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What “online accounting” actually means
The term is used for three quite different things, and the difference is no hair-splitting — it decides who backs up your data and what happens when the office computer fails.
Real cloud software runs entirely on the provider's servers. You need a browser, nothing else. Updates, backups and availability are the provider's business. Installed software with web access still sits on your computer or your server; an add-on module allows access from outside. That looks online, but only partly is — the backup stays with you. Hosted desktop software finally is a classic program running on someone else's terminal server. Works, but rarely feels like a web application.
On the Swiss market you find all three variants, sometimes at the same provider under different product names. If it matters to you never to worry about a backup again, ask pointedly in the sales talk: “What exactly gets installed on my device?”
What Swiss law requires
Electronic bookkeeping in Switzerland is not merely tolerated but expressly provided for. Article 957a paragraph 5 of the Code of Obligations states that the books may be kept in writing, electronically or in a comparable manner. The details are regulated by the Business Records Ordinance, GeBüV for short.
Four points are practically relevant:
- Integrity. Recorded data must not be alterable unnoticed. Either storage is on unalterable media, or the procedure logs every change traceably with a timestamp.
- Traceability. From the individual entry, the path to the document and to the closing must be traceable without gaps — and vice versa. That is why a cleanly linked document is worth more than a well-sorted folder.
- Availability. The records must be renderable readable within a reasonable time throughout the entire retention period. If you archive in 2026 in a file format nobody can open in 2033, you have a problem.
- Retention. Ten years from the end of the financial year (CO Art. 958f). The annual report and audit report must additionally be kept in written, signed form — a PDF copy in the system does not replace the signed original.
For VAT, a noticeable relief has applied since 2018: electronic invoices no longer need a digital signature to qualify for input tax deduction. Free assessment of evidence is decisive — the invoice must be credible and traceable, not cryptographically signed. For records relating to immovable property, however, VAT law demands retention longer than ten years.
Not legal advice. This section summarises the legal position as of 2026 and does not replace a review of your individual case. The applicable statutory texts and the practice of the competent authorities are decisive.
The server-location question — answered honestly
Hardly any topic is played as intensively in Swiss software marketing as the server location. “Data in Switzerland” appears on almost every provider page, and the message behind it is: everything else is risky. That deserves a sober assessment.
For proper bookkeeping under the CO and the Business Records Ordinance, the server location is not prescribed. What is required is the constant availability and readability of the records, not their geographic location. The revised Data Protection Act does not prohibit processing abroad either — it ties it to adequate protection, which the EU states offer in the Federal Council's assessment.
Things differ where statutory secrecy protection comes on top: doctors, lawyers, banks and similarly regulated professions are subject to additional rules that can complicate outsourcing or tie it to conditions. If you work in such a field, the question is legitimate — and belongs clarified before signing.
And how do we handle it ourselves? Accounty stores the data in Germany, not in Switzerland. We say this openly because it is a real difference from several competitors and you should know it before deciding. Our reason is infrastructure quality at justifiable cost within the EU data-protection area; whoever strictly needs CH hosting is better served by a Swiss data-centre provider, and we say so in conversation too. Where which providers host is in our market comparison in a dedicated column.
What actually saves time day to day
Most providers advertise with the same buzzwords. In our experience from our own fiduciary practice, four features noticeably lower the effort — and two look good and deliver little.
Bank reconciliation via camt
Since the switch to ISO 20022, Swiss banks deliver their statements as camt.053 and camt.054 files. An accounting package that reads these formats matches incoming payments to open invoices automatically. That is the single feature with the biggest time gain — and the most common reason a switch disappoints when it only half works.
QR-bills without detours
Since October 2022 the QR-bill has been the sole standard for payments; the orange and red payment slips are history. Every current solution produces QR-bills. The difference lies in the detail: whether with reference number, whether as bulk dispatch, whether with automatic dunning.
Document capture that really reads the document
Photograph the document, amount and VAT are recognised, the entry is suggested. With current systems that works well enough to speed up capture markedly — but not well enough to book unchecked. Anyone promising otherwise has not tested it in live operation.
The VAT return as a report, not handiwork
The return should follow from the entries and not have to be compiled separately. Check whether the effective method and and the net tax rate are supported — the choice of method has tangible financial consequences, as we show in the article on net tax rate or effective method .
Less relevant than the marketing suggests, on the other hand, are native mobile apps — a well-built web interface does the same on the phone — and the number of interfaces offered, as long as the one you need is not among them.
Practical guides on the topics that come first after the switch: VAT return step by step, Chart of accounts for Swiss SMEs and the Year-end closing checklist.
What online accounting costs in 2026
The entry price says little. What matters is what it contains — and what comes on top separately as soon as you have employees.
| Provider | Paid entry tier | Payroll | Server location |
|---|---|---|---|
| Accounty | CHF 24.15 (annual plan), 29.– monthly | included, no employee limit | Germany (EU) |
| AbaNinja / Swiss21 | CHF 21.– (Basic), Starter free | included, statements quota-limited | Switzerland |
| MILKEE | CHF 24.90 (Basic) | Business +9.–/employee, Team incl. 5 employees | Switzerland and EU |
| Run my Accounts | CHF 25.– (SME), Startup free | separate payroll package | Bern |
| bexio | CHF 35.– (Basic) | from Advanced, +7.– to +25.– | Switzerland |
| Infoniqa ONE Start | CHF 42.– (Ready) | included, up to 5 employees | Switzerland |
| KLARA | CHF 55.– (Business Basic, annual plan) | +4.90/employee, 3.90 with bundle | Switzerland |
The price difference between the cheapest and dearest entry in this selection is a good two and a half times. Once payroll is added, the picture shifts markedly again: several providers charge per employee, with others the number is capped. A business with eight employees therefore calculates differently from a sole proprietorship — and should run its own constellation before deciding instead of comparing list prices.
The full table with ten providers, trial periods and decision guidance by company size is in the article Swiss accounting software compared, 2026. Direct head-to-heads with Accounty are under Comparison.
All information on third-party providers is based on publicly available sources (as of 2026) and serves factual orientation – without guarantee of completeness or currency. The providers' own information is authoritative. Brands and product names mentioned belong to their respective owners and are used solely for comparison and information purposes.
When switching is not worth it
Honesty includes this: online accounting is not the right path for every business, and we regularly advise against it.
If your books are mid-financial-year, a switch costs more than it brings in the first year. The clean moment is the year change — opening balance instead of re-entering ten months.
If you have highly specialised requirements — production planning, multi-stage manufacturing, project billing by PoC — broadly built SME solutions rarely cover that in the necessary depth. Here an industry solution with attached accounting is often the better choice, even if it costs more.
If your fiduciary keeps your books entirely and you yourself never look in, the software question is not yours. Talk to them before subscribing to anything — a system switch against the fiduciary's will creates double work on both sides.
If the internet connection at your workplace is unreliable, a pure cloud solution is simply impractical. That affects fewer businesses than before, but it does affect them.
The switch in four steps
Set the cut-off date
Ideally the first day of a financial year. Until then the old system keeps running, after that nothing more is booked there.
Import master data
Chart of accounts, customers, suppliers, employees and open items. At Accounty we do this migration free of charge.
Enter the opening balance
The prior year's closing balance becomes the opening balance. A single entry — and the foundation is laid.
Run in parallel
Run the first month in both systems and compare the balances. That costs one evening and spares nasty surprises at closing.
How Accounty meets these requirements
Accounty is a pure cloud solution: you install nothing, updates run automatically, backups are our business. It was developed by SEBONA Treuhand Böhner in Kloten — a fiduciary firm that uses the software in its own mandate business. That explains some decisions that would be unusual from a pure product view, such as the guided year-end process.
- camt
Bank reconciliation
Import of camt.053 and camt.054 with automatic matching against open receivable and payable items.
- QR
QR-bill
Invoices with QR payment part including reference, bulk dispatch and dunning — no add-on module.
- VAT
Both methods
Effective filing and net tax rate, each derived directly from the entries.
- Payroll
Payroll included
Full Swiss payroll without employee limit and without per-head surcharge.
- TH
Fiduciary portal
Your fiduciary works along directly — no data export, no additional user licence.
- EU
Servers in Germany
Data centre in the EU data-protection area, GDPR- and revFADP-compliant. Not in Switzerland — see above.
What Accounty cannot do
The salary declaration is currently not Swissdec-certified. If you strictly need the certified direct transmission to the compensation funds, you will find it at the established providers. And Accounty is the youngest provider in this line-up — with everything that means in maturity and pace of development.
Frequently asked questions
What we are asked most often about online accounting.
Is online accounting legally permissible in Switzerland?
Yes. Article 957a paragraph 5 CO expressly allows keeping the books electronically. The Business Records Ordinance regulates the requirements for integrity, traceability and retention. No specific server location is prescribed.
Do the servers have to be in Switzerland?
Not for proper bookkeeping under the CO and the Business Records Ordinance. What is required is that the records remain readably available within a reasonable time throughout the retention period. For professions with statutory secrecy protection or with particularly sensitive personal data, stricter requirements may apply — a case-by-case review pays off there.
How long do I have to keep accounting records?
Ten years from the end of the financial year (CO Art. 958f). For VAT-relevant records on immovable property a longer period applies. The annual report and audit report must additionally be kept in written, signed form.
What happens to my data if I cancel?
Ask that before signing and have the answer shown to you, not just promised. At Accounty you export entries, documents and master data yourself at any time in open formats — even after cancellation, during a transition period.
Can my fiduciary work along?
With cloud solutions yes, without data export and without sending files. How such access is billed differs between providers. Accounty provides a Fiduciary portal with client and task management; fiduciary logins cost no additional user licence.
How much effort is switching from an existing solution?
With a switch at the start of the year, count on half a day to a day: take over master data, enter the opening balance, add open items. Mid-year it gets markedly more laborious. We do the data takeover free of charge.
Online accounting, all modules, one price.
General ledger, QR-bills, payables, payroll and VAT for CHF 29 per month. Try free for 14 days, no credit card.
Try free for 14 days No credit card needed · cancel monthly · data takeover free