Best Apps for Tracking Gigs and Income as a UK Musician

TL;DR: The best app for tracking gigs in the UK reports by the UK tax year (6 April to 5 April), applies the HMRC mileage rate for the date of each gig and handles agency commission for you. Most entertainer apps are built around direct bookings and contracts, and tax apps know nothing about gigs. Choose by where your gigs come from first.

I've sung professionally for 17 years out of Hull, and finding the best app for tracking gigs in the UK took far longer than it should have, because almost nothing is built for agency work. Full disclosure: I co-created one of the apps on this list, Gigflow, with my husband Sam. I haven't paid for every product here, so I checked each against one test gig, using what each company published in October 2026.

What should you look for in a gig tracking app?

A gig tracking app for a UK performer has four jobs: count fees by the UK tax year, apply HMRC mileage rates, handle agency commission and work on a phone.

Setlists are nice. They don't change what you owe HMRC.

UK tax year support

Your Self Assessment return covers 6 April to 5 April. An app that totals by calendar year leaves you re-cutting January to March by hand every spring. My guide to self-employed musician tax covers the return itself.

Mileage at the right rate

The rate changed in April 2026. GOV.UK's simplified expenses page for vehicles lists cars at 55p for the first 10,000 miles under "Flat rate per mile for 2026-2027 tax year", and 45p under "Flat rate per mile before 6 April 2026". After 10,000 miles, both say 25p.

A good app picks the rate from the gig date and keeps count towards 10,000 miles, because nobody remembers that in October. More on HMRC mileage rates for 2026/27.

Agency commission

Commission is where most apps fall over. My agencies don't agree on anything. Pure Global pays me net, cut already taken, and I invoice them, as I do MCV Management. Kingston Artistes works the other way: the fee comes as cash on the night or from Kingston once they've collected it, then they invoice me monthly for commission, which I pay by bank transfer. Their bill sometimes lands before the fee does. Some charge a fixed amount, some a percentage, some a tiered rate, and I can't quote most of them from memory.

An app that only understands "client pays you" has nowhere to put that.

Mobile-first

Gig admin happens in a car park after load-out, or at 2am. If logging a gig takes more than a minute on a phone, you'll have stopped by June.

The test gig

Every option is measured against one invented but typical case: a £450 Saturday wedding through an agency that takes 15% before paying you. That's £67.50 commission and £382.50 received. The venue is 46 miles away, a 92-mile round trip, which at the 2026/27 rate of 55p is worth £50.60 of mileage allowance.

Does the app record the £67.50, apply 55p to the 92 miles and put it all in the right tax year?

The options compared

There are seven realistic options for UK musicians in 2026: four performer or music apps, two tax and accounting apps and a spreadsheet.

Gigflow

I co-created this one, so weigh it accordingly. Sam built the first version because I was running my diary from a spreadsheet and guessing my mileage.

It's built for agency gigs, direct bookings or both. You set each agency up once (deducts commission before paying you, pays the full fee and bills commission later, or direct booking) with a percentage, flat or tiered rule. Mileage is the round trip from home to venue via Google Places, at the HMRC rate for the gig date (45p before 6 April 2026, 55p from it, 25p after 10,000 miles). Income counts on the date it's received. It's a web app that installs to any phone's home screen.

The free plan keeps up to 10 gigs, with mileage, commission, deposits, part payments and what you're owed. Pro (£9.99 a month or £99 a year) adds unlimited gigs, one-tap invoicing with sequential numbers, deposit invoices on direct bookings, chasing emails that get firmer as invoices go overdue, UK tax-year reports with estimated tax and National Insurance, MTD quarterly summaries, expenses with receipts and calendar sync. New accounts get all of Pro free for 30 days, no card, then pay or keep the free plan.

What it doesn't do: contracts, e-signatures, setlists, card payments, bank feeds, enquiry forms or band member portals. Gigflow keeps the digital records but does not submit quarterly updates or your final declaration to HMRC yet. You export them for bridging software or your accountant. Here's what MTD quarterly updates involve.

Giggio

Giggio is a UK booking system for entertainers who book direct, run by Giggio Limited in London since 2011.

The client side is thorough: enquiries with an autoresponder, PDF contracts confirmed online, automatic invoicing, deposits, GiggioPay card payments, set lists and mileage reports. Pro is £25 a month plus VAT, with no feature tiers and a 30-day trial, no card.

For wedding work, it fits. The test gig is harder. I found no agency commission handling (it assumes you contract the client) and couldn't confirm UK tax-year reports.

BandHelper

BandHelper is a setlist and repertoire app first, with finance added on the top solo plan. It's priced in US dollars across iOS, macOS, Android and web.

Pro costs $3.75 a month or $32 a year and adds "Income and expense tracking and revenue reports".

For a big repertoire, it's cheap. For money, it has no HMRC mileage, no UK tax year and no idea what commission is. I'm writing up BandHelper alternatives for UK musicians separately.

untied

untied is a UK personal tax app, on HMRC's list of software that works with Making Tax Digital.

Lite is £64.99 a year including VAT, with manual transactions, linked bank accounts and filing direct to HMRC. Pro (£129.99 a year) automates them. The 30-day trial needs no card but only supports test filing.

It knows nothing about agencies, so the test gig arrives as a £382.50 transaction with no trace of the £67.50. Worth pairing with a gig tracker, especially if Making Tax Digital applies to you from April 2027; the free MTD calculator will tell you. My full untied app review for musicians is on the way.

FreeAgent

FreeAgent is UK accounting software for sole traders, built around bank feeds rather than gigs.

It does invoicing, receipt capture and mileage logged "using HMRC's allowable rates", and files Self Assessment and MTD quarterly updates direct to HMRC. It's £19 a month plus VAT after a half-price intro period, with a 30-day trial, or free with a NatWest, Royal Bank of Scotland, Ulster Bank or Mettle business account.

For the test gig, it's a ledger: you work out the £67.50 yourself. If your bank makes it free, it's a solid home for the tax side.

Band Pencil

Band Pencil is UK-built software for band leaders and agencies, priced in US dollars by default excluding VAT.

Standard is $29 a month with contracts, invoices, setlists and a member portal. Premium at $49 adds Band Pencil Pay and financial reporting. Ultimate at $99 adds agency tools and performer contracts. The trial is 14 days, no card.

If you run a function band and book deps most weekends, the member portal earns its keep. I found no HMRC mileage or UK tax-year reporting.

Spreadsheets

A spreadsheet is free and does exactly what you build. That's the catch.

I ran my diary from one for years. Most of my club gigs pay cash on the night, and those are exactly what a spreadsheet forgets, along with last-minute deps. It guessed my mileage, because I did. It won't switch from 45p to 55p on 6 April 2026 unless you build that in, and the 10,000-mile formula is the boring bit I never got round to.

If you stick with one, use my year-end tax prep checklist and the full list of expenses musicians can claim.

Feature comparison table

This table compares the seven options as each company described itself in October 2026. "Not listed" means I couldn't find it.

Which is right for you?

The right app depends mostly on where your gigs come from and who pays you.

Mostly agency work, solo. The agency holds the contract, so commission and mileage matter more. Gigflow is built around exactly this: agencies that deduct commission and agencies that bill it later.

Mostly direct bookings. Giggio, which puts enquiries, contracts and card payments under one flat price.

Leading a band with members and deps. Band Pencil, without much argument.

Setlists are the headache. BandHelper.

Filing your own return digitally. untied, or FreeAgent if your bank makes it free, ideally fed by proper gig records from something else.

Just starting out. A spreadsheet is plenty. Read starting out as a self-employed singer first.

My one strong opinion: choose on commission and mileage, not setlists or automation, because those numbers end up on your tax return. Dread invoicing? My guide to invoicing as a freelance singer works with any app.

This is general guidance based on my experience and research. It's not professional tax or financial advice. If your situation is complicated, speak to an accountant.

Our recommendation: the best app for tracking gigs in the UK

For UK performers working through agencies, direct bookings or both, the best fit handles commission, HMRC mileage and the UK tax year together. Of these seven, that's Gigflow. I'm biased, which is why I've spelled out what it doesn't do.

My diary is the case for it: Pure Global and Kingston sit side by side with the right sums. I'm also moving towards direct bookings because they pay better, and my 2027 diary had 18 direct gigs by September 2026. For weddings I take a 25% deposit with the balance due 14 days before, which is what Pro's deposit invoices handle.

Need online contracts and card payments? Add Giggio. To file digitally, add untied, FreeAgent or an accountant.

Frequently asked questions

What is the best app for tracking gigs in the UK?

The best app for tracking gigs in the UK reports by the 6 April to 5 April tax year, applies HMRC mileage rates by gig date and handles agency commission. Performers who mostly book direct also need contracts and card payments, which booking-led apps cover better.

What mileage rate can musicians claim in 2026/27?

Musicians using simplified expenses can claim 55p per mile by car for the first 10,000 miles in the 2026/27 tax year, then 25p, according to GOV.UK. Miles driven before 6 April 2026 use 45p for the first 10,000.

Do I need an app that files to HMRC?

You only need filing software if you submit your own return or your own Making Tax Digital quarterly updates. A gig tracker can keep the records while bridging software or an accountant does the filing.

Can I use a spreadsheet instead of a gig tracking app?

A spreadsheet works if you log every gig, payment and mile consistently. The gigs most often missed are cash-on-the-night payments and last-minute deps, and it won't apply the 6 April 2026 rate change unless you build that formula yourself.

How should I record agency commission?

Agency commission is recorded according to how the agency pays you. If it deducts commission first, log the full fee, the commission and the net amount received. If it pays the full fee and invoices commission later, log that bill separately with the date you pay it.

Are there free gig tracking apps for UK performers?

Free plans exist but usually cap the number of gigs, and some UK accounting software is free through a business bank account. A spreadsheet is the only fully free option with no limits.

The bottom line

Pick the app that matches where your gigs come from: commission and mileage for agency work, contracts and card payments for direct bookings. Check it uses 55p for 2026/27 mileage, and read how to claim mileage as a self-employed musician if that's the number you've been guessing.

Try everything in Gigflow Pro free for 30 days, no card needed.