CentSense vs Novo (2026): Business Banking vs a Schedule C Expense Tracker

Published: June 30, 2026 · Reading time: 6 min

TL;DR: Novo is fee-free business banking for solopreneurs — a checking account with invoicing, Reserves for setting tax money aside, a debit card, and app integrations. It's where your business money lives. CentSense Solo ($5/month) is where your business tax record lives: AI receipt scanning tagged to the exact Schedule C line, $0.725/mile mileage logging, and a CPA-ready CSV. Novo doesn't read receipts onto tax lines or log mileage; CentSense isn't a bank. They're not substitutes — most freelancers use Novo for the account and CentSense for the records, and keeping the two cleanly separate is itself good audit hygiene.

If you searched "CentSense vs Novo," you may be comparing two tools that actually solve different problems. One is a business bank account; the other is a tax-record keeper. It's worth getting the distinction straight, because picking "one or the other" usually leaves a freelancer missing half of what they need.

What Novo Does Well

Novo earned its following among freelancers for good reasons:

• Fee-free business checking. No monthly fee on the core account keeps a solo business's overhead low — banking built for one-person operations.
• Reserves. Virtual buckets let you peel off a percentage of every deposit for quarterly estimated taxes, so the money's there in April. This is genuinely useful for 1099 cash flow.
• Invoicing and payments. Send invoices and accept payment, with integrations to Stripe, Square, and others.
• A real separation layer. Running income and spending through a dedicated business account is the single best habit for keeping business and personal money apart.

For the money side of freelancing — holding it, moving it, invoicing for it — Novo is a strong, low-cost choice.

Where Novo Stops for Tax Time

Novo's gaps are about tax records specifically:

• No Schedule C line mapping. Novo shows transactions, but it doesn't tag "$240, Home Depot" to Line 22 supplies versus a Line 13 equipment purchase. A bank feed is categories at best, not tax lines.
• A bank line isn't a receipt. The IRS wants the itemized receipt, not just "AMZN Mktp $63." Novo stores the transaction; it doesn't extract and verify the receipt detail behind it.
• No mileage log. For many freelancers the vehicle deduction is one of the biggest, and Novo has no built-in, always-on mileage tracker.

None of this makes Novo bad — it makes it a bank, not a tax tool. The work of turning transactions into a defensible Schedule C still has to happen somewhere.

What CentSense Is

CentSense is built around the freelancer's year-end deliverable:

1. Scan — AI reads each receipt and extracts vendor, date, and amount.
2. Categorize — every expense tagged to the right Schedule C line, business and personal kept separate.
3. Track mileage — business miles at the 2026 IRS rate of $0.725/mile, in the same app.
4. Export — a CPA-ready CSV whose totals map directly onto Schedule C or into filing software.

It deliberately isn't a bank. The bet: you already have somewhere to keep your money — what you're missing is valid receipts captured, expenses on the right line, and miles logged.

Side-by-Side

Confirm current pricing, features, and account requirements on each provider's site.

Which Should a Freelancer Choose?

The honest answer is usually both — because they don't overlap:

• Choose Novo as the account your business runs through: fee-free checking, invoicing, and Reserves to stash tax money as it comes in.
• Choose CentSense as the record of what you spent: AI receipt scanning tagged to the exact Schedule C line, plus a built-in mileage log.

If you forced a single pick, it depends on your gap. If you're still paying for business expenses out of a personal account, start with the banking separation — it's foundational. If your money is already separate but your shoebox of receipts and untracked miles is the problem, CentSense is the missing piece. For most 1099 workers, the clean setup is Novo for the money and CentSense for the tax-line records, with a quick check of our receipt retention rules to know what to keep.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Novo and who is it for?

A fee-free business banking platform for freelancers and small businesses — checking, invoicing, Reserves buckets for setting money aside, a debit card, and integrations. It's the account your business money flows through, not a tax-prep or expense-categorization tool.

Does Novo track receipts and mileage for taxes?

Not the way a tax tracker does. It shows transactions and integrates with bookkeeping tools but doesn't AI-scan receipts onto specific Schedule C lines or include a built-in mileage log. CentSense does both and exports them on one CPA-ready CSV.

Is CentSense a replacement for Novo?

No — they do different jobs. Novo is where your money lives; CentSense is where your tax records live. Run money through Novo and turn the receipts and mileage into a tax-ready record with CentSense.

How do CentSense and Novo compare on price?

Novo advertises no monthly fee on core business checking. CentSense has a free tier (10 scans/month) and a $5/month Solo plan with unlimited scanning plus mileage. They're complements, so many freelancers use both. Confirm current pricing on each site.

Can I use CentSense and Novo together?

Yes — that's the natural setup. Bank with Novo to keep business and personal money separate, then use CentSense to scan receipts, tag each to the right Schedule C line, and log mileage. Novo handles the money; CentSense handles the tax record.

Authoritative References

• IRS Schedule C (Form 1040) and Instructions
• IRS — Self-employed individuals tax center
• IRS — What kind of records should I keep?
• IRS Standard Mileage Rates

Bank Wherever You Like — Keep the Tax Record Here

A great business bank account separates your money; CentSense turns the spending into a defensible Schedule C. Snap a receipt, the AI reads it and tags it to the right line, and your mileage is logged in the same place — then export a CPA-ready CSV at tax time. Start free with 10 AI scans a month — no credit card required; the Solo plan ($5/month) adds unlimited scanning, mileage tracking, and the export your filing needs.

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This article is educational and not tax advice, and reflects publicly available information about Novo at the time of writing. Novo is a fintech platform, not a bank; banking services are provided by its partner bank. Confirm current features and pricing with each provider.