Accountable vs Mercury Books
A Mercury Books alternative for more than one company
Mercury Books is a good free ledger for one company that banks only with Mercury. Accountable runs every company and bank you have, and moves your history in free.
Side by side
Accountable vs Mercury Books: side by side
Facts and list prices checked Nov 2026. Accountable is accountable.im.
Price for 1 company
Accountable: $0 on Free (100 transactions categorized automatically a month), or $149 a month on Pro.
Mercury Books: $0 for all of 2026, then $35 a month from 2027. A Mercury account is required.
Price for 3 companies
Accountable: $198 a month on Pro: $149 covers 2 companies, and the third costs $49.
Mercury Books: Books covers one company. It has no company switcher, company filter or combined view.
AI agent access (MCP)
Accountable: Read and write on Pro, read-only on Free. Changes apply at once, are logged under the agent's name and can be undone. Entries of $5,000 or more wait for an owner, closed months stay locked, and an agent can preview any change first.
Mercury Books: Its MCP server, in beta, changes categories and notes at once. Payment requests still need approval in Mercury.
In-app AI
Accountable: The AI accountant answers with links to the transactions behind each number and makes the changes you ask for, each logged and undoable.
Mercury Books: Command answers questions, drafts journal entries and bulk-recategorizes. It asks you to confirm every action.
History
Accountable: Your full history, moved in by the agent and tied to the cent at every month-end.
Mercury Books: Starts on January 1 of the current year. Books imports no history from QuickBooks Online, Xero or NetSuite, and rules do not carry over.
Reconciliation
Accountable: Every account at every bank is reconciled to its statement each month, with the statement attached.
Mercury Books: Mercury accounts reconcile automatically. Other banks, cards, Stripe and payroll are connected by hand.
Moving your books in
Accountable: Free for everyone. The agent moves your full history and ties every month-end to the cent, then sends you a tie-out report.
Mercury Books: A cutover: you import a chart of accounts as CSV and post opening balances as one manual journal entry.
Support
Accountable: The AI accountant answers in seconds and names your CPA for judgment calls. Help in the app reaches our team. There are no sales calls.
Mercury Books: Mercury support will not make accounting decisions and does not review or certify books. Accountant seats are unlimited and free.
Free plan or trial
Accountable: Free plan for 1 company, with 100 transactions categorized automatically a month. Pro has a 14-day free trial.
Mercury Books: Free for all of 2026.
Done for you
No books to manage, and no waiting.
Every transaction is categorized the moment it lands, and each month closes the day it ends.
Switch to Accountable if
- You run more than one company. Accountable gives you one login, a switcher that keeps your page and period, an all-companies view and one bill.
- You want your full history, not only this year. The agent moves every past month in for free and ties each month-end to the cent.
- You want your own agent to keep the books. On Pro, Claude or ChatGPT can write through Accountable's MCP, and entries of $5,000 or more wait for you.
- You bank in more than one place. Mercury, Brex, Ramp and Stripe connect directly, any other bank comes in from its statements, and every account is reconciled to its statement each month.
Switch
Moving from Mercury takes 3 steps.
Connect Mercury and your other banks. The agent moves your full history. Approve once and add your other companies.
Questions about switching from Mercury Books
Can I use Accountable and Mercury together?
Yes. Accountable reads your Mercury accounts directly with read-only access, and it never moves money.
What happens when Mercury Books starts charging?
Books costs $35 a month from 2027. Accountable's free plan covers 1 company and categorizes 100 transactions a month automatically, and Pro costs $149 a month for 2 companies.
Can I bring in books from before this year?
Yes. The agent moves your full history from Digits, QuickBooks, Xero, Puzzle, Kick or a spreadsheet, for free.
Is Mercury Books worth it? A short review
For one company that banks only with Mercury, yes: it is free through 2026, then $35 a month, Mercury's own accounts reconcile as transactions land, and accountant seats are unlimited. It covers one company with no combined view, imports no history from QuickBooks or Xero, works in US dollars only, and its MCP is still in beta. Facts from mercury.com and its support pages, read November 4, 2026.
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Free for one company. 14 days of Pro free. Moving your books is free. No sales calls.