Athena Workflow vs BrightManager
Athena Workflow
athenawf.com
BrightManager
brightsg.comSide by side
| Figure | Athena Workflow | BrightManager |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | $300/mo | £34.10/mo |
| Free plan | — | — |
| Free trial | — | Yes |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | Yes |
| iOS | Yes | — |
| Android | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 6 | 6 |
| Spec score · Accounting Practice Management Software | 8.6 (#5) | 8.7 (#3) |
| Client portal | Clients receive a branded portal for document exchange, electronic signatures, status visibility and engagement messaging. | The portal supports GDPR-compliant document sharing, e-signatures, forms and practice branding. |
| Encryption | The security page states TLS 1.2 for data in transit and AES-256 for data at rest. | Bright states that HTTPS with minimum TLS 1.2 is mandated for data in transit and transparent data encryption is mandated for databases at rest. |
| Integrations | Listed integrations are QuickBooks Online, Drake Tax, BoldSign, Google Calendar, Outlook Calendar, and Plaid. | Listed integrations include Xero, QuickBooks, FreeAgent, Sage, Companies House, Ireland’s CRO, BrightPropose, BrightAccountsProduction and BrightTax. |
| Notable news | A LinkedIn update says Athena expanded into California, Kansas and Indiana and reported serving firms in six US states. | Bright's 21 June 2026 article says BrightManager and Xero reaffirmed their integration, including two-way contact and invoice synchronization. |
| Support | Every plan includes live chat during business hours, phone support and email support without premium support tiers. | Bright lists BrightManager help guides, phone support at 01926 355 366, email support and weekday opening hours. |
| Time tracking | Task-level timers support start, stop, pause and manual entries, with billable-hour and utilization reporting. | BrightManager includes time tracking and workload visibility for practice teams. |
Plans
Athena Workflow
- Tier 1$300 a month
- Tier 1$599 a month
- Tier 2$600 a month
- Tier 2$999 a month
- Tier 3$1,200 a month
- Tier 3$2,499 a month
BrightManager
- Essential£42.63 a month
- Advanced£57.85 a month
- Premium£57.85 a month
- Essential£409.25 a year
- Advanced£694.26 a year
- Premium£694.26 a year
In their own words
Athena Workflow
Athena Workflow has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.
BrightManager
BrightManager is web-based practice management software for accounting practices, bookkeepers and payroll bureaus. It turns compliance deadlines into tasks and subtasks, using workflow templates, assignments and progress tracking to coordinate work. Onboarding can cover professional clearance, proposals, engagement letters, AML checks, risk assessments and HMRC agent authorisation requests. A branded client portal supports secure document sharing, e-signatures and form submissions. Reports cover productivity, aged work in progress, task efficiency and client profitability, while time tracking separates chargeable from non-chargeable work. Integrations include Xero, QuickBooks, FreeAgent, Sage, Companies House, Ireland’s CRO, BrightPropose, BrightAccountsProduction and BrightTax. Bright says data is hosted in European regions within GDPR-compliant, ISO 27001 and SOC 2 certified public-cloud centres. HTTPS with TLS 1.2 minimum protects transfers, and databases use transparent encryption at rest. Essential starts at £42.63/user/mo with a 30-day trial; Advanced and Premium are £57.85 per month under different contracts.