Guide
Stessa Pricing (2026): Essentials Free vs Manage vs Pro, and What You Get
Stessa pricing for Oct 2026: free Essentials vs Manage ($12/mo yearly) and Pro ($28/mo yearly), what each adds, rent payment fees and yearly costs compared.
By Landlord Software Directory · Updated on · Pricing checked
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Stessa has three plans, and every one covers unlimited properties. Essentials is free. Manage costs $12 a month billed yearly ($144 a year) or $15 month to month. Pro costs $28 a month billed yearly ($336 a year) or $35 monthly. Most small landlords pay for Manage for one reason: that's where the Schedule E report starts.
Best for: landlords who want free bookkeeping for unlimited properties. Pay for Manage ($12 a month billed yearly) only if you need the Schedule E report.
All prices below come from Stessa's own pricing page, read on October 28, 2026. We haven't tested Stessa hands-on.
Stessa plans and prices
| Plan | Billed yearly | Billed monthly | Yearly cost | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essentials | Free | Free | $0 | Tracking income and expenses, collecting rent, basic reports |
| Manage | $12/mo | $15/mo | $144 (yearly) or $180 (monthly) | Schedule E at tax time, leases and legal forms |
| Pro | $28/mo | $35/mo | $336 (yearly) or $420 (monthly) | Advanced reports, budgets, unlimited receipt scans |
Stessa's page says "All plans include an unlimited number of properties," so the price doesn't change as you add units. A landlord with 2 units and one with 40 pay the same $144 a year for Manage. That's unusual. Landlord Studio, REI Hub and most property management suites charge more as you grow.
Stessa also lists a full-service property management option. It doesn't publish a price for it.
What each plan includes
Essentials (free)
- Unlimited properties, automatic bank feeds and unlimited document and receipt storage
- Basic financial reports and a basic accountant tax package
- Online rent collection, with tenant autopay, reminders, late fees, a tenant ledger and a rent roll
- Vacancy marketing with syndication to Zillow, tenant applications and screening
- Maintenance requests and maintenance tracking
- Mileage and manual expense tracking
- A cash management account (via Thread Bank) paying up to 2.02% APY
- Full data export
- Smart receipt scanning, capped at 5 a month
- State-specific lease templates at $15 each
Manage ($12/mo yearly, $15 monthly)
Everything in Essentials, plus:
- Schedule E report ("Plus Schedule E" in the tax package row)
- One eSignature a month
- 60+ legal forms and templates, plus unlimited state-compliant leases
- Accelerated rent payments
- Priority chat support
Receipt scanning stays at 5 a month, and the APY stays the same as Essentials.
Pro ($28/mo yearly, $35 monthly)
Everything in Manage, plus:
- Unlimited portfolios, all advanced reports and advanced transaction tracking
- Project expense tracking, budgeting and pro-forma analysis
- Unlimited receipt scanning and full chart history
- Seven eSignatures a month
- Legal consultation, with RocketLawyer Pro listed as a "$350 value"
- Priority tenant screening and live phone support
- Up to 3.49% APY, and "Plus CapEx" in the tax package
The APY depends on your balance
Stessa's "up to" rates are for its top balance tier. Under the footnote dated September 17, 2026:
- Essentials and Manage: balances under $10,000 earn 0.57% APY. The 2.02% rate needs $250,000 or more.
- Pro: balances under $10,000 earn 1.44%, and the 3.49% rate needs $250,000 or more.
Rates are variable. Don't upgrade to Pro for the yield unless you keep large balances there. On a $5,000 balance, the Pro rate earns about $44 more a year than the Essentials rate (5,000 × (1.44% − 0.57%)), and Pro costs $336 a year.
Rent payment fees
Stessa's rent collection article (read on October 28, 2026) says an ACH payment costs the resident up to $2 when rent goes to an outside bank. It's free when rent goes into a Stessa cash account. Card payments cost 3%. Standard ACH can take up to 5 business days. Manage and Pro add "accelerated rent payments," but the pricing page doesn't say how fast those are.
What Stessa costs in practice
| Situation | Plan | Yearly cost |
|---|---|---|
| 1–20 units, own books, CPA does taxes from your reports | Essentials | $0 |
| Same, but you want Schedule E produced for you | Manage, yearly | $144 |
| Same, billed month to month during tax season only | Manage, monthly | $15 × months used |
| Budgets, pro-formas, many receipts, several portfolios | Pro, yearly | $336 |
On month-to-month billing, you could turn Manage on for tax season. We didn't find anything on the page that rules this out, but check Stessa's terms on downgrades first.
How it compares at 10 units, with Schedule E included:
- Stessa Manage costs $144 a year at any size.
- Landlord Studio Pro costs $228 a year at 10 units (annual billing).
- REI Hub Professional costs $180 a year at 10 units (annual billing).
- Baselane includes Schedule E on its free Core plan.
Baselane is a financial technology company and is not an FDIC-insured bank.
Details are in Landlord Studio vs Stessa, REI Hub vs Stessa and Baselane vs Stessa.
Which Stessa plan should you pick?
Stay on Essentials if your CPA works from your profit-and-loss and transaction exports, or you do your own taxes from basic reports. You give up nothing on property count or bank feeds. The main limits are 5 receipt scans a month and paying $15 for each state lease.
Pay for Manage if you want the Schedule E report produced for you, or you sign leases often enough to use the included templates and legal forms. With one eSignature a month, a landlord who signs a few leases a year is covered. A busier leasing schedule may need Pro's seven, or a separate e-sign tool (see best lease e-sign software).
Pay for Pro only for a specific Pro feature: budgets and pro-formas for acquisitions, project (CapEx) expense tracking for renovations, unlimited receipt scans, or phone support. As shown above, the higher APY rarely covers the $336 a year by itself.
How we checked
On October 28, 2026, we read Stessa's pricing page (https://www.stessa.com/pricing/), including the plan comparison table and the APY footnotes. Rent fees come from Stessa's rent collection help article, read the same day.
Yearly totals are list price × 12. The APY example is our own math using Stessa's tier rates. We didn't find screening prices on the pricing page, so we've left them out. Stessa's affiliate program has no effect on this page.
FAQ
Is Stessa really free?
Yes. Essentials costs $0 for unlimited properties and includes bank feeds, basic reports, rent collection, screening and maintenance tracking. Limits: Schedule E, eSignatures and legal forms are paid features, receipt scans are capped at 5 a month, and lease templates are $15 each.
How much is Stessa Manage?
$12 a month billed yearly ($144) or $15 billed monthly.
Which Stessa plan includes Schedule E?
Manage and Pro. The free plan has a basic tax package without the Schedule E report.
Does Stessa charge per property?
No. Stessa says all plans include unlimited properties.
Does Stessa charge tenants to pay rent?
ACH costs the resident up to $2 to an outside bank and is free into a Stessa account. Cards cost 3%.
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