QuickBooks Accounting Software Product Comparison

QuickBooks Online: Best QuickBooks product for most businesses

Our star rating: 4.6 out of 5

While QuickBooks Online is incredibly popular among accountants, it was primarily built to help non-accountant business owners manage their finances without an accounting degree. The user-friendly interface, straightforward setup and intuitive dashboard quickly get new business owners up to financial speed so they spend less time on bookkeeping.

As a cloud-based accounting software program, QuickBooks Online can be securely accessed from any web-enabled device. QuickBooks’ excellent mobile accounting app extends access to your phone — use it to snap receipts, upload expenses, check your finances, create mobile invoices and build estimates on the go.

For more information, read our full QuickBooks Online review.

Pricing

There are four QuickBooks Online plans, each with a different number of users:

• QuickBooks Simple Start: $30 per month. Includes access for one user.
• QuickBooks Essentials: $60 per month. Includes access for up to three users.
• QuickBooks Plus: $90 per month. Includes access for up to five users.
• QuickBooks Advanced: $200 per month. Includes access for up to 25 users.

New users can choose to test the software free for 30 days or opt to take 50% off for three months. Note that you’ll have to enter your payment information upfront and agree to scheduled autopayments. If you decide QuickBooks Online isn’t for you, make sure to cancel your free trial before the 30 days are up.

Features

Every QuickBooks Online plan includes these essential bookkeeping features:

• Cash flow tracking.
• Unlimited estimates, invoices, income and expense tracking and receipt scanning.
• 1099 contractor management.
• Customizable accounting reports.
• Connection to at least one sales channel (or unlimited channels with higher-tier plans) for easier automation and cash tracking.
• Built-in integration with over 750 third-party business apps through the QuickBooks app store.

Higher-tier QuickBooks Online plans add more advanced accounting features:

• Time tracking.
• Bill management.
• Inventory tracking.
• Real-time budgeting and cash flow forecasting.
• Employee expense tracking and reimbursement.

Pros and cons

QuickBooks Solopreneur: Best for solopreneurs filing itemized taxes

Our star rating: 3.8 out of 5

If you’re a freelancer in need of basic bookkeeping software only, QuickBooks Solopreneur could be a better choice for you than QuickBooks Online. With its limited set of features, QuickBooks Solopreneur helps individuals hone in on the most important aspects of growing a business, from setting financial goals to correctly categorizing expenses for tax time.

QuickBooks Solopreneur is most useful for freelancers filing Schedule C with their end-of-year taxes. Using the Solopreneur app, you can automatically log mileage in an IRS-friendly format for easier itemization come tax time.

However, if you’re looking for anything beyond the basics, I recommend QuickBooks Online over QuickBooks Solopreneur. For just $10 more a month, you get a far more expansive set of features, a more robust mobile app and the option to disregard any accounting tools (like a chart of accounts) that your business doesn’t need — yet.

Pricing

QuickBooks Solopreneur costs $20 per month. If you waive your free trial and choose to take 50% off for three months, you’ll pay just $10 a month for three months. Alternatively, you can pay yearly, which gets you 50% off for your first year of service ($120 total).

Features

• Basic cash flow tracking.
• Financial goal creation and tracking.
• App-based mileage tracking.
• Sales and sales tax tracking.
• Unlimited customizable invoices and estimates.

Users can also choose to open a QuickBooks Checking account to manage their business finances (alternatively, you can connect a pre-existing business bank account for automated profit tracking).

Pros and cons

QuickBooks Enterprise: Best for enterprises with complex finances

Our star rating: 4.5 out of 5

QuickBooks Enterprise is a robust, desktop-based version of QuickBooks’ accounting software. It features a far more extensive suite of tools than any other QuickBooks accounting product, plus stand-out perks like access for up to 40 users and optional industry-specific software packages.

From July 31, 2024 onward, QuickBooks Enterprise will be Intuit’s sole desktop-based accounting software product. Although it’s eliminating other desktop software, QuickBooks has no plans to scrap QuickBooks Enterprise: It’s one of the most widely used, well-respected and longstanding products in the accounting software field.

In other words, you don’t need to worry about suddenly losing product support if you choose QuickBooks Enterprise. The product is a top choice for accounting firms and enterprises in industries across the world, so it should be here to stay.

For more information, read our full QuickBooks Enterprise review.

Pricing

QuickBooks sells three different versions of its Enterprise desktop software. All three software options require an annual subscription:

• QuickBooks Enterprise Gold: Starts at $1,922 for one year.
• QuickBooks Enterprise Platinum: Starts at $2,363 for one year.
• QuickBooks Enterprise Diamond: Starts at $4,668 for one year.

After one year, the pricing for your Enterprise subscription increases. You’ll also pay an extra fee for features like cloud access, online data storage and priority customer service.

Features

All three enterprise-level plans include industry-standard accounting features, from expansive industry-specific reports to online payment acceptance.

Along with standard accounting tools, QuickBooks Enterprise users can expect the following:

• Integration with over 200 third-party apps.
• Inventory management.
• Built-in payroll.
• Industry-specific accounting packages.

Pros and cons

QuickBooks Payroll: Best payroll option for QuickBooks Online users

Our star rating: 4.1 out of 5

QuickBooks Payroll is Intuit’s cloud-based payroll software product, and it primarily supports QuickBooks Online users with employees. It isn’t the most comprehensive payroll solution on the market — for instance, it lacks the more complex HR features you’d get from a combined HR/payroll software provider like ADP or Paychex.

However, if you’re familiar with QuickBooks’ interface, recently hired your first employee and want to start running payroll as painlessly as possible, QuickBooks Payroll is the simplest solution.

For more information, read our full QuickBooks Payroll review.

Pricing

QuickBooks Payroll offers three basic plans, each with a different base price and per-payee fee:

• QuickBooks Payroll Core: $45 per month plus $6 per employee paid per month.
• QuickBooks Payroll Premium: $80 per month plus $8 per employee paid per month.
• QuickBooks Payroll Elite: $125 per month plus $10 per employee paid per month.

As with other QuickBooks products, users can choose to try QuickBooks Payroll free for 30 days or get 50% off the base price for three months.

Features

All three QuickBooks Payroll plans share the same basic features:

• Full-service payroll in all 50 states.
• Unlimited payroll runs.
• Optional employee benefits, including medical, dental and vision insurance and retirement plans.
• Optional workers’ compensation insurance integration.

The two higher-tier payroll plans include expanded features, such as the following:

• Built-in time tracking with QuickBooks Time.
• Same-day (rather than next-day) direct deposit.
• Access to an HR support center (Premium) or personal HR advisor (Elite).
• Additional customizations, automations and scheduling features.

Pros and cons

QuickBooks Live Bookkeeping: Best on-demand bookkeeping service for QuickBooks users

Our star rating: 4.6 out of 5

If you don’t want to handle bookkeeping entirely on your own but don’t have the funds to pay for an in-house accountant or in-person bookkeeping services, QuickBooks’ virtual bookkeeping service is a smart choice.

With QuickBooks Live Bookkeeping, business owners tracking their finances with QuickBooks Online can quickly, easily get virtual bookkeeping help from financial professionals. After an initial setup where your QuickBooks-certified bookkeeper reviews your financial records from the previous year and gets your books in order, they’ll be available to tackle basic bookkeeping tasks month over month while you focus on other aspects of running a business.

Pricing

Monthly pricing for QuickBooks Live Bookkeeping varies based on your average monthly expenses:

• If your average monthly expenses range up to $10,000, you’ll pay $300 per month for QuickBooks Live.
• If your average monthly expenses range from $10,001 to $50,000, you’ll pay $500 per month for QuickBooks Live.
• If your average monthly expenses are at or above $50,001, you’ll pay $700 per month for QuickBooks Live.

Additionally, you’ll pay a one-time “cleanup” fee to get your books in order the first time you sign up for QuickBooks Live Bookkeeping. The cleanup fee is custom and can vary based on your business’s age, tax-filing status and service signup month.

Features

No matter what you’re charged for your QuickBooks Live Bookkeeping subscription, you’ll get access to the same set of services provided by your QuickBooks-certified virtual bookkeeper:

• Basic introduction to QuickBooks Online.
• Customer and vendor setup within QuickBooks.
• Chart of accounts setup.
• Expense categorization.
• Bank connections and bank reconciliation.
• Ongoing help with common bookkeeping questions and concerns.

QuickBooks Live doesn’t offer any tax services, including tax preparation assistance, so you’ll need to work with your own accountant or another tax professional to file taxes at the end of the year.

Pros and cons