A not so old entrant to the computer software market is the accounting software. A accounting software records, analyses and processes accounting transactions of a business activity. It functions within the different modules of accounting. It encompasses the different modules dealing with particular field of accounting.

The different sections of accounting that are present in the accounting software are general ledger, payroll, accounts payable, accounts receivable, debt collection, billing etc. An accounting software caters to the needs of different sections, from personal accounting softwares to high end accounting software. As such accounting softwares are of different cost and complexities.

A business organization may develop its own accounting software to cater to its own particular need. The organization can also purchase the accounting software from a third party who is not directly tied with the organization's functioning. Another option is that the organization can modify the accounting software package after buying it from a third party.

An accounting software caters to different sections. These are as follows -

• Personal accounting: The simplest form of accounting software is the personal accounting software. They are for the home users. They are used for simple accounting transactions and managing home budgets. They are inexpensive.
• Low end market: At the low end market, the accounting software packages are meant for general accounting of a business. These low end software products generally have single entry products instead of the general double-entry products. Some of the low end products do not have enough security. They are at the lowest end of the market.
• Mid range market: These accounting software packages includes different business softwares capable of satisfying the needs of different accountancy standards. These are also capable of accounting in different currencies. Apart from the general accounting functions, these softwares are capable of performing some added extra modules.
• High end market: These accounting softwares are the most expensive packages. They are capable of performing complex operations. These softwares are known as enterprise resource planning software.    

Apart from the above categories, some softwares are made for some particular functions as well. These accounting software market has seen a robust growth since the mid 1990s. Larger organization like Microsoft and Sage have started to consolidate their holdings in this market by buying out smaller groups in recent times.