FreeAgent review
UK freelancers, contractors and very small limited companies.
Overview
FreeAgent does one thing better than anyone else: it makes accounting legible for people who are not accountants. Built squarely for UK freelancers and contractors, it surfaces a real-time tax timeline, handles self-assessment and corporation tax workflows, and pairs naturally with an accountant at year end. Since NatWest's acquisition it is free for customers of NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland and Mettle business accounts — which makes it effectively unbeatable on price for its niche. It is not a platform to grow a 30-person company on, and it makes no pretence otherwise.
Strengths and weaknesses
What we like
- Purpose-built for freelancers and contractors — tax timeline is superb
- Free with eligible NatWest, RBS and Mettle business accounts
- Self-assessment and corporation tax handled natively
- Plain-English design with minimal jargon
- Friendly UK-based support
What to watch
- Outgrown quickly beyond a handful of staff
- Weak inventory, purchasing and multi-entity features
- UK-centric — little reason to use it elsewhere
- Reporting is light compared with Xero or QuickBooks
Key features at a glance
| Bank feeds & reconciliation | Good, with smart explanations |
| Invoicing | Strong for service businesses; time-tracking built in |
| Payroll | Basic built-in payroll for small teams |
| Tax | Self-assessment, VAT and CT workflows are standout |
| Multi-currency | Basic invoicing support |
| Integrations | Focused set — banks, Stripe, GoCardless and more |
Pricing
Sole trader from ~£14.50/mo, limited company ~£29/mo, with 50% first-year discounts typical; free with eligible NatWest/RBS/Mettle accounts.
Who FreeAgent is for — and who should skip it
Best for
UK sole traders, contractors and micro limited companies — especially anyone banking with NatWest, RBS or Mettle.
Probably not for
Product businesses needing inventory, employers past ten staff, and any company expecting multi-entity or multi-currency complexity.
Our verdict — 8.4/10
For its niche, FreeAgent is close to perfect — and potentially free. Just be honest about growth: the day you need purchase orders and department reporting, you will outgrow it.
FreeAgent, head to head
Sage Accounting vs FreeAgent
Different tools for different stages: FreeAgent for one-person businesses, Sage once payroll and growth enter the picture.
QuickBooks Online vs FreeAgent
A growth platform versus a specialist: match the tool to the business you have and the one you expect in two years.
How we review: scores reflect our editorial assessment using vendor documentation, published pricing, independent research and hands-on evaluation where noted — read our full methodology. Pricing is indicative — always confirm current plans with the vendor. We may earn commission from links on this page; it never affects our scores.