Small business accounting software in the United States:Which are most popular?

Name: Small business accounting software in the United States: Which are searched most?
Creator: Brandwave
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

In September 2026, QuickBooks Online was the most searched small business accounting software in the United States, accounting for 85% of all searches among the seven brands we track. When we checked with ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews, FreshBooks and Wave showed up in every answer. QuickBooks Online was recommended most often, coming first in four out of five responses.

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Top small business accounting software in ChatGPT and Google AI Overviews

In Brandwave's three ChatGPT questions and two Google AI Overviews, FreshBooks and Wave appeared every time. QuickBooks Online was recommended most often, coming first in four out of five answers. Wave was second, and Xero was third. ZipBooks, which ranked seventh in searches, was not mentioned at all.

Most recommended by AI

Brands get a higher ranking if they are mentioned earlier in the answers.

Mentioned by AI

Each dot is one answer, filled in when that answer mentions the brand.

How many AI answers named each brand
Brand	ChatGPT	Google	Answers that named it
FreshBooks	Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answers	Named in 2 of 2 Google AI Overviews	5 of 5
Wave	Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answers	Named in 2 of 2 Google AI Overviews	5 of 5
QuickBooks Online	Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answers	Named in 2 of 2 Google AI Overviews	4 of 5
Xero	Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answers	Named in 2 of 2 Google AI Overviews	4 of 5
Zoho Books	Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answers	Named in 2 of 2 Google AI Overviews	4 of 5
Sage Accounting	Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answers	Named in 1 of 2 Google AI Overviews	1 of 5
ZipBooks	Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answers	Named in 0 of 2 Google AI Overviews	0 of 5

FreshBooks5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
Wave5 of 5Named in 3 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
QuickBooks Online4 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
Xero4 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
Zoho Books4 of 5Named in 2 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 2 of 2 Google answers
Sage Accounting1 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 1 of 2 Google answers
ZipBooks0 of 5Named in 0 of 3 ChatGPT answersNamed in 0 of 2 Google answers

See every answer about small business accounting software

5 answers

Asked ChatGPT
“What's the best accounting software for a small business?”
1. 1QuickBooks Online
2. 2Xero
3. 3Wave
4. 4FreshBooks
5. 5Zoho Books
Asked ChatGPT
“Which bookkeeping software should I use for my small business?”
1. 1QuickBooks Online
2. 2Wave
3. 3Xero
4. 4Zoho Books
5. 5FreshBooks
Asked ChatGPT
“What's the easiest accounting software for a freelancer?”
1. 1Wave
2. 2FreshBooks
Searched Google, AI Overview
“accounting software”
1. 1QuickBooks Online
2. 2Xero
3. 3FreshBooks
4. 4Zoho Books
5. 5Wave
Searched Google, AI Overview
“small business accounting software”
1. 1QuickBooks Online
2. 2Xero
3. 3FreshBooks
4. 4Wave
5. 5Zoho Books
6. 6Sage Accounting

Not named in any answer:

ZipBooks

Brands are shown in the order each answer named them. The survey took place in United States on October 27, 2026.

Which small business accounting software do people search for most?

This chart shows how often people search Google for each small business accounting software by name. Each line represents a brand's share of searches for all seven small business accounting software we track, month by month, from searches in United States.

Share of searches among small business accounting software in the United States, by month

Month	QuickBooks Online	Xero	FreshBooks	Zoho Books	Wave	Sage Accounting	ZipBooks
Oct 2025	82.9%	7.5%	4.1%	2.2%	2.7%	0.2%	0.36%
Nov 2025	81.2%	8.9%	4%	2.7%	2.7%	0.19%	0.36%
Dec 2025	80.7%	8.9%	4%	2.7%	3.2%	0.19%	0.35%
Jan 2026	80.1%	8.8%	4%	2.7%	4%	0.19%	0.35%
Feb 2026	83.6%	7.6%	2.8%	2.8%	2.8%	0.2%	0.3%
Mar 2026	83.6%	7.6%	2.8%	2.8%	2.8%	0.2%	0.3%
Apr 2026	83.7%	7.6%	2.8%	2.8%	2.8%	0.16%	0.3%
May 2026	82.7%	9.1%	2.7%	2.7%	2.2%	0.19%	0.29%
Jun 2026	82.6%	7.4%	4.1%	2.7%	2.7%	0.24%	0.19%
Jul 2026	84.9%	7.7%	2.8%	2.3%	1.9%	0.2%	0.16%
Aug 2026	85.4%	7.7%	2.3%	2.3%	1.9%	0.16%	0.2%
Sep 2026	85%	7.7%	2.8%	2.3%	1.9%	0.16%	0.16%

Rank	Brand	Share of searches	Estimated monthly branded searches	vs prior month	Share change
1, held 1st	QuickBooks Online Intuit	85%	1M	0%	-0.4 points
2, held 2nd	Xero	7.7%	90.5K	0%	0 points
3, held 3rd	FreshBooks	2.8%	33.1K	+22.1%	+0.5 points
4, held 4th	Zoho Books	2.3%	27.1K	0%	0 points
5, held 5th	Wave	1.9%	22.2K	0%	0 points
6, moved from 7th to 6th	Sage Accounting	0.16%	1.9K	0%	0 pointsmoved from 7th to 6th
7, moved from 6th to 7th	ZipBooks	0.16%	1.9K	-20.8%	0 pointsmoved from 6th to 7th

1.QuickBooks Online
85%
Held 1st. 1M estimated branded searches, 0% vs prior month. Share -0.4 points.
2.Xero
7.7%
Held 2nd. 90.5K estimated branded searches, 0% vs prior month. Share 0 points.
3.FreshBooks
2.8%
Held 3rd. 33.1K estimated branded searches, +22.1% vs prior month. Share +0.5 points.
4.Zoho Books
2.3%
Held 4th. 27.1K estimated branded searches, 0% vs prior month. Share 0 points.
5.Wave
1.9%
Held 5th. 22.2K estimated branded searches, 0% vs prior month. Share 0 points.
6.Sage Accounting
0.16%
Moved from 7th to 6th. 1.9K estimated branded searches, 0% vs prior month. Share 0 points.
7.ZipBooks
0.16%
Moved from 6th to 7th. 1.9K estimated branded searches, -20.8% vs prior month. Share 0 points.

Which brand is most popular in search among small business accounting software in the United States?

7 brands

In September 2026, QuickBooks Online was the most searched among small business accounting software in the United States, with an estimated 1M branded searches, 85% of all searches for the seven we track. Xero is in 2nd place, 77.3 percentage points behind at 7.7%.

United States small business accounting software, last 12 months ending September 2026
Brand	Share of searches	Peak	Low	Rank
QuickBooks Online	82.9% → 85%	85.4%Aug 2026	80.1%Jan 2026	1st
Xero	7.5% → 7.7%	9.1%May 2026	7.4%Jun 2026	2nd
FreshBooks	4.1% → 2.8%	4.1%Oct 2025	2.3%Aug 2026	3rd
Zoho Books	2.2% → 2.3%	2.8%Apr 2026	2.2%Oct 2025	5th → 4th
Wave	2.7% → 1.9%	4%Jan 2026	1.9%Jul 2026	4th → 5th
Sage Accounting	0.2% → 0.16%	0.24%Jun 2026	0.16%Apr 2026	7th → 6th
ZipBooks	0.36% → 0.16%	0.36%Oct 2025	0.16%Jul 2026	6th → 7th

Each finding as a sentence

Across the 12 months ending September 2026, QuickBooks Online’s share of searches among small business accounting software in the United States increased from 82.9% to 85%.
Across the 12 months ending September 2026, FreshBooks’ share of searches among small business accounting software in the United States decreased from 4.1% to 2.8%.
Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Wave’s share of searches among small business accounting software in the United States decreased from 2.7% to 1.9%.
Across the 12 months ending September 2026, QuickBooks Online’s share of searches among small business accounting software in the United States peaked at 85.4% in August 2026 and was lowest at 80.1% in January 2026.
Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Xero’s share of searches among small business accounting software in the United States peaked at 9.1% in May 2026 and was lowest at 7.4% in June 2026.
Across the 12 months ending September 2026, FreshBooks’ share of searches among small business accounting software in the United States peaked at 4.1% in October 2025 and was lowest at 2.3% in August 2026.
Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Wave’s share of searches among small business accounting software in the United States peaked at 4% in January 2026 and was lowest at 1.9% in July 2026.
Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Zoho Books rose from 5th to 4th among small business accounting software in the United States.
Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Wave fell from 4th to 5th among small business accounting software in the United States.
Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Sage Accounting rose from 7th to 6th among small business accounting software in the United States.
Across the 12 months ending September 2026, ZipBooks fell from 6th to 7th among small business accounting software in the United States.
Across the 12 months ending September 2026, Xero held steady: its share of searches among small business accounting software in the United States moved less than 0.5 percentage points.

How did search popularity change for United States small business accounting software in September 2026?

4 changes

In September 2026, Sage Accounting rose from 7th to 6th among small business accounting software in the United States.
In September 2026, ZipBooks fell from 6th to 7th among small business accounting software in the United States.
Estimated monthly branded searches for FreshBooks in the United States fell 33.1% over 12 measured months, from 49.5K to 33.1K in September 2026.
Estimated monthly branded searches for Wave in the United States fell 32.9% over 12 measured months, from 33.1K to 22.2K in September 2026.

How are branded searches counted for small business accounting software?

7 search terms

Each brand's share of searches among small business accounting software comes from the terms listed under its name. When people mostly search for a brand because of something else it sells, only the searches that name this product count here.