LandlordFile vs QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start) for Making Tax Digital
By the selector's own rules, LandlordFile and QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start) both work for landlords, so the choice comes down to the seven points where they differ. QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start) offers support for self-employment income, bank feeds, receipt capture, phone apps and access for an accountant, which LandlordFile does not. QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start) does not offer support for more than one property, which LandlordFile does. Their cheapest plans are listed as £29 a year including VAT, about £2.42 a month (Annual (quarterly updates only)) for LandlordFile and £10 plus VAT a month (Sole Trader Plus) for QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start).
LandlordFile suits landlords with two to ten UK properties who already keep good spreadsheet records, landlords who want the lowest yearly cost for quarterly updates and will file the year-end return elsewhere and landlords who would rather pay for each quarterly filing than take out a subscription. QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start) suits sole traders or single-property landlords, landlords who want a lower-priced mainstream option and people who do most of their bookkeeping on a phone.
The facts on this page come from each provider’s own pages and from HMRC’s software list, and how we compare products explains how we check them.
If you are thinking of moving from one to the other, the guide to changing your MTD software explains what GOV.UK says about when you can move and what happens to your records.
Where they differ
These are the points where our checks of the two products came out differently. A “No” means we did not find that feature on the provider’s own pages when we last checked them. Where we had nothing to go on for one of the two, we leave the point out here rather than guess.
| Point | LandlordFile | QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start) |
|---|---|---|
| Cheapest plan | £29 a year including VAT, about £2.42 a month (Annual (quarterly updates only)) | £10 plus VAT a month (Sole Trader Plus) |
| More than one property | Yes | No |
| Self-employment income | No | Yes |
| Bank feeds | No | Yes |
| Receipt capture | No | Yes |
| Phone apps | No | Yes (iOS and Android) |
| Accountant access | No | Yes |
On the other points we compare (free plan, jointly owned property, holiday lets and former FHL and MTD for VAT returns), they give the same answer, or at least one provider does not say. The full list is under each product’s own page.
What HMRC’s software list says about both
HMRC’s list marks each feature as available now or intended for later. This is what HMRC’s list says, not something we have tested ourselves. Where HMRC lists a product under more than one name, we show the strongest answer and the listing it comes from.
| Feature | LandlordFile | QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start) |
|---|---|---|
| Your tax return and other income | ||
| Sending your tax return | Not stated | Available |
| Foreign property | Not stated | Not stated |
| Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) | Not stated | Available |
| Employment (PAYE) | Not stated | Available |
| UK dividends | Not stated | Available |
| UK interest | Not stated | Available |
| Capital gains | Not stated | Availablesince 24 July 2026 |
| How it works | ||
| Bridging software that connects to your records | Available | Not stated |
| Calendar update periods (1 April to 31 March) | Not stated | Available |
| A free version | Not stated | Not stated |
| Welsh language | Not stated | Not stated |
| Accessibility | ||
| Blindness or impaired vision | Available | Not stated |
| Deafness or impaired hearing | Available | Not stated |
| Motor or physical difficulties | Available | Not stated |
| Cognitive impairments | Available | Not stated |
This is HMRC’s list as it stood on 30 October 2026, at HMRC’s commit 201b34e. A date beside a feature is when HMRC’s list changed it from intended to available. HMRC’s software finder shows the current answers. How we read HMRC’s list
Does HMRC’s software list show LandlordFile and QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start) as available for sending your tax return?
For sending your tax return, HMRC’s software list as it stood on 30 October 2026 says nothing either way for LandlordFile and marks it “Available” for QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start).
Does HMRC’s software list show a free version of LandlordFile or QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start)?
For a free version, HMRC’s software list as it stood on 30 October 2026 says nothing either way for LandlordFile and says nothing either way for QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start).
How many features does HMRC’s software list mark as available for LandlordFile and QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start)?
HMRC’s software list as it stood on 30 October 2026 covers 15 features, and it marks 5 “Available” for LandlordFile and 7 “Available” for QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start). For LandlordFile, it marks 0 “Intended” and gives no answer on 10. For QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start), it marks 0 “Intended” and gives no answer on 8.
The cheapest plan for your situation
A product’s cheapest plan is not always one you can use, because some plans are only for landlords or only for sole traders. These are the lowest prices the selector would show each reader, as each provider states them. Where a price grows with the number of properties, it is shown as a starting price. The figure over 12 months is the same plan at its regular price, worked out the way the software cost calculator does it.
LandlordFile
- For landlords
- £29 a year including VAT, about £2.42 a month
- Cheapest plan over 12 months
- £29 including VATRegular price, before any offer
We checked LandlordFile’s prices on 25 October 2026.
QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start)
- For landlords
- £10 plus VAT a month
- Cheapest plan over 12 months
- £120 plus VAT
We checked QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start)’s prices on 3 November 2026.
QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start) also works for sole traders.
Notes from our checks
LandlordFile
HMRC's software list shows LandlordFile as bridging software for UK property income with quarterly updates; it does not list the tax return, and the pages checked describe quarterly filing only, so both plans are named as quarterly updates only and the year-end return needs other software. You upload an Excel or CSV spreadsheet with a row for each rent payment or bill, check the totals and send them. LandlordFile says it is right for individual landlords with 2 to 10 residential UK properties and not yet for lettings through a limited company or partnership, so it is shown only for that range. We show the annual plan's full price of £29 a year; a launch offer makes the first year £19 for anyone who joins by 7 February 2027, and nothing is charged until HMRC accepts the first filing. Self-employment income, joint ownership, a bank feed, receipt capture, mileage, accountant access, mobile apps and furnished holiday let handling were not found on the pages we read, so we do not show them.
QuickBooks (Sole Trader Plus / Simple Start)
Regular monthly prices are shown excluding VAT. When we checked the pricing page on 3 November 2026, the price list it loads showed Intuit's offer of 90% off for six months for new customers, running until 20 November 2026, so the pricing page is the place to see any offer running now. Its setup guidance requires a separate account for each business or property income source. Combined subscription costs were not confirmed, so the selector does not recommend QuickBooks for mixed income. Joint-property support also remains unconfirmed.
Neither product is ranked above the other here: the page sets out what each provider says so you can weigh it against your own situation. How we compare products
More on these two products
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