month) to unlimited companies and users (Ultimate Cloud, $145/month).
Frappe Books: Frappe Books' features describe a single local SQLite file with no documented multi-user or multi-company cloud sync.
Growing teams that add bookkeepers, accountants, or multiple entities need multi-user support that Frappe Books doesn't document.
Pricing Structure
Akaunting: Akaunting's cloud plans run $8/month (Standard) to $145/month (Ultimate), billed annually, on top of a free On-Premise option.
Frappe Books: Frappe Books has a single Free plan at $0 with no paid tier at all.
Budget-constrained freelancers avoid any subscription cost with Frappe Books, while businesses needing hosting pay a predictable monthly fee with Akaunting.
Add-On Business Apps (Payroll, CRM, POS)
Akaunting: Akaunting's Elite Cloud tier ($56/month) adds payroll, projects, inventory, and CRM apps, and Ultimate Cloud ($145/month) adds POS and budgeting.
Frappe Books: Frappe Books includes a built-in Point of Sale feature for free but has no documented payroll or CRM functionality at any price.
Businesses that need payroll or CRM alongside bookkeeping have to look beyond Frappe Books, while Akaunting bundles these as paid add-on apps.
Client Portal and Online Payments
Akaunting: Akaunting's feature set includes a client portal that lets clients view transactions and pay online, available from the Premium Cloud tier ($24/month).
Frappe Books: Frappe Books' documented features focus on local invoicing and reporting, with no client portal or online payment collection described.
Businesses that invoice external clients and want them to pay online need a portal, which is only documented for Akaunting.
Feature-by-Feature
Core Accounting
Feature
Akaunting
Frappe Books
Double-entry accounting
Available
Available
Recurring invoicing
Available
Not documented
Standard financial reports (P&L, Balance Sheet)
Available
Available
Point of Sale
Available
Available
Deployment & Access
Feature
Akaunting
Frappe Books
Free self-hosting
Available
Available
Hosted cloud/SaaS version
Available
Unavailable
Offline/local-only operation
Unavailable
Available
Cross-platform desktop app (Windows/macOS/Linux)
Not documented
Available
Business & Collaboration Tools
Feature
Akaunting
Frappe Books
Client portal with online payments
Available
Not documented
Multi-user / multi-company support
Available
Not documented
Payroll and CRM apps
Available
Unavailable
Pricing Compared
Starting price reflects the lowest paid tier, not the full cost for every team size or usage level.
Akaunting
Standard Cloud — $12/month ($8/month billed yearly) monthly or yearly
Premium Cloud — $36/month ($24/month billed yearly) monthly or yearly
Elite Cloud — $84/month ($56/month billed yearly) monthly or yearly
Ultimate Cloud — $218/month ($145/month billed yearly) monthly or yearly
Frappe Books
Free (Open Source) — Free N/A
Pros & Cons
Akaunting
Pros
Free, open-source self-hosted option with no per-user licensing cost
Low-cost cloud plans compared with mainstream accounting software
Translated into 50+ languages, useful for international freelancers and small businesses
Cons
Self-hosting requires technical setup and ongoing server maintenance
Entry-level cloud plan (Standard) is limited to one user and 1,000 invoices
Official Android app functions largely as a wrapper around the mobile web interface, and there's no dedicated native iOS app
Smaller ecosystem and support resources compared with larger incumbents like QuickBooks or Xero
Frappe Books
Pros
Completely free with no subscription, seat limits, or feature paywalls
Works fully offline, which suits users who want privacy and independence from cloud outages
Clean, modern interface built with Vue.js, unusual for free accounting software
Open-source codebase on GitHub that can be audited, self-hosted, or extended by developers
Data stored locally, giving users full ownership and easy backup or migration
Cons
No native multi-user or team collaboration support within the desktop app
No built-in payroll or advanced ERP modules found in sibling product ERPNext
No official mobile app for on-the-go invoicing or bookkeeping
Relies on community and GitHub-based support rather than dedicated customer service
Local-only data storage means users are responsible for their own backups and device security
Use Cases
Choose Akaunting: Akaunting fits a small business that wants a hosted, multi-user cloud option (Standard Cloud from $8/month) with room to add payroll, CRM, inventory, and POS apps as it grows, or that wants to self-host the free On-Premise Standard plan on its own server.
Choose Frappe Books: Frappe Books fits a freelancer or very small business that wants zero subscription cost, full offline/local control of their financial data, and doesn't need multi-user cloud access or add-on apps like payroll or CRM.
Need both: There isn't a realistic scenario for using both together; they serve the same core job (bookkeeping and invoicing) for a single business, so a team would pick one, not run both in parallel.
Akaunting
Freelancer Invoicing — Sending professional invoices and tracking payments as a solo freelancer.
Self-Hosted Small Business Accounting — Running accounting software on a company's own infrastructure for data control and no subscription fees.
Multi-Client Bookkeeping — Accountants managing books for multiple client companies from one account.
Frappe Books
Freelancer invoicing and bookkeeping — Solo consultants and freelancers use Frappe Books to send invoices, track payments, and generate profit and loss statements without paying for cloud accounting software.
Small retail bookkeeping — Small shop owners use the built-in Point of Sale module alongside double-entry accounting to manage day-to-day sales and inventory-linked transactions.
Privacy-focused offline accounting — Businesses that prefer to keep financial records off third-party servers use Frappe Books for fully local, self-managed bookkeeping.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Frappe Books really free with no hidden costs?
Yes, Frappe Books has a single Free plan at $0 with no paid tier documented; it is fully open source.
Can Akaunting be self-hosted for free like Frappe Books?
Yes, Akaunting's On-Premise Standard plan is free to self-host with source code available, separate from its paid Cloud plans.
Does Frappe Books support multiple users or cloud access?
The documented features describe a local, offline desktop app storing data in a single SQLite file, with no official multi-user cloud version.
Which is cheaper for a solo freelancer just starting out?
Frappe Books costs nothing at all, while Akaunting's cheapest cloud plan is $8/month (or free if self-hosted On-Premise).
Does either tool include a client portal for online payments?
Akaunting documents a client portal for viewing transactions and accepting payments online starting on its Premium Cloud tier; Frappe Books does not document this feature.
Which one includes Point of Sale?
Frappe Books includes POS for free as a core feature. Akaunting includes POS only on its Ultimate Cloud plan at $145/month.