6 Stessa alternatives for landlords who need more than bookkeeping (2026)
Stessa is bookkeeping first and landlording second. If you need leases, notices, applications and a rent roll as well as the books, here are six alternatives with current prices and honest trade-offs.
The short version
| Option | Starting price | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| LandlordPro | Free (4 units) · from $19/mo | Self-managing landlords under 50 units who want the whole job in one place: ads, applications ranked on your own criteria, leases, the rent roll, notices, receipts and the tax package. |
| Baselane | Free · Smart $20/mo (annual) | Landlords who want a rental-specific bank account with the books attached, and are fine running leases, notices and maintenance somewhere else. |
| TurboTenant | Free · Pro $199/yr for 1 to 10 units | Landlords with a few units who want free listings, screening and rent collection, and do not mind that the free plan's revenue comes from fees charged to their tenants. |
| Avail (by Realtor.com) | Free (tenant pays $2.50/ACH) · Plus $9/unit/mo | Landlords with one to five units who want a free, well-rounded tool and are happy to pay per unit only to spare their tenants the bank-transfer fee. |
| RentRedi | $12/mo (annual) · unlimited units | Mobile-first landlords who want a flat, unit-unlimited price for rent collection and tenant screening, and will add a bookkeeping tool separately. |
| Innago | Free (tenant pays $2/ACH) | Cost-sensitive landlords who want a genuinely free platform for rent, screening and leases and are fine with tenants paying the processing fees. |
Prices read from each vendor’s own pricing page on October 21, 2026. LandlordPro’s prices come from our live price list.
Why landlords look for an alternative to Stessa
Stessa does one thing well: bank feeds into property-level books and reports for the accountant, free on the Essentials plan. The landlords who outgrow it want the other half of the job, which Stessa either lacks or treats as an add-on: a rent roll with late fees and partial payments, state leases (free on Essentials only at $15 each), notices, applications ranked against criteria, and a tenant portal. Support is the most common complaint in reviews, including from Pro subscribers.
One honest note before the list: LandlordPro is our product. It is listed first because this is our site, the pros and cons are written the same way as everyone else’s, and the cons are real. Every competitor price below was read from that vendor’s pricing page on the date shown, and every review point is from a dated public review.
The six options
LandlordPro (our product; judge the claims accordingly)
Where it is good
- Ads built in minutes by clicking pills, then pushed to Zillow; applications pre-screened and ranked against the criteria you set, so the weak matches collapse instead of filling your inbox.
- One rent roll that does the whole month: rent, late fees from the lease, partial payments, credits, ACH or Venmo through the tenant portal, and a one-click message to every tenant in a building.
- Receipts scanned with your phone and digitized straight into the Schedule E lines, so the Tax Preparer Package at year end is a handoff, not a weekend.
Where it is not
- No native app store app yet: it is a web app that works on a phone, with the phone used as the scanner, but you install nothing.
- A one-person company. The founder answers support himself, which is fast and personal and also means it is one person. QuickBooks sync and the management-company tools shipped in 2026 and are newer than the rest.
Best for: Self-managing landlords under 50 units who want the whole job in one place: ads, applications ranked on your own criteria, leases, the rent roll, notices, receipts and the tax package.
Baselane
LandlordPro vs Baselane, head to head
Where it is good
- Opening several accounts and cards per property, with much higher interest than a traditional bank.
- Automated late fees and online tenant payments on the free plan.
- Property-level bookkeeping, Schedule E and an accountant tax package included.
Where it is not
- It is a bank first: no leases, no notices, no maintenance tickets, no application screening workflow of its own.
- The mobile app only launched recently and reviewers say it needs work; recurring transfers arrived late.
Best for: Landlords who want a rental-specific bank account with the books attached, and are fine running leases, notices and maintenance somewhere else.
TurboTenant
LandlordPro vs TurboTenant, head to head
Where it is good
- A real free plan: marketing, applications, screening and online rent collection without a subscription.
- Advertising a vacancy and getting payment-received alerts is easy, per owner reviews.
- Leases, renewals and automated tenant emails are tracked in one place on the paid tiers.
Where it is not
- The paid tiers feel overpriced to landlords with only a few properties, and the pricing page shows two different bank-transfer and application fees without saying which plan each applies to.
- Support is an AI bot first; reviewers say reaching a live person is hard.
Best for: Landlords with a few units who want free listings, screening and rent collection, and do not mind that the free plan's revenue comes from fees charged to their tenants.
Avail (by Realtor.com)
LandlordPro vs Avail, head to head
Where it is good
- Listing syndication, screening, state-specific leases with e-signing and rent collection all in the free plan.
- Reviewers call it the tool that does it all at a reasonable price.
- Simple to screen tenants, sign leases digitally and collect rent online.
Where it is not
- Applicant management is described by reviewers as clunky and confusing.
- The per-unit price of Plus scales badly: 8 units is $72 a month, more than most flat-rate tools.
Best for: Landlords with one to five units who want a free, well-rounded tool and are happy to pay per unit only to spare their tenants the bank-transfer fee.
RentRedi
LandlordPro vs RentRedi, head to head
Where it is good
- Flat price, unlimited units, unlimited teammates: the bill does not change when you buy the next duplex.
- Mobile app for landlord and tenant, with rent, autopay, maintenance and messaging on the phone.
- Reviewers describe the classic dashboard as very user friendly and support as reliable.
Where it is not
- Accounting is thin; reviewers say they still pay for a separate bookkeeping tool (REI Hub) to see their card transactions.
- A learning curve on details such as changing tenants, and the rent-payment fee schedule is not on the pricing page.
Best for: Mobile-first landlords who want a flat, unit-unlimited price for rent collection and tenant screening, and will add a bookkeeping tool separately.
Innago
LandlordPro vs Innago, head to head
Where it is good
- Costs the landlord nothing while still screening tenants, storing leases and collecting rent.
- Clean, intuitive interface; first-time landlords say it is easy to pick up.
- Built-in e-signature and lease templates with no separate fee listed.
Where it is not
- Accounting and expense tracking feel limited next to dedicated tools, so tax time happens elsewhere.
- Onboarding makes you connect a bank account before you have set up a property.
Best for: Cost-sensitive landlords who want a genuinely free platform for rent, screening and leases and are fine with tenants paying the processing fees.
What an 8-unit landlord actually pays
Starting prices hide the fees. Here is the same landlord, 8 units, every tenant paying rent by bank transfer through the software, on each option.
| Option | Your monthly bill | Tenant pays per ACH | How it adds up |
|---|---|---|---|
| LandlordPro | $19 (Starter)/mo | your choice (fee split setting) | $19 (Starter) per month on the cheapest plan that covers 8 units; tenants pay nothing extra to pay rent by bank transfer through the portal unless you choose to pass the ACH fee on (the fee split is your setting). |
| Baselane | $0/mo (Core) | $2 to $5 per ACH payment | Core is $0 a month to you. Each of the 8 tenants pays $2 to $5 per ACH payment unless you absorb it, so $16 to $40 a month lands on the tenants' side. |
| TurboTenant | $16.58/mo (Pro, annual) | $0 to $2 per ACH payment | Pro for 1 to 10 units is $199 a year, about $16.58 a month. Tenants pay the application fee and card fees; bank transfer is free or $2 depending on the plan. |
| Avail (by Realtor.com) | $0/mo (free) or $72/mo (Plus) | $2.50 per ACH on the free plan | Free plan: $0 to you, $2.50 to each tenant per bank payment ($20 a month across 8 tenants). Unlimited Plus: $9 × 8 = $72 a month to you, tenants pay nothing for ACH. |
| RentRedi | $12/mo (annual) | not listed on the pricing page | $12 a month on the annual plan, flat, for all 8 units. ACH and card fees are not published on the pricing page. |
| Innago | $0/mo | $2 per ACH payment | $0 a month to you. Each of the 8 tenants pays $2 per ACH payment ($16 a month on the tenants' side) unless you absorb it. |
The worked example assumes a landlord with 8 units who collects every rent by bank transfer (ACH) through the software and has no other add-ons. Fees that the TENANT pays are shown separately because they are real money to your tenants and a real conversation at lease signing, but not a line on your own bill.
How to choose
Decide what the software has to do for you this year, not what it could do. If it is the whole job (ads, applications, leases, the rent roll, notices, receipts and the tax package) pick the tool that does all of it without a unit minimum. If it is only rent collection, pick the cheapest flat price and keep your books elsewhere. If it is only the books, pick the bank feed you trust. And read who pays the bank-transfer fee on each one before you sign a lease that promises tenants free online rent.
Questions landlords ask
What does Stessa cost?
Essentials is free (unlimited properties, five receipt scans a month, state leases $15 each). Manage is $12 a month paid annually or $15 monthly; Pro is $28 a month annually or $35 monthly (checked October 21, 2026). Rent-payment fees are not listed on the pricing page.
Is there a free alternative to Stessa for rental bookkeeping?
Baselane Core is free and includes property-level bookkeeping with a bank account attached. LandlordPro's free plan includes receipt scanning into Schedule E categories and the Tax Preparer Package for 4 units.
Which Stessa alternative handles leases and notices too?
LandlordPro (leases, notices drafted for your state, eviction timeline, applications), TurboTenant and Avail (leases and e-signing), and RentRedi (leases via its app). Baselane does not do leases or notices.
Can Stessa collect rent?
Yes, online rent collection is in every Stessa plan. The pricing page does not list the ACH or card fee, so check the current rate inside the product.
Try the one built by a landlord
LandlordPro is free for 2 properties and up to 4 units: ads, applications, leases, the rent roll, notices and receipts included. No card to start.
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