KashFlow Review

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Pros

• Suited for UK businesses
• Unlimited users
• Numerous features
• Numerous integrations
• VAT support

Cons

• Unintuitive UI
• Difficult to use
• Poor US customer support

Overview

For small businesses, the name of the game of is cash flow — or in this case, maybe it’s KashFlow.

KashFlow is a cloud-based accounting program designed to help business owners manage their business finances. The software was created in 2005 with quite the backstory. Duane Jackson, the founder of KashFlow, is a self-taught programmer who ended up in jail for drug trafficking. After his release, he turned his life around and made a career for himself as a successful software developer.

KashFlow is ideal for UK businesses in search of VAT support and unlimited users. The software offers a good number of features, including contact management, expense tracking, project management, fixed asset management, and more. The company also offers integrated UK payroll and HR modules, making it a one-stop-shop business solution.

However, there are a few areas where the software could stand improvement. Mainly, KashFlow has poor customer support and simply doesn’t flow. The software is difficult to navigate and is occasionally glitchy.

For Jackson, KashFlow was his second chance, but is this software your chance to successfully handle your business’s accounting? Read our complete review to find out.

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Pricing

Rating: Good

KashFlow offers three pricing plans. There is no annual contract and you can cancel your plan at any time. Payments are made monthly, but there is a discount for purchasing annually. KashFlow has a free 30-day trial, no credit card required. Since the company is a UK-based business, you will have to calculate the exchange rate.

Charities get six months of free use, and there is a generous referral program where you can earn commission on each user you successfully sign up with KashFlow.

Starter

• £8/month + VAT
• 10 invoices
• Unlimited quotes
• Reconcile up to 25 bank transactions
• Contact management
• Expense tracking
• Live bank feeds
• Accounts payable
• Mileage tracking
• VAT
• one user

Business

• £15/month + VAT
• Unlimited invoices
• Unlimited quotes
• Unlimited bank transactions
• Contact management
• Expense tracking
• Live bank feeds
• Accounts payable
• Mileage tracking
• VAT
• Multi-currency support
• Customizable dashboard
• Multiple users

Business + Payroll

• £21/month + VAT
• Unlimited invoices
• Unlimited quotes
• Unlimited bank transactions
• Recurring transactions
• Unlimited receipts
• Unlimited contacts
• Unlimited bank accounts
• Multi-currency support
• Customizable dashboard
• Open API
• Payroll up to five employees (the UK only)
• Unlimited users

Extras

There are some extra services and costs to be aware of:

• Additional Employees: Adding additional employees to your payroll plan costs £1.10/per additional employee.
• Automatic Enrollment: Automatic enrollment for your employees costs £1/per employee.
• KashFlow HR: KashFlow offers two HR plans as well —  KashFlow HR Core and KashFlow HR Plus. The plans range from £7.50 – £20/month and require a 12-month contract. HR features include record management, salary modeling, compliance, team management, and more. Visit KashFlow’s site for more details.
• KashFlow GP Software: KashFlow has recently released a GP-specific software for general practitioners needing an accounting, payroll, and HR solution.
• Accountant: KashFlow combined with IRIS (a popular UK accountancy platform) to give accountants free access to their client’s KashFlow accounts. Accountants can manage and monitor client information and create custom dashboards.
• CashPlus: KashFlow partners with CashPlus, a prepaid company debit card that offers an expense management solution for businesses in need of extra funds. CashPlus works directly with the KashFlow app. Contact the company directly to learn more.

Cloud-Based Or Locally-Installed

Cloud-based; no downloads or installation required.

Hardware & Software Requirements

Rating: Good

KashFlow is cloud-based software, meaning the program runs on nearly any device so long as you are using one of these supported browsers:

• Internet Explorer 8+
• Mozilla Firefox 9+
• Safari 5+
• Google Chrome

KashFlow recommends Chrome for running payroll. KashFlow also requires you to enable cookies and javascript in order for the features to work correctly. You’ll need Adobe PDF Reader for payroll and Microsoft Office to view reports in Excel. You’ll also need a screen resolution of 1024 x 768 minimum.

KashFlow has mobile apps available for Apple products (iOS 8.0+) and Androids (varies).

Specific Size Of Business

The feature set and pricing plans of KashFlow make the software a good choice for freelancers and small to mid-sized businesses. The software is ideal for UK users in need of payroll and strong VAT support.

The larger plan has unlimited users, making it a scalable option for growing businesses. There are six different user roles and permissions available. Accountants have free access to KashFlow. The software does not support multiple companies, meaning you’ll need a separate company file for each company. However, there is a discount using KashFlow to manage multiple businesses.

The software is available in nearly 250 countries, although payroll is only available for the UK. US users can still use the software successfully; they’ll just have to jump through some hoops (like calculating sales tax manually and adding it as an item on invoices). For more US-friendly options, check out our top-rated accounting solutions.

Accounting Method

Rating: Excellent

Cash-basis and accrual accounting.

Ease Of Use

Rating: Poor

The KashFlow has a nice UI and appears organized at first glance, but the software is difficult to navigate and certain features are hard to find until you learn the ins and outs of the software (even logging into the software is cumbersome). The software is also occasionally glitchy.

Features

Rating: Good

KashFlow offers an impressive number of features, especially for UK users. Here’s an overview of what KashFlow has to offer.

• Dashboard: KashFlow has a well-organized and appealing dashboard with charts that mark your business’s current financial state. There are graphs labeled Alerts, Financial Overview, Account Status, Sales Growth, and Banking. The Business plan adds the ability to customize your dashboard.

• Invoicing: KashFlow offers two invoice templates with very basic customizations. You can customize the font, font size, logo, and information displayed; however, there aren’t many options to improve the overall design. You can easily send recurring invoices, create custom invoice reminders, and record batch invoice payments. Discounts can only be calculated based on your contact’s preset discount information, so you can’t edit discounts on each actual invoice. US users will have to manually calculate and add sales tax as an item line.

• Estimates: You can create quotes and easily convert them into invoices. There is no client portal in KashFlow, so customers will receive their estimates and invoices via .pdf.

• Contact Management: KashFlow lets you manage your customers and suppliers and record their contact information. KashFlow offers a unique feature called sources where you can record how you acquired each customer. There are also up to 20 custom fields and 20 custom checkboxes available for contacts. You can assign default payments terms, VAT, and discounts to each contact.

• Expense Tracking: KashFlow has vastly improved this feature. You can manage your business’s income and expenses by manually entering transactions, uploading them via .csv, or connecting to live bank feeds. You can set bank rules, so the software will automatically match your transactions. Note: Like all software using live bank feeds, KashFlow partners with Yodlee, which may violate some banks’ Terms and Conditions. Consult with your bank to see whether live bank feeds are a good choice for you.

• Bank Reconciliation: You can easily reconcile your accounts in KashFlow.
• Chart Of Accounts: KashFlow offers a default chart of accounts (although the software doesn’t use traditional language for the account types). You can edit codes and create new codes, but you can’t delete old codes.
• Fixed Asset Management: You can record and manage fixed assets in KashFlow. The software even offers depreciation calculation.
• Accounts Payable: You can create purchases in KashFlow. While the software doesn’t use the term “bills,” you can record your bills by adding your bill supplier and selecting the proper account.

• Inventory: KashFlow does offer basic inventory, but the feature is poorly developed and difficult to navigate. You can add products manually or import them. However, even if you import your items, much information still has to be recorded manually. The software does let you record wholesale prices and inventory counts and will alert you when your inventory is low.

• Project Management: KashFlow offers project management and basic job costing. You can create projects, add a customer, add a project status, and enter a budget. The software will show your overall profitability for each project, and you can add your project to an invoice to bill your customers. You can attach expenses and notes to projects, but there is no way to track time or add project tasks.

• Payroll (Business + Payroll Only): UK users can take advantage of KashFlow payroll.
• Reports: KashFlow offers 50 reports and covers the basic accounting reports needed to run a business. The software also offers an impressive number of VAT and self-assessment reports to help UK users with their taxes. One of the best additions is called the Health Check report. This unique report looks at your business and gives you a score on how well you’re doing. You’ll also find suggestions for improving that score to 100%.
• Journal Entries: KashFlow supports journal entries.
• Purchase Orders: You can create purchase orders in KashFlow.
• Credit Memos: You can create credit memos, or “credit notes,” as they’re referred to in KashFlow.
• Packing Slips: The software makes it easy to create and print packing slips for your invoices.

• Default Email Templates: You can create default email messages for invoices, quotes, remittance advice, statement, purchase orders, and payment receipts.
• Envelopes: KashFlow offers the unique ability to print envelopes with your customer’s details on them for faster mailing.
• VAT Support: This is where KashFlow shines. KashFlow has excellent VAT support for UK users. The software also handles EC sales, withholding tax, CIS, and helps you complete your self-assessment. You can even electronically send your VAT report directly to HMRC.

• Mileage Deduction: You can track mileage deductions. This is one of KashFlows most seamless and well-developed features. When you add your travel address, KashFlow automatically calculates your mileage and trip value. You can claim VAT on mileage as well.

• Multiple Currencies (Business & Business + Payroll Only): With upgraded plans, you get multi-currency support for over 95 currencies. Exchange rates are updated daily and you can easily view your exchange rate gains and losses.
• Importing & Exporting: You can import much of your data into KashFlow via .csv, or you can migrate from Sage or QuickBooks. In terms of exporting, you can have KashFlow send you automatic monthly backups of your company file data.

Customer Service & Support

Rating: Poor

For US users, KashFlow has incredibly poor customer support, with email response times taking days. UK users might have better luck as they are in the same time zone as the support team and have access to phone support. The key word being might. There are many customer reviews that report otherwise and complain about KashFlow’s customer support.

Luckily, the software does offer a decent knowledgebase. Here are all of the support options available:

• Phone: UK users can utilize KashFlow’s phone support (US users can call the number too but are subject to international phone charges).
• Email: The main form of support is email. Responses (at least in the US) take one to three days.
• Support Form: There is also a contact form available.
• Live Chat: There is a live chat feature available on KashFlow’s website, which operates on UK business hours.
• In-Software Help: You can search the KashFlow knowledgebase from within the software. You can also submit a support form and enable KashFlow customer support representatives to have access to your account in order to help you solve any issues.
• Knowledgebase: KashFlow has a knowledgebase that offers basic how-to’s, tips, troubleshooting advice, and FAQs.
• Community: KashFlow has a user community called Canvass where users can connect, share ideas, suggest new features, and ask questions.
• YouTube: KashFlow has an extensive YouTube channel featuring how-to videos, a helpful video for getting started, as well as another channel for customer testimonials and recent updates.
• Webinars & Course: The virtual KashFlow Akademy hosts webinars and courses, which are available at an additional cost. There are some pre-recorded webinars that you can purchase as well.
• KashFlow Blog: KashFlow has a blog chock-full of how-to articles, guides, and business tips.
• Social Media: KashFlow maintains active Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn profiles.

User Reviews

Rating: Fair

Negative Reviews & Complaints

KashFlow users are split fairly evenly between positive and negative experiences. The software receives only 1/5 stars on TrustPilot (based on 37 ratings) and 2.2/5 stars for the mobile app on iTunes. Here are the complaints users have:

• Poor Customer Service: The most common complaint is that KashFlow has poor customer support. Several users complain about the support offerings and that email responses are slow.
• Navigation Issues: Some users complain that the software is difficult to navigate.
• VAT Miscalculations: Quite a few UK users report that their VAT calculations were completely wrong, which made tax time great fun.
• Difficult Setup: Several users say that the initial setup is difficult and that it takes some time to initially learn the software.

Positive Reviews & Testimonials

As far as positive reviews go, Kashflow receives 4/5 stars on Capterra (based on 63 ratings), 4/5 stars on G2 Crowd (based on 10 ratings),  and 4/5 stars on Serchen (based on 34 ratings). These are the things that customers loved most about KashFlow:

• Easy To Use: The most common praise is that KashFlow is easy to use and is full of good features.
• Jargon-Free: Many business owners like that KashFlow is free of accounting jargon, so the average person can use the software without needing a degree or financial background.
• UK-Based: Users appreciate that KashFlow is designed for UK businesses and especially appreciate the VAT support.
• Payroll Made Easy: Users love that KashFlow makes payroll simple and easy.

Here’s what a couple of users are saying:

For the first time I feel like I’m really on top of my accounts and not fretting about having missed something vital! Knowing the accounts are accurate is worth its weight in gold and so reassuring. Thank you for this fabulous software!

We have been using KashFlow for three years from the start of our business. KashFlow Payroll is easy to use after initial training and makes monthly payroll an easy and smooth process. Year end processes are easy to follow.

Kashflow has helped me enormously in my business…I’m not an expert on book-keeping, but the day to day interface is so easy. I used to struggle to keep on top of accounts, panicking at the end of each quarter, but now all the information is easily at hand.

Easy to use without any accounting jargon! I’ve been using the system for well over 6 months now and can’t stress how much its made my processes more streamlined.

Integrations & Add-ons

Rating: Good

KashFlow has 50+ integrations, including six different payment processing options. API is available for developers (with the Business + Payroll plan).

Interested in accepting online payments from your customers? Read our comprehensive merchant account reviews to learn the pros and cons of popular providers and see which payment processing option is best for your business.

Security

Rating: Good

KashFlow uses a 1028 bit RSA key SSL Encryption for all of their data as well as protective firewalls. Data is regularly backed up to London servers that are hosted by Rackspace.

Final Verdict

KashFlow has a lot going for it. The software offers an impressive number of features, unlimited users, and affordable pricing plans. For UK users, in particular, the software offers great VAT support and self-assessment support. The other major selling point is that KashFlow can be a complete business solution with integrated accounting, payroll, and HR.

However, the software is not intuitive and is difficult to navigate. Adding poor customer support to the mix doesn’t make the software easier for users. Certain features, such as the invoice templates and inventory, don’t seem fully developed and there’s no time tracking.

For US users, you’ll have to jump through the hoops of a UK-based software, and given that the software is already difficult to navigate, we recommend taking a look at our top accounting solutions instead.

For UK users, KashFlow may still be a decent option and the pros may outweigh the cons for your specific business. However, we highly recommend you give the software a 14-day trial and compare KashFlow with other UK-based programs such as FreeAgent first. Let us know what you think!