Accounted vs Tide: Which Is Best for Sole Traders

Introduction

Tide has established itself as one of the UK's most popular digital business bank accounts, serving over half a million small businesses. With its built-in accounting features and integrations, it positions itself as a one-stop shop for business finances. But is a banking app with accounting features the same as a dedicated bookkeeping platform?

We will compare Tide and Accounted honestly, acknowledging Tide's strengths while explaining where a purpose-built bookkeeping tool offers more.

What Tide Offers

Tide is fundamentally a business bank account. It comes with a current account, a debit card, invoicing, expense categorisation, and integrations with accounting software like Xero, QuickBooks, and FreeAgent. The free plan covers basic banking, while paid plans add features like cashback and accounting integrations.

Accounted is a dedicated bookkeeping and tax management platform built specifically for UK sole traders. It does not replace your bank account. Instead, it connects to your existing accounts through Open Banking and handles the bookkeeping, tax calculations, and HMRC filing.

Pricing

Tide's free plan covers basic business banking with no monthly fee. The Tide Plus plan costs £9.99 per month and adds features like automated categorisation and accounting integrations. Tide Cashback costs £49.99 per month for 1% cashback on card spending.

Accounted starts at £14 per month for the Starter plan, with Professional at £24 per month. Full details are on our pricing page. The cost difference reflects the depth of bookkeeping, tax, and AI features included.

Bookkeeping and Categorisation

Tide allows you to categorise transactions manually within the app, and the Plus plan adds automated categorisation suggestions. These categories are relatively basic and designed for simple expense tracking rather than detailed HMRC-compliant bookkeeping.

Accounted uses Penny, an AI bookkeeper, to categorise transactions automatically using HMRC-compliant categories. Penny's three-tier reasoning system handles the vast majority of transactions without your input. She learns your spending patterns, recognises merchants, and applies the right tax treatment. When she is uncertain, she asks you via WhatsApp rather than making assumptions.

MTD Compliance

Tide itself is not MTD-compliant. To file MTD returns, you need to connect Tide to a compatible accounting platform like Xero, QuickBooks, or FreeAgent. This means paying for an additional subscription and managing data across two platforms.

Accounted has MTD compliance built in. You can file VAT returns and Self Assessment directly to HMRC without needing any additional software. Everything stays in one place.

Receipt Management

Tide lets you photograph receipts through its app and attach them to transactions. It works, but it means opening the Tide app, finding the transaction, and manually attaching the image.

Accounted handles receipts through WhatsApp. You photograph a receipt and send it to Penny. She reads it using OCR, extracts the amount, date, and vendor, categorises the expense, and matches it to your bank transaction. You can also forward email receipts to your Receipt Magnet address. The entire process happens in apps you already use.

Invoicing

Tide offers solid invoicing features. You can create branded invoices, send them to clients, and track payment status. When clients pay into your Tide account, the invoice is automatically marked as paid. This is a genuinely useful feature.

Accounted's invoicing module is still in development. For invoicing specifically, Tide currently has the advantage.

Tax Features

Tide provides a basic tax estimate based on your income and expenses. It gives you a rough idea of what you might owe, but it does not factor in allowable expenses, tax reliefs, or specific rate calculations.

Accounted provides comprehensive tax intelligence. Penny calculates your estimated Income Tax and National Insurance in real time, tracks your position against VAT thresholds, identifies potential tax reliefs, and warns you about upcoming payment deadlines. The calculations use the current HMRC rates and factor in your specific circumstances.

Multi-Bank View

Tide only shows your Tide account. If you use other banks, credit cards, or payment platforms, you cannot see them within Tide.

Accounted connects to any UK bank through Open Banking. You get a single view of all your business finances, which is essential for accurate bookkeeping if your money flows through multiple accounts.

Mileage and Expenses

Tide does not offer mileage tracking or guided expense claiming.

Accounted lets you log mileage via WhatsApp using HMRC-approved rates. Tell Penny about a business trip and she calculates the allowance, asks if it was a return journey, and records it properly. The expense claiming assistant guides you through what you can and cannot claim, helping you maximise legitimate deductions.

CIS Support

Tide has no CIS features. Construction workers and contractors need additional tools.

Accounted includes dedicated CIS support with contractor verification, deduction tracking, monthly returns, and Self Assessment integration.

Who Should Choose Tide

Tide is the right choice if you need a free business bank account with basic expense tracking, if your bookkeeping needs are minimal, if you already use accounting software and just need a bank that integrates with it, or if cashback on business spending appeals to you.

Who Should Choose Accounted

Accounted is the better choice if you want AI-powered automatic bookkeeping, if you need MTD compliance without additional software, if you want comprehensive tax monitoring and alerts, if you work in construction and need CIS features, if you want receipt management through WhatsApp, or if you need all your bank accounts in one bookkeeping view.

Using Tide and Accounted Together

Like many business banking apps, Tide works well alongside Accounted. You can use Tide as your business bank account and connect it to Accounted through Open Banking. This gives you Tide's banking features combined with Accounted's AI bookkeeping and tax management.

The Bottom Line

Tide is an excellent business bank account. Accounted is a comprehensive bookkeeping platform. They solve different problems, and for many sole traders, the best answer is to use both.

But if you are currently relying solely on Tide for your bookkeeping and tax affairs, you are likely missing out on significant time savings and tax optimisation. Sign up for Accounted and discover what happens when an AI bookkeeper takes the admin off your plate.