Alegra vs Zoho Books (2026): which should you pick?

Pick Alegra if

• Fits if you run a Spanish-speaking small business in a country Alegra covers
• Works for firms that want an accountant user included free

Look elsewhere if

• Pricey if you issue many invoices, because the price climbs with each invoice band
• Watch out: bank reconciliation, recurring entries and multicurrency need Pro at $95.23
• Skip it if you want a mobile app, as the Panama page lists none
• Not for you if you don't read Spanish, since site and plans are in Spanish
• Watch out: plans and prices differ by country, and these are Panama's with tax included

Pick Zoho Books if

• Fits if your business turns over less than $50K a year and you want to pay $0
• Works for businesses already running other Zoho apps

Look elsewhere if

• Tight if your team grows, since plans cap users at 3, 5, 10 or 15 and more cost $3 each a month
• Pricey if you need warehouses or Amazon and eBay channels, which start on Elite at $120 a month
• Not for you if you're past $50K revenue and hoping to stay free
• Tight if you bill a lot: invoices are capped at 1,000 a year on Free, 5,000 on Standard and 25,000 on Premium
• Watch out: automatic bank feeds need Standard, and the free plan can't take paid add-ons other than autoscans

Alegra

• Prices and plans differ by country; the figures here are the Panama accounting plans, which include ITBMS tax.
• The monthly price rises with the number of sales invoices issued each month.
• Paying yearly takes 10% off the Panama monthly price.
• The site and plan pages are in Spanish, and the Panama page lists no mobile app.

Zoho Books

• The free plan stays free only while revenue is under $50K a financial year, and paid add-ons other than autoscans cannot be added to it.
• Each plan caps users at 3, 5, 10, 10 or 15; more cost $3 per user a month, or $2.50 billed annually.
• Every plan caps invoices and bills a year: 1,000 on Free, 5,000 on Standard, 10,000 on Professional and 25,000 on Premium.
• These are US prices; Zoho lists separate editions for 18 countries plus a global one, including the UK, Canada, India and Australia.

Alegra

Electronic invoicing

Issues electronic invoices that follow each country's rules, and every Panama accounting plan includes it.

Accounting and reports

Accounting, payments and collections, quotes, and accounting and administrative reports from the entry plan upward.

Inventory

Item catalog with price lists and mass item updates, and multiple warehouses and advanced costing from Pro.

Bank reconciliation

Connects bank accounts or loads statements in CSV or XML to reconcile movements in bulk, from the Pro plan.

API and accountant access

API integration arrives on Plus, and every plan includes one free user for the company's accountant.

Zoho Books

Invoicing and online payments

Quotes, invoices, recurring invoices, retention payments and automatic reminders, with a customer portal for paying online.

Banking and reconciliation

Reconcile accounts on every plan. Automatic bank feeds start on Standard, along with recurring expenses and period locking.

US tax and 1099s

Track sales and use tax, manage W-9s and 1099 contractors, and e-file 1099-MISC and 1099-NEC forms from Standard up.

Projects and inventory

Professional adds timesheets, project profitability and basic inventory. Elite adds warehouses, serial and batch tracking and shipping labels.

Automation and customization

Workflows, approvals and custom roles from Professional; custom modules, buttons and functions from Premium; Blueprints on Elite.

AI in accounting

Ask questions about the books in plain English, spot anomalies and automate collections, plus receipt autoscans on every plan.

Alegra

• EmprendedorUSD 48.15

  per month for up to 100 invoices, ITBMS included

  1 user plus 1 free accountant user, 1 warehouse, accounting and reports. Panama accounting pricing.

• PymeUSD 73.83

  per month for up to 250 invoices, ITBMS included

  2 users, online payments, due-date reminders and price lists on top of Emprendedor.

• ProUSD 95.23

  per month for up to 500 invoices, ITBMS included

  3 users and 3 warehouses, with bank reconciliation, recurring transactions, cost centers and multicurrency.

• PlusUSD 133.75

  per month for up to 1,000 invoices, ITBMS included

  5 users and 5 warehouses, with API access, custom roles and custom reports on top of Pro.

• PremiumCustom

  For businesses above 1,000 sales invoices a month, with users to suit the business.

Zoho Books

• Free$0

  Revenue under $50K a year. 1 user and 1 accountant, up to 1,000 invoices a year, recurring invoices, payment reminders and 1099 filing.

• Standard$15

  per organization / month, billed annually

  $20 billed monthly. 3 users, bank feeds, sales and use tax, 1099 e-filing, custom reports, API access and 5,000 invoices a year.

• Professional$40

  per organization / month, billed annually

  $50 billed monthly. 5 users, sales and purchase orders, multiple currencies, timesheets, project profitability, retainers and inventory.

• Premium$60

  per organization / month, billed annually

  $70 billed monthly. 10 users, fixed assets, budgets, cash flow forecasting, a vendor portal and custom modules.

• Elite$120

  per organization / month, billed annually

  $150 billed monthly. 10 users, advanced inventory with warehouses and batch tracking, Etsy, eBay and Amazon channels, and up to 2 Shopify stores.

• Ultimate$240

  per organization / month, billed annually

  $275 billed monthly. 15 users and built-in business intelligence with 50+ prebuilt visualizations, KPI tracking and embeddable reports.

Alegra

• Annual discount

  10% off when paying yearly

  The Panama pricing page offers a pay-annually option marked 10% off against paying monthly.

Zoho Books

• Annual discount

  Save up to 25% with yearly billing

  Yearly billing cuts Standard from $20 to $15 a month, Professional from $50 to $40, Premium from $70 to $60, Elite from $150 to $120 and Ultimate from $275 to $240.