ANNA Money is one of the leading challenger banks – offering a business account set up in under 10 minutes – but also a wide range of useful admin tools – from invoicing to expense management and tax deadline reminders.
In this guide, we look at some of the key features of the ANNA Money business account, and how it compares to its rivals – particularly Tide and Cashplus.
ANNA Money – key points
- ANNA stands for Absolutely No-Nonsense Admin.
- This is an accounting and tax app as well as a business account.
- It is used by over 100,000 businesses.
- You can open a business account with account number and sort code in under 10 minutes.
- You will receive your debit card within a few days.
- Connect your other bank accounts via Open Banking.
- Connect your account to Apple Pay.
- Upload transactions to FreeAgent, etc. via a CSV file.
- Instantly create professional invoices.
- Basic bookkeeping functionality
- Keep track of your expenses.
- Give your accountant access to your account.
- 3 payment plans starting from £0 per month (see below).
- ANNA is an e-business account, not a bank account.
How much does ANNA Money cost?
There are three pricing tiers – free (pay as you go), business (£14.90/month) and big business (£49.90/month).
For the free account, you pay 20p per in/out transaction, and a 1% fee for any cash deposits.
For the higher tier accounts, you get more inclusive transactions, free ATM withdrawals, etc.
For many contractor companies, with under a dozen monthly transactions, the free account represents good value for money – especially if you only have a small number of monthly transactions, and no real need for cash withdrawals.
What admin benefits does the ANNA app offer?
Here are some of the main features of the ANNA account – which you can use for free once you sign up for the app.
Invoice Management
Easily create and send professional invoices to your recruiter or client directly from the ANNA Money app. Track when clients view and pay your invoices so you can stay on top of cash flow.
Give your contractor accountant access
Grant your accountant real-time read-only access to your ANNA Money transactions and statements.
Integrates with FreeAgent, Xero
Integrate your ANNA Money account with leading accounting software like FreeAgent and Xero. Automatically sync income, expenses, and invoices to simplify accounting. Note that you have to manually upload a CSV file from your ANNA account to FreeAgent – it is not automatic.
Tax Support
Receive handy reminders from ANNA Money on upcoming tax deadlines based on your transactions. The app also provides tax liability estimates to aid filing and payments.
Payment Flexibility
Schedule recurring bill payments through ANNA Money using direct debit at no extra cost. Never miss important payments again.
Receipt Management
Upload and store receipts in the ANNA Money app. AI technology extracts key details and categorized expenses for easy tracking.
What are the pros and cons of ANNA Money?
Pros:
- Very easy account set-up via the app. Have your account details within a few minutes, plus a payment link
- Competitive pricing – the ‘free’ option charges 20p per transaction, so a few £ per month for most contractors.
- Good support – 24/7 customer service via the app. Web chat as well as phone and email support is available.
- A wealth of extra business tools, which are not available via its rivals.
Cons:
- ANNA is not a bank, it is an e-business account. As a result, your deposits are not protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).
- Most contractors already use FreeAgent or Xero. Therefore, the admin features provided by the app might not be required.
- You can only open an account if you’re based in the UK. Not a big problem for most IT contractors!
How does ANNA Money compare to Tide and Cashplus?
All three business accounts use the very latest technology, and provide almost instant account set-up, and a ‘free’ or basic account option.
None have physical branches – but this is part and parcel of being alternatives to the ‘high street’ names – many of which are shutting down branches at a rapid rate.
Worth bearing in mind that of the three, Tide and Cashplus are British banks, but ANNA is not. This means that Tide and Cashplus are protected by the Government’s £85,000 FSCS scheme, but ANNA Money is not.
Tide and Cashplus can automatically connect with FreeAgent via bank feeds, whereas you need to physically upload your transactions from ANNA to FreeAgent via CSV files.
Find out more about ANNA Money here.
You can our business current account comparison table here.