Countingup review (2026): is it worth £5 a month?
UK business current account with built-in bookkeeping
Black Friday: is there a Countingup sale?
Countingup report card
Fair · out of 4.0 · graded Nov 13, 2026
Best for a UK sole trader who wants bank and books in one app
Countingup is a UK business current account with the bookkeeping built in: categorised transactions, invoices, receipts and VAT returns to HMRC. The monthly fee climbs with how much money lands in the account, and there is no browser or desktop version, so it only suits people happy to run their business from a phone.
Who Countingup is for
- Fits if you are a UK sole trader or a one-or-two-director limited company who does admin from a phone
- Works for owners who want business banking and VAT filing under one login
Who Countingup is not for
- Skip it if you want a browser or desktop app, because the listing shows phone apps only
- Not for you if you are a partnership, charity or trust, or your company has more than two directors or corporate shareholders
- Pricey if money flows through it, since the fee rises from £5 to £12 to £20 as deposits grow
- Watch out: more than 3 free transfers or Direct Debits a month cost 27p each, ATM withdrawals £1 and foreign card spending 3%
Why Countingup gets a 2.2
Five grades, each with its reason. The GPA is their average: an A is 4 points, an F is none.
- BValue for money£5 a month while deposits are under £750, against $14 where the cheaper quarter of accounting tools starts. It goes to £12 up to £7,500 and £20 beyond, so a busy business pays more.
- CFree plan and trial3-month free trial, then the subscription starts. There is no free plan, and the listing does not say whether a card is needed.
- CFeaturesCategorising, invoices, receipt photos, VAT filing and a tax estimate cover a sole trader's basics. No payroll or stock, and it is built only for UK sole traders and limited companies.
- CEase of useNo store rating on record. You open a bank account and connect it before the bookkeeping does anything.
- CPlatforms and integrationsiOS and Android only; the listing shows no web or desktop app. Integrations on record are iwoca and HMRC.
What these grades rest on. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Countingup's own pages on 12 November 2026. Not based on using the product, and shorter than our full reviews. How we review and grade.
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<a href="https://toolgpa.com/tools/countingup#review"><img src="https://toolgpa.com/badge/countingup.svg" alt="Countingup: 2.2 GPA on ToolGPA" width="196" height="56"></a>Where Countingup stands among accounting and invoicing tools
Countingup's GPA of 2.2 is higher than 22 of the 65 other accounting and invoicing tools we grade, and level with 15.
It stands best on value for money (B, above 48 of 65) and worst on ease of use (C, above 1).
Its paid plans start at about $6.70 a month, against a middle price of $18.09 for the category: 5 of the 54 others that charge start lower.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 2.0 out of 4. 5 tools score higher and cost less.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 66 accounting and invoicing tools we grade, cut by the letter each got. Countingup’s own letter is outlined.
- BValue for moneyAbove 48 of 65, level with 9
- CFree plan and trialAbove 15 of 65, level with 34
- CFeaturesAbove 4 of 65, level with 46
- CEase of useAbove 1 of 65, level with 56
- CPlatforms and integrationsAbove 1 of 65, level with 11
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 58 accounting and invoicing tools. Further left costs less, and higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. Point at a dot to see which tool it is.
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
Keep Countingup, or make your own?
Keep it
To replace Countingup you would be making live feeds from your bank, which take an agreement with each bank or a service that has them. That is not a weekend's work, with an AI app builder or without one.
It costs $80.39 a year.
What you could make
- Invoicing, expense tracking and reports: an app builder makes these well.
What you could not
- Live feeds from your bank, which take an agreement with each bank or a service that has them.
- A real app for iOS and Android. Something home-made would be a web page.
What this rests on. Countingup’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
What is Countingup?
Countingup is an app-based business current account for UK sole traders and limited companies, with accounting tools built in. Income and expenses are categorized automatically, and the app creates invoices, stores receipts, estimates tax and files VAT returns to HMRC. The account itself is provided by Griffin Bank Ltd, and the monthly subscription depends on how much is paid into the account.
Worth knowing
- Open to UK residents aged 18 or over who are sole traders or directors of limited companies; partnerships, charities and trusts are not supported.
- Limited companies must be limited by shares, with up to two directors and all shareholders being individuals.
- Fees apply beyond 3 free account transfers and outgoing Direct Debits a month (27p each), plus £1 per ATM withdrawal and 3% on foreign transactions.
- An app is needed to open and use the account; no desktop or browser app is listed on the pages read.
Key features
- Business account with accounting
- Payments in and out are categorized automatically, with cashflow and performance reporting in the app.
- Invoices and payment links
- Create and send invoices from the app, see which are unpaid and get a notification when a payment lands.
- Receipt capture
- Photograph receipts in the app and attach them to the matching transaction.
- VAT and tax
- VAT returns are filed to HMRC through a Making Tax Digital-compliant tool at no extra cost, with a running tax estimate and deadline reminders.
- Tax pots
- A tax pot sets money aside, and the page says deposits into it earn 1.45% variable interest.
- Accountant access
- An Accountant Hub lets an accountant see the data they need through secure access.
Countingup pricing
As of Nov 12, 2026, Countingup is a paid product with a free trial, starting at £5 per month for up to £750 deposited monthly, after a 3-month free trial.
- Starts at
- £5 per month for up to £750 deposited monthly, after a 3-month free trial
- Free plan
- None
- Free trial
- 3-month free trial; the monthly subscription starts after it.
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Entry | £5per month while total monthly deposits are £0 to £750 | Includes all banking, accounting and tax features. The page does not name the tiers; they are set by deposits. |
| Mid | £12per month while total monthly deposits are £750.01 to £7,500 | Same features as the entry tier, priced by how much money comes into the account. |
| Unlimited deposits | £20per month for unlimited monthly deposits | Same features, with no cap on deposits. |
Read from countingup.com on Nov 12, 2026. Prices change, so confirm with Countingup before you buy.
Works with
- iwoca
- HMRC
Countingup alternatives
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- Countingup vs IRIS KashFlow
Free trial · from £13.50/mo
Common questions
Does Countingup have a Windows app?
No Windows app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 12, 2026. Countingup is listed for iOS and Android.
Does Countingup have a macOS app?
No macOS app was listed when its pages were read on Nov 12, 2026. Countingup is listed for iOS and Android.
Is Countingup open source?
Countingup is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Nov 12, 2026.
Sources for this page
The prices, plans, platforms and features above were read from these pages on Nov 12, 2026.