AccountView vs Starling: Complete Comparison (2026)
An in-depth comparison of AccountView and Starling to help you choose the right tool for your business.
Last updated: November 2026
AccountView
5.1/10
Dutch accounting and business administration software from Visma for SMEs and accounting firms. It runs on-premises or online and adds modules for trade, projects and hours.
Starling
6.6/10
A UK digital bank business account with built-in invoicing, bookkeeping, and Making Tax Digital tax tools for sole traders and small limited companies.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Feature | | |
|---|---|---|
| Scores | ||
| Overall Rating | 5.1/10 | 6.6/10 |
| Scalability | 5/10 | 3/10 |
| Analytics | 6/10 | 4/10 |
| Compliance | 6/10 | 7/10 |
| Integration | 6/10 | 6/10 |
| Security | 5/10 | 8/10 |
| Support | 5/10 | 7/10 |
| Cost | 3/10 | 9/10 |
| Customization | 7/10 | 3/10 |
| Ease of Use | 4/10 | 8/10 |
| Pricing | ||
| Free plan | No | Yes |
| Cheapest paid plan | €138/mo AccountView Team Standaard | £7/mo Accounting Plus |
| Estimated cost for 10 users | €248/mo AccountView Business | Free Business Account + Accounting Essentials |
| Features | ||
| Accountant Access | ||
| Bank Reconciliation | ||
| Invoicing | ||
| Tax Compliance | ||
| Accounts Payable | Not listed | |
| Audit Trail | Not listed | |
| Budgeting and Forecasting | Not listed | |
| Expense Management | Not listed | |
| Financial Reporting | Not listed | |
| General Ledger | Not listed | |
| Inventory Accounting | Not listed | |
| Multi-currency | Not listed | |
| Online Payments | Not listed | |
AccountView vs Starling cost by team size
| Team size | AccountView | Starling |
|---|---|---|
| 1 user | Contact for pricing | FreeBusiness Account + Accounting Essentials |
| 5 users | €138/moAccountView Team Standaard | FreeBusiness Account + Accounting Essentials |
| 10 users | €248/moAccountView Business | FreeBusiness Account + Accounting Essentials |
| 25 users | €248/moAccountView Business | FreeBusiness Account + Accounting Essentials |
| 50 users | €248/moAccountView Business | FreeBusiness Account + Accounting Essentials |
The plan that fits each team size, billed monthly, before add-ons and usage charges. Each cost opens that tool's pricing calculator for the team size.
Which One Should You Choose?
Why choose AccountView
- Higher Customization score (7/10 vs 3/10)
- Higher Scalability score (5/10 vs 3/10)
Why choose Starling
- Has a free plan (AccountView does not)
- Higher Cost score (9/10 vs 3/10)
- Higher Ease of Use score (8/10 vs 4/10)
- Better fit for freelancers (8/10 vs 2/10)
- Better fit for small business (8/10 vs 6/10)
Pros & Cons
AccountView
Pros
- Deployment is flexible: run it on your own Windows server, through a hosting partner, or as AccountView Online.
- Team and Business both include unlimited administrations, which helps groups and accounting practices.
- The modular bundles cover trade, inventory, projects and hours, so it stretches beyond pure bookkeeping.
- The vendor cites 89 integrations, including Visma AutoInvoice, Approval, UBL e-invoicing, Nmbrs and CaseWare.
- A Web API and third-party connectors such as Invantive give access to the data for BI tools like Power BI.
Cons
- It is expensive: Team starts at 137.50 euros per month, and invoicing alone costs another 55 euros per month.
- The legacy FoxPro-based architecture creates a new administration for each fiscal year, which complicates master data, according to Zenvoices.
- It is aimed only at the Dutch market and the Dutch language.
- Some features, such as the audit trail and automatic payments, need extra modules.
- There is little public user review coverage on G2, Capterra or SourceForge.
Starling
Pros
- The business account has no monthly fee, and UK transfers, invoicing, and up to five expense cards are free.
- The free Essentials tier includes MTD for Income Tax submissions, which helps sole traders and landlords facing the April 2026 rules.
- VAT returns can be filed to HMRC from inside the banking app for £7 a month until April 2027.
- Bank feeds connect to Xero, QuickBooks, and FreeAgent.
- UK-based support is available 24/7 in the app, and Finder ranked it highly for customer satisfaction in 2026.
Cons
- It is not a full accounting system: there is no general ledger, payroll, or multi-entity support.
- Accountants only get view-only access.
- Only GBP and EUR accounts are available, and new USD account applications are paused.
- Eligibility is strict: directors and people with significant control must be UK residents.
- Overdrafts and loans are not available to new business customers, and there are no branches.
Not sold on either?
Frequently Asked Questions
Starling scores higher on our Finance Software criteria: 6.6/10 against 5.1/10 for AccountView. The largest gap is in Cost: 3/10 for AccountView and 9/10 for Starling.
Starling has a free plan; AccountView does not list one.
Starling is the better fit for freelancers: we rate it 8/10 for them, against 2/10 for AccountView.
