Pennylane vs Pilot Comparison
Compare Pennylane vs Pilot features, pricing, and more.
Last updated: November 2026
Pennylane
6.4/10
French accounting, invoicing, cash management and business account platform for freelancers, small businesses, SMEs and the accounting firms that serve them.
Pilot
6.4/10
Pilot is a US bookkeeping, tax, and CFO service for startups and small businesses. It pairs software with human accountants and charges by monthly expense volume.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Feature | | |
|---|---|---|
| Scores | ||
| Overall Rating | 6.4/10 | 6.4/10 |
| Scalability | 6/10 | 6/10 |
| Analytics | 6/10 | 6/10 |
| Compliance | 8/10 | 7/10 |
| Integration | 7/10 | 6/10 |
| Security | 6/10 | 6/10 |
| Support | 5/10 | 7/10 |
| Cost | 5/10 | 5/10 |
| Customization | 5/10 | 6/10 |
| Ease of Use | 8/10 | 8/10 |
| Pricing | ||
| Free plan | No | No |
| Cheapest paid plan | €7/mo Starter (freelancer) | $99/mo Essentials |
| Estimated cost for 10 users | Contact for pricing | $99/mo Essentials |
| Features | ||
| Payroll | ||
| Accountant Access | ||
| Accounts Payable | ||
| Bank Reconciliation | ||
| Budgeting and Forecasting | ||
| Financial Reporting | ||
| General Ledger | ||
| Invoicing | ||
| Tax Compliance | ||
| Corporate Cards | Not listed | |
| Expense Management | Not listed | |
| Online Payments | Not listed | |
Pennylane vs Pilot cost by team size
| Team size | Pennylane | Pilot |
|---|---|---|
| 1 user | €7/moStarter (freelancer) | $99/moEssentials |
| 5 users | Contact for pricing | $99/moEssentials |
| 10 users | Contact for pricing | $99/moEssentials |
| 25 users | Contact for pricing | $99/moEssentials |
| 50 users | Contact for pricing | $99/moEssentials |
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 Pennylane
- Higher Compliance score (8/10 vs 7/10)
- Higher Integration score (7/10 vs 6/10)
Why choose Pilot
- Higher Support score (7/10 vs 5/10)
- Higher Customization score (6/10 vs 5/10)
- Better fit for startups (10/10 vs 7/10)
- Includes Payroll, which Pennylane lacks
Pros & Cons
Pennylane
Pros
- Accountants and clients work in the same shared space, which reviewers call its main strength.
- Bank transactions are categorised and reconciled automatically, based on past categorisations.
- A business account with an IBAN and employee cards is included even on the entry plan.
- It is approved for French e-invoicing, and Premium adds electronic filing of VAT and tax returns.
- A 15-day free trial and cancel-anytime billing mean there is no long-term commitment.
Cons
- Reviewers consider it fairly expensive, and there is no free plan.
- Full accounting reports and tax filing are limited to Premium.
- No payroll or CRM of its own; it relies on Payfit, Silae and CRM integrations.
- Users report slow support on complex issues, occasional bugs, and a multi-currency feature that still needs work.
- Pricing for companies with employees is quote-based on the vendor site.
Pilot
Pros
- Essentials starts at 99 dollars a month, which is low for managed bookkeeping.
- Bookkeeping, tax filing, fractional CFO, R&D credit, and stock administration are available from one provider.
- Long experience with venture-backed startups, with discounts for pre-revenue companies.
- Capterra users rate it 4.7 out of 5.
Cons
- Essentials is cash-basis only, with in-app support and no assigned human bookkeeper.
- Core reports arrive by the 10th business day, so last month's numbers land mid-month.
- Full AP, AR, and payroll administration require the sales-quoted Custom tier.
- Some reviewers report delayed reports, occasional service lapses, and high cost for very early-stage companies.
- Built around QuickBooks Online and US tax, so it suits non-US businesses less well.
Not sold on either?
Frequently Asked Questions
Pennylane and Pilot both score 6.4/10 on our Finance Software criteria. The largest gap is in Support: 5/10 for Pennylane and 7/10 for Pilot.
No, neither Pennylane nor Pilot lists a free plan.
Pilot is the better fit for startups: we rate it 10/10 for them, against 7/10 for Pennylane.
Pilot has Payroll, which Pennylane lacks.
