# Operations toolkit for startups and freelancers

May 24, 2018

Justin Keller

The following is a list of services that we use here at **[Elastic Byte](/content/site-root.html)** and/or highly recommend related to the operation of a startup. Intentionally no technical or developer tools are included as this post focuses on business operations.

_Full disclosure: Some of the links are referral links, but in most cases you'll also get a perk/discount._

# Incorporation / Formation

**[Clerky](https://www.clerky.com/formation)** \- yCombinator company that focuses on legal paperwork for startups. They currently only support Delaware C-corporations.

**[Stripe Atlas](https://stripe.com/atlas)** \- Delaware C-corporation or LLC _(new)_. Includes $5,000 of Amazon AWS credits as well as other perks such as flat-rate lawyer partner consulting.

# Banking

**[Azlo](https://www.azlo.com/?aid=97553cf3-7f60-4f76-9eed-79c31a535f81)** \- No monthly fees. Free bank-to-bank transfers. Debit card. Technology and design focused. Recommended by Stripe.

# Credit Cards

**[Capital One Spark Cash For Business](https://capital.one/2ZJ47nt)** \- Unlimited 2% cash back on purchases. Cash is king! No annual fee. $500 cash bonus when you spend $5,000 in the first three months.

# Accounting

**[Intuit QuickBooks Self-Employed](http://fbuy.me/mHHDZ)** \- Tag all transactions _(credit cards, bank accounts)_ by category for schedule-C. Exports to TurboTax which is a huge time saver at tax time. Estimates and electronically pay federal quarterly tax payments within the app using [eftps.gov](https://www.eftps.gov/eftps/).

# Payroll

**[Gusto](https://gusto.com/x/justin190)** \- Focused on full-time employee payroll, HR, taxes, benefits.

**[Square Payroll](https://squareup.com/payroll/i/9CTENRQ)** \- Pay employees or contractors _(1099)_ via ACH. $5 per contractor per month and they automatically send out 1099 tax forms to contractors.

# Taxes

**[Intuit TurboTax Self-Employed](https://fbuy.io/e8q4ssqs)** \- Import all your transactions from QuickBooks _(schedule-C)_. Electronically pay/receive federal and state taxes. Robust guided system for finding deductions and credits.

# Payment processing

**[Stripe](https://stripe.com/)** \- Accept all major credit cards and supports ACH bank debits. Using [Stripe Connect](https://stripe.com/connect) you can also do payouts and marketplace payments.

# Invoicing

**[Simple Invoices](https://simpleinvoices.io/)** \- Send beautiful e-mail invoices to clients/customers as one-off or on a recurring schedule. Embedded form to securely collect credit card details with zero programming. ACH debit is currently not supported, but reportedly coming soon.

# Time Tracking (consultant / freelancer)

**[Toggl](https://toggl.com/)** \- Create clients, projects, and tasks. Integrated timer and publicly exportable reports you can share with clients so can view hours and task descriptions.

# Office Space

**[WeWork](https://refer.wework.com/i/JustinKeller)** \- Shared and dedicated office space. In 66 cities all over the world and membership includes access to all locations. Typically unlimited coffee and beer as well. Member perks include discounts on services such GitHub, Stripe, Amazon AWS, and Slack.

# Documents

**[HelloSign](https://www.hellosign.com/)** \- Legally binding electronic signature documents. Import PDF's, add fields, and send.