Karbon alternatives
Karbon alternatives for NZ and Australian businesses
Karbon: US$59 to US$99 a month per user, near US$26,700 a year for a 25-person team.
- check_circleYour data in a database you own
- check_circleOpen source, no lock-in
- check_circleBuilt and run by Enterprise DNA
The options
What people compare Karbon with
Karbon's Business plan lists US$89 per user per month on annual billing (US$99 monthly), with Team at US$59 annually (US$79 monthly) and Enterprise quoted privately. Owners paying that bill for every colleague start looking for a Karbon alternative that does not charge per seat and does not keep the practice's records inside someone else's system.
Yours to own
Accounting Practice for Claude Code
The open-source accounting practice management system that is just a database and Claude Code. Built around your business, with your Karbon data brought across.
See how it worksHow to choose
How to choose a Karbon alternative
- 1
What the bill is tied to
Karbon charges per user, per month, so the invoice grows every time you hire. Before choosing an alternative, work out whether the pricing scales with headcount or is fixed, because that decides what a busy season costs you.
- 2
Whether the records stay yours
Ask where your client and work records actually live. With Karbon they sit inside its subscription. Check whether an alternative gives you a database you own outright, so the records do not disappear if you stop paying.
- 3
Whether it fits your rules
Every practice has its own review steps, fields and definitions of an at-risk client. Check whether a tool lets you rename stages, add fields and change the checks, rather than forcing your practice into fixed categories.
- 4
What the switch involves
Contacts and work can be exported from Karbon through its admin controls and a spreadsheet export. Email history, attachments, time history and custom workflows need a separate mapping pass, so plan for that before you commit to a date.
The option that fits
Own your version instead of renting seats
Accounting Practice for Claude Code puts your client, work and time records into a database your business owns, run in plain language with Claude Code. Enterprise DNA builds a version shaped around how your practice actually reviews work and brings your Karbon data across, then runs it for you for a setup fee and a monthly retainer, with no per-seat charge. A free version exists if you want to run it yourself first.
- check No per-user licence fee, ever
- check Records live in a database you own
- check Built and run around your own rules
Make it yours
Design your own Karbon replacement
Everything starts from the open-source base. Then it gets your name, the parts you run, your rules and your data from Karbon. Try it here, and we build the real one.
2. What it runs
3. Make it fit
4. Your colour
Answered from your own database
Good morning. Here is what needs you today.
We build it from the open-source base, bring your Karbon data across and run it for you.
Questions
Karbon alternatives, answered
How does the cost compare to what we pay Karbon now? expand_more
Karbon charges per user each month, US$59 or US$89 per person on annual billing, so the total rises with headcount. Accounting Practice for Claude Code has no per-seat charge. Enterprise DNA agrees one setup fee and a monthly retainer after reviewing your migration and ongoing work, and a free version has no software licence fee at all.
What happens to our client and work history if we move? expand_more
You start with Karbon's contact export from its admin controls and its work export to a spreadsheet. Enterprise DNA checks the columns against your records with you. Email history, attachments, time history and custom workflows need a separate mapping pass to bring across properly.
Can we still track deadlines and reviews the way our practice does now? expand_more
Yes. You record each client's confirmed deadline and its source, and the practice checks flag missing dates, overdue reviews and incomplete service records against documented retention rules. The responsible practitioner still confirms the dates, evidence and obligations, but the fields and stages are yours to shape.
Do we have to run this ourselves, or does someone set it up for us? expand_more
Either. The free version can be run by an owner directly. For a version built and run for you, Enterprise DNA sets it up around your practice, brings your Karbon data across, and connects your mailbox, portal and other tools as custom work, charged as a setup fee plus a monthly retainer.
Done comparing? Own the one that fits.
30 minutes with Sam. Bring what Karbon costs you a year and how you run. We show you what your own version looks like, and if it is a fit, we build it and bring your data across.
Get your version builtDone paying for Karbon?
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