Top Blackline Alternatives for Financial Close

BlackLine is one of the most recognisable financial close and accounting platforms that both smaller and larger companies use. It delivers features many accountants and finance workers appreciate, like automation, standardisation, accuracy and efficiency. Still, looking for alternatives is always on the table. Sometimes the reasons are related to the way it works and sometimes finance departments are looking for a different kind of solution for their needs. 

Why Companies Seek Alternatives to BlackLine?

Besides the BlackLine integrations, efficiency and functionalities, some tools may work better in various establishments. Even though it's popular, many competitors have found a way to stand against Blackline and offer the same quality of services, or even more than that. Here are some of the reasons why consider BlackLine alternatives:

• Implementation: Some users report challenging implementation with insufficient support
• Responsiveness: Delays in resolving issues may affect the productivity and correctness
• Data Sync Lags: These delays may be too critical when deadlines are too close
• Learning Curve: While offering robust features, users may have a hard time adapting to BlackLine's interface
• Customisation: BlackLine may not be flexible enough for companies that need changes too often

These factors may make the finance teams, accountants and even CFOs search for more efficient solutions for their needs. 

BlackLine's Advantages vs. Disadvantages

Pros:

• Structured financial close process
• Generates journal entries from business activity
• Strong visibility for supervisors
• Secure with role-based access

Cons:

• Requires in-house expertise to manage
• Setup can be time-consuming
• User training necessary

The Top Blackline Alternatives

In this section, we'll take a look at the Blackline competitors that work smoothly, offering efficient integrations and finance close processes. 

1. Aico: The Top Alternative to BlackLine

Aico is known among the large enterprises as an agile solution with many integrations that ease the financial close process, especially when close to deadlines. It offers a live ERP integration, a user-friendly interface and advanced automation. 

Aico's key advantages:

• Easy Real-Time Integration: Aico delivers live integration with ERPs and other finance systems, ensuring that updates and reconciliations happen instantly without any lag.
• Unified Platform: Aico replaces tons of spreadsheets and data sources with one intelligent and consolidated platform to reduce errors and boost transparency. 
• Customisation: We talk about a flexible platform that supports complex financial tasks within enterprises, offering predictable configuration and usage
• User Experience: A superior feature with an easy learning curve, leading to increased adoption across finance teams

Additionally, Aico is considered a comprehensive office of the CFO platform. With the recent merger with Mercur, Aico now offers integrated budgeting, forecasting and financial analysis alongside close automation, providing CFOs with a holistic solution. 

Feature Comparison: Aico vs. BlackLine

Aico's Strongest Features

Pros:

• Advanced automation for close tasks
• Real-time ERP integration (SAP, Oracle, others)
• Centralises and standardises processes
• Improves compliance and data accuracy
• Configurable workflows and approval rules

Cons:

• Primarily designed for large enterprises
• Pricing not publicly listed

Why Move from BlackLine to Aico?

Aico is probably the top alternative to Blackline for many reasons. According to G2's data, the real users rate Aico higher than BlackLine regarding financial close:

• Ease of Use: Aico 9.7/10 vs. BlackLine 8.7/10
• Ease of Setup: Aico 8.9/10 vs. BlackLine 7.8/10
• Support Quality: Aico: 9.4/10 vs. BlackLine 8.7/10

The industry coverage also makes a difference, as Aico is mostly used by chemical industry companies, manufacturing, telecommunications, as well as accounting and retail. On the other hand, BlackLine is mostly used by accounting companies, IT, insurance, the oil industry and financial services.

Moving from BlackLine to Aico ensures a smooth financial close process, together with all the activities in the meantime, from journal entries to account reconciliation.

Not sure what to expect? Watch Aico’s demo and explore the extensive knowledge base to learn more.

2. FloQast

FloQast is another popular BlackLine alternative. The main difference is the target companies. While BlackLine is mostly focused on middle to large companies, FloQast operates with small to mid-sized businesses.

Key Features:

• Centralised close checklist
• Automated reconciliation
• Real-time dashboards
• Easy to adopt and integrate
• Completely compliant
• One-time implementation fee
• Custom and scalable pricing plans

Why Consider FloQast: It's easy to use, offers collaborative features and is a much less complex alternative to BlackLine. Small and mid-sized businesses can save plenty of time on onboarding and adoption when choosing FloQast as a BlackLine alternative.

FloQast Best Features

Pros: 

• Excellent for close management
• Integrates with major ERPs 
• Improves efficiency and accuracy
• User-friendly interface

Cons:

• Expensive, especially for small businesses
• Limited task separation for preparers/reviewers
• Some setup and usability issues
• Limited visibility for some processes
• Customer support can be slow

3. Adra by Trintech

Trintech is known for its financial solutions as Cadency and Adra. Adra is a BlackLine alternative for those looking for an intuitive, unified close automation platform.

Key Features:

• Automated transaction matching and reconciliations
• Customizable dashboards and real-time reporting
• Integration with multiple ERPs
• Centralised document and checklist management

Why Consider Adra: As a Blackline alternative, Adra is intuitive, user-friendly and reduces the time spent on reconciliations and closing. It offers undeniable efficiency to smaller companies without the overhead of the larger enterprise solutions. 

Adra's Closing Features

Pros: 

• User-friendly and easy to navigate
• Streamlines reconciliation and close
• Reduces manual effort and errors
• Integrates with many ERPs
• Improves efficiency and enables paperless processes

Cons: 

• Minor workflow inconveniences (e.g., date handling)
• Some users want more advanced features
• May not suit very large or highly complex organisations

4. Vena

Vena is a good BlackLine alternative because of the familiar interface. It's a great choice for teams that prefer less complex solutions with an Excel-based interface with automation. 

Key Features:

• Easy-to-use interface for quick adoption
• Real-time closing processes
• Automated task assignment
• Familiar user interface and user experience
• Available collaboration tools

Why Consider Vena: Vena is known for its easy to learn and adapt interface and usage. With strong reporting and auditing trails, it eases even the most complex workflows within smaller and mid-sized companies. 

Vena's Advantages

Pros:

• Familiar Excel interface
• Strong data integration and consolidation
• Intuitive for most users
• Enables collaboration and workflow automation
• Good customer support

Cons:

• Implementation can be lengthy and complex
• Occasional lag with large datasets
• Advanced customisations may be limited
• Manual refreshes for some data loads
• Upfront investment in setup and training

5. SolveXia

SolveXia is a straightforward solution for those who need an automation-driven close process. Users appreciate its no-code features, embracing the simplicity as part of the accounting processes. 

Key Features:

• Drag-and-drop automation of reconciliations and reporting
• Robust audit trails and analytics
• Seamless ERP integration
• Fast implementation and ease of use

Why Consider SolveXia: SolveXia offers powerful automation for both close and broader finance processes, making it a strong choice for teams looking to reduce manual work and increase data accuracy.

SolveXia Pros and Cons

Pros:

• No-code automation for finance processes
• Significant time savings and error reduction
• Seamless integration with many data sources
• Scalable and customisable
• Excellent customer support
• Intuitive once learned

Cons: 

• Steep learning curve for new users
• Some limitations in integrating with niche/legacy systems
• The full feature set takes time to master

6. Trintech Cadency

We mentioned Adra as a solution for smaller companies. Trintech also offers a separate enterprise-level solution, a true competitor to BlackLine. Trintech’s Cadency platform delivers a solution for complex financial close and compliance requirements. It supports large, multi-entity organisations with robust automation and governance tools.

Key Features:

• End-to-end financial close and reconciliation
• Risk-based journal entry management
• Automated compliance and internal controls
• ERP connectors for SAP, Oracle, and others

Why Consider Trintech's Cadency: For organisations needing deep compliance, scalability and governance capabilities, Cadency offers a powerful alternative to BlackLine with stronger enterprise credentials.

Cadency Top Finance Close Features

Pros:

• Comprehensive automation for financial close
• Real-time visibility and dashboards
• Strong ERP integration
• Scalable and flexible
• User-friendly once familiar
• Continually updated

Cons:

• Outdated/cumbersome interface for some
• Initial learning curve
• Complex to implement
• Customer support can be slow
• Some missing features (e.g., mobile app, two-way integration)

7. OneStream

OneStream is a unified CPM (Corporate Performance Management) platform that goes beyond close management, providing financial consolidation, planning and reporting tools.

Key Features:

• Financial close, consolidation and reporting
• Budgeting, forecasting and analytics in one platform
• Built-in financial data quality tools
• Extensible architecture for additional finance solutions

Why Consider OneStream: OneStream is ideal for companies seeking an all-in-one platform for close and performance management, reducing system sprawl and increasing data consistency.

OneStream Top Features

Pros: 

• Unified CPM platform (planning, close, reporting)
• Highly versatile and customisable
• Powerful reporting and analytics
• Scales well for large/global organisations

Cons:

• Steep learning curve, especially for setup
• Customisation can be time-consuming
• Some manual workarounds are needed
• Limited Excel integration
• Higher price point
• Documentation for advanced features can be lacking

8. Sage Intacct

Sage Intacct is a cloud-based financial management solution that supports everything from core accounting to advanced automation. While not solely focused on close management like BlackLine, it delivers built-in functionality to streamline this process.

Key Features:

• Multi-entity and multi-currency consolidation
• Automated journal entries and approvals
• Real-time financial reporting and dashboards
• Strong audit trails and compliance tools

Why Consider Sage Intacct: For teams wanting a full accounting platform with powerful close capabilities, Sage Intacct offers automation, scalability, and deep financial visibility.

Sage Intacct Best Advantages

Pros: 

• Intuitive, cloud-based interface
• Strong automation and reporting
• Scalable for growing businesses
• Deep accounting functionality
• Highly rated customer satisfaction
• Good integration ecosystem

Cons:

• Can be expensive, especially with add-ons
• Some modules are complex for new users
• Limited out-of-the-box support for manufacturing, HR and payroll
• Configuration changes require vendor
• Occasional lags or syncing issues
• Limited customisation in standard reports

Blackline Alternatives: Main Feature Comparison

Let's take a look at the features that make a difference between all the mentioned finance close solutions:

Top BlackLine Alternatives: The Verdict

The financial close automation market offers a broad choice of alternatives to BlackLine, each catering to different organisational sizes, technical requirements and workflow preferences. The reasons to move from BlackLine to other solutions can be countless, from BlackLine's integration with SAP or other ERPs to convenient use and compliance. 

The "best" choice depends on your company's priorities. Whether that's ease of use, depth of automation, scalability or integration capabilities, this guide will help you narrow down the choices and make a decision.