What Automation Makes Sense for Your Firm
Not everything that could be automated in an accounting firm is worth the same, or costs the same. This article separates what Fold already solves today without building anything (asking about rates and case files, answered with the exact row) from what gets requested as a custom automation, and gives a simple way to decide where to start.
27 September 2026 · David Burnao
Not every task in a firm weighs the same
"Automate the firm" sounds like one project, but it covers very different things: checking the status of a case file, keying in an invoice, reconciling a bank statement, flagging an upcoming deadline. Each one costs something different when it isn't done, and each gets solved differently. Before deciding where to start, it helps to separate them.
What Fold already solves without building anything
If what's needed is asking about data that already exists in a file — service rates, client case files, deadlines for a filing — Fold already does that out of the box: your team asks and Fold answers with the exact row the data comes from, with nothing to wait for anyone to build. This is the part that gets solved fastest, because there's no development involved: just upload the file, confirm what each column means, and start asking.
How it answers, step by step
- It reads your files. Whichever ones you choose: rates, case files, deadlines, whatever you already keep in a spreadsheet or in the firm's folders.
- It learns what each column means. The first time it sees a new file, it suggests what each piece of data means, and you confirm it before it's used.
- It answers with the source. The answer comes with the exact file and row, so anyone on your team can check it. If two figures don't match, or the data isn't there, it says so — it never picks for you or rounds a number.
What gets requested as a custom automation
When what's needed isn't a question, but a whole process no longer done by hand, that's not a lookup anymore — it's a custom automation. Reading the invoices and statements that come in every month and preparing them for import into your accounting software is the most common example in a firm, but not the only one: an automatic alert as a deadline approaches, or a monthly report that's currently built by hand, work the same way. You request them from inside the Fold app itself, describing what you need, with what data and in which system; before anything gets built, you're told the price and the timeline.
How the price is calculated, with no surprises
The price depends on how many data sources are involved, whether it integrates with another system, whether it touches money or end-client data, and whether it reuses something already built and confirmed. From there, it falls into one of three tiers: a small tweak from €59.99 and 3 business days, a new feature from €399.99 and 10 business days, or something large — touching money or integrating with another system, say — which gets discussed on a free 30-minute call, with a quote afterwards.
Why this doesn't get fixed on its own
Anything that touches invoices, amounts, tax data or bank reconciliation always needs your decision and your review: nothing is ever closed or charged without your prior acceptance, and the result is delivered for your team to check, not to be taken as correct without looking.
A simple rule for where to start
If the task is "look up and answer" something you already keep in a file, start with Fold's free plan: you get the answer in minutes, with no development involved. If the task is "run a whole process hands-off" (read, check, prepare a file, alert), that becomes a custom automation, with a fixed price up front if it's small or medium.
What files and programs it connects to today
Fold reads your Excel and CSV files from day one. Once you sign up, it also connects to Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive and Dropbox, always with read-only access: you choose which folders it can see, and you can revoke access whenever you want. SharePoint and a generic connector for any other software your firm uses are coming soon.
What happens the first time you upload a file
The first time you upload your rates or case files, Fold doesn't just start answering — it detects the sheets, the header row, and the type of each column, and suggests what each one means, drawing on the terms typical of an accounting firm. You confirm that mapping before anything gets used, and if something isn't clear, it asks instead of assuming. It's a step that takes a few minutes, and only needs repeating when the file's structure changes, not every time you upload a new one in the same format as always.
Plans, starting free
The free plan needs no card: up to 2 questions a day and 10 a week. Paid plans start at €49.99 a month, with more questions and an AI that can chain several steps together from the Standard plan up. Prices are shown before tax: tax is added depending on the country your firm is registered in.
If Fold works for you, you can recommend it
Every company using Fold gets its own referral code. If you recommend Fold to another firm and it stays a paying customer, you get a discount on the custom automations you request afterwards — up to 50% during the launch (the first 100 companies), and up to 20% after that. Your own monthly fee is always charged in full, and the firm you refer gets 100 free questions in its first paid month.
How to get started
Sign-up and payment inside the app are opening very soon. In the meantime, leave your email to be notified, and you can read the real case of a firm that's already stopped keying in its invoices and statements with this same system.
Frequently asked questions
Where should my firm start, with Fold or with a custom automation?
It depends on the task. If it's asking about data you already keep in a file, start with Fold's free plan. If it's getting a whole process done hands-off, that gets requested as a custom automation.
Does Fold read invoices and bank statements directly?
Reading and checking documents like invoices or statements, and preparing them for your accounting software, is a custom automation built on top of Fold — not a default feature.
Who decides if something touches tax or client data?
You always do. Nothing that touches invoices, amounts, or tax data gets closed or charged without your explicit review and approval.
How long before I see the price of a custom automation?
You're told the price and the timeline before accepting anything, as soon as you describe what you need from inside the app.
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Want to see it with your own business?
Try Fold with your own rates and case files: the free plan needs no card.
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