The Best MTD Software for
UK Sole Traders

Choosing MTD software in 2026 is less about flashy features and more about three honest questions: is it recognised by HMRC today, does it cover the income types on your return, and are you paying for support you will actually use? This page compares the genuinely sole-trader-focused options, including where each one wins and where it loses, so you can pick without the marketing gloss.

The directory data behind this shortlist

This page used to rank products on our reading of their marketing. It now starts from HMRC's own record. HMRC publishes a feature grid for every product on its find-MTD-software service, using its three-state scale of ready now, in development, or not included, and we scraped all 159 listings on 17 October 2026.

Two numbers reframe the whole category.

104of 159 (65%)cannot complete a single tax-return itemHMRC MTD for Income Tax directory, scraped 17 October 2026 37of 159 (23%)list a free versionHMRC MTD for Income Tax directory, scraped 17 October 2026

So most listed products can file your quarterly updates and cannot finish your return, and a quarter of them list a free version whose conditions vary enormously: some are forever-free, some are capped, some expire, and some require you to open a bank account.

Here are the products that clear the completeness bar, as HMRC grades them:

The most complete products on HMRC's MTD for Income Tax directory by ready-now tax-return items, as graded on 17 October 2026.

Product	Free	Sole trader	UK property	Foreign property	Mobile app	Return items
@1TaxFiler	Not included	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Not listed	16/16
1 1 MTD Bridge	Not included	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Not listed	16/16
123 e-Filing MTD for Income Tax	Not included	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Not listed	16/16
AATAX	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Not listed	16/16
AbraTax MTD for Income Tax	Not included	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Not listed	16/16
Avona	Not included	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Not listed	16/16
EasyTaxer.com	Not included	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Not listed	16/16
FileThat!	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Not listed	16/16
FreeAgent	Not included	Ready now	Ready now	Not included	Android; Apple iOS	16/16
FreeAgent for free with Mettle, NatWest & RBS	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Not included	Android; Apple iOS	16/16
MTD 4 Income Tax	Not included	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Android; Apple iOS	16/16
MTD Companion for iPhone & iPad	Not included	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Apple iOS	16/16
MTD Companion for macOS	Not included	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Not listed	16/16
Quarterwise	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Not listed	16/16
TaxBridge UK MTD by Amelia GB	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Ready now	Not listed	16/16

HMRC lists what each vendor declares. Feature flags, mobile-app support in particular, are vendor claims rather than verified facts, and listings change. Check with the vendor before you buy. Data: HMRC find-MTD-software service (tax.service.gov.uk), scraped 17 October 2026.

TapTax's honest position against that table: strong on the axes that decide whether software fits your business at all, with a permanent free tier, native iOS and Android apps, digital record-keeping and all three income sources including foreign property, and mid-pack on return items at roughly six to eight of 16. TapTax is HMRC-recognised, with its directory listing pending, so it is not on the 17 October 2026 scrape.

You can filter the full list yourself in the MTD software directory, and the complete analysis is in our review of every HMRC-listed MTD tool.

The honest comparison table

MTD for Income Tax (ITSA)

HMRC's requirement for sole traders and landlords to keep digital records and send quarterly income and expense updates, alongside the annual tax return. The qualifying test is on gross income, not profit.

What MTD for Income Tax actually demands

Before you weigh apps, understand the obligation. From April 2026, if your combined self-employment and property income tops £50,000 you must keep digital records and submit quarterly updates to HMRC, then a final declaration after year end. The threshold falls to £30,000 in April 2027 and £20,000 in April 2028. The test is on gross income, so a courier turning over £54,000 with £41,000 profit is in scope from day one. Whatever software you pick must handle quarterly cumulative submissions cleanly, because HMRC expects each quarter to carry your totals to date.

This is also the moment to get the basics of your tax position straight. For 2026/27 the personal allowance is £12,570, with basic rate 20% to £50,270, higher rate 40% to £125,140, and additional rate 45% above. The allowance tapers away between £100,000 and £125,140, creating an effective 60% marginal band that catches higher-earning sole traders out. Class 4 National Insurance runs at 6% between £12,570 and £50,270, then 2% above. If you trade in Scotland your code starts with S and you face six bands (19/20/21/42/45/48%); Wales uses a C code with rates currently matching the rest of the UK, and NIC is UK-wide. It is worth a quick tax code check before you file, because a wrong code silently distorts your figures.

Pie (pie.tax): free filing with paid human add-ons

Pie did not appear on HMRC's find-MTD-software directory at our 17 October 2026 scrape, which is a dated fact about that list rather than a comment on the product, and listings change. What Pie does today is lean into a free Self Assessment filing model, charging for help rather than for filing: as checked in August 2026 that is Tax Support at £89 a year for unlimited access to a tax assistant, and an accountant-handled MTD add-on at £199. It is built around the SA100 and its supplementary pages, so rental income, dividends and multiple freelance income streams are first-class citizens rather than afterthoughts. Pie has also picked up a "Best Tax App UK 2025" accolade, which reflects genuine polish.

Where Pie wins: the core filing is free, and it covers a broad return. If you have a property page (SA105) with mortgage-interest relief restricted to a 20% tax credit, dividends within the £500 allowance, and a freelance side gig, Pie's breadth is a real advantage. Where it is less of a fit: if you want a single, automated month-to-month workflow rather than a return-centric experience, the model feels more like assisted filing than continuous bookkeeping.

Kletta: premium software plus a human bookkeeper

Kletta is Finnish-built, listed on the HMRC MTD software directory, and unapologetically premium. Its self-serve software tiers are Solo at £19 a month and Duo at £29 a month, £228 to £348 a year at list; the £49 Care tier is a different proposition because it includes a human UK bookkeeper. It has also been discounting heavily, so check the rate you are offered. The headline differentiator is people: paid tiers include a human UK bookkeeper and a Self Assessment review, plus a two-sided accountant channel. It covers CIS, property income and capital allowances, and the mobile experience is a "snap-and-forget" model designed to minimise manual entry.

Where Kletta wins: if you are a CIS subcontractor who deducts 20% (registered) or 30% (unregistered) and usually expects a refund through Self Assessment, having a human review your figures is reassuring. The same applies to landlords navigating capital allowances or the post-April-2025 world where the Furnished Holiday Lettings regime has been abolished. Where it loses: it is the most expensive option here, and for a single-income sole trader with simple expenses, you are paying for support you may rarely need. Run the numbers with our CIS tax calculator to see whether a refund alone justifies the monthly cost.

FreeAgent, QuickBooks Self-Employed and Coconut: the heavier incumbents

These are established, directory-listed tools, and that maturity counts. FreeAgent is broad and capable, sometimes free if you bank with NatWest, RBS or Mettle. QuickBooks Self-Employed is familiar and widely supported. Coconut bundles a business current account with tax tracking. The trade-off is that they are generally heavier, broader or pricier than a sole trader strictly needs, and the cheapest plans often arrive via bank bundles or promotional rates that step up later. If you want full invoicing, payroll-adjacent features or VAT returns (the VAT registration threshold is £90,000 on a rolling 12-month basis), these earn their keep. If you just need clean MTD filing, they can be overkill.

TapTax: low-cost, one-tap, built for Making Tax Digital

TapTax takes the opposite bet to the incumbents: do the sole-trader MTD job, do it cheaply, and do it on your phone. Pricing is freemium at £0, £4.99 and £9.99 per month, with CSV bank-statement import, AI categorisation, receipt scanning and mileage tracking feeding a running tax estimate. The pitch is "Tap. File. Done." for quarterly updates.

The honest caveat: TapTax is HMRC-recognised and built for Making Tax Digital, but its directory listing is pending, whereas Kletta is listed on the HMRC directory today. Pie did not appear on that directory at the 17 October 2026 scrape either, which is a dated fact about the list rather than a comment on the product. So the trade is real. If a name on HMRC's published list before you sign up is non-negotiable, that is a point for the recognised tools. If you value a free entry tier, the lowest paid prices in this comparison, and a genuinely one-tap mobile flow, TapTax is the focused choice. For sole traders with several income types, pairing TapTax with the multiple income calculator helps you sanity-check the full picture before you file.

“The best MTD software is the one that is recognised when you need it, covers the income on your return, and charges you only for the help you actually use. For many sole traders that means a cheap, automated app; for mixed income or CIS refunds it can mean broader coverage or a human review.”

How to choose in one minute

• Want free annual Self Assessment filing with broad income coverage? Look at Pie, noting it did not appear on HMRC's find-MTD-software directory at the 17 October 2026 scrape.
• Want a human bookkeeper and a reviewed return, and happy to pay premium? Look at Kletta.
• Already deep in invoicing, VAT or a bank bundle? FreeAgent or QuickBooks may suit.
• Want the lowest price, a free tier, and one-tap mobile filing, and comfortable that the TapTax directory listing is still pending? Shortlist TapTax.

There is no single winner for every sole trader. File-today breadth (Pie, Kletta) and low-cost automation (TapTax) are genuinely different products solving the same deadline. Map your income types, your appetite for human support, and your monthly budget against the table above, and the right pick usually becomes obvious. Read more on the timeline in our MTD for sole traders guide.

People also ask

Is TapTax listed on the HMRC MTD software directory?

TapTax is built for Making Tax Digital and is HMRC-recognised, with its directory listing currently pending. Kletta was listed on the HMRC MTD software directory at our 17 October 2026 scrape; Pie was not, which is a dated fact about that list rather than a judgement on the product. If a published HMRC list entry is essential before you commit, choose a listed tool now; if price, automation and a one-tap mobile flow matter more, TapTax is worth shortlisting while its directory listing is pending.

What is the £1,000 trading allowance and does it change my software choice?

The trading allowance lets you earn up to £1,000 of gross self-employment income tax-free without registering or filing for it. If your income is below this, you may not need MTD software at all. Above it, you are filing Self Assessment, and once gross income crosses £50,000 (from April 2026) MTD for Income Tax applies, which is when quarterly-capable software like Pie, Kletta or TapTax becomes relevant.

Does any of this software handle CIS refunds?

Yes. CIS subcontractors have 20% (registered) or 30% (unregistered) deducted from labour by contractors and usually reclaim the excess via Self Assessment. Kletta explicitly covers CIS and adds human review, while TapTax's CIS calculator helps you estimate the likely refund. Pie's supplementary-page coverage also captures CIS within a full return. Pick based on whether you want a human to check the refund figure.

Can I use free software and still be MTD compliant?

Potentially yes. Pie offers free Self Assessment filing direct to HMRC, and TapTax has a free entry tier. Both let you meet the digital-record and submission requirements without a monthly fee, though paid add-ons or tiers unlock more automation and support. Confirm the tool is recognised or MTD-compatible for your filing date, and that it supports the quarterly cumulative updates HMRC expects.