Pennylane vs sevdesk: Complete Comparison (2026)
An in-depth comparison of Pennylane and sevdesk to help you choose the right tool for your business.
Last updated: November 2026
Pennylane
6.4/10
French accounting, invoicing, cash management and business account platform for freelancers, small businesses, SMEs and the accounting firms that serve them.
sevdesk
6.4/10
Cloud invoicing and bookkeeping software for German freelancers and small businesses, with e-invoicing, bank sync, ELSTER VAT filing and DATEV export.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Feature | | |
|---|---|---|
| Scores | ||
| Overall Rating | 6.4/10 | 6.4/10 |
| Scalability | 6/10 | 4/10 |
| Analytics | 6/10 | 5/10 |
| Compliance | 8/10 | 8/10 |
| Integration | 7/10 | 6/10 |
| Security | 6/10 | 6/10 |
| Support | 5/10 | 5/10 |
| Cost | 5/10 | 7/10 |
| Customization | 5/10 | 5/10 |
| Ease of Use | 8/10 | 8/10 |
| Pricing | ||
| Free plan | No | Yes |
| Cheapest paid plan | €7/mo Starter (freelancer) | €12/mo Rechnung |
| Estimated cost for 10 users | Contact for pricing | €12/mo Rechnung |
| Features | ||
| Corporate Cards | Not listed | |
| Invoicing | ||
| Accountant Access | ||
| Budgeting and Forecasting | Not listed | |
| Financial Reporting | ||
| Expense Management | ||
| Online Payments | ||
| Accounts Payable | Not listed | |
| Payroll | ||
| General Ledger | ||
| Tax Compliance | ||
| Bank Reconciliation | ||
| Inventory Accounting | Not listed | |
| Multi-currency | Not listed | |
Which One Should You Choose?
Why choose Pennylane
- Higher Scalability score (6/10 vs 4/10)
- Higher Analytics score (6/10 vs 5/10)
- Better fit for accountants and bookkeepers (9/10 vs 6/10)
Why choose sevdesk
- Has a free plan (Pennylane does not)
- Higher Cost score (7/10 vs 5/10)
Pros & Cons
Pennylane
Pros
- Accountants and clients work in the same shared space, which reviewers call its main strength.
- Bank transactions are categorised and reconciled automatically, based on past categorisations.
- A business account with an IBAN and employee cards is included even on the entry plan.
- It is approved for French e-invoicing, and Premium adds electronic filing of VAT and tax returns.
- A 15-day free trial and cancel-anytime billing mean there is no long-term commitment.
Cons
- Reviewers consider it fairly expensive, and there is no free plan.
- Full accounting reports and tax filing are limited to Premium.
- No payroll or CRM of its own; it relies on Payfit, Silae and CRM integrations.
- Users report slow support on complex issues, occasional bugs, and a multi-currency feature that still needs work.
- Pricing for companies with employees is quote-based on the vendor site.
sevdesk
Pros
- The free plan stays free with no time limit and includes up to 3 e-invoices a month in the ZUGFeRD and XRechnung formats
- VAT pre-returns go straight to the tax office through ELSTER, and EÜR reports are generated automatically
- Reviewers on OMR rate it highly for ease of use and setup, at 90% each, and say beginners can learn it quickly
- Bank connections to more than 4,000 banks match incoming payments to invoices automatically
- Data exports to DATEV and ADDISON, and tax advisors get their own login
Cons
- There is no payroll, so a separate tool is needed for wages
- Some users report unstable bank connections and inaccurate automatic receipt recognition
- Reports are less detailed than in Lexware, and the BWA is only in the most expensive plan
- Some reviewers complain about automatic contract renewal and say early cancellation is hard
- Only one user is included, and each extra user costs 5.90 EUR a month
- It is built around German tax rules, so it fits poorly outside Germany and Austria
