MTD Income Tax Software
Comparison
Choosing the right Making Tax Digital software for Income Tax matters. We've compared File MTD ITSA with the leading alternatives so you can make an informed decision before April 2026.
File MTD ITSA vs the Alternatives
We've compared File MTD ITSA with leading MTD for Income Tax options — workflow, maturity, pricing, and firm tools — so you can shortlist with confidence.
File MTD ITSA vs 123 Sheets
123 Sheets is a well-established spreadsheet bridging tool with 35,000+ VAT users. Their Income Tax product is currently in beta and not yet publicly available. We compare the full-platform approach against the spreadsheet-first workflow.
- Web dashboard vs Excel upload workflow
- ITSA available now vs beta access only
- Firm portal vs multi-taxpayer licensing
- £69/yr vs ~£19.75/yr per taxpayer
File MTD ITSA vs Absolute Excel
Absolute Accounting Software has 30+ years in tax software and 15,000+ firms. Their Excel Income Tax Filer is an affordable, download-based tool with strong coverage of non-mandated income sources like Dividends and CIS.
- Web app vs standalone Excel download
- Foreign property support vs UK-only property
- Firm management portal vs flat NI licensing
- £69/yr vs ~£9.60/taxpayer/yr inc. VAT
File MTD ITSA vs AbraTax
AbraTax is the closest alternative — a web-based platform that also covers all three income sources. It's currently free during its pilot phase, though final declaration and agent features are still in development.
- Complete MTD lifecycle vs finalisation coming soon
- Firm portal live vs agent features in development
- Native data entry vs spreadsheet template upload
- £69/yr vs £60/yr (currently free pilot)
At-a-glance comparison
One view across platform type, income sources, declarations, and pricing. Confirm final details with each vendor before you purchase.
| Feature | File MTD ITSA | 123 Sheets | Absolute Excel | AbraTax |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Platform | Web app (SaaS) | Spreadsheet bridging | Excel download | Web + spreadsheet upload |
| UK Property | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Self-Employment | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Foreign Property | ✓ | Unclear | ✗ | ✓ |
| Final Declaration | ✓ | Beta | ✓ | Coming soon |
| BSAS Support | ✓ | Unknown | ✓ | Unknown |
| Tax Calculations | ✓ On demand | Via HMRC | Via HMRC | ✓ Live |
| Firm Portal | ✓ Full | ✗ | ✗ | Coming soon |
| Non-Mandated Sources | ✗ | Unknown | ✓ Full | In development |
| Individual Price | £69/yr | ~£19.75/yr | ~£9.60/yr inc. VAT | £60/yr (free pilot) |
| Free Trial | 14 days full access | Demo only | Not stated | Free during pilot |
| ITSA Available Now | ✓ | Beta only | ✓ | ✓ (partial) |