As of September 2025, Ember no longer provides accounting services and their bookkeeping platform is exclusively available to Starling customers only. Not every small business will bank with Starling – and they shouldn’t have to – so if you’re looking for an alternative, you’re in the right place.

We’ve looked at 3 alternatives to Ember, the features they have in comparison, and how much they cost.

 

What alternatives are there to Ember?

There are a number of alternatives on the market for you to consider, but in this comparison we’re going to focus on a cross-section of the market by looking at FreeAgent, Pandle, and Xero.

 

Using FreeAgent as an alternative for Ember

FreeAgent is an excellent alternative if your bookkeeping needs are fairly straightforward. For example, if you need the basics covered like invoices, expenses, bank feeds, and VAT etc.

Ember also has the same core features, with automated bookkeeping, invoicing and reporting – and it’s also MTD-approved. But it does lack some useful features that you will find in FreeAgent. This includes things like:

  • Direct tax submissions: If you’re a micro-entity or limited company, FreeAgent can submit your End of Year accounts and Corporation Tax returns straight to HMRC. Ember is much more limited in comparison.
  • Specific VAT schemes: FreeAgent is set up to cater for different VAT schemes, unlike Ember which doesn’t support more complex VAT systems such as the Annual Accounting Scheme for example
  • Stock management features: FreeAgent has built-in management features for managing inventory and tracking sales and purchases. Ember doesn’t have this feature built-in which can be a letdown, especially if you run an ecommerce business.

Ember has also stopped their accounting services which is a huge change. It means anyone who continues using the platform must now look for a new accountant who is prepared to collaborate on the Ember platform. Whilst FreeAgent doesn’t come with an accountant, it’s designed to be used with one – and you can add them as a user free of charge.

FreeAgent packages start out at £16.50 a month for the first six months if you’re a limited company – but the price then increases to £33 a month after this period. This is pricey, especially for small businesses, so we do have cheaper alternatives to get into.

Read our full review of FreeAgent here

 

Pandle as a replacement for Ember

Pandle is another great choice if you’re looking for similar software to Ember. It has a lot of the same features – along with some additional ones – for free, or with more automated features available for £5 per month.

All the automated tools are there – like recurring invoices, payment reminders, bank feeds, receipt uploads, as well as things like project budgets, a mileage tracker, and stock control.

If you compare Ember’s free (for Starling customers) platform to Pandle Pro (£5 per month), there are quite a few key features missing, including:

  • Live chat bookkeeping support: with Pandle you’ll receive support from bookkeepers who have in-depth knowledge of the software and understand bookkeeping
  • Inventory and stock control: Similar to FreeAgent, Pandle has the ability to track inventory and stock levels
  • Mileage tracker: Pandle Pro makes mileage tracking easy, with a feature that automatically tracks journeys and converts them into mileage expense claims
  • Projects: Pandle allows you to split your projects up so you can manage your expenses and monitor how profitable each project is – perfect for a business with lots of varied clients!
  • Unlimited users: As Pandle’s website explains, you won’t be forced to pay extra so your business can flourish. You can add an unlimited number of users without having to kick out any existing users. You also have complete control over who has access to what.

Both offer core accounting tools like invoicing, expense tracking, and MTD VAT compliance. However, Pandle includes more built-in operational and collaboration features.

Read our full review of Pandle

 

Xero

Xero provides more advanced and scalable accounting tools, while Ember is mainly for self-employed people and small businesses that need basic accounting. So, if you’re planning on scaling up your business – Xero could be the perfect accounting software for you.

Key features Xero has that Ember is missing out on includes:

  • Online file storage: You can manage all your shared documents, contracts, bills and receipts securely
  • Detailed analytics: This includes short-term cash flow projections (up to 90 days) which is a game changer for lots of businesses (you will need to be on Xero Analytics plus for this though)
  • Third-party app ecosystem: Xero’s App Store offers over 1,000 integrations, enabling businesses to build a customised accounting system with tools for CRM, e-commerce, and more. It’s certainly not cheap, but
  • Customisable Charts of Accounts: Xero lets you customise your chart of accounts, while Ember uses a fixed, colour-coded one for simplicity.

Xero also has other great features like multi-currency support and detailed user permissions, so you have a lot more flexibility without losing control.

Their packages start off at a fairly decent price of £16 per month – but what you get is limited. The comprehensive plan jumps up to £47 per month, but whilst pricey – if your business needs advanced features this is the tool for you. If you’re a much smaller business though, steer clear of paying for things you don’t need!

Take a look at the full Xero review

Still looking for more options? See all our accounting software reviews.