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Banana Accounting or Magic Heidi?

Banana is affordable spreadsheet-style accounting for double-entry bookkeepers. Magic Heidi is for the self-employed who handle invoices and receipts without a chart of accounts, on their phone too.

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5'000+
Swiss self-employed
4.8★
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30 sec.
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Why freelancers look for a Banana alternative

Banana is built for SMEs, associations, schools and fiduciaries, and it's flexible accordingly. But if you work alone, you want to write invoices, not journal entries.

📚

Accounting knowledge needed

Chart of accounts, debit and credit, journal entries
📱

Mobile as an add-on only

Limited on small screens, says Banana
📞

Capped support

3 support cases per year on the Advanced plan
Comparison

Magic Heidi vs. Banana Accounting

Banana details as published by the vendor, as of July 2026. Banana prices excl. VAT, Magic Heidi incl. VAT.

FeatureMagic HeidiBanana
Built for✓ Freelancers & sole proprietorsSMEs, associations, schools, fiduciaries
Accounting knowledge✓ Not needed✗ Double-entry, chart of accounts
PriceFree to try (3 invoices + 3 receipts), then CHF 24.99/mo. yearly or CHF 39 monthlyFree up to 70 entries, otherwise CHF 89 or CHF 179 per year
Apps✓ iPhone, Android, Mac, Windows & web⚠ Desktop; iOS/Android limited on small screens
DataEncrypted in Zurich, synced across all your devicesLocal file, stored wherever you like; only one person can edit a file at a time
Bank✓ Bank connection or CSV/Excel, payments matched automatically⚠ File import; rules only in Advanced
VAT return✓ All rates incl. net tax rate method⚠ Current VAT return only in Advanced
QR-bill✓ Yes✓ Yes
Support✓ Email & phone, DE/FR/IT/EN, no case limit⚠ 3 cases per year in Advanced
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Banana Accounting pricing: free, subscription or one-time?

Banana comes in three tiers. The paid plans are yearly subscriptions; you can't buy Banana as a one-time purchase. As of July 2026, prices excl. VAT:

PlanWhat's included
Banana Free, CHF 0Cash Manager & Timesheet; the rest up to 70 entries
Banana Professional, CHF 89/yearNo entry limit
Banana Advanced, CHF 179/yearPlus VAT return, import rules, 3 support cases

With 3 invoices, 3 incoming payments and 5 receipts a month, you hit the free limit after a little over six months. Magic Heidi costs CHF 24.99/mo. on the yearly plan, incl. VAT. On the yearly plan you save CHF 169 (−36 %) compared with monthly, and Pro comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee. Details on the pricing page.

Bottom line: Banana Professional is about CHF 200 a year cheaper. Magic Heidi is worth it if it saves you more than an hour of bookkeeping a month: no chart of accounts, no journal entries, no typing up receipts.

Banana Accounting reviews

On Capterra, Banana had 4.3 out of 5 from 11 reviews on 19 July 2026. Users praise the spreadsheet logic, multi-currency support, the reports and the value for money. They criticise a dated interface, effort with integrations and a steep learning curve without accounting knowledge. The samples are small, and on G2 several reviews are flagged as incentivised and machine-translated. Banana is even used to teach accounting in Swiss schools: if you want to learn double-entry bookkeeping, it's a good place to be.

Banana or Magic Heidi: which one suits you?

Banana suits you if …

  • you know charts of accounts, debit and credit, and like booking in spreadsheets
  • you want to decide where your file lives
  • you run an association or an NGO
  • price matters most and you work on the file alone

Magic Heidi suits you if …

  • you want to write invoices without learning journal entries
  • your data should stay in sync on phone, laptop and web
  • you work alone or with your fiduciary
  • you'd rather photograph receipts than type them up

More options, from CashCtrl to bexio, are in the overview of all alternatives and in our guide to accounting software for the self-employed.

Magic Heidi

Bookkeeping without a chart of accounts

Made for the self-employed: you record invoices and receipts, Magic Heidi handles the accounting logic in the background. On every device, synced automatically.

Invoices & quotes

A QR-bill in 30 seconds, with your logo, in several languages.

  • Swiss QR code on every invoice
  • Quote to invoice in one click
  • Automatic payment reminders
  • Deposit and partial invoices

Receipts & bank

Take a photo instead of writing a journal entry.

  • Unlimited AI receipt scanning (fair use)
  • Bank connection or CSV/Excel import
  • Payments matched automatically
  • Foreign currencies converted to CHF

VAT & overview

Ready for your return in the FTA ePortal.

  • All rates: 8.1 %, 2.6 % and 3.8 %
  • Effective method or net tax rate
  • Access for your fiduciary
  • iPhone, Android, Mac, Windows & web
Invoice overview

All your invoices at a glance

Drafts, open and paid invoices in one list, without setting up a single account.

Invoice overview with drafts, open and paid invoices in the Magic Heidi app
Switching

From Banana to Magic Heidi in 4 steps

You don't have to migrate anything you don't need. Your Banana archive stays as it is. Magic Heidi starts with your clients and your next invoice.

1. Export your data

Save your client list and open invoices from Banana as a CSV or Excel file.

2. Keep your archive

Your Banana file and annual reports stay your archive, readable without a plan.

3. Import your data

Drag in the file, the AI recognises the format. Or we import it for free.

4. First QR-bill

New invoices with a Swiss QR code, receipts by photo from now on.

Try it free, keep Banana

3 invoices and 3 receipts for free, no credit card. You can try both tools side by side.

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Reviews

What the self-employed say about Magic Heidi

4.8 out of 5 from 207+ public reviews, including from people who'd normally rather avoid office work.

★★★★★
“Perfect for accounting! These guys really made something the rest of us needed.”
Unique WaysGoogle review
★★★★★
“A great app for Swiss solo entrepreneurs. It makes accounting very easy and straightforward. I highly recommend trying it!”
Gildas SeimbilleGoogle Play review
★★★★★
“The first program that's really very easy to use, even for office-hopeless construction guys like me. The most user-friendly thing I've ever tried, and I bought it straight away!”
Andy FischerGoogle review · Construction · translated from German
Read all reviews
FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Is Banana Accounting free?

Partly. In Banana Free, the cash book (Cash Manager) and time tracking are free with no limit, but the other accounting apps are capped at 70 entries. For a running business you'll usually need Professional (CHF 89 per year) or Advanced (CHF 179 per year). You can try Magic Heidi for free with 3 invoices and 3 receipts, all features included and no credit card.

Can I buy Banana Accounting as a one-time purchase?

No. Banana sells Professional and Advanced as yearly subscriptions, and both the subscription and the fees are due every year. According to Banana, your data stays readable even without an active subscription. If you'd rather pay once: Magic Heidi is also available as a 1-year licence for a one-time CHF 299, with no subscription.

What do users say about Banana Accounting?

On Capterra, Banana had 4.3 out of 5 from 11 reviews on 19 July 2026. Users praise the spreadsheet logic, multi-currency support, reports and value for money, and criticise a dated interface and a steep learning curve without accounting knowledge. The samples are small. Magic Heidi has 4.8 out of 5 from over 207 public reviews.

Is Magic Heidi better than Banana for freelancers?

It depends on how you work. Magic Heidi is simpler if you want to write invoices without accounting knowledge, scan receipts with your phone and have the same data everywhere. Banana is cheaper and offers more accounting depth if you want to do double-entry bookkeeping and decide yourself where your file lives.

Do I need accounting knowledge for Magic Heidi?

No. You write invoices and photograph receipts, and Magic Heidi assigns them to categories and VAT rates. As a sole proprietorship with under CHF 500'000 in revenue, simple bookkeeping of income, expenses and assets is enough in Switzerland; double-entry isn't required. More in the guide to sole proprietorship accounting.

My fiduciary works with Banana. Does that work with Magic Heidi?

Yes. You give your fiduciary their own access to Magic Heidi at no extra cost. Or you export invoices, receipts and clients at any time as a ZIP with all original documents or as CSV/PDF. That way they can do the year-end closing in their own software.

Is Banana Accounting available on iPhone and Android?

Yes, Banana offers apps for iOS and Android as well as a WebApp. According to Banana, use on small screens is limited, and the apps are meant as a companion to the desktop version. The WebApp is still in development and stores files locally. Magic Heidi runs natively on iPhone, Android, Mac and Windows as well as on the web, with the same data on every device.

How do I switch from Banana to Magic Heidi?

Export clients, open invoices or expenses from Banana and drag the file into Magic Heidi; your Banana file stays as your archive for the 10-year retention period. The easiest time to switch is at the start of a year or a VAT reporting period. See the import guide

Where is my data stored with Magic Heidi?

On servers in Zurich, encrypted in transit (TLS) and at rest (AES-256), with weekly backups. Some features, such as AI receipt scanning, use services partly outside Switzerland. You can export all your data at any time. With Banana, your accounting file lives wherever you save it. More on the security page.

Write invoices, not journal entries

Try Magic Heidi with 3 invoices and 3 receipts for free, no credit card. Pro comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee, and you keep your Banana file anyway.

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