The biggest difference between credit control tools is whether they only chase unpaid invoices or also collect the money. Adfin does both: it takes card, pay by bank and direct debit payments, chases over email, SMS and WhatsApp, and charges per successful payment with no monthly fee. Chaser, Satago, Paidnice, Kolleno and Credit Hound chase or manage receivables, and Xero and QuickBooks include basic email reminders.
In this article
The short version
- Some credit control tools only chase; others also collect the payment, so fewer invoices need chasing at all.
- Adfin collects by card, pay by bank and direct debit and chases over email, SMS and WhatsApp, for 1% + 20p per successful payment with no monthly fee.
- Chaser, Satago and Paidnice chase invoices, and your customers still pay you separately.
- Kolleno suits larger finance teams, Credit Hound is built for Sage, and Xero and QuickBooks include free email reminders.
- Cost each tool on last month's invoices, because they charge by month, by user, by invoice volume or per payment.
What to look for in credit control software
Good credit control software gets you paid with less of your own time. When you compare products, look at five things:
- Payment collection: a tool that only chases sends reminders, and your customer still pays by bank transfer or whatever route you use today. A tool that collects can take a card or pay by bank payment straight from the reminder, or collect by direct debit on the due date, so fewer invoices need chasing in the first place.
- Channels: email is the minimum. SMS and WhatsApp tend to reach people who leave emails unread, and reminders sent from your own email domain look like they come from you.
- Control per customer: one schedule for everyone works until you've got one customer who always pays on day 40 and another who needs a phone call. Look for schedules you can vary by customer and a way to pause chasing for a single account.
- Accounting sync: payments should match back to invoices in Xero or QuickBooks without anyone ticking them off by hand.
- Pricing basis: tools charge by the month, by the user, by invoice volume or per payment collected. Cost each one on last month's invoices before you compare headline figures, because the units don't line up.
The options at a glance
| Product | What it does | Collects payment | Pricing basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adfin | Payments, chasing and reconciliation in one platform | Yes: direct debit, card, pay by bank, bank transfer | 1% + 20p per successful payment, no monthly fee |
| Chaser | Dedicated chasing, with outsourced credit control available | Through a payment portal using connected providers | Monthly plan set by your annual revenue |
| Satago | Chasing, credit risk scores and invoice finance | Card payments on higher plans, no direct debit | Monthly plan, from £45 |
| Paidnice | Reminders, late fees and payment plans on top of Xero or QuickBooks | No, it sends payment links | Monthly plan by invoice volume, from £49 |
| Kolleno | Receivables, payables and reconciliation for larger finance teams | Direct debit through a GoCardless integration | Per user per month, with seat minimums |
| Credit Hound | Collections management built for Sage | Through a separately priced payment module | Per user per month, from £20 |
| Xero and QuickBooks reminders | Automatic email reminders inside your accounting software | Through a connected payment provider | Included in your subscription |
Each option in more detail
Adfin is a UK payments platform that collects and chases in one place. Your customers can pay by card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, pay by bank or bank transfer from a payment link sent by email, SMS or WhatsApp, or you can collect by direct debit without your own Service User Number (the ID a business normally needs from its bank to run direct debits). Reminders go out on the schedule you set, from your own email domain. Adfin's Customer Agents can also add statutory late fees, offer instalment plans, retry failed payments and send a statement when a customer goes quiet, all within rules you approve. Payments match back to invoices through a two-way sync with Xero and QuickBooks.
It costs 1% + 20p per successful payment, with the percentage capped at £4 on direct debit and bank payments, so a £950 invoice collected by direct debit costs £4.20. Card payments aren't capped, business and premium cards cost more, and direct debits over £2,000 carry an extra 0.3%. Essential credit control is free, and enhanced credit control is 0.3% per paid invoice, only when you use it. There's no monthly fee, no contract and no charge for a failed payment. You're paid every weekday in full, with Adfin's fee invoiced separately. Adfin collects in pounds only.
Chaser is a dedicated chasing platform. It sends email and SMS reminders, can place automated phone calls, and sells Care plans in which Chaser's own team runs your credit control. Customers can pay through its payment portal, which works through connected payment providers, so Chaser doesn't collect direct debits itself. Plans are priced monthly according to your annual revenue, and the cost stays the same whether you collect a lot or a little that month. Its published price list isn't in pounds, so ask for a sterling quote.
Satago combines chasing with credit risk checks and invoice finance. Every plan includes automated email reminders on schedules you set, customer credit scores and suggested credit limits. Basic is £45 a month with 100 email reminders per rolling 30 days and no SMS. Premium, at £80, adds unlimited email, 100 SMS, card payments and sending from your own email account, and Platinum is £200. If you chase each invoice three times, Basic covers about 33 invoices a month. Satago doesn't collect by direct debit, and its invoice finance is quoted separately.
Paidnice adds automatic rules to Xero or QuickBooks: email and SMS reminders, late fees and interest, payment plans and statements. It doesn't take the payment, so your customers still pay however they pay you now. Essentials is £49 a month for up to 150 invoices, and Pro runs from £74 for 300 invoices to £599 for 4,000, with extra entities at £19 a month and SMS at 5p each.
Kolleno is built for larger finance teams that want receivables, payables and reconciliation in one system, with AI agents handling follow-ups and payment matching. It's priced per user per month with seat minimums, its plans are gated by company turnover, and the AI agents sit on its higher tiers. Direct debit runs through its GoCardless integration.
Credit Hound, from Draycir, is collections management built first for Sage, with automated collection paths, call lists for your team and dispute tracking. It connects to Xero as well. Prices start at £20 per user a month and depend on which accounting system you run, and taking payments needs its PayThem module at £38 a month on top. QuickBooks isn't among the systems it lists.
Xero and QuickBooks both send automatic email reminders for overdue invoices at no extra cost. Xero allows up to five reminders on one schedule that applies to all your customers, and QuickBooks Online lets you schedule reminders before or after the due date. Both are email only, and both rely on a connected payment provider to take the money.
How to choose
Start with how your customers pay you now. If most of them pay by bank transfer when they get round to it, a tool that only sends reminders leaves the slowest step in place. Collecting by direct debit, or putting a payment link in every reminder, takes it out. Adfin does both alongside the chasing, priced per payment, so a quiet month costs you nothing.
A few needs sit outside credit control, and they'll point you elsewhere:
- You want funding against unpaid invoices: Satago offers invoice finance. Adfin doesn't offer financing or factoring.
- Your books are on Sage: Credit Hound is built around it, and Adfin syncs with Xero and QuickBooks only.
- You need supplier payments managed in the same system as receivables: Kolleno covers both, at per-seat prices aimed at larger teams.
Whichever tool you pick, switch off your accounting software's own reminders once the new one is chasing, so your customers don't get two sets of emails about the same invoice.
Common questions
What is the best credit control software for a small UK business? It depends whether you want a tool that collects payment as well as chasing it. Adfin does both and charges per successful payment; Chaser, Satago and Paidnice chase, and your customers still pay you separately.
Is there free credit control software? Xero and QuickBooks include email reminders in their subscriptions. Adfin has no monthly fee and its essential credit control is free, so you only pay when a payment comes in.
Can credit control software collect direct debits? Adfin collects direct debit itself, and you don't need your own Service User Number. Kolleno connects to GoCardless, while Chaser, Satago and Paidnice don't run direct debit themselves.
Can credit control software add late payment interest automatically? Adfin's Customer Agents can add statutory interest and fixed compensation to overdue business invoices, and the payment link updates as the interest builds. You can set a grace period and waive it for customers you'd rather not charge.
Does credit control software work with Xero? Every option here connects to Xero. Adfin is an approved Xero payment partner with a two-way sync to Xero and QuickBooks, while Credit Hound doesn't list QuickBooks.
How much does credit control software cost? Anything from nothing for built-in reminders to monthly plans from £45 and per-user pricing for larger teams. Adfin charges 1% + 20p per successful payment, with the percentage capped at £4 on direct debit and bank payments.
Sources
- Adfin - Pricing (accurate as of October 2026) https://www.adfin.com/pricing
- Adfin - Credit control (accurate as of October 2026) https://www.adfin.com/credit-control
- Satago - Pricing (accurate as of October 2026) https://www.satago.com/pricing/
- Paidnice - Pricing (accurate as of October 2026) https://paidnice.com/pricing
- Credit Hound Cloud - Credit control software packages and pricing (accurate as of October 2026) https://www.credithoundcloud.com/credit-control-software-packages-pricing/
- Xero Central - How invoice reminders work (accurate as of October 2026) https://central.xero.com/s/article/How-invoice-reminders-work
