LivePlan

LivePlan is a web-based service for writing and managing business plans and tracking financial performance. Its linked income statement, cash flow, and balance sheet forecasts update when an assumption changes. AI-powered idea validation helps assess a business idea, while market research draws from more than 50 verified sources and provides geography-specific insights. Users can create presentations from plans, edit them in LivePlan, and export them to PDF or PowerPoint. QuickBooks Online and Xero connections bring accounting data into forecasts and dashboards, and the service includes access to more than 550 sample plans. Standard and Premium each list one active company, five contributors, and unlimited guests; only one company can be active at a time. LivePlan requires an internet connection for all functions and has no mobile app, though it works in a mobile browser. It does not offer a free trial and advertises a 35-day money-back guarantee. Standard is listed at $20 a month, and Premium at $40 a month.

LivePlan brings business planning, financial forecasts, research, and presentations together in a web-based service. Consider its internet requirement, company limit, and lack of a free trial before subscribing.

LivePlan may suit startups and established companies preparing plans or tracking financial performance. Advisors, educators, and SBA partners are also listed among its intended users.

Overview

LivePlan is a business-planning and financial-performance service for founders and established companies that want projections linked to a working plan. Its connected forecasts and presentation tools make it a strong fit for planning and pitching in one place, but the one-active-company cap and internet-only access narrow its appeal.

Based in Eugene, Oregon, and founded in 2011, LivePlan also describes offerings for advisors, educators, and SBA partners.

Key features

LivePlan links income statement, cash-flow, and balance-sheet forecasts: change an assumption and the projections adjust together. That makes scenario analysis useful for seeing how a decision affects the broader financial picture, rather than treating each statement as a separate exercise. Cash-flow modeling is supported, while tax and insurance planning are not.

AI-powered idea validation is intended to help assess whether a business idea is worth pursuing. LivePlan also says its market research draws on more than 50 verified sources and provides insights specific to a business’s geography. These tools are most relevant to early planning; they complement, rather than replace, a company’s own judgment.

Users can generate a presentation from a plan, edit it in LivePlan, and export it to PDF or PowerPoint. Access to more than 550 sample business plans gives users examples to work from. QuickBooks Online and Xero integrations can pull accounting data into forecasts and dashboards, helping connect planning to existing books.

The service requires an internet connection for every function and has no mobile app; phone and tablet access is through a browser. That is a real drawback for anyone who needs offline work or a dedicated mobile experience. LivePlan says it encrypts data in transit with HTTPS, backs it up daily, and stores it on AWS infrastructure whose data centers undergo regular SOC 2 audits. It also says it submits a PCI SAQ A 3.2 self-assessment and can provide its certificate after an NDA.

Pricing

LivePlan’s pricing summary says paid plans start at $15/mo (annual), while the Standard and Premium plan prices are $20 a month and $40 a month, respectively, billed monthly. Both include one active company, five contributors, and unlimited guests. The active-company cap means a business managing several companies cannot keep more than one active at a time; the higher-priced Premium plan does not change that listed limit.

LivePlan Expert is a $30 a month add-on, billed monthly, with 30-minute video meetings. A separately described LivePlan Expert add-on is also $30 a month, billed monthly, and includes 30-minute one-on-one video meetings and priority assistance. These options suit users who want expert help; they are an additional cost rather than a substitute for the core plans.

There is no free plan or free trial, despite the freemium pricing label. LivePlan advertises a 35-day money-back guarantee. Chat and email support are listed Monday through Friday, 8 am to 4 pm (PST).

Platforms

LivePlan is web-based and requires internet access. It supports browser access on mobile devices, but does not offer a mobile app.

Who it's for

LivePlan is best suited to startups and established companies that need a business plan connected to forecasts, want to turn that plan into a pitch presentation, or use QuickBooks Online or Xero. Its sample plans and idea-validation tools are useful for people developing a business concept. Look elsewhere if you need offline access, a dedicated mobile app, tax or insurance planning, or multiple active companies.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Connected financial statements make assumption changes easier to trace across a plan; QuickBooks Online and Xero can feed accounting data into forecasts and dashboards; presentations can be exported as PDF or PowerPoint.
• Cons: The service needs an internet connection for all functions and has no mobile app; Standard and Premium are each limited to one active company; there is no free plan or trial to evaluate before purchase.

Alternatives

For a broader look at tools in this space, browse Business Plan Software, Financial Forecasting Software, Financial Modeling Software, Financial Planning Software, or Scenario Planning Software.

• ProjectionHub is worth considering if you want a free SBA Readiness Review with expert advice, video analysis, an SBA eligibility determination, and an estimated maximum loan amount.
• OnePlan may suit teams looking for annually billed plans starting at $10 a month for three or more users; its Professional plan is $30 a month for three or more users.
• Workday Adaptive Planning offers a 30-day free trial, making it an option if trial access matters before choosing paid planning software.
• OneStream is another paid platform to consider.
• Corporate Planner is another paid option.
• Agicap offers a free trial and requires a minimum 12-month subscription.
• Epicor FP&A offers financial-statements and FP&A plans for different company counts.
• Cube is another paid option.

Verdict

Choose LivePlan if you want business planning, linked forecasts, and presentation creation together, especially when accounting data from QuickBooks Online or Xero is part of the workflow. Its main trade-offs are the online-only experience and one-active-company limit; businesses that need offline or mobile-app access, or must manage several active companies, should look elsewhere.