Nanonets Review 2025: Is It Actually Worth It for Accountants?

What Is Nanonets?

Nanonets is a cloud-based OCR and document processing platform that uses machine learning to extract data from various document types. Originally built as a general-purpose data extraction tool, Nanonets has expanded into financial document processing — including bank statements, invoices, and receipts. The platform positions itself as a versatile AI solution for teams across industries, from healthcare to finance.

On the surface, Nanonets seems like a capable option for accounting firms looking to automate document processing. But the devil is in the details. When you dig into how Nanonets actually works in a real accounting workflow — managing multiple clients, processing bank statements daily, and exporting data to QuickBooks or Xero — the limitations become clear.

What Nanonets Actually Does

Nanonets uses optical character recognition (OCR) combined with machine learning models to extract structured data from unstructured documents. You upload a PDF or image, and Nanonets identifies fields like dates, amounts, payee names, and account numbers. The extracted data can then be exported in various formats.

For accounting use cases, this means you can theoretically upload bank statements and get transaction data out. However, Nanonets requires model training — you need to manually label sample documents so the system learns your specific document formats. This is fundamentally different from how Zera AI works, which dynamically processes any bank statement format without any training or templates.

Nanonets Pricing: The Volume Trap

Nanonets uses a tiered pricing model based on document volume. Their plans typically start around $100–$250/month for limited page volumes (500–2,000 pages). Enterprise plans with higher volumes can reach $500+/month. Critically, every plan caps how many documents you can process per month.

The volume-based model creates predictable problems for accounting firms. During tax season, document volumes spike dramatically — often 3–5x normal levels. With Nanonets, that means either upgrading to a more expensive plan or paying steep per-page overage fees. With Zera Books at $79/month, you process unlimited documents regardless of season.

Nanonets Limitations for Accounting Workflows

What Nanonets Does Reasonably Well

Nanonets does have strengths worth acknowledging. Its OCR engine handles a variety of document formats beyond financial documents — receipts, medical forms, legal documents. If your firm processes highly diverse document types beyond accounting, Nanonets' general-purpose flexibility has value.

The platform also offers a REST API, which appeals to development teams building custom document processing pipelines. And for teams already invested in Nanonets for non-accounting workflows, adding financial documents to an existing setup has some convenience factor.

However, for accounting firms whose primary need is processing bank statements, invoices, and financial documents efficiently — Nanonets' general-purpose design leaves significant gaps that purpose-built solutions like Zera Books fill completely.

Real Workflow Comparison: Processing 50 Client Statements

When Nanonets Might Work for You

Nanonets could be a reasonable choice if you already use it for non-accounting document processing and want to add financial documents to an existing workflow. Its API flexibility also makes it appealing for development teams building bespoke document pipelines where off-the-shelf solutions won't fit.

But for the vast majority of accounting firms — CPAs, bookkeepers, and solo practitioners managing client bank statements — Nanonets lacks the specialized features that make the difference between "good enough OCR" and "complete workflow automation." That's the gap Zera Books was built to fill, with features designed specifically for CPAs and accountants.

Processing 4 Document Types vs. General OCR

One of Zera Books' key advantages over Nanonets is specialization. While Nanonets handles general documents, Zera Books processes four specific financial document types with dedicated accuracy optimization:

This specialization means Zera Books' extraction accuracy is optimized for financial documents specifically — not diluted across dozens of unrelated document types. The result is higher accuracy on the documents that matter most to your accounting workflow.