In short: Software and bank comparisons on this site are scored on six weighted criteria, from published pricing and documentation plus hands-on use where I have it. The verdict is decided before any commercial question is asked. Not every provider is covered, and the page says which ones are.
A comparison is only worth reading if you know what it is measuring. This page sets out the criteria, the weightings, what is tested against what is read from a pricing page, and what gets a product excluded.
The six criteria
- Real cost over twelve months (25%): the price after the introductory discount ends, including any add-ons a sole trader actually needs (VAT filing, bank feeds, receipt capture). A “from £16” headline that cannot file VAT is scored at the price of the tier that can.
- Fit for a UK sole trader (25%): Self Assessment support, Making Tax Digital for Income Tax readiness and HMRC recognition, UK bank feeds, CIS where relevant. Features aimed at limited companies or US users count for nothing here.
- Day-to-day usability (20%): invoicing, expense capture, bank reconciliation and the mobile app, judged on hands-on use where I have it and on the provider’s own documentation where I do not. The page says which.
- Honesty of the pricing page (10%): whether the advertised price is the price you pay, how clearly limits are stated, and how much notice is given of increases.
- Support and lock-in (10%): how you get help, and how easily you can export your data and leave.
- Track record (10%): price-rise history, outages, and how the provider has treated existing customers when it changed terms.
What is tested and what is read
Prices are always read live from the provider’s own pricing page on the date shown at the foot of the article, never from a search result or a third-party summary. Feature claims are checked against the provider’s documentation. Usability judgements come from hands-on use where the page says so; where it does not, they rest on documentation and are labelled that way. I do not fabricate testing.
What disqualifies a product
No UK Self Assessment support; no clear published pricing; no way to export your data; or a regulated category, meaning investments, cryptoasset trading, insurance, mortgages and pensions, where this site does not make recommendations at all.
How the verdict is reached
Each product is scored on the six criteria, and the pick that leads the article is the one the scores lead to. The commercial question, meaning whether a link to that product can earn a commission, is asked only after the verdict is written, and the answer cannot change it. Several leading picks on this site pay nothing.
Comparisons carry, or are being updated to carry, a section on where the winning product is weaker and what to use instead, because no tool wins for everyone.
What is not covered
Not every provider is reviewed. Coverage starts with the tools UK sole traders most commonly ask about and expands as time allows. A product not appearing in a comparison means it has not been assessed, not that it failed.
When reviews are re-checked
Prices and features are re-verified at least quarterly and whenever a provider announces a change; the check date on each article is the date to trust. Where a provider has announced a future price, both the current and the future figure are shown with the date it changes.
Last reviewed 26 August 2026.