Hubdoc vs Zera Books for Small Business: Which Saves You More?
Compare per-user pricing with bundled features vs flat-rate unlimited bank statement processing. See which model saves small businesses more money.
TL;DR: Per-User vs Flat-Rate Pricing
Hubdoc charges $20/user/month for bundled receipt scanning, bill pay, and expense management. Zera Books offers flat $79/month for unlimited bank statement conversions with AI categorization—no per-user fees, no forced features you may not need.
Hubdoc (3 users)
$60/month
+ All bundled features
Zera Books (unlimited users)
$79/month
Focused on bank statements
What Small Businesses Actually Need
When you're running a small business, accounting software decisions come down to three priorities:
Predictable Costs
No surprise charges when you add team members or process more documents during busy months.
Simple Workflows
Bank reconciliation that works without complex setup or learning curves.
No Feature Bloat
Pay for what you need—not bundled features you'll never use.
The challenge: Hubdoc bundles receipt scanning, bill pay, expense management, and bank statement processing into one per-user subscription. If you only need bank statements processed, you're paying for features you don't use—and every new team member increases your monthly bill.
Zera Books takes a different approach: focused bank statement processing with AI categorization at a flat monthly rate. Unlimited users, unlimited conversions, no bundled features you don't need.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Feature | Hubdoc | Zera Books |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing Model | $20/user/month | $79/month flat (unlimited users) |
| Cost for 1 User | $20/month | $79/month |
| Cost for 3 Users | $60/month | $79/month (same price) |
| Cost for 5+ Users | $100+/month | $79/month (same price) |
| Bank Statement Processing | Included (700+ connections) | Core focus (any bank format) |
| AI Transaction Categorization | Not included | Built-in (99.6% accuracy) |
| Multi-Account Auto-Detection | Manual splitting required | Automatic separation |
| Receipt Scanning | Included in bundle | Not included |
| Bill Pay / Expense Management | Included in bundle | Not included |
| QuickBooks/Xero Integration | Direct sync | Pre-formatted export (QBO/CSV) |
| Batch Processing | Bulk upload | 50+ statements at once |
| Free for Xero Users | Yes (major benefit) | Paid subscription |
Real Cost Comparison for Growing Teams
Per-user pricing seems affordable at first—but watch what happens as your team grows.
Hubdoc
Per-user pricing
Includes: Receipt scanning, bill pay, expense management, bank statements
Zera Books
Flat-rate pricing
Includes: Unlimited bank statements, AI categorization, multi-account detection, batch processing
When Does Zera Books Save You Money?
Zera Books costs less than Hubdoc at 4+ team members
Annual savings with 10 users vs Hubdoc
Price increase when adding new team members
Why Small Businesses Choose Zera Books
No Per-User Fees
Add your bookkeeper, accountant, and office manager without increasing your monthly bill. Hubdoc charges $20 for each additional user—Zera Books stays at $79/month regardless of team size.
Compare per-user costsNo Forced Features
Only need bank statement processing? Don't pay for bundled receipt scanning and bill pay features. Zera Books focuses exclusively on bank statement conversion with AI categorization.
See what's includedUnlimited Conversions
Process 10 statements or 100 statements—your bill stays the same. Perfect for businesses with multiple accounts, seasonal volume spikes, or year-end reconciliation. No usage tracking, no overage charges.
View pricing detailsAI Categorization Built-In
Hubdoc extracts transaction data but doesn't categorize it. Zera Books uses proprietary Zera AI (trained on 847M+ transactions) to auto-categorize every transaction for QuickBooks/Xero at 99.6% accuracy—saving 30-45 minutes per statement.
Learn about AI categorizationWhen Hubdoc Makes Sense
Hubdoc isn't the wrong choice for every small business. Here's when it makes sense:
You're Already a Xero User
Big advantage: Hubdoc is free for Xero subscribers. If you're already paying for Xero and need receipt scanning + bank statement processing, Hubdoc is included at no additional cost. This is a major benefit that makes Hubdoc the obvious choice for Xero-only businesses.
You Need All the Bundled Features
If you genuinely need receipt scanning, bill pay, expense management, and bank statement processing, Hubdoc's $20/user bundled model delivers more value than paying for separate tools. The 700+ online connections make document collection easier.
You're a Solo Owner with 1-2 Users
At 1-2 users, Hubdoc costs $20-40/month vs Zera Books at $79/month. If you don't need AI categorization and your team won't grow, Hubdoc's per-user pricing is more affordable.
⚠️ Hubdoc Limitations to Consider
- •No AI categorization: You'll still manually categorize transactions after extraction
- •Bank account tagging issues: Can't tag transactions with last 4 digits of cards
- •Multi-currency problems: Known issues with currency handling in QuickBooks
- •Manual input still required: Not fully automated—needs user review for accuracy
When Zera Books Wins for Small Businesses
Zera Books is the better choice when:
You Have a Growing Team (3+ Users)
At 4 users, Hubdoc costs $80/month vs Zera Books at $79/month. At 5 users, Hubdoc is $100/month vs $79. At 10 users, you're saving $1,440 annually. Add your bookkeeper, accountant, office manager, and business partner without worrying about the bill increasing.
💰 Savings example: 5-person team saves $252/year ($21/month × 12 months)
You Only Need Bank Statement Processing
Don't pay for receipt scanning, bill pay, and expense management if you only need bank statements converted. Zera Books focuses exclusively on bank statement processing with AI categorization—a feature Hubdoc doesn't offer. Save 30-45 minutes per statement by skipping manual categorization.
See Zera Books as Hubdoc alternative for bank statementsYou Have Multiple Bank Accounts
Many small businesses have checking, savings, and credit card accounts all in one PDF statement. Hubdoc requires manual splitting—you identify where each account starts and ends, then create separate files. Zera Books auto-detects multiple accounts and gives you organized Excel files with separate tabs for each account. What takes 30-45 minutes manually takes 2-3 minutes with Zera Books.
⏱️ Time saved: 6-8 hours/month if processing 10+ multi-account statements
You Need Predictable Costs
Flat $79/month means no surprises. Add contractors during tax season, give your CPA access, bring on a new bookkeeper—your bill stays the same. No "should I add this user?" calculations. No per-user anxiety. Just predictable monthly costs that make budgeting easier.
What Small Business Owners Say
"We were drowning in bank statements from two provinces and multiple revenue streams. Zera Books cut our month-end reconciliation from three days to about four hours."
Manroop Gill
Co-Founder, Zoom Books
Results with Zera Books:
- Month-end reconciliation reduced from 3 days to 4 hours
- Multi-province bank statements processed automatically
- Multiple revenue streams organized by entity
- Eliminated manual data entry across all accounts
Ready to Save on Bank Statement Processing?
Join small business owners who switched to flat-rate pricing with unlimited users, unlimited conversions, and AI categorization built-in. No per-user fees, no feature bloat, just focused bank statement processing.
Flat rate, unlimited users
AI categorization accuracy
Saved per statement with AI