Digits vs Pilot: software you run or a bookkeeper you hire?
Choose Digits to see and change your own books, at $65 or $100 a month. Choose Pilot for a person plus tax and CFO work: Essentials is $99 for AI bookkeeping, and Core adds a US-based bookkeeper at a price Pilot does not publish.
Updated · 5 min read · By the Accountable team
List prices for one company, checked Nov 4, 2026. Digits Core is $100, Pilot's bookkeeper plans are quoted, and Pilot sells tax and CFO help as add-ons. Accountable Pro is $149 when an agent should change the books.
The short version
- Digits puts every company on one subscription: Essentials $65, Core $100 and Pro $250 (marked coming soon), and each extra company is free for 250 transactions a year, then from $35 a month.
- Pilot Essentials costs $99 a month up to $100,000 of monthly expenses, and Pilot's pricing is set by your expenses, not by the company count.
- Pilot files taxes (from $1,000 a year for a single-member LLC to $2,450 for a C corporation) and sells CFO plans from $1,750 a month; Digits sends tax work to partner accounting firms.
- Digits includes bill pay, invoicing and iPhone and iPad apps on every plan, and states a SOC 2 Type II report.
- Digits' MCP server reads and writes, so an AI agent can post journal entries and recategorize, and changes in a locked period become proposals.
Digits sells software; Pilot sells bookkeeping, tax and CFO service
The two companies answer a different question. Digits asks whether you want a better tool for your own books. Pilot asks whether you want someone else to keep them.
| Digits | Pilot | |
|---|---|---|
| Price for 1 company | $65 Essentials, $100 Core, $250 Pro (coming soon) | $99 Essentials for up to $100,000 of monthly expenses; Core and Custom are sold through Pilot |
| Price for 3 companies | $100 on Core while the extra companies stay under 250 transactions a year, from $170 once both pass it | No published price for several companies |
| What sets the price | The plan and the number of businesses | Your monthly expenses |
| Who does the bookkeeping | You or your accounting firm, with 24/7 AI bookkeeping and reconciliation | Essentials: Pilot's AI Accountant. Core: a US-based bookkeeper who handles, explains and reviews your books |
| Bill pay and invoicing | Included on every plan, with iPhone and iPad apps | Pilot's COO plans handle bill payment, from $850 a month |
| Tax returns | Through partner accounting firms in Digits' directory | From $1,000 a year (single-member LLC), $2,000 (partnership or S corporation), $2,450 (C corporation), bought with bookkeeping |
| CFO help | Through partner firms | $1,750, $3,150 or $5,250 a month, billed annually |
| AI agent access | MCP server that reads and writes: journal entries, recategorizing, draft invoices and bills | A 24/7 AI chat-based advisor; no MCP server on its pricing page |
| Trial | 30-day free trial | A free trial from Pilot's home page |
Digits' MCP can read and write according to its help center, and changes in a locked period wait for an approver. Pilot's pricing page shows quotes and plan names rather than fixed prices for its bookkeeper tiers.
Pilot prices by your expenses, Digits by your companies
The same company can look cheap at one vendor and dear at the other, depending on spend and structure.
Digits Core stays $100 a month at $120,000 of monthly spending, where Pilot Essentials no longer applies.
At $40,000 a month of spending the prices are the same. The difference is that Digits is software you work in, and Pilot's Essentials is also AI, with no dedicated bookkeeper.
Past $100,000 of monthly expenses, Pilot moves you to Core or Custom, which Pilot quotes. Three companies each spending $30,000 a month pay $100 + 2 × $35 = $170 a month ($2,040 a year) on Digits Core once the two extra companies pass 250 transactions a year; Pilot publishes no multi-company price, so ask for a quote.
A C corporation that also wants its return filed pays for Pilot's tax plan from $2,450 a year, about $204 a month, on top of bookkeeping.
Digits is better for changing your own books
- You can open the ledger, change a category yourself and export the CSV. Digits' ledger export includes Download CSV, Export CSV to Vault and Download Financial Package.
- Bill pay, invoicing and iPhone and iPad apps are in every plan, so you do not add a separate tool.
- Digits states a SOC 2 Type II report on its security page. If a bank or a customer asks for one, Digits can answer today.
- Its price does not jump when your spend crosses a line. Core is $100 at $10,000 or $500,000 of monthly expenses.
- Cost of the trade: when something is wrong, you or your firm fix it. Digits does not list a bookkeeper on its plans.
Pilot is better for a bookkeeper and your tax return
- Core gives you a named US-based bookkeeper, which is the point of Pilot for founders who do not want to touch the books.
- Tax returns and CFO plans are in the same firm. The return is filed by the firm that kept the books.
- Pilot's COO plans start at $850 a month for bill payment and banking support, for founders who want one firm for back office work.
- Cost of the trade: a price that follows your expenses, bookkeeper plans quoted through sales, and no published price for several companies.
If Pilot keeps your books in QuickBooks Online, Pilot's terms say it will transfer primary administrator status to you when the bookkeeping subscription ends, so you can keep the file or export it. See how to move your books from Pilot.
Decide in four steps
Step 1: Write down your monthly expenses and company count. Over $100,000 a month, Pilot Essentials is out of range.
Step 2: Decide whether you will answer the AI's questions yourself. If yes, price Digits. If no, price Pilot Core.
Step 3: List what else you need from one vendor: tax filing points to Pilot, bill pay and invoicing point to Digits.
Step 4: Ask both for the exit steps: Digits publishes how to export the ledger, financial package and chart of accounts; Pilot hands over QuickBooks admin on request.
- Two companies, with undo on any AI change
- AI categorizes and closes each month
- Every AI and agent change logged
- AI bookkeeping for one company
- No published price for two
- No bookkeeper until Core
List prices checked Nov 4, 2026: Pilot Essentials is $99 for one company, and Accountable Pro's $149 covers two.
A third option is software that does the bookkeeping and lets you or your agent fix it with approval. Accountable Pro is $149 a month for 2 companies and $198 for 3. See the Digits and Pilot alternatives.
Questions founders ask
Is Digits cheaper than Pilot?
For one company the two are close: Digits Core is $100 and Pilot Essentials is $99 a month. Digits Essentials is $65. Pilot's bookkeeper plans cost more and are quoted to you.
Does Pilot use AI or people?
Both. Pilot Essentials is its AI Accountant with no dedicated bookkeeper, and Core adds a US-based bookkeeper who reviews your books.
Can Digits file my taxes?
No. Digits routes tax filing to partner accounting firms in its directory. Pilot files returns itself, from $1,000 a year for a single-member LLC.
Can I use Claude or ChatGPT with Digits?
Yes. Digits' MCP server reads and writes: an agent can run statements, post journal entries, recategorize and draft invoices and bills, and changes in a locked period become proposals.
How do I leave Digits or Pilot?
From Digits, download the ledger CSV, the financial package and the chart of accounts before the billing period ends. From Pilot, ask for primary admin of your QuickBooks Online file and export the general ledger.
Software that does the books, with a person replying on Pro
Accountable categorizes every transaction with its reason, keeps your bookkeeping up to date, and lets you or your AI agent fix anything with approval and undo. Moving from Digits is free; see the Digits migration.
Move my books from DigitsSources, checked November 4, 2026: