LivePlan is definitely considered one of the heavy hitters in the industry, but don’t let that worry you too much. There are a bunch of great alternatives in this industry that offer useful and unique features to suit your business planning needs.
Today, we’ll be looking at our top three alternatives to LivePlan. We’ll discuss each briefly, talking through their general setup, some specific features, and how you can get started.
Recommended: Read our review of the best business planning software.
1. Enloop - Free to $39.95
Starting with our top pick, Enloop is another one of the more popular business planning software companies. They offer a full suite of features including a focused approach towards statistics and analysis. Because of this, they offer a number of number-centric features such as:
- Performance Scoring: Enloop’s founder wanted to create a platform that helped you to see all the potential pitfalls in your business plan. Because of this they’ve developed a performance scoring tool, that analyses you proposed business plan and gives you a numerical assessment. The higher your score, the better your business plan.
- Financial Forecasting: As you input information into your business plan, Enloop generates a number of financial reports including balance sheets, profits & loss, cash flow and more, so you can see exactly where your business is heading.
- Report Card: When your ready to start presenting your business plan, Enloop runs a secondary analysis of your plan and provides you with a final report. It looks at three key areas, including: performance score, critical financial metrics and positive cash-flow.
Enloop offers 4 different packages that range in price, features and number of users. Their introductory package starts at $9.95 a month and from here prices range from just under $10 to $39.95, making it an extremely cost effective option.
2. StratPad - $19.99 to $39.99
Moving on to our second pick, StratPad is one of the few companies in the industry that allows you to use part of their platform for free. They’ll be a great choice for beginners especially, because of their commitment to providing useful, educational materials. Their platform is divided into three feature categories, consisting of:
- StratPad College: This category is the educational hub of their platform. They offer a well developed online course on all of the crucial pieces of information you need to know before getting started with your business plan. They also offer information on topics like business best practices, reading financial statements and entrepreneurial strategies.
- StratPad Cloud: StratPad Cloud allows you access their full platform from anywhere. Great for busy entrepreneurs, these features allow you to easily craft your business plan and generate financial reports.
- StratPad Connect: Connect with business coaches, mentors, accountants, bookkeepers and more so you can put your best foot forward. And when you’re ready to start presenting your business plan, StratPad Connect also helps you to find lending institutions that are interested in your industry.
One of our favorite things about this company is that they offer part of their platform completely free. You can access StratPad College without paying a dime, and once you’re ready to start creating your business plan and utilizing some of their other tools, you can pick between their two packages. Plans range between $19.99 and $39.99, making it pretty comparable to the others on this list.
3. Business Plan Pro - $99.95 to $159.95
Rounding out our countdown, our number three spot goes to Business Plan Pro. These guys are a great alternative for LivePlan, specifically because both were created by the same company. Palo Alto Software has been in the business for over 30 years, and have had decades to perfect their software and streamline their features. Some of our personal favorites include:
- 500+ Sample Plans: Looking for a little inspiration? Business Plan Pro offers you hundreds of sample plans that you can look through if you’re not sure how to format your ideas. They allow you to filter these samples by industry, size or location, so you can make more direct comparisons.
- Plan Review: It’s always best to double check before you present. Business Plan Pro does the double checking for you with Plan Review. They’ll look over the most important sections and make sure that every I is dotted and T’s are crossed.
- Lender-Approved Formatting: Business Plan Pro provides you with 10 different formatting options, all lender-approved so you’re ready to go when it comes time to present to investors.
Unlike our first two picks, Business Plan Pro is a desktop-based software application that charges one flat fee for use. Their standard package starts at $99.95 and their premium package is $159.95 so you can pick what suits your needs best. Once you’ve paid that flat fee, you’ll have access to their full platform for life.
Ready to Get Going?
While LivePlan still remains one of our personal favorites, each of these alternatives are fantastic options for your business planning needs. Our number one pick, Eloop offers a tons of great features, especially for number crunching and analysis. If you’d like to learn more about this business planning software, click the link below to be taken directly to their website. Cheers!