Why Our Members Switched
Amadae vs Lili
Amadae is best for
- Freelancers and creators who have outgrown set-asides and need actual strategy
- People who want returns filed and estimates scheduled, not just bucketed
- Owners who want banking, books, payroll, and taxes in one platform
Lili is best for
- Freelancers who mainly need business banking with light tax organization
- People who want a low monthly cost and are fine filing elsewhere
The verdict
Lili does what a freelancer banking app should: separates business money, categorizes spending, and tucks a percentage into a tax bucket so April is not a heart attack. Its paid tiers add invoicing and accounting reports. But the model stops where accounting starts: nobody closes your books, models your S corp election, runs payroll, or files your returns. Amadae includes the banking and delivers the accounting: real books by real accountants, quarterly estimates with safe-harbor logic, and filed business and personal returns. Choose Lili for organized banking on a budget. Choose Amadae when you want the tax outcome managed by people accountable for it.
Freelancer banking with tax tools · Updated 2026-09-29
Lili pricing vs Amadae
Amadae
All plans 100% deductible
- LLC plan from $249/month: monthly bookkeeping, quarterly estimates, business and personal returns, real accountants
- S corp plan from $349/month: adds payroll, reasonable salary and the S corp return
- A free financial review comes first, so you know what you would save before paying
Lili
- Tiered monthly plans from a basic account to fuller accounting features
- Check current tier pricing on lili.co, as plans have changed over time
Lili's tiers and rates change; confirm current pricing on lili.co. Amadae Accounting is quoted after a free review.
Feature comparison
| Amadae | Lili | |
|---|---|---|
| Automated bookkeeping on its own ledger | App categorization and reports on paid tiers, not closed books | |
| Business and personal tax filing | Included with Amadae Accounting | Not included; you file elsewhere |
| Quarterly estimated taxes | Calculated and scheduled for you | Tax bucket set-asides; strategy and payment are on you |
| S-corp formation and election | ||
| Business banking and cards | Business banking is the core product | |
| Invoicing and payments | Invoicing on paid tiers | |
| Intelligent Assistant (Mozart) | Included in every module | App automation, not an assistant |
| Personal finance and forecasting |
Not sure if Lili or Amadae fits better? A 30-minute call tells you exactly where you stand.
Learn MoreFree 30-minute review. No pitch deck.
Pros and cons
Amadae
Pros
- Accountants close real books monthly instead of an app categorizing
- Quarterly estimates calculated, scheduled, and safe-harbored
- S corp election, payroll, and business and personal filings included
- A named accountant you can text, same-day answers
Cons
- Costs more than a banking app because it includes the accounting
- More platform than a light side income needs
Lili
Pros
- Clean business banking built for freelancers
- Tax bucket automates the set-aside habit
- Low monthly cost across its tiers
Cons
- Categories and reports are not bookkeeping an accountant stands behind
- No tax filing, no payroll, no S corp help
- The hard tax decisions remain entirely yours
What Lili does well
Lili gives freelancers a tidy financial home: a business account that categorizes spending as it happens, a tax bucket that siphons off a percentage of income automatically, and invoicing and reports on the higher tiers. For getting organized without real cost, it does the job it promises.
Where Amadae is different
Organization is the floor, not the ceiling. A categorized feed and a tax bucket do not produce closed books, do not decide whether an S corp election saves you five figures, do not run compliant payroll, and do not file anything. Every one of those is still your job or your separate preparer's.
Amadae's platform starts where Lili's stops. Banking and invoicing feed a real ledger, accountants close it every month, quarterly estimates go out on schedule with safe-harbor logic, payroll runs at a defensible salary when the S corp makes sense, and the returns, business and personal, are prepared, filed, and confirmed with the IRS.
How to choose
If your freelance income is young and your need is separation plus a set-aside habit, Lili is a sensible low-cost pick. When the income becomes a business, the costly gaps are strategic, and no banking tier fills them. Amadae's free financial review will show what changes when accountants take over, priced on your actual numbers.
What you get with Amadae
One flat monthly price. Real accountants who know how creators get paid.
- Automated bookkeeping on its own ledger
- Business and personal tax filing
- Quarterly estimated taxes, calculated and scheduled
- S-corp formation and election
- Business banking and cards, built in
- Intelligent Assistant (Mozart) included in every module
Free 30-minute review. Transparent pricing.
Plans from
$249/mo
If you make $40K - $69K. Flat, no hourly bills.
- Monthly profit and loss reports
- Tax set-aside management
- Expense categorization
- Real-time financial dashboard
- Business bank account connections
- Individual tax return included*
Common questions
Lili vs Amadae FAQ
Does Lili file my taxes?+
No. Lili organizes your money and sets aside a tax bucket, and its paid tiers add reports that help a preparer, but filing is done elsewhere. Amadae prepares and files business and personal returns as part of its accounting service.
Is Lili's tax bucket enough tax planning?+
It builds the saving habit, which matters. It does not compute safe-harbor quarterly payments, model an S corp election, or capture deductions in real books, which is where most of the money is for a grown freelance income.
How is Amadae different from Lili's accounting tier?+
Lili's higher tiers add software features you operate. Amadae is a service: accountants do the bookkeeping, the estimates, the payroll, and the filings on Amadae's own platform, and you can text them.
Can I switch from Lili to Amadae mid-year?+
Yes. Amadae onboards your transaction history, reconciles the year to date on its own ledger, and takes over quarterly estimates from the next payment date.
See how Amadae compares to Lili
Free 30-minute review. We tell you exactly what you would save.