FreeAgent vs. Workday Adaptive Planning

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
FreeAgent
Score 8.1 out of 10
N/A
FreeAgent is an cloud-based accounting system designed for small businesses and freelancers. FreeAgent supports many core accounting features and bank reconciliation, payroll, tax management, project level accounting, and multiple currency support. It is mobile-accessible, and integrates with many apps.N/A
Workday Adaptive Planning
Score 8.1 out of 10
Mid-Size Companies (51-1,000 employees)
Workday Adaptive Planning(formerly Adaptive Insights) is a financial planning and reporting tool. It includes automated budgeting and forecasting, financial reporting, and other active planning capabilities, including integrations with third-party products like Salesforce.N/A
Pricing
FreeAgentWorkday Adaptive Planning
Editions & Modules
No answers on this topic
No answers on this topic
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
FreeAgentWorkday Adaptive Planning
Free Trial
NoYes
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoYes
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeOptional
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
FreeAgentWorkday Adaptive Planning
Top Pros
Top Cons
Features
FreeAgentWorkday Adaptive Planning
Payroll Management
Comparison of Payroll Management features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
8.6
13 Ratings
14% above category average
Workday Adaptive Planning
-
Ratings
Pay calculation8.012 Ratings00 Ratings
Benefit plan administration8.56 Ratings00 Ratings
Direct deposit files8.92 Ratings00 Ratings
Salary revision and increment management8.86 Ratings00 Ratings
Reimbursement management8.78 Ratings00 Ratings
Customization
Comparison of Customization features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
5.5
11 Ratings
25% below category average
Workday Adaptive Planning
-
Ratings
API for custom integration4.59 Ratings00 Ratings
Plug-ins6.410 Ratings00 Ratings
Security
Comparison of Security features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
8.5
14 Ratings
8% above category average
Workday Adaptive Planning
-
Ratings
Single sign-on capability9.013 Ratings00 Ratings
Role-based user permissions8.013 Ratings00 Ratings
Reporting & Analytics
Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
7.8
20 Ratings
3% above category average
Workday Adaptive Planning
-
Ratings
Dashboards10.018 Ratings00 Ratings
Standard reports9.018 Ratings00 Ratings
Custom reports4.410 Ratings00 Ratings
General Ledger and Configurable Accounting
Comparison of General Ledger and Configurable Accounting features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
9.3
22 Ratings
23% above category average
Workday Adaptive Planning
-
Ratings
Accounts payable10.017 Ratings00 Ratings
Accounts receivable10.019 Ratings00 Ratings
Cash management10.017 Ratings00 Ratings
Bank reconciliation10.018 Ratings00 Ratings
Expense management10.021 Ratings00 Ratings
Time tracking10.016 Ratings00 Ratings
Fixed asset management8.611 Ratings00 Ratings
Multi-currency support9.17 Ratings00 Ratings
Multi-division support9.05 Ratings00 Ratings
Regulations compliance8.78 Ratings00 Ratings
Electronic tax filing9.018 Ratings00 Ratings
Self-service portal9.011 Ratings00 Ratings
Journals and Reconciliations8.01 Ratings00 Ratings
Inventory Management
Comparison of Inventory Management features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
7.4
4 Ratings
5% above category average
Workday Adaptive Planning
-
Ratings
Inventory tracking7.72 Ratings00 Ratings
Automatic reordering8.21 Ratings00 Ratings
Location management4.51 Ratings00 Ratings
Manufacturing module9.11 Ratings00 Ratings
Order Management
Comparison of Order Management features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
8.1
13 Ratings
9% above category average
Workday Adaptive Planning
-
Ratings
Pricing8.19 Ratings00 Ratings
Order entry6.82 Ratings00 Ratings
Credit card processing8.25 Ratings00 Ratings
Cost of goods sold9.13 Ratings00 Ratings
BI Standard Reporting
Comparison of BI Standard Reporting features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
-
Ratings
Workday Adaptive Planning
9.3
1 Ratings
14% above category average
Pixel Perfect reports00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Customizable dashboards00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Report Formatting Templates00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Ad-hoc Reporting
Comparison of Ad-hoc Reporting features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
-
Ratings
Workday Adaptive Planning
8.0
1 Ratings
4% below category average
Drill-down analysis00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Formatting capabilities00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
Integration with R or other statistical packages00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Report sharing and collaboration00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Report Output and Scheduling
Comparison of Report Output and Scheduling features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
-
Ratings
Workday Adaptive Planning
8.0
1 Ratings
2% below category average
Publish to PDF00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Report Versioning00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Report Delivery Scheduling00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Data Discovery and Visualization
Comparison of Data Discovery and Visualization features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
-
Ratings
Workday Adaptive Planning
7.7
1 Ratings
1% above category average
Pre-built visualization formats (heatmaps, scatter plots etc.)00 Ratings7.01 Ratings
Location Analytics / Geographic Visualization00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Predictive Analytics00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Access Control and Security
Comparison of Access Control and Security features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
-
Ratings
Workday Adaptive Planning
9.0
1 Ratings
3% above category average
Multi-User Support (named login)00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Role-Based Security Model00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Multiple Access Permission Levels (Create, Read, Delete)00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
Mobile Capabilities
Comparison of Mobile Capabilities features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
-
Ratings
Workday Adaptive Planning
8.5
1 Ratings
6% above category average
Responsive Design for Web Access00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Mobile Application00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
Dashboard / Report / Visualization Interactivity on Mobile00 Ratings10.01 Ratings
Budgeting, Planning, and Forecasting
Comparison of Budgeting, Planning, and Forecasting features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
-
Ratings
Workday Adaptive Planning
8.7
174 Ratings
4% above category average
Long-term financial planning00 Ratings8.5160 Ratings
Financial budgeting00 Ratings9.0171 Ratings
Forecasting00 Ratings8.7166 Ratings
Scenario modeling00 Ratings8.9157 Ratings
Management reporting00 Ratings8.4171 Ratings
Consolidation and Close
Comparison of Consolidation and Close features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
-
Ratings
Workday Adaptive Planning
7.6
140 Ratings
6% below category average
Financial data consolidation00 Ratings7.8105 Ratings
Journal entries and reports00 Ratings7.967 Ratings
Multi-currency management00 Ratings6.880 Ratings
Intercompany Eliminations00 Ratings7.659 Ratings
Minority Ownership00 Ratings7.935 Ratings
Local and consolidated reporting00 Ratings8.593 Ratings
Detailed Audit Trails00 Ratings6.9116 Ratings
Financial Reporting and Compliance
Comparison of Financial Reporting and Compliance features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
-
Ratings
Workday Adaptive Planning
8.5
162 Ratings
3% above category average
Financial Statement Reporting00 Ratings8.7143 Ratings
Management Reporting00 Ratings8.5157 Ratings
Excel-based Reporting00 Ratings8.1156 Ratings
Automated board and financial reporting00 Ratings8.6135 Ratings
XBRL support for regulatory filing00 Ratings8.625 Ratings
Analytics and Reporting
Comparison of Analytics and Reporting features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
-
Ratings
Workday Adaptive Planning
7.7
132 Ratings
4% below category average
Personalized dashboards00 Ratings7.1114 Ratings
Color-coded scorecards00 Ratings7.394 Ratings
KPIs00 Ratings8.1107 Ratings
Cost and profitability analysis00 Ratings7.6111 Ratings
Key Performance Indicator setting00 Ratings7.995 Ratings
Benchmarking with external data00 Ratings8.366 Ratings
Integration
Comparison of Integration features of Product A and Product B
FreeAgent
-
Ratings
Workday Adaptive Planning
8.3
152 Ratings
0% below category average
Flat file integration00 Ratings8.8118 Ratings
Excel data integration00 Ratings8.1146 Ratings
Direct links to 3rd-party data sources00 Ratings8.1112 Ratings
Best Alternatives
FreeAgentWorkday Adaptive Planning
Small Businesses
Dext Prepare (with Receipt Bank)
Dext Prepare (with Receipt Bank)
Score 9.1 out of 10
IBM Planning Analytics
IBM Planning Analytics
Score 8.4 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Accounting Seed
Accounting Seed
Score 8.3 out of 10
Centage
Centage
Score 9.6 out of 10
Enterprises
Oracle Fusion Cloud ERP
Oracle Fusion Cloud ERP
Score 8.2 out of 10
Oracle Fusion Cloud ERP
Oracle Fusion Cloud ERP
Score 8.2 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
FreeAgentWorkday Adaptive Planning
Likelihood to Recommend
10.0
(22 ratings)
8.9
(203 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
-
(0 ratings)
7.7
(43 ratings)
Usability
9.1
(4 ratings)
9.0
(109 ratings)
Availability
8.9
(5 ratings)
7.3
(11 ratings)
Performance
9.1
(1 ratings)
9.1
(5 ratings)
Support Rating
-
(0 ratings)
8.1
(33 ratings)
In-Person Training
-
(0 ratings)
8.2
(2 ratings)
Online Training
-
(0 ratings)
7.3
(9 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
9.4
(27 ratings)
Configurability
-
(0 ratings)
8.2
(5 ratings)
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
-
(0 ratings)
7.3
(1 ratings)
Ease of integration
-
(0 ratings)
8.2
(8 ratings)
Product Scalability
8.2
(1 ratings)
8.6
(12 ratings)
Professional Services
-
(0 ratings)
8.2
(1 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
-
(0 ratings)
8.2
(4 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
-
(0 ratings)
6.4
(4 ratings)
User Testimonials
FreeAgentWorkday Adaptive Planning
Likelihood to Recommend
FreeAgent
FreeAgent is really suited to the financial management of a small business. Especially an owner managed business as it provides all the tools to keep on top of finances. It can reduce the need for a bookkeeper as it is easy to add expenses and reconcile them with the linked bank accounts. The integrated payroll would also reduce the need for third-party management of such processes. Would still recommend the use of an accountant to advise on more complex financial requirements.
Read full review
Workday
Adaptive is much more versatile than most planning software, and in most ways better than Excel for planning and analytics. It is great and bringing together data from multiple sources, especially if on the Workday platform, and really allows your team to collaborate in real time without any issues unlike trying to work in Excel workbooks at the same time or needing an adminstrator to enter data for you. Power users can even update models and reports themselves and share with others. The flexibility of designing your own models is also great in allowing you to plan however granular you need and have different methods of planning for different business units but bring it all together consolidated.The reporting is the least useful feature. Yes, OfficeConnect gives you all the power of Excel and PowerPoint and is great if you can utilize it, but for now it only works on Windows when many businesses have shifted to Apple or Google platforms. Also, OfficeConnect is not fast or easy to use, like the web reports and web dashboards, which are great for quick ad-hoc reports but not great for presentation-level reports. This creates a huge disconnect in the quickness of analytics, if you want to run and show in depth analytics you'll need OfficeConnect due to the limited functionality and limited formula capabilites of Adaptive web reports which requires someone to build and maintain and refresh the OfficeConnect reports which is slow and not easily shared with other users.Also the planning functionality of the 3 sheet types have not been updated in years. Some new features or sheet types would be greatly appreciated.
Read full review
Pros
FreeAgent
  • Accounting! As you'd expect. Makes it much simpler andmore cost effective. In-coming and out-goings are recorded and assigned to projects and accounts. My accountant can access my books and reconcile so much more easily than trawling through spreadsheets.
  • Time billing - time spent on projects/client work is recorded and is ready to be invoiced as required. Saves so much time and prevents inaccuracies.
  • Invoicing - again, it should do this well and it does. Non payment reminders are automatic and clients have no excuses for not knowing the status of their account.
  • Account dashboard - gives me an instant overview of the health of the business (am I on track to meet my yearly targets) and my accounts.
Read full review
Workday
  • It helps create dynamic plans for finances, operations and various functional units in an organization all under one platform
  • It helps in scenario modeling to help analyze various business events and report by any number of business dimensions including channel, customer or product
  • It can be integrated with any system including ERP, BI or CRM
Read full review
Cons
FreeAgent
  • Reporting on financials, time tracking and project status is a little poor. It's adequate for what what we need, but would be great to see more advanced features.
  • API is quite closed so cannot integrate with our other project management tools.
Read full review
Workday
  • Variable Time Roll-ups. Different entities within our company look at "years" differently, but we're only able to specify one global time roll-up for aggregating data quickly, which can lead to some confusion.
  • Administrative UI. Management of Access Rules and ordering sheets from an administrative point of view can be a bit tedious and have received less attention than other features recently.
  • List Sheet Reporting. Any sheet that is a variable list of things (like People, Capital Projects, Marketing Programs) is somewhat constrained in how it can be reported on. Adaptive provides two kinds of reports but both leave something to be desired when reporting on this kind of data.
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
FreeAgent
No answers on this topic
Workday
For one we're in way too deep to not move forward with Adaptive. We're integrated with Workday, we do a ton of reporting with Adaptive, and it's working very well for planning and forecasting. No reason to look back or change course.
Read full review
Usability
FreeAgent
I spent nearly two decades in IT and am happy to say that FreeAgent's user interface is one of the best interfaces I have ever used.
Read full review
Workday
Workday Adaptive Planning has detailed online help with both articles and videos that are comprehensive. It has a lot of similarities to Excel, which most finance people are already familiar with, plus the user interface is intuitive and easy to pick up. The online support team is quick to respond and very knowledgeable.
Read full review
Reliability and Availability
FreeAgent
Based in a cloud and never had any issues with down time. I can access from any device
Read full review
Workday
There haven't been any lately. The only one issue I can think of is when there was an update in Adaptive that altered our reports. Before I realized there was an issue, Adaptive reached out to let me know, so that it could be fixed.
Read full review
Performance
FreeAgent
No answers on this topic
Workday
All aspects of Adaptive Insights perform well. One area that I wish was quicker was integration. When importing data from Intacct our accounting ERP platform, it can sometimes take 4 hours for the import to process. The earlier imports are done, the quicker they complete. My estimate for a quick upload is about two hours.
Read full review
Support Rating
FreeAgent
No answers on this topic
Workday
Whenever we have had any questions, issues, or concerns, the support has been quick and thorough. [This] allow[s] us to be able to fully resolve any issues, or be connected with the right group quickly to attain the result we were after; be it from simple formatting to adding new detailed reporting.
Read full review
In-Person Training
FreeAgent
No answers on this topic
Workday
This was extremely helpful so that they could walk you through the model and teach you more about the complexity of various areas. It is most helpful when it is specific to your organization's model. The larger in-person trainings were helpful but they tended to be more generic and entry level. The trainings that are more tailored to your specific needs are the most helpful.
Read full review
Online Training
FreeAgent
No answers on this topic
Workday
They often times tended to be way too generic or entry level. They would also become sales pitches to upgrade or get new Adaptive Planning products. The questions in the training would be very niche and specific to other organizations. They were rarely helpful to the group at large.
Read full review
Implementation Rating
FreeAgent
No answers on this topic
Workday
Trust the expertise of very strong 3rd party implementers. Having deployed Adaptive at a separate company before, I thought I knew it all (hubris, I know). Fortunately, I began to (very quickly) trust the judgment of our Carlson implementation team, and they provided invaluable insights and best-in-class processes that have benefitted me and my team greatly.
Read full review
Alternatives Considered
FreeAgent
I used Fresh Books for about three years prior to switching to FreeAgent. It was the accounting functionality that made the difference - in the past two years I've not regretted the switch. Fresh Books is good, but its the UK accounting features that make FreeAgent indispensable to my business.
Read full review
Workday
Workday became our choice because it is fully web-based and easily integrates with other systems. The learning curve for Workday was shorter than that of Dynamics. The reporting tools in Workday are more user-friendly than that of Dynamics. However Workday did not have Check Printing tools which are available in Dynamics. The organization started a project to digitize all financial transactions so it was not a priority feature. When it comes to scaling up the functionalities of Workday it was much easier than Dynamics.
Read full review
Contract Terms and Pricing Model
FreeAgent
No answers on this topic
Workday
Good read only seat access
Read full review
Scalability
FreeAgent
No answers on this topic
Workday
We went from 2 users to 70+ users over a 2 year period of time. The application scaled wonderfully. 65 of those users were non-finance users so they were able to quickly learn the software and prepare budgets quickly and efficiently. That is the power of Adaptive and its ability to scale
Read full review
Professional Services
FreeAgent
No answers on this topic
Workday
This is now available in house at Workday which is convenient.
Read full review
Return on Investment
FreeAgent
  • Professional and uniform offering providing great confident customer service. My clients love it, whether they use it a little or a lot. It's a great piece of software - while sophisticated, it's straightforward to use.
  • Time saving and efficient use of my team's time. Being able to easily share and compare work / tasks.
Read full review
Workday
  • Adaptive Insights has had a positive impact on organizational expansion. With our break-even analysis we have created, what would once take place in a notebook or Excel, we have created templates and can run a conservative estimate on revenue and costs quite quickly. We have cut back on research and time on expansion by months this way, to mere hours.
  • One negative impact is the costs with implementing connections between our other ERP systems with Adaptive Insights. Currently, we would like to have near real-time data, but cannot due to the costs. Currently, I am tasked with uploading from multiple systems and this can be time consuming, especially during a close.
  • Overall, positively we have had an excellent experience. The ease of the functionality and the easy learning curve have enabled everyone on my team to have an enjoyable experience.
Read full review
ScreenShots

Workday Adaptive Planning Screenshots

Screenshot of Adaptive Planning balance sheets.Screenshot of Adaptive Discovery visuals.Screenshot of Adaptive Planning expense variance analysis report.Screenshot of Adaptive Discovery visuals with drill-down capabilities.Screenshot of Adaptive Planning in-sheet visualizations (waterfall chart)Screenshot of Sparklines are used to visualize trends and make adjustments visually