Budget MTD Software Compared: GoSimpleTax vs Taxd vs Hammock vs Latch

With Making Tax Digital for Income Tax arriving in April 2026, UK landlords are searching for affordable software that ticks the compliance box without draining their profits. Four platforms consistently appear at the top of the budget MTD conversation: GoSimpleTax, Taxd, Hammock, and Latch. All four are HMRC-recognised for Making Tax Digital, and all four cost significantly less than traditional accountancy fees or enterprise-grade property tools.

But budget pricing does not mean these platforms are interchangeable. GoSimpleTax has been filing Self Assessment returns for years and treats MTD as an extension of its core tax product. Taxd is a newer entrant using artificial intelligence to guide users through their tax obligations. Hammock is purpose-built for landlords who want dead-simple income and expense tracking with quarterly submissions. And Latch bundles free MTD compliance into a full property management suite that handles tenants, leases, compliance, and AI-powered automation alongside tax filing.

This comparison breaks down exactly what each platform offers, where it falls short, and which one delivers the best overall value for UK landlords in 2026. We tested all four using real property data, compared pricing at different portfolio sizes, and scored each platform across MTD compliance, landlord-specific features, value for money, and ease of use.

Why These Four?

These four platforms represent the budget tier of MTD-compliant software for UK landlords. All are priced below £100 per year at their entry level, all are listed on HMRC's recognised software list, and all support the quarterly digital submissions required from April 2026. They sit well below enterprise tools like Xero (£180/year+) and specialist accounting packages like Landlord Vision (£379/year), making them the natural shortlist for cost-conscious landlords.

What separates them is scope. GoSimpleTax and Taxd are primarily tax-filing tools that happen to support MTD — they cover all income types (employment, self-employment, dividends, property) but offer nothing for day-to-day property management. Hammock sits in the middle as a landlord-specific income tracker with MTD submissions built in. Latch occupies the opposite end of the spectrum: a comprehensive property management platform where MTD compliance is included free of charge, even on the unpaid tier. Understanding these scope differences is essential to choosing the right tool for your situation. For a broader comparison across all price points, see our ranked guide to low-cost MTD software.

Head-to-Head Feature Matrix

The table below compares all four platforms across the features that matter most to UK landlords. We have focused on practical capabilities rather than marketing claims, testing each feature during our hands-on evaluation.

The feature matrix reveals a clear pattern. GoSimpleTax and Taxd are strong on the tax side but offer nothing for property operations. Hammock adds landlord-specific income and expense tracking but stops short of property management. Latch is the only platform that combines MTD compliance with a full operational toolkit. For landlords who already have a property management system and need only a tax filing bridge, GoSimpleTax or Taxd may be sufficient. For those starting from scratch or looking to consolidate tools, Latch delivers materially more value. For a deeper look at platforms under £10 per month, see our best MTD software under £10/month guide.

GoSimpleTax Review

GoSimpleTax has been helping UK taxpayers file Self Assessment returns for years, and its MTD bridge is a natural extension of that core capability. The platform walks users through each section of the tax return using a guided questionnaire format, which works well for landlords who are comfortable with the SA105 property income supplement. At £39.99 per year, it is the cheapest annual cost on this list, and it covers all income types — not just property — making it a practical choice for landlords who also have employment income, dividends, or other self-employment earnings.

Where GoSimpleTax falls short for landlords is everything beyond tax filing. There are no bank feeds, no receipt scanning, no expense categorisation suggestions, and no property management features of any kind. You are manually entering every figure, which increases both the time commitment and the risk of errors. The interface, while functional, has not kept pace with the modern design standards set by platforms like Latch and Taxd. For landlords who want a simple, cheap tool that does one thing — file taxes and submit MTD returns — GoSimpleTax is reliable. For anyone wanting more, it requires pairing with additional tools.

GoSimpleTax's real strength is breadth of tax coverage. It handles furnished holiday lettings, overseas property income, capital gains on property disposals, and the nuances of Section 24 mortgage interest restrictions with equal competence. If your tax affairs are complex and span multiple income sources, GoSimpleTax's guided approach reduces the risk of missing a relief or overstating income. However, this breadth comes at the expense of depth in any single area — it knows a little about property tax but nothing about property management.

Taxd Review

Taxd is the newest entrant in this comparison, and its headline feature is AI-assisted tax guidance. The platform uses machine learning to analyse your income and expenses, suggest applicable deductions, and explain tax concepts in plain language. For landlords filing Self Assessment for the first time — particularly those crossing the MTD threshold in April 2026 — this guided approach reduces anxiety and helps catch deductions that might otherwise be missed. The interface is noticeably more modern than GoSimpleTax, with a clean design that feels contemporary.

The AI assistance, while genuinely useful, comes with caveats. During our testing, the platform occasionally suggested deductions that required further verification, and the explanations sometimes oversimplified complex areas like mortgage interest restrictions under Section 24. At £49.99 to £79.99 per year depending on the plan, Taxd is also the most expensive option on a per-year basis for what is fundamentally a tax-filing tool. The higher-tier plan includes priority support and additional AI features, but the core MTD submission capability is available on the standard plan.

Like GoSimpleTax, Taxd offers nothing for property management. There are no bank feeds, no receipt scanning, no tenant management, and no compliance tracking. The platform is a tax tool, not a landlord tool. Where it differentiates is in the user experience: the AI-powered interface genuinely makes tax filing less intimidating for newcomers. If you have never filed a Self Assessment return and want software that explains each step as you go, Taxd delivers that. But landlords who already understand their tax obligations will find the AI guidance less valuable and may prefer the lower cost of GoSimpleTax or the broader feature set of Latch.

Hammock Review

Hammock occupies a sweet spot that neither GoSimpleTax nor Taxd can reach: it is built specifically for landlords and understands property income from the ground up. The platform's expense categories are aligned with HMRC's SA105 property supplement, which means your quarterly MTD submissions and annual tax return preparation are structurally correct without manual remapping. Open Banking integration pulls transactions directly from your bank account, and the categorisation workflow is straightforward — connect your account, review imported transactions, assign categories, and submit. For a detailed head-to-head with Latch, see our Latch vs Hammock MTD comparison.

At £8 per month (£96/year), Hammock is more expensive annually than GoSimpleTax or Taxd's base tier, but the value proposition is different. You are paying for ongoing automated transaction import and landlord-specific categorisation, not just an annual tax filing tool. For landlords who want to maintain clean digital records throughout the year — as MTD requires — rather than scrambling to compile figures at submission time, Hammock's monthly model aligns better with the quarterly rhythm of Making Tax Digital.

The limitations are clear and honest. Hammock does not manage tenants, track compliance certificates, handle maintenance requests, or provide AI-powered insights. It is a financial tracking tool with MTD submissions, and it does that job well. Landlords who need operational property management will need to pair Hammock with another tool or choose a more comprehensive platform. But for those whose only software need is keeping HMRC happy with clean quarterly submissions, Hammock is a strong contender with a proven track record in the landlord space.

Latch Review

Latch approaches MTD compliance from a fundamentally different angle than the other three platforms in this comparison. Rather than building a tax tool that landlords can use, Latch built a property management platform that includes MTD compliance as a standard feature — free of charge, even on the unpaid tier. This means landlords get digital record-keeping, HMRC-aligned expense categorisation, and quarterly submission capability without spending a penny, alongside tenant management, lease tracking, compliance monitoring, and property-level financial reporting.

The free tier supports up to three properties, which covers the majority of UK landlords (approximately 89% own fewer than five properties). For those who need more, the Pro tier at £20/month adds unlimited properties, Open Banking integration with all major UK banks, AI-powered expense categorisation, an autonomous AI agent for tasks like rent chasing and tenant communication, receipt scanning, and advanced reporting. The value equation is compelling: for the same annual cost as Hammock (£240 vs £96), you get a dramatically larger feature set that replaces multiple standalone tools.

Where Latch loses a fraction of a mark is on maturity. The platform is newer than GoSimpleTax's long-established tax filing service and Hammock's years of landlord-focused development. The community is growing but smaller, and the third-party ecosystem (accountant integrations, API partnerships) is still being built out. However, the pace of development is rapid, and the core MTD compliance engine has been thoroughly tested against HMRC's sandbox and production environments. For landlords who want a single platform that handles everything — not just tax — Latch is the clear standout in this comparison.

Verdict

The right choice depends on what you need software to do. If your only requirement is filing taxes and submitting MTD returns, GoSimpleTax offers the lowest annual cost and covers all income types comprehensively. If you want AI-assisted guidance through the tax filing process, Taxd is worth the premium for first-time filers. If you want simple, reliable landlord-specific tracking with MTD submissions and nothing more, Hammock delivers at £8/month.

But if you are a landlord who needs to manage properties — not just file taxes about them — Latch is in a different category entirely. The free tier provides more landlord-specific functionality than any of the other three platforms offer at any price point, and the Pro tier at £20/month replaces what would otherwise require three or four separate tools. For the majority of UK landlords preparing for MTD in 2026, Latch offers the best combination of compliance, features, and value.

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