FinancialForce Accounting review

Manage your company bookkeeping duties and more with FinancialForce Accounting

FinancialForce Accounting
(Image: © FinancialForce)

TechRadar Verdict

FinancialForce Accounting will appeal to users of the Salesforce platform who want to roll bookkeeping, reporting and more into one simple solution.

Pros

  • +

    Works on the Salesforce platform

  • +

    Excellent range of tools

  • +

    Suitable for all skill levels

Cons

  • -

    Less appeal for small business users

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FinancialForce Accounting is a cloud-based financial management package that aims to automate many of the day-to-day tasks encountered when you’re running a larger business. It comes with the added bonus of being based on the Salesforce platform, which boasts a well-proven track record in helping businesses overcome workflow issues. 

The accounting and finance management package is bristling with productivity tools, all aimed at getting the job done without fuss. FinancialForce has been built with all sorts of users in mind and therefore sports an easy-to-use interface that can be mastered by employees of all skill levels. If you’re already working with the Salesforce platform and want to move to a new accounting system then the FinancialForce cloud-based toolkit warrants further investigation.

FinancialForce

FinancialForce offers a complete solution for larger companies (Image credit: FinancialForce)

Pricing

As is customary for many accounting packages in this bracket, the pricing for FinancialForce Accounting is less obvious than many of its great features. In fact, and as is the case with similar cloud-based software services, you’ll want to schedule a demo with the company first, namely to get an overview of the product and what it does, but also to discuss your own requirements. 

FinancialForce can be tailored to suit different needs and business objectives, plus it has other packages in the company portfolio, which can also be integrated into a specific plan that suits your size of business.

FinancialForce

The software is particularly useful for financial reporting purposes (Image credit: FinancialForce)

Features

FinancialForce has been designed as a complete solution for larger businesses, with the ability to handle pre-sales, fulfillment, billing and receivables, procurement, accounting and finance as well as offering reporting tools too. The options are many and varied, with accounts payable features, for example coming thick and fast. 

It’s possible to automate invoicing and expense approvals, manage credit limits, process payments and more all within the one interface. FinancialForce is also suitable for working with more than one currency, thanks to a powerful set of cash management tools. Add in the ability to carry out general ledger duties plus ordering, billing and much more besides and it’s a multi-faceted proposition.

FinancialForce

FinancialForce also has the benefit of being on the Salesforce platform (Image credit: FinancialForce)

Performance

It’s all about getting things done quickly and efficiently if you’re signed up for FinancialForce, with its ability to carry out several core business tasks inside one package making the software a very practical solution. For example, invoices can be generated with one-click efficiency, while other frequently repeated chores such as billing and ordering duties can be done particularly well with the cloud-based setup.

FinancialForce

Account holders also get the assistance of the FinancialForce support packages (Image credit: FinancialForce)

Ease of use

Subscribers to FinancialForce will obviously benefit from using something that offers the speed and convenience of the Salesforce platform, which helps with its overall useability. Indeed, account holders can share customer information and use it to carry out a raft of different duties without the need to switch to other systems. While the interface might seem quite complicated from a distance, once you pick through its component parts FinancialForce is much less daunting than it initially appears.

FinancialForce

Another aspect of the package is that it can be used across different geographical territories and currencies (Image credit: FinancialForce)

Support

If you’re investing money into a system like FinancialForce, with all of its many dimensions, it’s likely you and your staff will need the help of support from time to time. FinancialForce has an array of options open to businesses signed up for its support plans, with Standard and Premier options delivering a tiered approach to help. Depending on the route you’re going down you’ll have phone support and the ability to raise tickets, with your chosen package coming with its own specific options. 

FinancialForce

FinancialForce has a portfolio of other products that work together to provide a complete business solution (Image credit: FinancialForce)

Standard subscribers should get a response back within 48 hours, with the Premier package ensures more rapid attention, within 1 hour for a Business Standstill case right up to 6 hours for less urgent enquiries. Support numbers are available for US, UK/ROW and Australia, meaning all bases are covered. A Signature option is also available for businesses with more specific needs.

Final verdict

FinancialForce Accounting is likely to appeal to the larger business concern that is looking for a cloud-based accounting platform that can be scaled up as and when it’s needed. With the backup of the Salesforce platform there’s plenty of monetary muscle to be found from this solution, but at the same time FinancialForce Accounting has been designed so that it can be mastered by all kinds of users. 

Core controls such as automatically calculating payments, due dates and year to date budgets are within easy reach, while the package is also adept at helping you stay on top of record keeping, budgeting and tops it off with respectable reporting capabilities. Smaller businesses with less demanding accounts to handle will find more slender off-the-shelf solutions a better bet. 

But, if you’ve got a sizeable company with growing finance management demands then FinancialForce Accounting might well fit the bill. If you're running a slightly smaller business then it's worth checking out those other major players in this market such as Sage Business Cloud Accounting, QuickBooks, Xero, FreshBooks, Freeagent, GoSimpleTax, TaxCalc, Nomisma, ABC Self-Assessment, Crunch or Zoho Books

Rob Clymo

Rob Clymo has been a tech journalist for more years than he can actually remember, having started out in the wacky world of print magazines before discovering the power of the internet. Since he's been all-digital he has run the Innovation channel during a few years at Microsoft as well as turning out regular news, reviews, features and other content for the likes of TechRadar, TechRadar Pro, Tom's Guide, Fit&Well, Gizmodo, Shortlist, Automotive Interiors World, Automotive Testing Technology International, Future of Transportation and Electric & Hybrid Vehicle Technology International. In the rare moments he's not working he's usually out and about on one of numerous e-bikes in his collection.