It goes without saying that having a Business Plan is a must... but having a Business Plan Software that helps you making financial predictions is even better.
In this post, we review our handpicked selection of the Best Business Plan Software. No matter if you are an entrepreneur, a start-up, a small business or a freelancer, you will find the right software to help your business succeed.
LivePlan
"LivePlan helps you think through every aspect of your business — so you're twice as likely to succeed"
LivePlan is a business plan tool that provides a step-by-step approach.
It has an array of cloud-based features and online learning tools. The software provides easy-to-use templates to meet specific business goals.
For the start-ups and small businesses, there’s a business plan where you can easily discuss business opportunities with clients.
There are built-in examples as it comes loaded with free and full-length business plans for inspiration. You can also update your plans to keep it accurate whenever it is needed as you progress in your business.
LivePlan provides financial forecasts and reports instantly. It provides industry benchmarks so you can study and understand competitors.
The financials and presentation features let you convert your one-page plan into a detailed plan. The estimate of your economic situation for the upcoming 5 years is part of these financial parameters.
LivePlan Key Features
- Business Model Canvas – can project your business model on a single page while business idea gets documented in just 30 minutes.
- Cash Flow Forecasting – imports your accounting data for forecasting easily. Just need a few steps. Capable of syncing it with QuickBooks and Xero, too.
- Milestone Scheduling – Can schedule milestones and major tasks or activities in the LivePlan Dashboard. Will send you automated reminders whenever an activity or event is due.
LivePlan PROs
- Provides visual forecasting tools for your sales plan.
- Sample of 500 business plans
- Great for start-ups still working on their ideas – step-by-step approach is ideal
- Option for 10 plan themes optimized for funding
- Performance Dashboards - track your business with key metrics such as cost and expenses, revenue breakdown, operating margin, net profit, etc.
- Simple, user-friendly and very intuitive: can do sales and financial forecasting
- Seamless collaboration with global access and easy-to-manage permissions
- Can work on multiple active plans at the same time
LivePlan CONs
- Needs to upgrade some features, especially on mobile
Bizplan
"Get comprehensive education on business planning, direct access to planning experts and a funding platform."
Bizplan is a modern platform that has a number of tools that you can use like drag-and-drop templates, guided builder and online fundraising.
These tools help you get started until your plans are completed and perhaps, ask for funding.
The guided builder allows you to answer questions as you do the step-by-step process in the creation of your business plan. It sorts and classifies everything until you reach your desired goals.
The drag-and-drop templates help you finalize what you need to include or remove from the plan. It makes formatting simpler vs. other spreadsheet software.
Another feature is the Bizplan’s Financial Command Center – where you can track all critical financial issues from a centralized storage like balance sheets or revenue projections, sales forecasts, etc.
The software provides you visual layouts to add to your business plan. It provides a progress tracker to review it as you will know how far and close you are to the culmination of the planning. On top of that, you have collaboration tools and control access from anywhere you are.
Bizplan Key Features
- Raise Capital Online – Free access to Fundable.com if you are in need of an investor, especially for start-ups. It can connect you with a huge number of potential investors so you can start raising money for your business.
- Control Access- controls who can view or comment to keep sensitive business information
- Expert Help – can help you with self-guided courses, a pool of how-to-guides, 650 expert masterclass videos and live experts
Bizplan PROs
- Use visual layouts to make your business plans more powerful
- Progress tracker keeps a tab on all your work – both done and pending
- Can generate different analysis reports like break-even and customer churn reports, balance sheets and income statements
- Collaboration made easier by monitoring feedbacks in the threaded comments portion
- Sharing options with a link – Business Plan can be simply shared at LinkedIn, Twitter or any social account.
- Easily import and manage financials by integrations with top Financial apps like Xero, QuickBooks and others software.
Bizplan CONs
- Not a full-fledged tool – lacking in some functionalities like compatibility with mobile devices
- No free trial (but will refund money within 7 days if you are not satisfied with the software)
PlanGuru
"Build intelligent, dynamic financial forecasts"
PlanGuru is a cloud-based software intended for non-profit groups as well as small & medium-sized businesses. It helps you to do budget and build financial forecasts. Plus, can make future plans. You can use the tool to prepare a detailed analysis in just a short period of time.
Basically, Plan Guru offers you 3 major functionalities:
- Rolling Forecast – checks the outcome of your financial decisions taking into account factors such as cash flow and profitability
- Budgeting & Financial Analytics – analyze your financial condition and set financial goals to improve business
- Strategic Planning – allows for continuing business plan using business scenarios, risks and opportunities
What’s more: it allows you to make projections for up to 10 years with an income statement, cash flow and an integrated balance sheet.
PlanGuru integrates with other software such as Xero, QuickBooks, QuickBooks Online, and Excel Import for unlimited business plans. Has an in-built report builder for Excel. You can also export standard reports to Word, PDF and Excel.
PlanGuru Main Features
- Scenario Analysis – It analyzes the possible impact of various special events to help you make strategic decisions and investments with more confidence.
- PlanGuru Launch – will be handy if you need personal assistance with your business plan for complex projects. Will be able to help you based on factors like time horizon and cost constraints
- Forecasting Methods – provides more than 20 forecasting methods to predict your financial setting for up to 10 years.
PlanGuru PROs
- Non-financial data business forecasting
- Easy to use for first-time users
- Includes financial ratios and a business valuation tool
- With in-built financial statement forms and in-app reporting tools
- Unlimited budgeting capability for comprehensive and detailed plans
- Good dashboards to track your business’ KPIs (Key Performance Indicators)
- Options for a Windows Desktop solution or cloud-based app
PlanGuru CONs
- Limited to monthly subscriptions - higher minimum monthly cost vs. competitors
GoSmallBiz
"Everything your small business needs, hassle free. Advice. Marketing. Legal. HR. Operations."
GoSmallBiz is a tried and tested business plans software created in 1996 by NFL Hall of Famer and entrepreneur Fran Tarkenton. It is a simple to use platform that lets you use step-by-step templates coupled with in-built advice modules.
You build a business plan filling-up all the details in various segments in the software. Clearly, it helps you create the roadmap to your business future.
One helpful feature is its online calendar management that you can use for a number of reasons. It helps you schedule your customer events, meetings and appointments.
Plus, you get automatic reminders. GoSmallBiz also allows you to design your overall financial statements with income and cash flow reports, balance sheets and even multi-year projections.
If you are in the lookout for more investors in your business more than managing different business areas – then, GoSMallBiz is your best bet.
GoSmallBiz Main Features
- Plan Wizard – can include or delete elements from about 100+ business templates. May edit table of contents and sequence of various sections
- Financial Statements – can do financial statements as well as projections, balance sheets and cash flow statements
- Smart Financials – Allows you to acquire revenue projections on product, category or yearly options. You can also project different revenue streams based on a number of your key parameters
GoSmallBiz PROs
- Customized reporting to meet user’s specific needs
- Offers wide range of online learning tools, especially for beginners like business mentoring and business updates
- Can import your pre-written text
- Can track expenses such as telephone, postage, and bonuses of your sales staff
- Can track HR expenses as well
- Good customer support with guaranteed response of 1-2 business days
- 60-day free trial
GoSmallBiz CONs
- Limited exporting report capabilities
- No integrations with common third-party software
Enloop
"Write a business plan. Easy business plan template software."
Enloop is considered one of the best business plan software for online collaboration.
You will love it more as it writes you the business plan automatically and even evaluates it according to their potential. Collaborate with any of your remote team members, financial colleagues and business partners.
If you need your various stakeholders from different locations to be able to take a check and modify your business plan – then go and grab this tool.
This software is certainly easy to use. It is quite helpful in revising any critical issues or concerns in your business plan. All you need to do is enter all the pertinent business information in all the sections. Voila!
Enloop automatically provides the text for each section. Enloop evaluates your plans and analyzes the critical issues helping you resolve them before they get worse. Thus, it provides you pass/fail reports.
As a whole, Enloop allows editing of text, adding of tables and images as well as inclusion of financial forecasts in your business plan.
Enloop Key Features
- Real-time Performance Score – shows real-time score of your business plan
- (i.e., higher score = excellent output)
- Financial Ratios - can see comparisons of 16 financial ratios with your competitors
- Country Currency Formatting – options for 100+ currencies plus number formatting
Enloop PROs
- Availability of business plan and financial templates for doing reports easily
- Automatically generates text for each section.
- Data stored in colored charts for quick understanding
- Process is mostly linear so it’s easy and simple
- Able to do collaborations – up to 5 users from anywhere in the world
- Can have 7-day free trial
Enloop CONs
- Too many windows to insert more data and numbers
Business Sorter
"Planning that pays off"
Business Sorter is a cloud-based business tool giving you the content in creating plans for both sharing and tracking.
You will be saving a lot of time since 90% of the work is done for you. The main business areas covered for you are: sales, goods and services, finance, brand and marketing, people and operations.
What you just need to do is sort through cards then identify your group’s business priorities and the steps needed to accomplish your goals. The tool is easy to use and intuitive. It designs the framework to be able to run your business more efficiently and profitably.
- What can Business Sorter achieve for you?
- You can deal with operational matters.
- You can plan for brand and marketing activities.
- You can manage your finances.
- You can plan for a business of any size and many more.
Business Sorter provides a card sorting system of about 273 cards that cover various business situations. It is flexible as you can delete or even include your own cards, plus edit the current ones you have.
Here’s more: You can store everything – even your thoughts, ideas and concepts at a centralized location. You can also get some advice and tips in implementing all your strategies.
Business Sorter Key Features
- Progress Track – You can make use of ‘Recent’ Activity’ for tracking progress of tasks included in all your projects and highlight issues in the ‘Task Note’ feature.
- Control – It allows you to manage all your resources: assign tasks, set due dates, make budget. This will also help you track your team’s progress and checks completion of tasks by members and dates.
- Plan Notes – You have a handy storage of all business-related ideas and information as you jot them down on this Plan Notes feature.
Business Sorter PROs
- Allows you to create and manage up to 40 business plans from a single dashboard
- Real-time collaboration by sharing live plans with an unlimited number of users
- Helps business to focus on their priorities and provide accountabilities to their staff
- Free updates are regularly available
- Easily accessible through PC and mobile phone
- With autosave feature and solid data security
Business Sorter CONs
- More options to add extra cards
Xero
"Accounting software to do your to-do"
Xero is an accounting tool suitable for small and medium-sized businesses.
The software can assist you in creating a business plan. It offers two types of business plan templates: one-page and multi-page.
The one-pager templates are great for startups, or if you need to get your first business ideas written down. It is easy to update the template as things start to roll. However, a multi-page template seems ideal if you wish to drill down to the smallest details. This is also required by most investors and lenders.
Xero also doesn’t allow for editing online just like the other business plan tools.
Xero can help you in your business plans with their accounting features, such as bills and expenses, payroll, inventory tracking, and many more.
Xero Main Features
- Assistive Text – It has sample text in all template sections offering tips and strategies to create more effective business plans
- Guides – It provides complete guides on almost all areas in your business: starting and financing the business as well as business inventory management
- Directory of Advisors – It provides a network of professionals whom you can consult for some financial expertise
Xero PROs
- If you revise/edit the headings, the table of contents is also updated automatically.
- Good Dashboard: sections are distinct with each other (graphs, infographics, etc.)
- Simplifies standard accounting process for small businesses
- Strength in areas like account reconciliation, expense tracking, project tracking and inventory management
- Can save the files in PDF and share them as well
- Bank integrations: caters to all the banking and accounting essentials of any business plan
- Allows you to manage fixed assets which competitors don’t do
- Affordable vs. competitors
Xero CONs
- Reporting options are limited.
- Mobile apps need improvement.
Venngage
"Tell your stories and present your data with infographics."
Venngage is a dependable infographic design application that processes your data into accessible content. The platform enables users to create graphs, infographics, reports and visuals easily.
It's not a Business Plan software per se, but when create a business plan, you need to be able to display data visually.
What you can use is a wide selection of simple exporting options such as customizable templates and themes, clipart, icon, free-form design canvas and drag and drop user interface.
If you have to do visuals to present market analysis, financial goals and projections in a powerful manner – then by all means, use Venngage.
It’s great that you can also use your own brand. Isn’t it amazing to present visually-appealing business plans to your bosses, colleagues and clients? Presentations that are both creative and impressive are what you can get from this platform.
How can you create a business plan? All you need to do is just pick a template – there are 100+ options for infographic templates, roadmaps, reports and more.
Next in line is to include all your visuals and charts, icons and maps to the template. The final step is to customize your design then add your preferred fonts, colors and other finishes.
Venngage Main Features
- Drag-and-Drop Feature - You can add widgets on your business plan and make adjustments on colors, size and orientation.
- Data Visualization – You can import data directly from spreadsheets whether Line Chart, Stacked Bar Chart, Pie Chart, and more.
- Social Sharing – It supports seamless sharing on social media. You can share your business plan through a landing page or custom link on social media.
- It allows you to publish and embed completed projects on your blog or website easily. You may also download your infographics as PDF files or images.
Venngage PROs
- Team Sharing and Collaboration: can collaborate with various users and edit at the same time
- Vast library of images, graphics, and icons to make your documents visually-attractive
- Unlimited Infographic Templates
- Branding: Companies can use their own branding elements like visuals, fonts and colors (with 70 professionally curated fonts)
- Can export PDF, PNG, High Resolution PNG and Interactive PDFs
- Privacy Controls
- Unlimited and priority support for Premium Plans
Venngage CONs
- Takes time to get used navigating the tool but all functionalities are good
- Inability to download and edit offline
Business Plan Pro
"Takes the guesswork out of writing a business plan."
Business Plan Pro is suited best for small businesses which prefer customizations. It may also be used by large enterprises, medium-sized businesses and even freelancers.
A platform ideal for starters who are not familiar with creating small business plans using advanced features makes up what Business Plan Pro is. This software allows users to choose from any of their hundreds of business plan templates and samples.
Every page has customization options. Add anything you want as you can also revise the outline of the page.
The various templates available are from a wide selection of different categories like Travel, Automotive, Manufacturing, to name a few. More importantly, these templates also follow the format of banks, investors and lenders.
Business Plan Pro provides a lot of learning resources catered to all users like video tutorials and samples for every subject. There are error checks to review your break-even analysis, growth rates and more. They provide you with financial spreadsheets and even tools for any legal inquiries.
They have a sub-product called EasyPlan Wizard, offering a step-by-step guide to assist you with your business plans. Questions will be asked.
Industry experts offer assistance wherever needed. They also have a Secure plan that lets you share your plan with the collaborators and investors alike.
Business Plan Pro Key Features
- Advanced Spreadsheets – options ranging from importing data from Excel to adding unlimited
- customized sheets and using advanced forecasting systems
- Plan Settings for Non-Profits – customized outlines, numbers and charts for this group
- Graphic Forecaster Tool – Visually-appealing forecasts using drag-and-drop feature
Business Plan Pro PROs
- Customized 3-D charts via Chart Editor
- Can identify business metrics to help you with best decisions (e.g., manageable cash flows)
- With an array of business plans and industry profiles for comparison or inspiration as examples
- Ease to export plans to Microsoft Excel, Word, and PowerPoint or transform into PDF documents
- Allows to import data directly from QuickBooks
- One-time upfront fee (no recurring charges)
Business Plan Pro CONs
- Limited accessibility and collaboration opportunities since not cloud-based
- Basic and simple design look vs. modern platforms
- Their website looks old
iPlanner
"Your Business Plan, Business Model and Financials"
iPlanner offers business plan software and financial planning tool to help you develop business plans.
The software is designed to meet the needs of small business owners, advisors, entrepreneurs and investors. Their framework aids you to build a business model in real-time while doing collaborations with members of your team simultaneously.
Here’s more: it also provides various user-friendly business plan templates according to your purpose like a venture capital business plan, a restaurant plan, a convenience store plan and the like. It is one tool that provides mentoring and support to small businesses and individuals as well.
As collaboration is one of its features – all the projects you saved on the iPlanner platform have separate and protected URLs to share with your team.
You have a unique Network address. It also has all the financial aids to gauge different metrics like sales, price, quantities, and forecast.
iPlanner Key Features
- Sample Language – provides sample language for every section that you use in your business plan. Plus, gives tips about the data that you must include in your plan.
- Marketing Strategy – Helps formulate target market, marketing strategy industry and competitive analysis with the marketing plan.
- Expert Mentors – It has a pool of expert mentors to provide personalized assistance to create a business plan and identify potential investors.
iPlanner PROs
- Good customer support via e-mail and “how-to-guides”
- Extensive online library with hundreds of useful resources
- Customized, industry-specific templates to cater to different business plans
- Upload documents, reports and presentations for seamless collaboration
- Can import financial data from other Accounting tools
- Plan output: MS Word, PDF, HTML
- Content from multiple external sources like websites, MS Word, Excel and corporate intranets
- Compatible with Microsoft Windows, Macintosh and Open-Source programs
- With regular backup of your data on the cloud.
iPlanner CONs
- Their website looks really old, and I mean, really really old
- Can be costly for small businesses
- Can’t work offline
You may also need to look at our article about the Best CRM Software, if you want to keep track of your customers.
Let us know in the comments which Business Plan software is the best for your business and your projects!