Property management software for small landlords: how to choose
Software for landlords ranges from bookkeeping apps to platforms that find, screen and collect rent from tenants. This guide is for landlords with between one and a few dozen homes who manage them themselves: what such software should do, the kinds on offer, how the main tools compare, and how to pick one.
By the Crestlet team. Updated . How we check our guides
Do you need software at all?
With one home and a tenant who pays on time, a spreadsheet and a folder of documents can be enough. Software starts to pay for itself when you have several homes, rents and charges that differ, tenants who move in and out, or simply more questions from tenants than you want to answer by message.
What should property management software do?
- Rent and invoices. Does it work out what is due each month and keep track of what was paid?
- A place for tenants. Can tenants see their lease, bills and payments themselves?
- Leases and deposits. Does it hold the terms of each tenancy, and settle the deposit at the end?
- Your country. Does it work where your homes are, in your currency? Many tools are built for one country's rules.
- Money. Do you want it to collect rent online, or only to keep the record of rent paid however your tenants pay?
- The books. Do you need expense tracking and tax reports, or does your accountant handle those?
- Finding tenants. Do you need listings and screening, or are your homes already rented out?
What kinds of property management software are there?
- Spreadsheets. Free and flexible, but every figure is typed by hand and the tenant sees nothing.
- Bookkeeping and banking apps, such as Landlord Studio, Stessa and Baselane in the US, and Landlord Vision in the UK. Strong on income, expenses and tax reports.
- All-in-one platforms, such as TurboTenant, TenantCloud and Avail in the US. Listings, screening, leases, online rent collection and maintenance in one system.
- Rental managers, such as Crestlet, Rentila in France and immocloud in Germany. They keep the lease, the rent and the invoices or receipts of each tenancy in order; some add accounting.
11 tools side by side
What each product says it does on its own website. The four with a comparison page were checked on 14 October 2026, the others on 16 October 2026. Products change, so confirm the details before you choose. Each website is listed under Sources.
| Tool | Where it works | Collects rent online | Screens tenants | Accounting | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crestlet | Any country and currency. | No. | No. | No. | Landlords anywhere who want each tenancy on one record that the tenant sees too. |
| TurboTenant | The United States. | Yes, with autopay and late fees. | Yes: listings on 25+ sites, applications, and background, credit and eviction checks. | Income and expenses by property. | US landlords who need to find and screen tenants. |
| Landlord Studio | The United States, with a separate site for the United Kingdom. | Yes, paid into your bank account, with tenant auto-pay. | Yes: listings sent to rental sites, and TransUnion screening. | Yes: expense tracking, receipt scanning, bank feeds and over 15 reports, including a US Schedule E report. | Landlords in the US or the UK who care most about the books. |
| TenantCloud | The United States. | Yes: credit, debit and ACH, with autopay. | Yes: listings, online applications, and background and credit checks. | Yes: invoicing, reconciliation and financial reports. | US landlords and managers running many units. |
| Rentila | France, with sites for Germany, Spain, Italy, Portugal, the UK, Finland, Bulgaria and Brazil. | Not described on its website. | Not described on its website. | Yes: income and expenses, a summary for tax returns, and bank sync. | Private landlords in France and the other countries it has a site for. |
| Stessa | The United States. | Yes, by ACH, credit or debit card. | Yes, background and credit checks through RentPrep. | Yes, with tax package reports. | US landlords who want the books and rent collection together. |
| Avail | The United States. | Yes: rent, deposits and fees. | Yes, with TransUnion reports. | Income and expense tracking. | US landlords who do it themselves, from listing to lease. |
| Baselane | The United States. | Yes, with automatic invoices and reminders. | Offered as a separate service. | Yes: banking, bookkeeping and tax packages. | US landlords who want their rental banking and books in one place. |
| Landlord Vision | The United Kingdom. | Yes, with rental income tracking. | Tenant referencing on its top plan. | Yes, including Making Tax Digital. | UK landlords who need Making Tax Digital and compliance records. |
| immocloud | Germany, with basic features elsewhere. | Not described; it matches rent received to your bank bookings. | Not described. | Yes: tax reports, a DATEV export and service-charge statements. | Landlords in Germany who need service-charge statements and tax reports. |
| RentHQ | New Zealand, Australia, the United States and South Africa. | Not described; it tracks arrears. | Online applications; screening not described. | Bank feeds and trust account reporting. | Landlords and property managers in New Zealand and Australia. |
Where Crestlet stands apart is the tenancy itself: tenants join their unit with its access code, invoices are drafted from each lease, payments are recorded against them, and the deposit is settled line by line, with the tenant seeing the same record. It works in any country and currency. It does not find or screen tenants, collect rent online or keep your accounts.
What does property management software cost?
Most tools charge landlords by the number of units or properties, monthly or yearly, and many have a free plan for one or two homes. Some are free for landlords and charge tenants instead, through fees for applications, screening or paying rent by card. Before you choose, ask who pays what, your tenants included.
Getting your records out
Before you put years of records into a tool, check that you can get them out again, at least as a spreadsheet. If a tool collects rent for you, find out how long it holds the money before paying it out, and what happens to payments that are on their way if you leave.
How to choose
- Write down the three jobs that take you the most time each month, and pick for those.
- Check that it works in your country and currency before anything else.
- Try it with one real home and one real tenant before moving everything over.
- Ask your tenants what they would use. A portal nobody opens saves nothing.
- Make sure you can get your records out again if you change your mind.
Questions
- Is there free property management software?
- Yes. Several tools, Crestlet among them, have a free plan for a landlord with one or two homes, and some are free for landlords because tenants pay fees. Check what the free plan leaves out.
- What is the best software for a landlord with one property?
- Often a spreadsheet, or a free plan that does the one job you need, such as invoices and receipts. Pick for that job rather than for the longest list of features.
- Do I need software that collects rent?
- Only if you want rent to be paid through it. Many landlords are paid by bank transfer and only need a record of what arrived and what is still owed.
- Does property management software work outside the US?
- Many of the best-known tools are built for the US. Check where a tool works before anything else: the table above says where each one does.
Sources
- TurboTenant (checked 14 October 2026)
- Landlord Studio (checked 14 October 2026)
- TenantCloud (checked 14 October 2026)
- Rentila (checked 14 October 2026)
- Stessa (checked 16 October 2026)
- Avail (checked 16 October 2026)
- Baselane (checked 16 October 2026)
- Landlord Vision (checked 16 October 2026)
- immocloud (checked 16 October 2026)
- RentHQ (checked 16 October 2026)