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Uplinq vs. McFadden Accounting

Compare · McFadden Accounting

Uplinq vs. McFadden Accounting

The choice is between a monthly bookkeeping subscription with filing included and a Baltimore firm that prices bookkeeping and tax filing separately.

McFadden Accounting is based in downtown Baltimore, Maryland, with a published office address on Market Place.

A local firm and a remote engine are different models, not better and worse ones. This page lays out where they differ so you can decide on the dimensions that matter to your business.

THE HONEST SUMMARY

Before the table, the fair version.

A comparison you can't trust isn't worth reading.
WHO THEY ARE

McFadden Accounting is a Baltimore, Maryland firm offering accounting and bookkeeping, tax preparation, advisory, tax resolution, and accounting resolution (cleanup) services, delivered through cloud-based software and a client portal.

WHERE THEY'RE A GOOD FIT

A Baltimore business owner behind on filings, carrying an IRS balance, under audit, or holding unopened notices is well served here. Their tax resolution page names specific mechanisms: assistance applying for Offers in Compromise to settle for less than owed, help qualifying for Currently Not Collectible status during hardship, and help qualifying for streamlined payment agreements. They also state they prepare and file outstanding back returns and represent clients in IRS audits.

WHERE THE FIT BREAKS

Their published Basic Plan starts at $400 per month, but the two higher tiers' rates and every add-on price are not published, so the cost of a full year is not determinable from their site. Tax filing is listed as an optional add-on rather than included: Personal Income Tax at the Basic tier, Personal and Business Tax at Standard. The published plan ladder tops out at 8 reconciled accounts. Entry-tier support is email-based with a stated 48-hour response target.

SIDE BY SIDE

The same eight dimensions we hold every comparison to.

Fixed rows. No cherry-picking.
McFadden Accounting
Uplinq
Service model
A human-delivered professional services firm, not software. Their accounting page states services are fully customizable to a client's business model and goals, delivered via cloud-based software and a secure client portal with 24/7 access.
AI engine with U.S.-based accountant oversight. Technology does the volume, professionals own the judgment.
In-person availability
Not published
Remote by design. A named team reachable by email, phone, or video, without a commute on either side.
Tax filing
Not included in bookkeeping plans. Their pricing page lists Personal Income Tax as an optional add-on at the Basic tier and Personal and Business Tax as an optional add-on at the Standard tier; add-on pricing is not published.
Available on every plan. Business and personal filings handled by the team that already keeps your books.
Pricing structure
Their pricing page lists a Basic Plan starting at $400 per month, covering monthly categorization of up to 2 bank or credit card accounts, basic P&L and balance sheet preparation, and email support. Rates for their two higher tiers are not published.
Published pricing from $300/mo, scoped to your business. No hourly billing, no surprise invoices.
Onboarding and migration
Their site includes a Book An Appointment action, and they offer a named Bookkeeping Resolution service described as going beyond correction to make financial records precise and reliable, addressing prior-period cleanup.
A dedicated onboarding specialist imports your history, rebuilds your chart of accounts, and runs a verified first close.
Capacity at tax season
Category typical
Capacity is a function of the engine, not of how many hours one person has in March.
Scalability path
Their published ladder scales by connected accounts and payroll headcount: the Standard tier adds reconciliation up to 4 accounts and payroll support up to 10 employees, and their top tier adds reconciliation up to 8 accounts plus AR and AP management.
One provider from lean cash-basis books to multi-entity consolidation. You never outgrow the system.
Support model
Their pricing page states Basic Plan support is email-based with a response within 48 hours, upgrading to priority email support at the Standard tier and above, alongside 24/7 client portal access to financial data.
A named team you can reach directly, with responses within one business day.
WHERE THE GAP IS STRUCTURAL

Two differences that aren't about effort.

Most rows in a table are details. These two are the decision.
01

Where tax filing sits in the price

McFadden Accounting's bookkeeping plans are priced separately from tax filing. Their pricing page lists Personal Income Tax as an optional add-on on the Basic Plan and Personal and Business Tax as an optional add-on on the Standard Plan, and their taxation page states they handle tax preparation and filing as a distinct service. The add-on price for either is not published.

For a buyer, this means the published monthly figure covers bookkeeping scope only. The total annual cost of bookkeeping plus a filed return is not something their site lets a prospect calculate in advance; it depends on an add-on quote obtained separately.

02

Plan ceilings set by account count, not revenue

McFadden Accounting's three published tiers are gated by how many bank and credit card accounts are reconciled and, at the Standard tier, by payroll headcount, rather than by revenue or transaction volume. The Standard Plan adds reconciliation up to 4 accounts and payroll support up to 10 employees; their top tier adds reconciliation up to 8 accounts along with AR and AP management and weekly financial reviews.

This means which tier a business sits in can shift when it opens a new card or adds a payroll head, independent of whether the business actually grew. Review cadence moves with the tier too: quarterly reviews are an add-on at Basic, monthly reviews arrive at Standard, and weekly reviews appear only at the top tier.

ALREADY ON MCFADDEN ACCOUNTING?

Switching costs less than staying mismatched.

Your history comes with you. The work of moving it is ours.
01
Export and connect. Week one. You share your existing statements and reports, connect your bank and card accounts, and meet your onboarding specialist. That is the extent of your job.
02
We rebuild and verify. Weeks two to three. We bring your history onto the Uplinq system, rebuild the chart of accounts around how your business actually runs, and reconcile it against your bank records.
03
First verified close. Month one. Your first month closes on Uplinq with accountant review, and you compare it against what you were getting before. Most businesses are fully switched within one cycle.
MOVING FROM MCFADDEN ACCOUNTING

Their accounting page states client financial data is accessible 24/7 through a secure client portal, and the Basic Plan includes access to cloud-based software. Their published materials do not set out a notice period, cancellation term, or data export format, so a departing client should confirm file ownership and portal access directly with the firm before leaving.

» Behind on your books? Catch Up is scoped into onboarding.
PROOF

Trusted with the books of over 1,000 businesses.

Newsweek Greatest Startup Workplaces, 2026
Inc. 5000 Among America's fastest-growing private companies
1,000+ Organizations on Uplinq, across industries and entity structures
U.S.-based Professional accountants reviewing every set of books
QUESTIONS

What people ask when comparing.

01 Is tax filing included in McFadden Accounting's monthly bookkeeping price? +

No. Their pricing page lists tax filing as a separate optional add-on rather than an included item: Personal Income Tax at the Basic Plan and Personal and Business Tax at the Standard Plan. Their taxation service page states they prepare and file tax returns, so the work is performed by the firm, but it is priced apart from the monthly bookkeeping plan, and the add-on price is not published.

02 Does Uplinq include tax filing? +

Yes. Business and personal tax filings are available on every Uplinq plan, and tax strategy packages are available for businesses that want proactive planning. Because the same system holds your books and prepares your filings, year end is a handoff, not a project.

03 How much does McFadden Accounting cost? +

Their pricing page lists a Basic Plan starting at $400 per month, which covers monthly categorization of up to 2 bank or credit card accounts, preparation of a basic profit and loss statement and balance sheet, and email support with a response within 48 hours. Two higher tiers with expanded scope are shown on the same page, but their rates are not published in a retrievable form, and pricing for their Tax, Advisory, Tax Resolution, and Accounting Resolution service lines is not published at all.

04 Who actually does the work at Uplinq, software or people? +

Both, deliberately. Uplinq's AI engine categorizes, reconciles, and monitors your transactions continuously. U.S.-based professional accountants review what the system produces and own every judgment call. You get the speed of technology with a real team accountable for the result.

05 What happens when a business outgrows McFadden Accounting's entry plan? +

Their published pricing ladder scales by account count. The Standard Plan adds monthly reconciliation up to 4 accounts, payroll support for up to 10 employees, monthly financial reviews, cash flow statement preparation, and priority email support. Their top published tier adds reconciliation up to 8 accounts, advanced reporting with custom KPIs and dashboards, weekly financial reviews, quarterly tax strategy meetings, and accounts receivable and payable management. No plan is published beyond 8 accounts.

06 What if my books are months behind? +

That's common, and it's a solved problem. Uplinq's Catch Up service rebuilds past months or years of books as part of onboarding, scoped to how far behind you are and the state of your records. You start clean, not from wherever your last provider left off.

07 Do I have to sign a long contract? +

No. Uplinq offers month-to-month agreements as well as annual plans, which carry a discount. If you prepay annually and choose not to renew, you simply give notice 30 days before the term ends.

THE ACTUAL DECISION

You're not choosing a bookkeeping vendor. You're choosing what your numbers are for.

The real question is whether you want tax filing bundled into one monthly price or priced separately once your books are in order.

Feature checklists don't run a business. Clean, current, legible financials do. If that's the outcome you're buying, see what it looks like on your own books.