FP&A (financial planning and analysis) software streamlines strategic planning through forecasting algorithms, budgeting modules, scenario analysis tools, and reporting.
We’ve reviewed 20+ options using our review methodology for the top financial forecasting software on the market today.
- Workday Adaptive Planning: Best Overall
- Budgyt: Best for Small Businesses
- Planful: Best for Professional Services
1 Workday Adaptive Planning - Best Overall
Why We Chose It: Workday Adaptive Planning is our top overall pick for corporate performance management (CPM), specifically in budgeting and forecasting. Its main edge comes from its ability to transcend traditional siloed systems, allowing businesses to plan, budget, and forecast with agility. We found it best for large enterprises and multinational corporations due to its strong FP&A, budgeting, and forecasting tools, earning it a 9.5 out of ten.
This versatility is underscored by its rolling forecasts, which give businesses a real-time operational view and make reacting to shifts easier. Further flexibility is offered through a gamut of budgeting approaches, from top-down to zero-based, ensuring businesses can tailor the software to their needs. Additionally, Workday delivers predictive analytics and multiple pre-built visualization formats, including heat maps and scatter plots.
Workday integrates with other enterprise-level software like NetSuite and Sage Intacct. While Workday doesn’t provide pricing on its website, we know that the total cost depends on the length of your contract, integrations needed, desired package, and number of user licenses.
2 Budgyt - Best for Small Businesses
Why We Chose It: We found Budgyt best for small to medium-sized businesses. The platform earned a rating of 9.4 due to its ease of use and quick setup, ideal for smaller teams. Implementation spans five to ten days for most companies, minimizing disruption and downtime. Plus, it’s usually the next logical step from cumbersome spreadsheets, offering a more automated and reliable budget creation process.
This solution rolls up individual budgets and delivers comprehensive reports. Budgyt simplifies budgeting by allowing companies to consolidate based on department, sub-department, or entity. Additionally, its formulas are designed to handle structural changes across multiple departments without needing to learn codes or syntax.
Budgyt easily integrates with existing accounting software, like Xero and QuickBooks Online. However, users report issues with tedious item code tracking and slow data import from QuickBooks. These drawbacks could be time sinks for small businesses using QuickBooks, especially those with limited time and resources.
3 Planful - Best for Professional Services
Why We Chose It: Formerly known as Host Analytics, Planful is a cloud-based FP&A suite specifically designed for continuous planning. We picked it for professional services like consulting and accounting firms because it handles project-based budgeting. Using flexible modeling and scenario analysis, the software helps plan projects down to resources and deliverables. We gave it a solid 8.7 for its comprehensive features and customization options.
Planful helps automate financial close, reporting, and compliance with GAAP and IFRS standards. Users can also customize dynamic reports with drag-and-drop dimensions, attributes, and report sets on the page, row, and column axes. Additionally, the software’s planning tools enable interactive queries, financial modeling, and spotlight reporting.
However, Planful occasionally experiences performance issues when retrieving or processing large data sets. Finally, setting up the software requires either direct implementation assistance from Planful or from a consulting firm within their partnership network.
4 Xero
Why We Chose It: We picked Xero as an online accounting solution tailored for small businesses. It includes a simple cash flow forecasting feature that shows a 7-day and 30-day outlook of cash positions based on upcoming invoices and bills. This basic functionality is often sufficient for smaller teams just starting out.
As businesses expand, they can opt for the Analytics Plus add-on, which extends forecasts to 60 and 90 days. This add-on also enables basic scenario planning by allowing users to add or remove future events. Additionally, it predicts recurring cash transactions using AI and features customizable dashboards that users can adjust by date range.
While Xero’s built-in forecasting capabilities are limited, you can integrate additional forecasting apps such as Fathom, Futrli, and Figured. These apps enhance Xero by syncing its data to offer more detailed budgeting, variance analysis, and consolidation across multiple entities.
5 Planning Maestro
Why We Chose It: Planning Maestro is our top recommendation for medium-sized enterprises, particularly in construction and real estate. This choice stems from its tailored tools for project financial modeling and capital expenditure planning. The system also simplifies budgeting processes, making it ideal for managing large budgets and numerous line items in these sectors.
By leveraging built-in financial intelligence and business rules, Budget Maestro minimizes the risk of errors. Any adjustments to estimates or assumptions are automatically reflected, ensuring consistency across the board. Moreover, it supports multiple currencies, entities, and users, catering to businesses with diverse operations or managing several projects concurrently.
With 50 customizable reports compliant with GAAP and IFRS standards, Budget Maestro offers a comprehensive solution. However, due to its advanced features, new users may need time to implement the system and fully grasp its functionalities.
6 Prophix
Why We Chose It: Prophix made our list because it’s well-suited to medium to large-sized companies in manufacturing, healthcare, and professional services. For example, manufacturers can link project plans to corporate plans and forecasts within Prophix, aligning project and financial objectives. Healthcare organizations can create detailed, adaptable budgets for managing fluctuating costs related to patient care, staffing, and supplies.
Prophix simplifies access to a centralized database for regular forecasting needs, from monthly to multi-year projections. Its flexible modeling features, including what-if scenarios and actual performance comparisons against budgeted targets, help enhance forecast accuracy.
While Prophix offers a free trial to test its features, it does not publicly disclose its pricing. The system is comprehensive and may require new users to seek some initial assistance, which is available through Prophix Academy’s online and instructor-led training programs.
7 Anaplan
Why We Chose It: The Anaplan Connected Planning platform is our top choice for multinational corporations needing multi-geographical financial modeling. The system supports multi-dimensional planning across time, location, product, customer, currency, or expense. In this way, Anaplan connects data, people, and plans throughout an organization, enabling large and fast-growing businesses to make informed decisions in real-time.
While traditional BI systems only focus on historical data, Anaplan’s modeling engine evaluates expected outcomes of different decisions before implementing them. This provides a combination of backward and forward-looking data for more precise decision-making. The platform’s Hyperblock engine, capable of detailed planning at various levels of granularity, adds to its appeal by enabling “high-fidelity planning” based on real-time data.
There are three pricing plans, but prospective buyers must request a quote for exact details. Due to its complexity and cost, we don’t recommend this software for smaller organizations with under five users.
8 IBM Planning Analytics
Why we chose it: IBM Planning Analytics made our list because it’s an AI-driven BI tool ideal for financial services and banks. It can handle budgeting, forecasting, and basic planning but also supports more advanced predictive modeling, integration with statistical packages, and report-sharing tools.
IBM Planning Analytics provides scoreboards and dashboards, personal and multidimensional scenario modeling, and real-time data access. This includes internal and external data from ERP and CRM systems. IBM Planning Analytics also provides automated visualizations and integrates with Excel, SAP Business Warehouse, Oracle Hyperion, and TM1.
Planning Analytics lacks a dedicated mobile app. Although generating reports is relatively straightforward, creating advanced calculations and reports requires some technical expertise. We also found a number of user reviews describing the UI as complex and challenging to learn.
“What-if” scenario modeling tools
What Is Financial Forecasting Software?
FP&A software helps businesses create and manage financial plans, and predict future revenue and expenses. It centralizes forecasting activities, making it easier for department managers and accountants to collaborate.
The software typically offers advanced features like scenario modeling and integrates with other systems such as accounting software and ERP systems. It’s often part of larger corporate performance management suites but tends to focus more on financial planning rather than proactive KPI management. By automating data import and reminders, the software minimizes human error, improves data reliability, and streamlines the budget approval process.
Budgeting vs. Forecasting Software
While both budgeting and forecasting software aim to inform financial decision-making, they serve different functions and rely on distinct methodologies.
- Budgeting software focuses on setting financial targets based on historical data and current commitments. It helps businesses plan how to allocate resources—like salaries, overhead, and marketing spend—across departments. The budget acts as a roadmap, guiding the company toward its financial goals for a specific period.
- Forecasting software predicts future financial performance by analyzing a range of variables such as historical data, market trends, and economic indicators. Unlike a budget, which is often fixed, forecasts are more fluid and can be updated as new information becomes available. This allows businesses to adapt to changing conditions, like market volatility or unexpected expenses.
For instance, a company might budget for $20M in revenue but later find that the forecast predicts only $18M. With this insight, the company could decide to cut variable costs or adjust its expense plan to meet cash targets.
A budget sets your financial targets and allocates resources to meet them, while a forecast uses real-time data to predict future outcomes. Budgets serve as a performance baseline, and forecasts help businesses adapt and fine-tune their financial plans.
Can Budgeting and Forecasting Software Handle Demand Planning?
These solutions are sometimes confused with sales forecasting software, which specifically predicts expected sales. If you need a way to measure inventory metrics to forecast customer demand, you’re better off looking at demand planning software.
Key Features
The two key features offered by financial forecasting software include:
- Budgeting: Calculate what your company’s budget(s) should be based on historical data and future projections
- Forecasting: Make future projections on how funds should be allocated at your company
Accurate financial modeling cannot truly be achieved without both budgeting and financing, hence why they so frequently operate together as one software. The key difference lies in their intended purposes: budgets try to determine what a company can afford to spend, while forecasts predict potential income. Since both are aimed at improving business financials, they have features like:
| Functionality | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Departmental forecasting | Departmentalized forecasting provides the ability to create hierarchically categorized budgets organized by units such as business department, location, or cost center; can be extra specific to differentiate budgets for multi-company or multi-department projects |
| Budgeted versus actual comparisons | Compare budgeted figures versus actuals by comparing imported general ledger data against income or profit/loss statements; enable real-time monitoring of corporate performance against goals |
| Collaborative forecasting | Support document management functionality to allow multiple individuals to contribute to forecast creation |
| Approvals | Allow for the authorization of operational planning budgets by users at predefined user privilege levels |
| Version control | Use versioning capabilities to create non-destructive storage of multiple versions and track document changes to forecasting plans |
| Rolling budgets | Generate dynamic revision/extension of budgets for a consistent period of time from the present moment for real-time accuracy |
Benefits
Financial forecasting software streamlines planning by providing accurate forecasting data, reducing human error. It helps you make informed decisions based on KPIs and forecast demand, revenue, and expenses.
Key Benefits:
- Accurate Forecasts: The software combines historical data and expert input to create reliable financial projections. It replaces rough estimates with detailed, error-controlled calculations, letting you compare actuals against predictions.
- Time Savings: Skip the labor-intensive, error-prone manual budgeting on Excel. Reuse past data and import directly from accounting software like your general ledger. Auto-fill features prevent mistakes that come from manual data entry.
- Real-Time Adjustments: Adapt budgets for unforeseen events like inflation on the fly, saving you the hassle of time-consuming recalibrations.
- Cost-Efficient: Software minimizes errors and saves executive time, effectively reducing costs.
- Enhanced Collaboration: Forecasting software centralizes data for team access. It integrates well with enterprise performance management systems, keeping departments aligned on financial goals.
Financial Forecasting Methods
The most well-known financial forecasting methods compile important information about past, current, or upcoming financial decisions.
Static Budgets vs. Rolling Forecasts
- Static Budgeting: Static budgets are typically set once a year and are not intended to deviate for the remainder of the budget period. An estimate of the upcoming fiscal year’s expenses and revenue is formulated before the year starts.
- Rolling Forecasting: Rolling forecasts predict revenue and expenses over a set period of time. The time period continuously rolls over to always cover the same timeframe (i.e. 12, 24, or 36 months). The predictions are based on year-to-date results and your original budget. Rolling forecasts are constantly updated to reflect events and sudden changes in your business.
Regardless of method, templates included with budgeting and forecasting software make it easy for users to compile the resulting data into visualizations that can be shared with key decision-makers throughout the financial planning process.
Does Financial Forecasting Software Work For Small Businesses?
Startups and small businesses should look for a lower-cost forecasting solution that will help them manage and track revenue and expenses. Most startups won’t have historical data, so forecasting functionality isn’t a requirement. If you already have an accounting software system in place, you’ll also need a solution that will easily integrate with it.
- Mid-market companies should look for a software solution with predictive forecasting and financial reporting capabilities, so you can better track business workflows to plan ahead. Large enterprise-level businesses with multiple departments or facilities to manage should look for software featuring departmentalized and collaborative forecasting. The former creates a separate forecast to track and report on the financial progress of specific departments or locations. The latter allows multiple individuals to contribute to the creation of budgeting plans—particularly useful if you have multiple locations worldwide.
Types of Software
Forecasting software comes in various flavors, each designed to tackle specific aspects of business operations and planning. Here’s a breakdown:
1 Financial Forecasting Software
Financial forecasting software focuses on projecting your company’s financial health, diving deep into revenue estimates, budgeting, and expenses. It’s a staple for finance teams but can also be a standalone feature within broader accounting software.
Key Functions:
- Revenue projection
- Expense planning
- Budget management
2 Sales Forecasting Software
Sales forecasting software uses historical sales data to set realistic sales targets, helping you adapt your marketing strategies like discounts or bundling. It’s not just for the sales team–supply chain folks use it to plan inventory and production.
Key Functions:
- Accurate sales targets
- Marketing strategy analysis
- Inventory planning
3 Demand Forecasting Software
Demand forecasting software zeroes in on consumer behavior and market trends, letting you adjust your inventory before demand peaks or valleys hit.
Key Functions:
- Consumer behavior tracking
- Seasonal demand planning
- Inventory optimization
4 Capacity and Workforce Forecasting Software
Capacity and workforce forecasting software integrates demand and sales projections to help you determine staffing levels, workflow, and even production capacity.
Key Functions:
- Staffing level optimization
- Workflow planning
- Production capacity planning
5 Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Software
The jack-of-all-trades, ERP software can do a bit of everything. It combines features of many other types of forecasting software into one platform but usually comes with a hefty price tag.
Key Functions:
- Centralized planning
- Comprehensive feature set
- High configurability
6 Specialized Software
Specialized forecasting software targets unique needs like cash flow, revenue, or budget-specific forecasting.
- Cash Flow Forecasting Software: Gives you the play-by-play on money coming in and going out.
- Revenue Forecasting Software: Makes educated guesses on your future earnings based on past revenue.
- Budget Forecasting Software: Helps you sketch out your financial game plan by projecting future budgets.
Can QuickBooks Handle Financial Forecasting?
QuickBooks, a popular accounting solution, can handle basic forecasting. Startups and small businesses looking to move away from Excel spreadsheets can use this to set up budgets, then monitor current and historical data for the business’s revenue and expenses.
How Much Does Financial Forecasting Software Cost?
Financial forecasting software pricing starts at $99 per month and goes up to $1,150 per month. Some charge per user, increasing the total cost, while others have tiered pricing options based on the number of proposed users. For instance, these plans may charge between $10 and $50 per user on a monthly basis. Finally, there are some SaaS plans that charge annually to reduce total costs.
While free forecasting software options do exist, they are typically for personal budgeting and help people achieve savings and retirement goals. When you consider forecasting software for your small business, you’ll be hard-pressed to find a free option which includes all of the functionalities you need like year-end reporting.
