PayHOA and SoShiny both target self-managed HOAs. What is the real difference?

Center of gravity. PayHOA leads with payments and accounting and is genuinely good at them. SoShiny leads with governance: elections with proxies and audit trails, statute-shaped meetings and minutes, a full violations workflow, and a public association website, with dues collection included rather than the whole point.

Is PayHOA cheaper than SoShiny?

No, at every published tier. PayHOA's annual rates run $49 a month up to 25 units, $99 at 51 to 100 units, and $169 at 151 to 200. SoShiny is $25 a month plus 33 cents a unit: about $33 for 25 units, $58 for 100, and $91 for 200. Both offer a 30-day free trial without a card. PayHOA's payment processing also charges $2.45 per incoming ACH payment, so compare the per-payment math for your community too.

Does SoShiny match PayHOA's accounting?

No. PayHOA's built-in invoicing, bank integrations, and reporting go deeper. SoShiny collects dues with itemized fees and autopay, settles to the association's own bank, and leaves ledger work to QuickBooks. If built-in accounting is your deciding factor, PayHOA wins that row.

Can SoShiny handle our elections better than PayHOA?

That is the row SoShiny is built around: secret ballots, proxies, weighted and shareholder voting, quorum tracking, and a full audit trail, plus casual surveys when a vote does not need the formality.

How do we switch from PayHOA to SoShiny?

Export owners and units to CSV, import them into SoShiny, and upload your governing documents. Most boards do it in a weekend. Keep your accounting history in QuickBooks or wherever your treasurer runs it.

Honest comparison · SoShiny vs. PayHOA

SoShiny vs. PayHOA — PayHOA collects your dues. SoShiny runs your community.

A genuine self-managed focus, strong payments and invoicing, bank integrations, financial reporting, free onboarding with a dedicated data-migration specialist, and no feature gates between tiers. Where they win, we'll say so. If your pain is the whole job, elections, meetings, violations, documents, renters, communication, and dues, SoShiny covers the board's full year, not just its bank account.

	PayHOA	SoShiny
Best for	Self-managed HOAs whose main pain is collecting and accounting for dues.	Volunteer boards across condo, HOA, marina, campground, co-op, mobile home park
Pricing	Unit-count tiers: $49/mo annual ($54 monthly) up to 25 units, $99/mo at 51 to 100 units, $169/mo at 151 to 200, $0.55/unit past 500. 30-day free trial, no card (verified 2026-07-25)	$25/mo base + $0.33/unit, every feature on every plan
Free trial	30 days	30 days, no credit card

Disclaimer. The comparisons on this page are for general informational purposes only. They reflect SoShiny’s good-faith understanding of publicly available information at the time of writing and our own product as we build it. We do not guarantee that every statement is complete, current, or free of error. Competitor products, pricing, plans, and marketing claims change without notice. Please verify current pricing, features, and terms directly with PayHOA and with SoShiny before making a purchasing decision.

These pages are not legal, accounting, tax, or professional advice, and they are not a substitute for reading a vendor’s contract, privacy policy, or documentation, or for independent due diligence by your board. Nothing here creates a warranty, representation, or guarantee by So Shiny Software, LLC (doing business as SoShiny) regarding any third-party product or regarding fitness for a particular community. To the fullest extent permitted by law, So Shiny Software, LLC disclaims liability for decisions made solely in reliance on these comparisons.

All product names, logos, and brands are property of their respective owners. Use of competitor names is for identification and comparison only and does not imply endorsement, sponsorship, or affiliation. SoShiny is not affiliated with the third-party platforms compared here unless we say so explicitly.

Corrections or updates: success@soshiny.com. We welcome factual feedback from vendors and boards.

Dues are one line item. The board's year is the whole budget.

Every feature on every plan beats tiers that grow with your unit count.

Run the election, the meeting, and the money in one login.

When PayHOA is the right choice

If dues collection and financial reports are 90% of your pain and you want deeper built-in accounting than SoShiny carries, PayHOA is a credible pick built for boards like yours.

When SoShiny is the right choice

If your pain is the whole job, elections, meetings, violations, documents, renters, communication, and dues, SoShiny covers the board's full year, not just its bank account.

Capability	PayHOA	SoShiny	Winner
Price	$49/mo up to 25 units, $99/mo at 51 to 100, $169/mo at 151 to 200 (annual rates)	$25/mo + $0.33/unit: $33 at 25 units, $58 at 100, $91 at 200	✓ Us
Built for self-managed boards	Yes	Yes	— Tie
Online dues collection	Core strength, lockbox, bank sync	Bank transfer or card, autopay, itemized fees	— Tie
Built-in accounting depth	Invoicing, reporting, bank feeds	Light by design, pairs with QuickBooks	✗ Them
Online voting and elections	Basic surveys and votes	Ballots, proxies, weighted votes, audit trail	✓ Us
Board meetings, agendas, minutes	Light	Statute-shaped agendas, resolutions, printable minutes	✓ Us
Violations workflow	Present	Notice, cure, fine, hearing, signatures, printed letters	✓ Us
Searchable rules and bylaws	Document storage	Full-text searchable with citations	✓ Us
Public association website	Included website	Full association website with custom domain option	— Tie
State statute library	No	FL, NY, TX, AZ in plain English	✓ Us
Lobby announcement TV	No	Included	✓ Us
Marina / camp / co-op verticals	HOA-shaped	Native verticals	✓ Us

What it looks like to switch from PayHOA

A 40-lot deed-restricted community collected dues fine on PayHOA. What buried the secretary was everything else: the annual meeting packet, proxy forms, two contested violations, and a website three years stale. They moved to SoShiny and kept the treasurer's QuickBooks exactly as it was.

Frequently asked

PayHOA and SoShiny both target self-managed HOAs. What is the real difference?: Center of gravity. PayHOA leads with payments and accounting and is genuinely good at them. SoShiny leads with governance: elections with proxies and audit trails, statute-shaped meetings and minutes, a full violations workflow, and a public association website, with dues collection included rather than the whole point.
Is PayHOA cheaper than SoShiny?: No, at every published tier. PayHOA's annual rates run $49 a month up to 25 units, $99 at 51 to 100 units, and $169 at 151 to 200. SoShiny is $25 a month plus 33 cents a unit: about $33 for 25 units, $58 for 100, and $91 for 200. Both offer a 30-day free trial without a card. PayHOA's payment processing also charges $2.45 per incoming ACH payment, so compare the per-payment math for your community too.
Does SoShiny match PayHOA's accounting?: No. PayHOA's built-in invoicing, bank integrations, and reporting go deeper. SoShiny collects dues with itemized fees and autopay, settles to the association's own bank, and leaves ledger work to QuickBooks. If built-in accounting is your deciding factor, PayHOA wins that row.
Can SoShiny handle our elections better than PayHOA?: That is the row SoShiny is built around: secret ballots, proxies, weighted and shareholder voting, quorum tracking, and a full audit trail, plus casual surveys when a vote does not need the formality.
How do we switch from PayHOA to SoShiny?: Export owners and units to CSV, import them into SoShiny, and upload your governing documents. Most boards do it in a weekend. Keep your accounting history in QuickBooks or wherever your treasurer runs it.