Bplans
Bplans / LivePlan (Palo Alto Software) is a cloud-based SaaS platform that helps SMBs and startup founders validate ideas, build AI-assisted business plans, forecast financials, and track performance via QuickBooks and Xero integrations, serving over 1 million entrepreneurs globally through a self-serve subscription model.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1995
- HeadquartersEugene, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Bplans does
Bplans, originally founded in 1995 and now operated under Palo Alto Software, has been consolidated into LivePlan — a cloud-based SaaS platform for small-business and startup planning. The company serves entrepreneurs and SMBs across the full lifecycle: validating new business ideas (Idea Canvas), researching markets with cited data from 50+ verified sources (Market Research), writing AI-assisted business plans (Plan Builder with lender-style Plan Review), modeling connected income statements, cash flow, and balance sheets (Financial Forecasting & Scenarios), producing investor-ready pitch decks (Pitch Deck Creator), and tracking actuals against plan via QuickBooks and Xero integrations (Plan vs. Actual dashboard). Tim Berry, founder and CEO, anchors an organization of 51-100 employees headquartered in Eugene, United States, with the legal entity Palo Alto Software operating as a privately held parent.
LivePlan operates a product-led, self-serve distribution model with no physical goods, monetizing through monthly and annual SaaS subscriptions priced in tiers (with a 50% discount for new businesses, savings on startup Premium, and 40% off annual for established businesses), backed by a 35-day money-back guarantee. GTM combines SEO-driven content marketing (sample business plans, market research reports, blog, email newsletter, free templates, financial calculators), third-party review presence on Capterra, G2, Trust Radius, Shopper Approved, and the Xero App Store, and an indirect channel via consultants, SBA partners, educators, lenders, incubators, accountants, and a partner/affiliate program. Revenue mechanics are not disclosed, and no funding rounds or investor information are reported in the source material.
Bplans firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Bplans
- Legal name
- Palo Alto Software
- Website
- https://bplans.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1995
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Bplans / LivePlan (Palo Alto Software) is a cloud-based SaaS platform that helps SMBs and startup founders validate ideas, build AI-assisted business plans, forecast financials, and track performance via QuickBooks and Xero integrations, serving over 1 million entrepreneurs globally through a self-serve subscription model.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Bplans industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Business Planning Software
- NAICS
- Software Publishers (5132)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Financial Planning & Analysis Support (Budgeting, Forecasting, Management Reporting) (BPAAAGAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Workflow & Case Management (Human-Centric BPM) (HDAEAHAA)
Keywords
Where Bplans is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Eugene
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Bplans business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- SaaS Subscription: Monthly and annual subscription tiers for business plan software access. Discounts offered for new businesses (50% off), startups, and established businesses (40% off annual). 35-day money-back guarantee reduces purchase friction.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | New Business package with 50% discount |
| Subscription | Monthly | Startup Premium package with savings |
| Subscription | Annual | Established Business annual package with 40% discount |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels8 records
Bplans product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Bplans originally offered an online library of free sample business plans to help entrepreneurs develop their businesses. Following its merger with LivePlan, Bplans content and tools are now part of LivePlan's AI-powered SaaS business planning platform, which provides business plan writing, financial forecasting, idea validation, market research, pitch deck creation, and plan vs actual performance tracking for small business owners, startups, and established businesses.
Product overview
LivePlan is a unified business planning platform that has consolidated Bplans' tools into a single integrated system. The platform offers a modular suite of interconnected tools: Business Plan Builder for AI-powered plan writing, Financial Forecasts & Scenarios for connected financial modeling, Idea Canvas for AI-guided idea validation, Market Research for industry data and benchmarks, Pitch Deck for investor presentations, and Plan vs Actual for performance tracking. These products are designed to work together as a complete business planning lifecycle from initial idea validation through funding and ongoing performance tracking.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Business Plan Builder AI-powered business plan writing tool that generates professional plans grounded in the user's actual business data, with Plan Review functionality that reads the plan like a lender would, for entrepreneurs and small business owners.
- Financial Forecasts & Scenarios Connected financial modeling system including income statement, cash flow, and balance sheet, where changing one assumption flows through all connected statements for multi-scenario planning, for entrepreneurs and SMBs.
- Idea Canvas AI-guided idea validation system that pressure-tests business ideas with real research and honest risk assessments before spending money, targeting individuals with new business ideas.
- Market Research Market research tool providing insights from 50+ verified sources specific to the user's geography, with bank-grade industry benchmarks from a professional research firm and named, citable sources.
- Pitch Deck Presentation builder that transforms business plans into polished investor-ready pitch presentations using templates, with automatic data and financial sync, targeting startup founders seeking investor funding.
- Plan vs Actual (Performance Dashboard) Performance tracking tool that connects accounting software (QuickBooks, Xero) to compare real numbers against the business plan monthly, tracking revenue, expenses, and cash flow, for operating SMBs.
Quantifiable outcome
- 30% faster growth for companies that plan and track against their plan
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Bplans
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments9 records
Ideal customer profiles6 records
Bplans technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
AI capability4 records
Feature6 records
Bplans partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- QuickBookscoreQuickBooks integration allows LivePlan to automatically sync financial data, enabling plan vs actual comparison using real QuickBooks data. Users can create forecasts using their actual QuickBooks financial information.
- XerocoreXero integration provides similar functionality to QuickBooks, allowing automatic sync of accounting data for real-time plan vs actual tracking. Customer reviews specifically highlight seamless Xero integration and visibility into forecast performance.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Bplans competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- FreshBooks: FreshBooks is a broad SMB accounting and invoicing platform with growing financial reporting and forecasting capabilities. It overlaps with LivePlan on financial visibility for SMBs and competes for the same small business wallet.
- Xero: Xero is a global SMB accounting platform and a core integration partner of LivePlan. As a broad incumbent, Xero could expand its own planning/forecasting features and disintermediate LivePlan's value-add on top of its data.
- Intuit QuickBooks: Intuit QuickBooks is the dominant SMB accounting platform and a key LivePlan integration partner. Intuit's broader ecosystem, AI roadmap (Intuit Assist), and financial reach position it as both a critical partner and a long-term competitive threat.
Direct peers
- Upmetrics: Upmetrics is an AI-powered business planning and financial forecasting platform for startups and SMBs. It directly competes with LivePlan on AI-assisted plan generation, pitch decks, and connected financial statements.
- PlanGuru: PlanGuru provides financial forecasting, budgeting, and business planning software for small businesses, accountants, and nonprofits. It overlaps with LivePlan on the financial forecasting and plan-vs-actuals dimensions and serves a similar advisor-led SMB audience.
- Enloop: Enloop is a SaaS business plan automation platform that generates financial forecasts and narrative plans for SMBs. It directly competes with LivePlan in the AI-assisted business planning category with similar subscription pricing and target segments.
- Fathom: Fathom provides financial analysis, reporting, and forecasting software that integrates with QuickBooks and Xero. It overlaps with LivePlan's Plan vs Actuals and financial forecasting capabilities for accountants and SMBs.
- Tarkenton GoSmallBiz: GoSmallBiz offers a small business planning and management suite including business plans, CRM, and financial tools. It targets a similar SMB founder audience as LivePlan with comparable subscription-based planning software.
- BizPlanBuilder: BizPlanBuilder is a long-standing packaged business plan software product with structured templates and financial worksheets. It targets the same SMB planning use case as LivePlan, particularly founders and lenders needing formatted plan documents.
Emerging players
- Pilot: Pilot is a bookkeeping and financial operations platform for SMBs and startups. While not a direct planning competitor, it encroaches on LivePlan's value proposition by owning the underlying accounting data layer that drives plan-vs-actuals insights.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Bplans social profiles
Digital presenceBplans financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Bplans leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Bplans funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Bplans M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Bplans
What does Bplans do?
Bplans originally offered an online library of free sample business plans to help entrepreneurs develop their businesses. Following its merger with LivePlan, Bplans content and tools are now part of LivePlan's AI-powered SaaS business planning platform, which provides business plan writing, financial forecasting, idea validation, market research, pitch deck creation, and plan vs actual performance tracking for small business owners, startups, and established businesses.
Is Bplans a public or private company?
Bplans is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Bplans founded?
Bplans was founded in 1995. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Bplans based?
Bplans is headquartered in Eugene, United States, in the North America region.
How does Bplans make money?
One revenue line is on record: saaS Subscription.
Who are Bplans's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are FreshBooks, Xero and Intuit QuickBooks. Direct peers are Upmetrics, PlanGuru, Enloop, Fathom, Tarkenton GoSmallBiz and BizPlanBuilder. Pilot is listed as an emerging player.
Does Bplans have an API?
No public API is recorded for Bplans.
What industry is Bplans in?
Bplans's product category is Business Planning Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAAAGAJ, Financial Planning & Analysis Support (Budgeting, Forecasting, Management Reporting), with a secondary code of HDAEAHAA, Workflow & Case Management (Human-Centric BPM). Its NAICS code is 5132 and its SIC code is 7372.