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Provestor for Landlords vs. TaxCalc

Provestor for Landlords vs. TaxCalc: Which MTD Software is Right for Landlords in 2026?

Provestor for Landlords is a cloud-based MTD platform built for landlords, with automated Section 24 and joint ownership handling from £69 a year. TaxCalc MTD Quarterly Filer is HMRC-recognised bridging software for landlords who already keep spreadsheets, starting at £24 a year. Both are HMRC-recognised, but they solve very different problems.

Shreya BhattaraiShreya Bhattarai
23 min read
Jun 9, 2026
Updated Jun 10, 2026

What Is Provestor for Landlords?

Provestor for Landlords is a UK-based property tax platform operated by Inni Ltd. It is HMRC-recognised for MTD ITSA and designed exclusively for personally owned rental properties held in individual names. It combines cloud-based bookkeeping software with optional accountancy services.

Provestor for Landlords offers three MTD service tiers (all prices exclude VAT; year-one discounts apply until payment is due from 6 April 2026):

  • DIY - £69/year (first year), £99/year thereafter. AI categorises transactions from bank feeds and letting agent statements, handles Section 24 mortgage interest calculations, and splits income for jointly owned properties. You review and submit quarterly updates and your Final Declaration yourself.

  • Assisted - £199/year (first year), £249/year thereafter. Everything in DIY plus Provestor for Landlords accountants review each quarterly update and prepare and submit your Final Declaration.

  • Done For You - £399/year (first year), £499/year thereafter. Provestor for Landlords accountants handle all record keeping, all quarterly updates, and the Final Declaration. Capped at 10 properties.

Key landlord-specific features: Section 24 mortgage interest is handled automatically (Finance Act 2015 amended ITTOIA 2005 - 20% tax credit rather than a full deduction). Joint ownership percentages are entered once and applied to every subsequent submission. Bank feeds connect via Open Banking. Letting agent statements can be imported directly. Property tax AI reads and categorises every transaction.

What Is TaxCalc MTD Quarterly Filer?

TaxCalc is developed by Acorah Software Products Limited (company number 03948264, registered at Rubra One, Mulberry Business Park, Fishponds Road, Wokingham, RG41 2GY, VAT number 855 5726 91). It is trusted by over 12,000 accountancy practices and 60,000 individuals. Its MTD Quarterly Filer is an HMRC-recognised spreadsheet bridging solution.

It works by importing summary income and expense totals from any Excel or CSV spreadsheet, mapping those totals to HMRC's required submission fields, and transmitting the quarterly update. No transactional data is sent to HMRC, only summary totals.

Individual pricing (all excluding VAT):

  • Solo - £24/year (1 individual)

  • Duo - £36/year (up to 2 individuals)

  • 6-Pack - £44/year (up to 6 individuals)

Practice versions for accountants start from £112/year. The software runs on Windows 7+, Mac (macOS 10.12 Sierra or higher), and Linux.

Key features: Supports sole trader, UK property, and foreign property income - all three MTD qualifying income categories. Obligations are retrieved directly from HMRC to reduce setup errors. Supports flexible update periods (monthly, weekly, or daily, not just quarterly). After each submission HMRC returns a tax estimate. Taxable adjustments - disallowables and private use adjustments - can be added before submission. The Final Declaration is handled separately through TaxCalc's Tax Return Production software (sold individually).

Provestor for Landlords vs TaxCalc: Head-to-Head Comparison 

Category

Provestor for Landlords

TaxCalc MTD Quarterly Filer

Product type

Cloud-based landlord MTD platform + accountancy service

Desktop/cloud bridging software

HMRC recognition

Yes — HMRC recognised

Yes — HMRC recognised

Section 24 handling

Automated (20% tax credit applied automatically)

Manual — enter in spreadsheet

Joint ownership splits

Automated — enter % once, applied every quarter

Manual — calculate and enter yourself

Bank feeds

Yes — Open Banking linked

No

Letting agent import

Yes — drag and drop statement

No

Mobile app

Yes (iOS/Android implied via cloud)

No — desktop software (Windows/Mac/Linux)

Quarterly updates

Yes — DIY, Assisted, or Done For You

Yes — self-file from spreadsheet

Final Declaration

Yes — included in all plans

Yes — requires Tax Return Production (separate product)

AI categorisation

Yes — property tax AI reads bank/agent statements

No

Accountant review

Optional — included in Assisted/Done For You

No — software only

Sole trader income

Property income only (personal names)

Yes — sole trade + property

Property cap

Up to 10 properties (Done For You)

No stated limit

Starting price (ex VAT)

£69/year (DIY, year-one discount)

£24/year (Solo)

Standard price (ex VAT)

£99/year (DIY)

£24/year (Solo)

Company number

Inni Ltd — parent of Provestor for Landlords

Acorah Software Products Ltd — 03948264

Important: All Provestor for Landlords prices are stated excluding VAT. TaxCalc prices are also excluding VAT. Provestor for Landlords's year-one discounts applied to subscribers before 6 April 2026; standard rates apply thereafter. Provestor's Done For You service is capped at 10 properties. TaxCalc does not state a property cap. Always verify current pricing directly with each provider before purchasing.

Four Stages of MTD ITSA - How Each Product Performs

Stage 1: Keeping Digital Records

Provestor for Landlords: Creates and maintains digital records automatically. Bank feeds pull in transactions via Open Banking. Letting agent statements are imported by drag-and-drop. AI categorises every line item as rent, allowable expense, or non-allowable. Records are maintained inside the platform - no separate spreadsheet needed.

TaxCalc: Does not create or maintain your records. You keep your own digital records , typically in a spreadsheet - and TaxCalc imports the summary totals when you are ready to submit. If your spreadsheet is wrong, your submission will be wrong.

Stage 2: Categorising Income and Expenses

Provestor for Landlords: AI categorisation is built in. Mortgage interest is automatically treated as a Section 24 finance cost rather than a deductible expense - the statutory position under ITTOIA 2005 as amended by Finance Act 2015. Joint ownership income is split according to the percentage you enter, with no manual calculation required each quarter.

TaxCalc: Categorisation is the responsibility of the user. Section 24 mortgage interest must be handled correctly in the underlying spreadsheet before totals are imported. Joint ownership splits must be calculated and entered manually. TaxCalc does allow taxable adjustments (disallowables and private use adjustments) to be added at the point of submission, which provides a check - but the core categorisation work remains with the landlord.

Stage 3: Submitting Quarterly Updates

Provestor for Landlords: All three plans support quarterly submissions to HMRC. On the DIY plan you review and submit. On the Assisted plan an accountant reviews before submission. On Done For You the accountant handles everything. A dashboard shows deadlines. All quarterly periods are the standard HMRC periods (6 April – 5 July, 6 July – 5 October, 6 October – 5 January, 6 January – 5 April).

TaxCalc: Quarterly submissions are self-serve. Import your spreadsheet, review the summary, add any adjustments, and file. TaxCalc supports flexible update periods (monthly, weekly, or daily if you choose), not just the standard quarterly periods. HMRC returns a tax estimate after each submission. The process is quick and straightforward for anyone comfortable with spreadsheets.

Stage 4: Final Declaration

Provestor for Landlords: The Final Declaration is included in all plans. On DIY you complete it yourself inside the platform. On Assisted and Done For You, Provestor for Landlords accountants prepare and submit it.

TaxCalc: The Final Declaration is not included in MTD Quarterly Filer. It is handled by TaxCalc's Tax Return Production product, which is sold separately. Landlords using TaxCalc for quarterly updates need to plan for this additional cost and step. The final tax position is calculated by Tax Return Production before submission.

Section 24 Mortgage Interest: Why It Matters for MTD

Section 24 of the Finance Act 2015 amended ITTOIA 2005 to replace the full deduction of mortgage interest for residential buy-to-let landlords with a 20% tax credit. This means mortgage interest cannot simply be listed as a property expense - it must be handled separately, with only the basic-rate credit applied at the final tax calculation stage.

For MTD quarterly updates, the practical question is whether your software correctly records mortgage finance costs as finance costs rather than as an allowable property expense. If mortgage interest is incorrectly categorised as a standard expense in a spreadsheet, the quarterly submissions and eventual final declaration will overstate the deductible expenses, potentially leading to underpayment of tax.

Provestor for Landlords: Handles Section 24 automatically. Mortgage interest is captured and classified correctly without any manual calculation.

TaxCalc: Does not handle Section 24 within the product. The landlord must ensure the underlying spreadsheet correctly records finance costs separately from deductible expenses before importing into TaxCalc. If this is done correctly, TaxCalc submits the right figures. If not, TaxCalc will faithfully submit the wrong ones.

For any landlord with a residential mortgage on a buy-to-let property, Section 24 compliance is a material MTD risk if the underlying record-keeping is not correct. This is the clearest practical difference between the two products.

Who Should Choose Provestor for Landlords?

  • Landlords with residential mortgages who want Section 24 handled automatically

  • Landlords with jointly owned properties who want income splits applied without manual calculation every quarter

  • Landlords who use a letting agent and want to import statements directly without re-entering figures

  • Landlords who want an accountant to review their returns or handle them entirely without engaging a separate firm

  • Landlords moving away from spreadsheets for the first time who want a platform that creates and maintains records from day one

 

Who Should Choose TaxCalc MTD Quarterly Filer?

  • Landlords who already maintain accurate, well-structured spreadsheets and do not want to change their workflow

  • Landlords with simple portfolios , mortgage-free properties, sole ownership, straightforward income and expenses

  • Landlords with both property and self-employment income who want a single tool to file both income types (TaxCalc covers all three MTD qualifying income categories; Provestor for Landlords covers property only)

  • Landlords who work with their own accountant and just need software to transmit their spreadsheet data to HMRC

  • Landlords looking for the lowest possible entry cost for MTD compliance

 

Limitations to Consider

Provestor for Landlords

Provestor for Landlords

  • Covers personally owned rental properties only - not sole trade income. Landlords with both property and self-employment income who need a single MTD tool will need to look elsewhere, or use a second product for self-employment income.

  • Done For You is capped at 10 properties. Landlords with larger portfolios should confirm whether a higher-volume arrangement is available.

  • Year-one discounts have already passed for the April 2026 cohort; standard prices apply unless Provestor for Landlords publishes updated promotional pricing.

  • Provestor for Landlords is an accountancy service as well as software - the Assisted and Done For You plans include accountant oversight, which may be more than a purely self-directed landlord needs or wants to pay for.

TaxCalc MTD Quarterly Filer

  • Does not create or maintain records. Landlords who do not already have a working spreadsheet will need to build one before they can use TaxCalc for MTD.

  • Does not handle Section 24 automatically. Correct classification of mortgage finance costs in the source spreadsheet is essential and the landlord's responsibility.

  • Does not include a Final Declaration. Tax Return Production must be purchased separately.

  • No bank feeds or letting agent integrations. Manual data entry into spreadsheets is still required.

  • Desktop software primarily - while it runs on Mac and Linux, there is no cloud or mobile app in the Quarterly Filer product.

MTD ITSA Timeline at a Glance

Date

Threshold

Who Is Affected

6 April 2026

Qualifying income > £50,000

Sole traders and landlords whose combined gross income from self-employment and property exceeded £50,000 in 2024–25

6 April 2027

Qualifying income > £30,000

Those whose combined gross income exceeded £30,000 in 2025–26

6 April 2028

Qualifying income > £20,000

Those whose combined gross income exceeded £20,000 in 2026–27

The Verdict

Both Provestor for Landlords and TaxCalc MTD Quarterly Filer are HMRC-recognised for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax and are legitimate routes to compliance from 6 April 2026. The right choice depends almost entirely on the complexity of the landlord's tax position and how much of the record-keeping work they want the software to absorb.

TaxCalc at £24/year is the most cost-effective bridging option available for landlords who already maintain accurate spreadsheets. For a sole-ownership, mortgage-free buy-to-let with straightforward expenses, it is hard to argue against. It is fast, HMRC-recognised, and requires no disruption to an existing workflow.

Provestor for Landlords closes the compliance gaps that TaxCalc leaves open. Section 24 and joint ownership are handled automatically - not because they are optional extras, but because getting them wrong creates inaccurate submissions to HMRC. For any landlord with a residential mortgage or shared ownership, that automation is not a luxury; it is the difference between submitting correct and incorrect figures.

Choose TaxCalc if your spreadsheet is already correct and your portfolio is straightforward. Choose Provestor for Landlords if your tax position involves mortgages, jointly owned properties, or if you want accountant oversight built into the product.


Need more than a spreadsheet bridge or a done-for-you service?

RentalBux is built for landlords: joint ownership splits, UK and foreign property income, and MTD quarterly filing, all in one place. Free for single-property landlords until March 2028.

FAQs

Is Provestor for Landlords HMRC-recognised for MTD for Income Tax?

Yes. Provestor for Landlords is HMRC-recognised for MTD for Income Tax Self Assessment (MTD ITSA) and can submit quarterly updates and Final Declarations directly to HMRC.

Is TaxCalc MTD Quarterly Filer HMRC-recognised?

Yes. TaxCalc MTD Quarterly Filer is HMRC-recognised bridging software, developed by Acorah Software Products Limited (company number 03948264). It is available for individuals from £24/year (ex VAT).

Does Provestor for Landlords handle Section 24 mortgage interest automatically?

Yes. Provestor for Landlords automatically classifies residential mortgage interest as a Section 24 finance cost and applies the 20% tax credit rather than treating it as a deductible property expense.

Does TaxCalc handle Section 24 automatically?

No. TaxCalc MTD Quarterly Filer imports summary totals from your spreadsheet. Section 24 must be handled correctly in the underlying spreadsheet before import. If your spreadsheet records mortgage interest incorrectly, TaxCalc will submit those incorrect figures.

 

Does TaxCalc include a Final Declaration?

No. TaxCalc MTD Quarterly Filer handles quarterly updates only. The Final Declaration is handled by TaxCalc's Tax Return Production product, which is sold separately.

Can I use Provestor for Landlords for sole trader income as well as rental income?

Provestor for Landlords's MTD service is designed for personally owned rental properties. It does not cover sole trader income. Landlords with both property and self-employment income will need to check whether a second product is required for the self-employment element.

Can I use TaxCalc if I have both self-employment and property income?

Yes. TaxCalc MTD Quarterly Filer supports all three MTD qualifying income categories: sole trader, UK property, and foreign property. You can file separate quarterly updates for each income type.

Which is cheaper — Provestor for Landlords or TaxCalc?

TaxCalc is substantially cheaper at £24/year (ex VAT) for a single individual. Provestor for Landlords DIY starts at £69/year (ex VAT) as a year-one discount, rising to £99/year at the standard rate. The higher cost of Provestor reflects a broader service — automated categorisation, Section 24 handling, joint ownership splits, bank feeds, and optional accountant oversight.

Does either product support jointly owned properties?

Provestor for Landlords supports joint ownership. You enter the ownership percentage once and the platform splits income and expenses for every quarterly submission automatically. TaxCalc does not handle joint ownership splits; the correct figures must be calculated and entered in the source spreadsheet.

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Shreya Bhattarai

Shreya Bhattarai is a digital marketer specialising in content strategy, digital advertising, and website development. She focuses on enhancing brand visibility, engaging target audiences, and delivering data-driven marketing solutions.