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Accounting software in Germany in English: which one fits a GmbH, a UG or a freelancer

First decide the job. A freelancer needs cash-basis accounts (EÜR) and VAT filing, and low-cost English tools do that well. A GmbH or UG needs double-entry books, annual financial statements (Jahresabschluss) under the HGB, an E-Bilanz, and corporate and trade tax returns, which fewer tools cover. Xero and QuickBooks are not forbidden in Germany, but we found no description of German statutory filing on their public pages. All vendor facts below are as of 2 November 2026.

Last reviewed: 2026-11-02

The job decides, not the brand

Freelancer or sole trader on cash basis

You need invoices, receipts, the Anlage EÜR, VAT returns and usually your personal income tax return. No balance sheet, no publication. Price matters most, because the job is narrow.

GmbH or UG

You must keep double-entry books and produce a balance sheet (Bilanz) and income statement (GuV), and small companies add notes (Anhang). You also send an E-Bilanz, corporate tax and trade tax returns to the tax office, and submit a filing to the Company Register (Unternehmensregister). EÜR software alone does not do this.

German subsidiary of a foreign group

The group ledger can stay where it is. Germany still needs the HGB statements in German and euros (§ 244 HGB), and the tax filings. Often the question is only how to turn a trial balance into those outputs.

Company with employees

Check payroll separately. We do not offer it. Lexware lists a payroll add-on on its price page. Many companies leave payroll with an adviser.

Vendors, according to their own sites

As of 2 November 2026. Prices are net list prices as shown on the day and offers change. A gap below means "not described on the pages we read", not "cannot". Check with the vendor before you decide.

Norman

According to norman.finance: "Norman works fully in English." Company plans: Free €0 with double-entry bookkeeping; Pro €9 per month billed yearly, or €12 monthly after an introductory offer; Max €39 per month billed yearly, or €52 monthly after the offer, and Max lists "Annual accounts with E-Bilanz". For a small GmbH on a tight budget, this list price is well below our complete package.

Accountable

According to accountable.de: an English and a German site. Plans include Bookkeeping at €24.90 monthly or €19.90 billed yearly, and Taxes at €37.40 monthly or €29.90 billed yearly. Its FAQ answers the GmbH question with "Currently, Accountable is optimised for freelancers and trade persons." For that group it costs much less than our €99 EÜR plan.

sevdesk

According to sevdesk.com: "Switch the entire tool to English", plus invoices in English and other currencies. Its German price page lists Buchhaltung at €9.95 and Buchhaltung Pro at €13.95 per month that day, next to a higher struck-out price, with VAT returns and EÜR. HGB annual financial statements and the E-Bilanz are not described on that price page.

Lexware Office (formerly lexoffice)

According to lexware.de: regular monthly prices of €7.90 (S), €12.90 (M), €21.90 (L: bookkeeping, EÜR and VAT) and €32.90 (XL). A payroll add-on is listed at €12.90 per month regular price, with tiers by number of employees. It writes documents in English with one click. An English interface is not described. For year-end it says it supports you, "Alleine oder gemeinsam mit Steuerberater" (alone or together with an adviser). The E-Bilanz is not mentioned on its price page.

Kanzlei Software

Most German tax advisers work in Kanzlei Software software, so you meet its files even if you never buy it. If your adviser uses it, ask for exports rather than a licence. We did not verify Kanzlei Software's interface languages or prices for this page, so ask Kanzlei Software or your adviser.

jahresabschluss.io (this site)

English and German interface across bookkeeping, HGB statements, E-Bilanz and tax. Statements in-house from €250 per fiscal year, first one free. Bookkeeping from €95, complete package from €125 per company per month, EÜR plan €99. No payroll, no individual advice. Details on our pricing page.

Can I use Xero or QuickBooks for a German GmbH?

  • Books must be kept in Germany. Electronic books may also be kept in another EU state if the tax office keeps full data access (§ 146(2a) AO). Outside the EU you need approval on application (§ 146(2b) AO), so ask where your vendor stores data.
  • The annual financial statements must be in German and in euros (§ 244 HGB). An English or dollar ledger needs a translation step.
  • The balance sheet and income statement must reach the tax office electronically as an E-Bilanz (§ 5b EStG).
  • The statements must be sent to the Company Register within one year after the balance sheet date (§ 325(1a) HGB).

No law names or bans a software product. The law sets outcomes, and you are responsible for them with any tool:

The Xero product page and the QuickBooks support pages we could read on 2 November 2026 did not describe ELSTER transmission, an E-Bilanz or HGB statements for Germany. In a QuickBooks community thread from 30 September 2024, a QuickBooks team member did not confirm a Kanzlei Software connection and sent the asker to the app store and to Kanzlei Software support. That is a thin source, so ask each vendor directly and in writing: which of the four outcomes do you cover for a German GmbH?

A workable route if your group already uses one of them: keep the ledger, export a trial balance for each German company, map it to HGB positions, and produce the statutory outputs from that. Ask your auditor or adviser whether the ledger itself meets the GoBD, because a mapped export does not fix that. The same check applies to any spreadsheet.

Filing routes: who actually sends what

This is the row to compare, because a tool can show a figure without sending it. With us, live filing to the tax office uses your company's ELSTER certificate and PIN.

VAT advance return (Umsatzsteuer-Voranmeldung)

Sent electronically to the tax office. Many tools here do this, including several low-priced ones. With us it is included in bookkeeping plans, or €20 per filing without one.

E-Bilanz

Sent electronically to the tax office. With us: direct from the software after your approval, €20 or included in the complete package. Ask others whether they transmit it or only prepare a file.

Corporate and trade tax returns

With us: direct filing for supported cases after a server check, otherwise the return page says why. €50 per return or included in the package. Special cases can stay with an adviser.

Company Register (Unternehmensregister)

We create the filing file and you submit it. We do not offer direct submission. Ask other vendors the same question, because "annual accounts included" does not answer it.

An honest shortlist

  • Freelancer, simple case, English matters, low price matters: Accountable or Norman will probably cost less than us. Our EÜR plan at €99 per month makes sense if you want bookkeeping, Anlage EÜR and returns in one plan with several users.
  • Very small GmbH or UG, price first: compare Norman's Max plan with our one-off prices (from €420 per year if someone else posts the entries, plus VAT filings).
  • GmbH or UG that wants statements with notes and management report by size class, legal-form rules, and later group accounts in one system: this is what the software is built for.
  • Your adviser does everything and you only need to read figures: you may need no software beyond the adviser's portal. Ask for reports in English.
  • Payroll in the same product: we are the wrong choice today.

What changes in English, and what does not

An English interface helps you do the work. It does not change the output. In our software the screens, explanations and help are in English, while the statements, the E-Bilanz taxonomy and the returns stay German, because the authorities and § 244 HGB require it. You should still expect to meet words like Bilanz, Anhang and Finanzamt, and we show them next to the English term for that reason.

The software gives no individual tax or legal advice. For a real judgement question, a Steuerberater or lawyer is the right call, and an adviser can work with you in the same system through our adviser environment.

Frequently asked questions

Is there lexoffice in English?

lexoffice is now called Lexware Office. According to lexware.de on 2 November 2026, it can write invoices and other documents in English. We did not find an English interface described, so ask Lexware before you buy.

Is sevdesk available in English?

According to sevdesk.com on 2 November 2026, you can switch the entire tool to English and write invoices in English. HGB statements and the E-Bilanz are not described on its German price page, so a GmbH should ask how year-end works.

What is a good Norman alternative for my GmbH?

Compare on outcomes: who submits to the Company Register, what happens in special tax cases, whether medium-sized companies are covered, and the price. Norman's list price is lower than ours. Ours covers size-class statements up to large companies and has group modules, so check those points with Norman too. Our software gives no individual advice.

Can I use QuickBooks or Xero for my German GmbH?

You may, because no law bans a product. You still need German statements in euros, an E-Bilanz, tax returns and a Company Register filing, and we found none of these described on the pages we could read. Many groups keep the ledger and produce German outputs from a trial balance.

Is there a Kanzlei Software alternative in English?

For your own company, yes: several tools above have English screens. If your adviser uses Kanzlei Software, you can move by importing a trial balance from a Kanzlei Software export. Filing output stays German with any software.

Do I need a Steuerberater if I use software?

No law requires one for a normal company. A company may keep its own books and file its own returns. An adviser is still useful for judgement questions, disputes and audits by the tax office.

Can I get the German statements in English?

The filed version must be in German (§ 244 HGB). Your screens can be in English, so you can understand what you approve. A filed English version does not exist.

Primary sources and scope

Authoritative references for the key claims on this page. Check the current text before making a filing or accounting decision.