shakehands Software

What shakehands Software does

ShakeHands Software Ltd is a privately held Swiss software developer that has been operating since 1996, producing commercial accounting and business administration software for the self-employed, micro and small businesses, trades, startups, clubs, foundations and trustees in the DACH region. The flagship product, shakehands Kontor, is a native 64-bit double-entry accounting, invoicing, inventory, CRM-lite, projects and digital archive suite available as separate native builds for Apple macOS (Universal code for Intel and Apple Silicon M1-M5) and Microsoft Windows, with a single license usable across both platforms and multiple devices. Data is stored locally in an encrypted SQLite database, with an optional cubeSQL client/server deployment for multi-user or hosted access. The product carries deep Swiss localization, including QR-Rechnung (QRR/QR NON/QR SCOR), ISO 20022 pain/camt, ZUGFeRD/Factur-X and XRechnung (with Peppol identifiers), ESTV eIAM direct filing, and a self-developed form generator with a Visual-Basic-like scripting language and 525+ templates.

The company sells via a self-serve model: shakehands Kontor Basis is freeware; paid modules can be trialed for up to 50 starts; one-time perpetual licenses range from CHF 282 (Saldo/Balance) to CHF 510 (Complete) and CHF 610 (Pro), with optional update licenses the customer can choose to buy on a 2-3 year cycle. A new 12-month free founder license targets startups, and a free Kontor Link API targets developers and integrators. Revenue is supplemented by paid support packages, time-based consulting (3.25 CHF/min hotline, 62.50/15 min, 230/hour), trainings (from CHF 650 group, CHF 1,750 individual), workstation (wAP) licenses, and partner-solution resale (e.g., Webjazz CRM). Distribution is primarily direct through the shop5.shakehands.com e-commerce shop and self-serve downloads, augmented by an IT-partner and Treuhänder reseller network and a 35,000+ user DACH community forum operated with ProSaldo GmbH, which also runs the MonKey sister product line for the German market. The company claims carbon-neutral operation since 1996 and ongoing product releases through 2026.

Name

shakehands Software

Legal name

ShakeHands Software Ltd

Website

https://shakehands.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

ShakeHands Software Ltd is a Swiss developer of locally installed, cross-platform accounting and business software (shakehands Kontor) for the self-employed, micro and small businesses, trades, clubs and trustees in the DACH region, sold via one-time licenses plus optional updates, support and training.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Sperenberg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. One-time software license sales: Perpetual (unbefristete) Kauflizenz for shakehands Kontor modules (Saldo 282 CHF, Balance 282 CHF) and packages (Complete 510 CHF, Pro 610 CHF) plus the free Basis module; license is valid for the purchased annual version, including 6 months of free grace updates.
2. Annual update licenses (sidegrades): Optional paid update licenses to a new annual version: Saldo updates from 189 CHF, Complete from 279 CHF, Pro from 329 CHF; customers decide their own update cycle (every 2-3 years, or rarely), creating episodic upgrade revenue.
3. Professional services and time-based support: Fee-based support and consulting: hotline at 3.25 CHF/min, quarter-hour at 62.50 CHF, hourly at 230 CHF; paid support packages (Idared 275 CHF, McIntosh 800 CHF) and trainings (Gruppenschulung from 650 CHF, individual from 1,750 CHF).
4. Freeware and freemium acquisition: shakehands Kontor Basis is a freeware baseline used to drive acquisition; other modules can be activated as a trial up to 50 times. A 12-month free startup/founder license is offered to convert new business formations into paying customers after the first year.
5. Hardware/accessory and partner-solution reselling: Sale of client/server workstation licenses (wAP, e.g. shakehands Kontor Pro 2026 wAP at 249 CHF), cubeSQL server extensions, and partner-solution reselling (e.g. Webjazz Business CRM at 1,200 CHF), generating margin on adjacent products.
6. Training and education services: Paid user trainings delivered as group courses (Gruppenschulung, Maioris) from 650 CHF and individual training (Officum) at 1,750 CHF, plus on-site coaching and consulting for migrations and complex setups.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion5 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

ShakeHands Software develops and sells shakehands Kontor, a natively compiled 64-bit accounting, invoicing, inventory and CRM-lite suite that runs locally on Apple macOS and Microsoft Windows and is sold as perpetual one-time licenses (modules from 282 CHF, packages from 510 CHF). The product covers double-entry bookkeeping, accounts payable/receivable, QR-bill and E-Rechnung (ZUGFeRD/Factur-X/XRechnung) generation, ISO 20022 camt/pain bank reconciliation, ESTV VAT filing, projects, letters/serial mail, and 525+ form templates, with optional cubeSQL client/server deployment and a JSON-based Kontor Link API for third-party middleware. It targets self-employed professionals, micro and small businesses, startups, clubs, foundations and trustees in Switzerland, Germany and Austria.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• shakehands Kontor: The flagship accounting and bookkeeping software product line for Apple macOS and Microsoft Windows, available in multiple modules and packages: Basis (freeware), Saldo (financial accounting/FiBu), Balance (invoicing/ReWe), Complete (package), and Pro (all-in-one package with extensions).
• shakehands Reisekosten
• shakehands Kontor Link

Products and services

• shakehands Kontor Saldo (Financial Accounting / FiBu module) Standalone double-entry financial accounting (Finanzbuchhaltung / FiBu) module for Apple macOS and Microsoft Windows; manages accounts payable/receivable, MWSt/VAT bookings, year-end close, ISO 20022 camt/pain bank reconciliation and open items for self-employed professionals, micro and small businesses in Switzerland, Germany and Austria.
• shakehands Kontor Balance (Invoicing / ReWe module) Standalone invoicing and Rechnungswesen (ReWe) module covering order processing, inventory, purchasing, sales (offers, delivery notes, invoices, credit notes), QR-bill and e-invoice output for self-employed professionals, micro and small businesses.
• shakehands Kontor Complete (Saldo + Balance + Basis package) Package bundle of the Saldo (FiBu) and Balance (ReWe) modules plus the Basis freeware base, including Dashboard, QR-Rechnung (QRR/QR-NON/QR-SCOR) and E-Rechnung capabilities, for SMBs that need both financial accounting and invoicing in one perpetual license.
• shakehands Kontor Pro (all-in-one professional package) Flagship all-in-one package combining Rechnungswesen, Finanzbuchhaltung and extensions: Projects, Letters/serial mail, CRM (contacts/activities), XRechnung output, automatic email attachments, dashboards and attachments overview, for professional users and larger SMB customers.
• shakehands Kontor Basis (freeware base module) Freeware base module of shakehands Kontor providing addresses, open items, cash book, simple E/A bookkeeping and attachments on Apple macOS and Microsoft Windows, designed as a self-serve acquisition funnel into the paid Saldo, Balance, Complete and Pro editions.
• shakehands Kontor Gründer:in (startup / founder license) Free 12-month license of shakehands Kontor for newly founded businesses within 12 months of commercial register entry, intended to lower the cost barrier in the founding year and convert founders into paying customers after the first year.
• shakehands Kontor Link (API / middleware integration) Universal JSON API plus PHP library that enables third-party middleware to connect webshops, mobile apps, CRMs and project-data systems to shakehands Kontor's local business logic, with a developer license available on request.
• shakehands Reisekosten (travel expense management software) Standalone travel expense management application from ShakeHands Software, used together with or independently of shakehands Kontor to record and settle travel expenses for Swiss and DACH SMB customers.
• shakehands Support and Consulting Services (time-based, support packages, training) Paid professional services delivered directly by ShakeHands Software as the manufacturer: per-minute hotline support (3.25 CHF/min), quarter-hour (62.50 CHF) and hourly (230 CHF) consulting, paid support packages (Idared 275 CHF, McIntosh 800 CHF) and training (group from 650 CHF, individual 1,750 CHF), including remote maintenance, migration and complex configuration work.

Quantifiable outcome

• Total cost of ownership ~CHF 11–24/month over 7 years vs CHF 35/month for Bexio (per the published comparison), with stated 7-year savings of CHF 961–2,430 per customer
• +2 more outcomes

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration28 records

AI capability1 record

Feature9 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ProSaldo GmbHcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerProSaldo GmbH is ShakeHands' partner for the deutschsprachige Support-Community (German-speaking support community). ProSaldo co-hosts the knowledge base, wiki, and community forum used by more than 35,000 users across Switzerland, Germany and Austria. ProSaldo is also the operator of the German 'MonKey' sister product line (MonKey Pro, Office, FIBU, REWE, FREE, Reisekosten).
• SQLite (SQLite Consortium / D. Richard Hipp)coreTechnology or IntegrationShakehands Kontor uses the open-source SQLite database for its single-user installation and cites SQLite as 'millionenfach bewährt'. The database is fully encrypted (AES-256) and platform-independent (macOS, Windows, Linux).
• cubeSQLcoreTechnology or IntegrationShakehands ships and supports the cubeSQL server (current supported version 5.9.6) for the client/server deployment of shakehands Kontor. cubeSQL provides encrypted data transfer, integrated backup, fine-grained user rights, and is offered as an optional extension in the shakehands shop.
• Daylite
• Webjazz BusinessminorOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerWebjazz Business is a CRM partner-solution resold in the shakehands shop for 1,200 CHF, marketed as a complementary CRM that integrates with shakehands Kontor.
• Handmade-Ökostrom (shop5.shakehands.com/ueber-uns)minorOthersRenewable-energy partner whose electricity powers the development and operation of shakehands Kontor, enabling the company to be 'carbon-neutral since 1996'.
• SIX Interbank Clearing / SIX GroupminorOthersSwiss payment-standards body whose QR-Rechnung specification and ISO 20022 payment-standardization roadmap ShakeHands explicitly tracks and implements; the website links to SIX's paymentstandards.ch resources and to the ESTV (Federal Tax Administration) for digital tax reporting.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Bexio: Swiss cloud-based accounting and business administration platform for SMBs, craftsmen and startups. Directly competes with shakehands Kontor for the same Swiss kmU segment, explicitly named in shakehands' own 7-year TCO comparison.
• Run my Accounts: Swiss online bookkeeping and accounting service for SMBs and trustees, with direct integration to Swiss banks and tax authorities. Competes for the same Selbständige and Treuhänder customer base, but with a managed-service rather than licensed-software model.
• Banana.ch: Swiss accounting and bookkeeping software available in multiple languages with a local-install, perpetual-license model very similar to shakehands Kontor. Competes head-to-head in the Swiss SMB and trustee market.
• Topal Solutions: Swiss accounting, payroll and debt-collection software for SMBs and trustees, with both local and hosted deployment options. Comparable target customer and Swiss FiBu localization; shakehands ships a built-in importer for Topal.

Broad incumbents

• Abacus Research: Swiss ERP and business software vendor with deep accounting, payroll and CRM modules for SMBs and mid-market. Shakehands provides a built-in data importer for Abacus, evidencing direct competition and customer migration paths in the Swiss FiBu segment.
• Sage: Global accounting and ERP vendor with SMB products in Switzerland (Sage 50 / Sage Start) and across Europe. Shakehands ships a built-in data importer for Sage, reflecting direct competitive overlap in the local SMB FiBu market.

Regional players

• WISO Software (Buhl Data Service): German maker of WISO Steuer, Mein Geld and related SMB accounting and tax products, widely used by self-employed and small businesses in Germany. Comparable end-customer profile (Selbständige, Vereine) and adjacent feature set to shakehands Kontor, German-market focused.
• sevDesk: German cloud-based accounting and invoicing platform targeting freelancers, self-employed and small businesses. Comparable product scope (invoicing, banking, e-invoices) and a competing business model, but focused on the German rather than Swiss market.
• Lexware: Established German desktop and cloud accounting/tax software for SMBs, freelancers and craftsmen, sold via perpetual license and subscription tiers. Most direct model-comparable peer in the German-speaking market, though primarily distributed in Germany.
• Lexoffice (Haufe Group): Leading German cloud accounting product for SMBs and self-employed, with banking, invoicing and DATEV integration. Comparable customer and feature set to shakehands Kontor, but cloud-first and subscription-priced in the German market.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/shakehandssoft

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about shakehands Software