The best MTD software depends on your situation. Here are our picks.
No single product is best for everyone. We ran our own finder for ten common situations, scoring every product the same way, and show the top results below. Commission is never part of the score.
Last checked 23rd September 2026.
How we picked. Each product in our database of 21 checked routes is scored on the same things: whether it fits your kind of income, whether it covers what you need, the bank account you already have, the normal yearly cost, and whether it suits a spreadsheet or a phone. Where several products score the same, we list them as a tie rather than artificially picking a winner. Our ranking method explains the detail.
| Your situation | Our top picks | Normal yearly cost | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sole trader, not VAT registered, starting fresh | Clear Books Free, Pandle Free, Sage Sole Trader Free, the Pie app (level) | £0 | Free, with records, quarterly updates and the year-end return in one product. Sage's free plan has the tightest monthly limits. |
| Sole trader, VAT registered, wants simple bookkeeping | Pandle Free, My Tax Digital (level) | £0 | The two free products in our data that also cover VAT |
| You want to keep your spreadsheet | My Tax Digital, then ANNA, then Coconut bridging | £0 (My Tax Digital, ANNA) to £99.98 (Coconut) | Each can send figures from a spreadsheet. ANNA's free offer is stated for the 2026 to 2027 tax year only. |
| Landlord with one to five properties, using a spreadsheet | My Tax Digital, then ANNA | £0 | Handle property income from a spreadsheet without a subscription. Without a spreadsheet, the free products in the first row score level. |
| Both a sole trader and a landlord | Clear Books Free, the Pie app, My Tax Digital (level) | £0 | Each handles both kinds of income in one route |
| You want full accounting software, with VAT | FreeAgent Sole Trader, then Xero Ignite | £228, then £259.20, both including VAT | Both cover Income Tax and VAT with full accounts. QuickBooks Sole Trader Plus is cheaper but does not submit VAT returns. |
| Landlord with six or more properties, wanting full accounts | FreeAgent for Landlords, then Landlord Studio Pro | £120, then £172.80, both including VAT | Property accounting built in. FreeAgent needs a separate account if you also have self-employment income. |
| You already bank with Tide | Tide's built-in tool | £0 software cost | Uses the account you already have. Transaction fees can apply, and VAT is not included. |
| You already bank with Mettle | FreeAgent through Mettle | £0 software cost | Full FreeAgent, including VAT, as long as you make at least one Mettle transaction a month |
| You already have a NatWest, RBS or Ulster Bank business account | FreeAgent through your bank | £0 software cost | Full accounting software while you keep the account |
Costs are standard yearly prices, using the annual plan where a provider offers one, not introductory offers. Provider pages checked 22nd and 23rd September 2026. Prices and features change, so check the provider's own page before you sign up.
Why free often wins
For most sole traders and small landlords, Making Tax Digital asks for three things: digital records, quarterly updates to HMRC, and a year-end tax return. Several free products do all three. HMRC itself says free products are available for those with simple tax affairs but there may be limits on how the product can be used
. If your tax affairs are simple, you may not need to pay for extra features. Our free MTD software page sets out the catch with each free route.
When a paid product is the better pick
Paid software earns its place when you need more than the minimum: VAT in the same product, full accounts, an accountant working alongside you, bank feeds that sort transactions for you, or a larger property portfolio. On our data, for a sole trader who does not bank with Mettle or a NatWest group bank, FreeAgent Sole Trader on its annual plan is the cheapest full accounting product that covers both Income Tax and VAT, at £228 a year including VAT. Xero Ignite, which shows monthly prices, comes next at £259.20 a year including VAT. QuickBooks Sole Trader Plus costs less, but QuickBooks says direct VAT submission to HMRC is not available on that plan, so a VAT-registered trader would need a higher QuickBooks plan or separate VAT software.
If your bank already includes MTD software
This is the situation most people miss. Tide, Starling, Monzo, Mettle and the NatWest group banks all offer Making Tax Digital tools with some business accounts. If you already bank with one of them, its built-in tool often comes out on top, because it costs nothing extra and your transactions are already there. Check the conditions first: Mettle needs a transaction each month, and when we checked, Starling described its end-of-year return as coming soon. Our business account page covers each one.
Keeping your spreadsheet
If you already keep good records in a spreadsheet, you may not need new software at all. So-called bridging software reads your figures and sends them to HMRC. My Tax Digital does this free; Coconut's bridging route costs £99.98 for a complete year, because its quarterly updates and year-end submission are charged separately. Our spreadsheet guide explains when bridging software is a good fit.
What we do not score
We do not give star ratings for customer service or ease of use, because we have no fair way to measure them for every product. We do not use short introductory discounts, because the normal price is what you will pay for most of the time. And we never let commission change the order: where a provider pays us, its link is marked Ad, and its position stays the same.
Questions people ask
What is the best MTD software for a sole trader?
For a sole trader who is not VAT registered and keeps simple records, a free product is usually the best choice. On our scoring, Clear Books Free, Pandle Free, Sage Sole Trader Free and the Pie app come out level at £0. Sage's free plan has the tightest monthly limits.
What is the best MTD software if I am VAT registered?
If you want to stay free, Pandle Free and My Tax Digital both include VAT in our checked data. If you want full accounting software, FreeAgent and Xero Ignite both handle Income Tax and VAT. QuickBooks Sole Trader Plus is cheaper, but it does not submit VAT returns.
What is the best MTD software for landlords?
A landlord with a few properties and a spreadsheet can usually use a free route such as My Tax Digital. A landlord with a larger portfolio who wants full property accounting scores best with FreeAgent for Landlords or Landlord Studio Pro.
Does commission affect your picks?
No. Commission is not part of our scoring. Where a provider pays us, its link is marked Ad, and its position does not change.
Find my best fit See all 21 checked routes
Sources
- GOV.UK, Choose the right software for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax, checked 23rd September 2026.
- Xero, UK pricing plans; FreeAgent, pricing; QuickBooks, UK pricing, all checked 23rd September 2026.
- Every other provider's own page, checked 22nd or 23rd September 2026. The address for each is in our comparison database.