Puzzle vs Spotlight Reporting (2026): which should you pick?

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

Pick Spotlight Reporting if

• Fits if you are an accountant giving clients monthly reports from Xero or QuickBooks
• Works for a finance lead who needs forecasts and dashboards over one or two entities

Look elsewhere if

• Skip it if you need a ledger: it reports on one and does not replace it
• Pricey if you run one small business, at $75 a month for a single organization
• Watch out: the pricing page says the monthly figures but not whether billing is monthly or yearly
• Not for you if you use neither Xero nor QuickBooks, as those are the only ledgers named
• Watch out: prices exclude sales tax, and franchise pricing is on a separate page we did not read

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.

Spotlight Reporting

• It reports on data from an accounting ledger; it does not replace one. The pages name Xero and QuickBooks.
• The pricing page states a monthly figure but not whether the plans are billed monthly or yearly.
• Prices are shown excluding sales tax.
• Franchise and network pricing is on a separate page and was not read for this listing.

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.

Spotlight Reporting

Management reports

Builds narrative and visual reports from accounting data, with Spotlight AI suggestions and executive summaries layered on the calculated figures.

Forecasting

Three-way forecasts, budgets and scenarios for cash flow and planning, with consolidated forecasting across entities.

Dashboards

Drag-and-drop KPI dashboards. Advisor Starter allows 1 dashboard per organization; higher advisor plans allow unlimited.

Consolidation

Group reporting across entities and currencies is included from Advisor Starter and Business 10.

ESG reporting and certification

Spotlight Sustain ESG reports come with Advisor Growth and up, and the advisor plans include free certification for the team.

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.

Spotlight Reporting

• Business$75

  per month for 1 organization, billing basis not stated

  Finance-team plan: reporting, forecasting and dashboards for 1 organization. Extra organizations $65 a month each.

• Business 10$349

  per month for up to 10 organizations, billing basis not stated

  Finance-team plan with multi-entity consolidation and up to 3 training sessions a year. Extra organizations $30 each.

• Advisor Starter$349

  per month for up to 10 client organizations, billing basis not stated

  Accountants' plan: reporting, forecasting, dashboards, consolidation, certification and one training session a year.

• Advisor Growth$549

  per month for up to 25 client organizations, billing basis not stated

  Adds unlimited dashboards, Spotlight Sustain ESG reporting, a Customer Success Manager and unlimited training.

• Advisor Scale$995

  per month for up to 75 client organizations, billing basis not stated

  Adds priority support, strategic reviews and tailored training for the team.

• EnterpriseCustom

  For accounting firms with more than 75 client organizations; the full platform with a dedicated senior success manager.

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.

Spotlight Reporting

No public discounts listed.