Bench vs Puzzle (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Puzzle grades higher than Bench: 2.0 against 1.6 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 12, 2026 · graded Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Bench grades higher on features. Puzzle grades higher on value for money, the free plan and platforms. They get the same grade on ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Bench
Bookkeeping done by an assigned bookkeeper, with optional tax filing
Puzzle
AI-driven accounting software for startups and small businesses
Which one is for you
Pick Bench if
- Fits if you'd rather pay someone to do the monthly books than do them yourself
- Makes sense if you're a small US business that also wants tax filing from the same provider
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you're a small outfit: $399 a month for the base plan and $649 with tax filing
- Skip it if you want a free plan or a trial, because there's neither
- Not for you if your business is outside the US
- Watch out: monthly tax pricing needs a 12-month commitment, and bigger QuickBooks plans start at $999 a month
- Watch out: Bench paused operations in December 2024 and resumed in January 2025 under Employer.com
Pick Puzzle if
- Fits if you're a startup that wants AI to categorize transactions
- Works for founders who link Stripe, Mercury or Ramp
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you lean on the AI: 25 lifetime credits on Starter and Core, 100 a month on Complete
- Skip it if you're a team: Starter has 1 seat and Core 5, with unlimited from Complete at $100
- Pricey if you want bookkeeping done for you: from $171 a month with Core, and it needs a subscription
- Watch out: a QuickBooks migration costs $149 one-time unless you add catch-up bookkeeping or Full Service
How we grade them
| 1.6GPABenchWeak | 2.0GPAPuzzleFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | D$199 a month for Light and $399 for the base plan, against $26 in the middle for this category. A person does the work, but that's still the dearest tenth. | C$25 a month on annual billing ($30 monthly) for Starter and $60 for Core, close to this category's $26 middle. |
| Free plan and trial | FNo free plan and no trial on the pricing page. The 20% discount only comes with paying for 12 months at once. | DA free trial is offered, but the pricing page doesn't say how long it lasts. No free plan. |
| Features | BMonthly books, year-end financials, tax filing, catch-up work and a QuickBooks Online option from one provider. The listing shows no gap in the bookkeeping job. | CAI categorization and close, cash and accrual books, startup metrics, an API and MCP. Multi-entity and variance analysis need Core, and AI credits are limited. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. It's a service, so you hand over account access and answer your bookkeeper's questions instead of learning software. | CNo store rating on record. You connect banks and payment tools and review what the AI books. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWeb only, for US businesses only. It reads your accounts, and works inside QuickBooks Online on the QBO plans. | BWeb only, with Stripe, Mercury, Ramp, Brex, Gusto, QuickBooks, Claude and ChatGPT, plus an API and MCP. |
| Best for | hands-off monthly bookkeeping for US businesses | AI-run books for startups |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Bench and Puzzle. How we grade
Price against what you get
Bench starts at $199 a month and scores 2.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Puzzle starts at $25 a month and scores 2.3.
They score the same, and Puzzle starts $174 a month lower. Of the other accounting and invoicing tools on the chart, 16 score higher than Bench for less, and 9 score higher than Puzzle for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Puzzle also covers invoicing and expense tracking.
At a glance
| Bench | Puzzle | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Paid | Free trial |
| Starts at | $199 per month, billed monthly (Bookkeeping Light) | $25 per month, billed annually ($30 billed monthly) |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | None listed | Free trial offered; length not stated on the pricing page |
| Web | ||
| Made by | Bench Accounting | Puzzle |
| Price read from | bench.co | puzzle.io |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Bench
- Bench serves U.S.-based businesses; it is a service with a monthly fee, not software you run yourself.
- The base Bookkeeping plan is $399 a month, and Complexity 3 QuickBooks plans start at $999 a month.
- Monthly tax pricing needs a 12-month commitment bought at least 3 months before the filing deadline.
- Bench paused operations in December 2024 and resumed in January 2025 under Employer.com.
Puzzle
- Starter allows one seat and Core five; unlimited seats start at Complete.
- AI credits are limited: 25 for the lifetime of Starter and Core, 100 a month on Complete.
- Bookkeeping services start at $171 a month with Core, for up to $10K in monthly expenses, and need an active subscription.
- A QuickBooks migration costs $149 one-time unless catch-up bookkeeping or Full Service is added.
Key features
Bench
- Assigned bookkeeper
- Each business is matched with a bookkeeper who reconciles accounts transaction by transaction and can be reached by phone, message or video call.
- Monthly books and year-end financials
- Plans deliver up-to-date monthly books and year-end tax-ready financial statements, with reviews by multiple bookkeepers each month.
- Business tax filing
- The tax plans add filing of business income tax returns by licensed tax professionals, with up to four advisory calls a year.
- Catch-up bookkeeping
- Past months that were never reconciled can be cleaned up; the page says catch-up for the current year is free with an annual plan.
- Work inside QuickBooks Online
- A separate QBO plan has Bench's bookkeepers work in your existing QuickBooks account instead of Bench's own software.
- Read-only account access
- Bench says it connects to financial accounts with read-only access to import transactions for bookkeeping.
Puzzle
- AI categorization and close
- Categorizes most transactions automatically, reconciles accounts and drafts financial statements; an AI suite adds chat, cowork and close tools.
- Cash and accrual books
- Keeps both bases, with accrual automation for prepaid expenses and fixed assets and revenue recognition on Complete.
- Startup metrics
- Cash, burn, runway and margin insights plus spend and revenue tracking, from the Core plan.
- Integrations
- Connects to Stripe, Mercury, Ramp, Brex, Gusto and other finance tools through live API links.
- Accounting services
- Expert Reviewed and Full Service bookkeeping, priced by monthly expenses and sold only alongside a subscription.
- API and MCP
- An API and MCP server let you connect the books to Claude and ChatGPT.
Plans
Bench
Bookkeeping Light$199
per month, billed monthly
Monthly books for micro businesses with $250K a year or less in revenue; 20% off with annual payment.
Bookkeeping$399
per month, billed monthly
Monthly books, year-end tax-ready financials and unlimited contact with your bookkeeper; $3,830 a year if paid annually.
Bookkeeping + Tax$649
per month, billed monthly
Bookkeeping plus business income tax filing and up to four tax advisory calls a year; $6,230 a year if paid annually.
Full-service tax$300
per month, 12-month commitment
Tax filing and year-round advisory without bookkeeping; $2,880 a year if paid annually.
QBO Bookkeeping: Complexity 1$399
per month, billed monthly
Cash-basis books kept inside your own QuickBooks Online, up to 500 transactions a month.
QBO Bookkeeping: Complexity 2$699
per month, billed monthly
Cash or accrual books in your QuickBooks Online, up to 2,000 transactions a month.
Puzzle
Starter$25
per month, billed annually ($30 billed monthly)
1 seat; 85 to 90% of transactions categorized automatically, cash and accrual books, 25 lifetime AI credits.
Core$60
per month, billed annually ($72 billed monthly)
5 seats; adds cash, burn and runway insights, variance analysis, custom chart of accounts and multi-entity.
Complete$100
per month, billed annually ($120 billed monthly)
Unlimited seats; adds AI accuracy review and reconciliations, revenue recognition, priority support; 100 AI credits a month.
Scale$300
per month, billed annually ($360 billed monthly)
High-volume accounting with subledgers, no transaction or integration limits, backup and restore; 300 AI credits a month.
Ways to pay less
Bench
- Annual discount
Save 20% on a 12-month plan
Bench's pricing page lists 20% off its bookkeeping, tax and QuickBooks plans when you pay for 12 months at once.
Puzzle
- Annual discount
12 months for the price of 10
The pricing page's yearly option charges for 10 months of the monthly price, which is $25 against $30 on Starter.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Bench or Puzzle?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Puzzle is cheaper to start with: $25 a month, against $199 a month for Bench. Bench starts at $199 per month, billed monthly (Bookkeeping Light), and Puzzle starts at $25 per month, billed annually ($30 billed monthly).
Which has a free plan, Bench or Puzzle?
As of Nov 12, 2026, neither Bench nor Puzzle has a free plan. Puzzle has a free trial.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.