Inkle vs Pilot (2026): which should you pick?

Pick Inkle if

• Fits if you run a US company and want books and tax filing from one provider
• Works for a startup with 2 bank accounts or fewer on the free plan

Look elsewhere if

• Tight if you need accrual books, as the free plan is cash-basis only and accrual needs Standard at $30 a month
• Tight if you have more than 2 bank accounts on the free plan
• Pricey if you need bookkeeping, as $99 a month covers only 30 transactions
• Watch out: tax filing is from $850 a year for a business return and $1,350 with one owner's personal return
• Not for you if your books are outside the US, as the pricing page does not describe other countries

Pick Pilot if

• Fits if you're a small company that wants someone else to do the books and file the tax
• Makes sense if you run on Stripe, Shopify or Mercury

Look elsewhere if

• Pricey if your spending grows: Core rises with monthly expenses, $499 a month at $30,000
• Not for you if you want to keep your own books, as it's a service
• Skip it if you want accrual books on the cheapest plan, as Essentials is cash-basis
• Watch out: tax filing starts at $1,000 or more a year for a single-member LLC and must be bought with bookkeeping
• Watch out: companies above $200,000 a month in expenses get a custom plan

Inkle

• The free Basic plan connects up to 2 banks and keeps cash-basis books only.
• Monthly bookkeeping is priced by activity; the $99 entry tier covers up to 30 transactions a month.
• Tax filing starts from $850 per year for a business return and from $1,350 with one owner's personal return.
• Aimed at US companies; the pricing page does not describe support for other countries' books.

Pilot

• It is a service, not self-serve software: you hand the books to Pilot instead of keeping them yourself.
• Tax filing starts at $1,000+ a year for a single-member LLC and must be bought with Pilot bookkeeping.
• Core pricing climbs with monthly expenses, and companies above $200,000 a month get a custom plan.
• The pricing page does not say how long the free trial offered in the site header lasts.

Inkle

Accounting software

Bank reconciliation, invoicing and cash-basis financials on the free plan, with accrual financials on Standard.

AI-suggested categorization

Standard adds rule-based and AI-suggested transaction categorization and AI-enabled receipt matching.

Dedicated bookkeeper

The Monthly plan assigns a bookkeeper who handles reconciliations, payroll entries and monthly review calls.

Federal tax filing

Business tax returns (Form 1120, 1120-S or 1065) with a 6-month extension and one state's franchise tax or annual report.

Stripe revenue ingestion

Standard pulls revenue data in from Stripe automatically and reports revenue metrics.

Incorporation and mailroom

The site also sells US company incorporation, a virtual US address with registered agent, and dissolution.

Pilot

AI-assisted bookkeeping

Transactions from bank and credit card feeds are categorized by AI, reconciled and closed each month; Core adds a human bookkeeper.

Tax filing

Federal and state returns for LLCs, partnerships, S-corps and C-corps, sold as a yearly service on top of Pilot bookkeeping.

CFO services

Monthly, bi-weekly or weekly calls with a finance lead, plus a budget and forecast model, from $1,750 a month on the Basic tier.

Reports and dashboards

Financial reports delivered on the 10th business day on Core, or the 6th on Custom, with dashboards and AI answers about past transactions.

Operations services

Bill payments, invoicing and payroll work can be added, priced from an estimate based on monthly volume.

Inkle

• Basic$0

  Accounting software for up to 2 banks with cash financials, invoicing, bank reconciliation and a Form 1099 vendor report.

• Standard$30

  per month ($300 per year, billed annually)

  Adds accrual financials, rule-based and AI-suggested categorization, receipt matching, multi-currency, Stripe revenue ingestion and bookkeeper access.

• Monthly bookkeeping$99

  per month for up to 30 transactions, billed monthly

  A dedicated bookkeeper, monthly review calls and standard financials. Above 30 transactions a month it becomes a full-service plan.

Pilot

• Essentials$99

  per month, for up to $100,000 in monthly expenses

  Cash-basis books from bank and card data, monthly close, year-end package for your tax preparer and in-app support.

• Core$299

  per month, up to $15,000 expenses, billed annually ($399 monthly)

  Adds a US-based bookkeeper, accrual or cash basis and a custom chart of accounts. Price rises with expenses: $499 a month at $30,000.

• CustomCustom

  For larger or more complex companies: existing QuickBooks file, AR, AP, payroll administration and CFO advisory. Sold through sales.

Inkle

• Annual discount

  16% off Standard with annual billing

  Standard is $30 a month or $300 a year, which the pricing page labels as 16% off.

Pilot

• Other savings

  Discount on Core for pre-revenue startups

  Pilot says startups that are still pre-revenue can contact it for a discount on the Core plan.