No single product is best, and HMRC recommends none. On 19 October 2026, the plans we compared for plumbers ran from free to £39 a month plus VAT (£46.80 including VAT).
For a plumber or heating engineer, software has a daily job before a tax one: a quote from the van, an invoice paid by card on the doorstep, a merchant receipt for that morning's parts, and sometimes a site job for a builder with CIS taken off. Unless you are exempt, Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (MTD) has applied since 6 April 2026 if your qualifying income was over £50,000 in 2024-25, starts on 6 April 2027 if it was over £30,000 in 2025-26, and on 6 April 2028 if it is over £20,000 in 2026-27. GOV.UK rules checked 19 October 2026.
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Seven products, as listed on 19 October 2026
Prices are from each provider's own UK page. The last column is what HMRC's software finder showed on 18 October 2026 for CIS deductions on your tax return.
| Product and plan | Price as listed | Including VAT at 20% | Offer and limits listed | CIS on HMRC's finder |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Xero Simple | £7 a month + VAT | £8.40 | Not VAT registered only: quotes, 10 invoices, receipt capture | Ready now |
| Xero Ignite | £18 a month + VAT | £21.60 | 90% off for 6 months for new customers; quotes, 20 invoices, 10 bills | Ready now |
| Xero Grow | £39 a month + VAT | £46.80 | 90% off for 6 months for new customers; no invoice cap shown | Ready now |
| QuickBooks Sole Trader | £10 a month + VAT | £12 | 90% off for 6 months for new customers; receipt capture | Ready now |
| FreeAgent | £19 a month or £190 a year + VAT | £22.80 or £228 | Half price for the first 6 months (monthly) or first year (annual); Smart Capture reads 10 receipts and bills a month, unlimited for £5 + VAT | Ready now |
| Pandle Pro | £5 a month + VAT | £6 | 14-day trial; unlimited users; a free plan is also listed | In development |
| Clear Books Sole Trader | Free, £5 or £15 a month + VAT | £0, £6 or £18 | No transaction limits on the free plan | Ready now |
| Zoho Books | Free; Standard £12 a month + VAT | £0 or £14.40 | Free plan: 1 user, 1,000 invoices a year, 50 receipt scans a month | In development |
| SumUp Accounting | Free for MTD for Income Tax | Free | Says it already keeps a digital record of your income; bank transactions by CSV file | In development |
FreeAgent is free while you keep a NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland or Ulster Bank business current account, or a Mettle account if you make at least one transaction a month.
What each one says it does for the jobs you do
- Quotes and invoices. Xero, QuickBooks, FreeAgent, Pandle Pro and Zoho Books Free list quotes or estimates. SumUp says each invoice you create adds to your income record.
- Bank feeds and receipts. Xero, QuickBooks, FreeAgent, Pandle Pro, paid Clear Books plans and Zoho Books Standard list bank feeds. Every paid plan in the table lists receipt capture, and so do Zoho Books Free and SumUp. If you buy parts daily, a 10-a-month reading cap runs out in a fortnight.
- Job costing. FreeAgent and Pandle Pro list projects. Zoho Books Free manages up to 3 projects. Xero keeps projects for Ultimate, £70 a month plus VAT.
- CIS. Xero includes subcontractor CIS calculations on all plans, with contractor returns a £5 a month plus VAT extra from Ignite. QuickBooks Sole Trader covers subcontractors only. Clear Books' free plan says it works for CIS subcontractors, with CIS submissions on its Medium plan. Zoho Books submits CIS returns on Professional, at £24 a month plus VAT.
- VAT. Clear Books Sole Trader Plus is the only plan we checked whose pricing page names the domestic reverse charge.
Which of your work is CIS
HMRC's CIS manual (CISR14090) says replacing even a central heating boiler is not installing a system of heating, and CIS 340 excludes the servicing and maintenance of heating systems. A householder paying you direct is not a CIS contractor. Installing a whole heating system, or fitting a bathroom, for a builder is covered. Does CIS apply to plumbers goes job by job.
You must register for VAT once your taxable turnover for the last 12 months goes over £90,000, or if you expect it to in the next 30 days alone. Domestic call-outs follow the normal VAT rules, because HMRC's technical guide says the reverse charge does not apply to private domestic customers. Standard or reduced rate CIS work for a builder registered for VAT and CIS, who has not told you in writing that they are an end user or intermediary supplier, usually takes the reverse charge.
What this means for you
If nearly all your work is servicing, repairs and boiler swaps for householders, choose on how payments and receipts arrive. SumUp's free tool may suit card-reader users: HMRC's finder listed it ready for sole traders on 18 October, and SumUp's help centre says you submit updates from its dashboard. If builders pay you with CIS taken off, pick a product the finder shows as CIS ready now. The MTD software guide for plumbers covers the finder, and what bookkeeping costs compares paying someone.
Our Trades Tax plan will keep your books from your bank feed. Coming later. Not available yet: starts once our HMRC registrations are complete. Once our registrations are complete, we'll send your quarterly updates and tax return to HMRC for you, after you confirm the figures. Trades Tax is £35 a month or £350 a year including VAT; monthly plans can add VAT returns for £10 a month. We don't do CIS contractor returns, so if you pay subcontractors, software that files them, such as Xero with its contractor add-on or QuickBooks Simple Start and above, is the better fit.
Steps to choose
- Use the free MTD check to see when MTD starts for you.
- Count a normal month: quotes sent, card payments, merchant receipts and CIS statements.
- Split last year's jobs into householder work and work for builders with CIS taken off.
- Rule out plans whose invoice or receipt limits are below that.
- If builders pay you, check the product shows CIS as ready now on HMRC's finder.
- If you are VAT registered, ask in writing whether it handles the domestic reverse charge.
- Work out the price after any offer, including VAT, then try a month of real jobs.
The trades section has more, including what a self-employed plumber can claim.
Hold your place on the trades waitlist
We’ll email you when Trades Tax opens, with the founding offer while places last. No payment is taken.
Questions people ask
Does HMRC recommend any accounting software for plumbers?
No. GOV.UK says every product on its software finder has been through HMRC's recognition process, and that HMRC does not recommend any product or software provider.
I buy parts at the merchant most days. Does that matter when choosing?
Yes. Several plans cap receipt reading. As listed on 19 October 2026, FreeAgent's Smart Capture reads 10 receipts and bills a month (unlimited for £5 a month plus VAT), though you can still attach more by hand, and Zoho Books Free scans 50 a month.
Do I need CIS in my accounting software if I mainly do boilers?
Possibly not. HMRC's CIS manual says replacing even a central heating boiler is not installing a heating system, and CIS 340 excludes servicing. A householder paying you direct is not a CIS contractor. You need it once a builder pays you for covered work, such as a new heating system.
Which software handles the domestic reverse charge?
Of the pricing pages we checked on 19 October 2026, only Clear Books named it, on its Sole Trader Plus plan at £15 a month plus VAT. The others did not mention it there, so ask the provider before you rely on it.
My card reader pays out after fees. How should that go in?
GOV.UK says that if you only know income after costs, find the full amount and record the income and the costs separately. In our reading, that means the full takings as income and the card fees as an expense.
Sources
- Choose the right software for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (GOV.UK, checked 19 October 2026)
- Find software that works with Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (GOV.UK software finder, product pages read 18 October 2026, checked 19 October 2026)
- Find out if and when you need to use Making Tax Digital for Income Tax (GOV.UK, checked 19 October 2026)
- Use Making Tax Digital for Income Tax: Create digital records (GOV.UK, checked 19 October 2026)
- CISR14090: The Scheme: construction operations: building service systems (HMRC Construction Industry Scheme Reform Manual, checked 19 October 2026)
- Construction Industry Scheme: a guide for contractors and subcontractors, CIS 340, Appendices A and C (GOV.UK, checked 19 October 2026)
- Check when you must use the VAT domestic reverse charge for building and construction services (GOV.UK, checked 19 October 2026)
- VAT domestic reverse charge technical guide (GOV.UK, checked 19 October 2026)
- Register for VAT: When to register (GOV.UK, checked 19 October 2026)
- Xero UK: Pricing plans (checked 19 October 2026)
- QuickBooks UK: Sole trader accounting software (checked 19 October 2026)
- QuickBooks UK: Pricing, Sole Trader Plus plan features (checked 19 October 2026)
- FreeAgent: Pricing (checked 19 October 2026)
- Pandle: Pricing (checked 19 October 2026)
- Clear Books: Pricing (checked 19 October 2026)
- Zoho Books UK: Pricing (checked 19 October 2026)
- SumUp: Making Tax Digital (checked 19 October 2026)
- SumUp Support: SumUp Making Tax Digital tool (checked 19 October 2026)
This is general information to help you understand the rules. It isn't tailored to your circumstances, so check your own position before acting on it.
Righto Tax is a trading name of NJG Consultancy Ltd, registered in England and Wales, company number 16095900. Registered office: Jubilee House, East Beach, Lytham St Annes, FY8 5FT.
What happens next
- Use the free Making Tax Digital checker to see your own start date and deadlines.
- See what Righto Tax for Trades does for you, and join the waitlist.
- Questions about this page? Email hello@rightotax.co.uk.