QuickBooks Online is the default accounting software for US small businesses, and its prices show it. Simple Start, the cheapest paid plan, lists at $38 a month for a single user. If you mostly send invoices and reconcile a bank account or two, you may be paying for more than you use.
If you have employees, payroll is a separate bill on top: see QuickBooks Payroll pricing for the per-employee fees.
Here are three alternatives that cover the same basics for less, with prices from each vendor's US pricing page at the time of our last update.
QuickBooks Online prices, for reference
| QuickBooks plan | List price per month | Users |
|---|---|---|
| Free | $0 (2 invoices a month, 1 bank connection) | 1 |
| Simple Start | $38 | 1 |
| Essentials | $85 | 3 |
| Plus | $140 | 5 |
| Advanced | $340 | 25 |
Intuit currently offers 50% off for the first three months on paid plans, so Simple Start is $19 a month to begin with. After that, the list price applies.
The alternatives at a glance
| Software | Cheapest paid plan | What limits it | Payroll |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wave | $0 Starter; Pro $19 a month or $190 a year | Starter: higher card fees, no automatic bank import | Add-on from $25 a month |
| Xero | Early, $27 a month | 20 invoices and 5 bills on Early | $36 a month + $6 per person |
| FreshBooks | Lite, $23 a month | 5 billable clients on Lite | $40 a month + $6 per user |
| QuickBooks Online | Simple Start, $38 a month | 1 user | Separate Workforce plans |
Cheapest paid plan, per month
Show the numbers
| Value | |
|---|---|
| Wave Pro | $19 |
| FreshBooks Lite | $23 |
| Xero Early | $27 |
| QuickBooks Simple Start | $38 |
Wave: best free option
Wave's Starter plan is free and includes unlimited estimates, invoices, bills and bookkeeping records, plus mobile invoicing. The catch is bank feeds: automatic import of bank transactions is a Pro feature, so on Starter you add transactions yourself. Wave also makes money on payments: on Starter, card payments cost 2.9% + $0.60 per transaction (3.4% + $0.60 for Amex).
The paid Pro plan is $19 a month or $190 a year. It adds automatic bank transaction import, lets you give other people admin, editor or viewer access (Starter only allows a payroll manager or tax pro), and waives the $0.60 per-transaction part of the card fee on your first 10 card transactions each month. Payroll is a separate add-on, from $25 a month.
Choose it if you are a freelancer or a very small business that sends invoices and wants clean books without a monthly fee.
Xero: best for growing businesses that want unlimited users
Xero's US plans are:
| Xero plan | Price per month | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Early | $27 | Quotes plus 20 invoices and 5 bills; auto-reconcile is an optional $5 a month |
| Growing | $59 | No invoice or bill cap listed; auto-reconcile included |
| Established | $97 | Xero's top US plan |
Xero charges no per-user license fees on any plan, which matters once your bookkeeper, accountant and office manager all need access. New US customers get 80% off for the first three months, so Early starts at $5.40 a month.
Inventory Plus is an optional add-on on Growing and Established (not available on Early). Xero Payroll is powered by Gusto and costs $36 a month plus $6 per employee or contractor.
Choose it if several people need to work in the books and you have outgrown a free tool. Skip Early if you send more than 20 invoices a month; Growing is the realistic plan.
FreshBooks: best for service businesses that bill clients
FreshBooks is built around invoicing and time tracking for client work. Its plans are priced by the number of billable clients:
| FreshBooks plan | Price per month | Billable clients |
|---|---|---|
| Lite | $23 | 5 |
| Plus | $43 | 50 |
| Premium | $70 | Unlimited |
| Select | Custom | Unlimited |
FreshBooks currently shows 80% off for four months on monthly plans. Additional team members cost $11 a month each, and FreshBooks Payroll is $40 a month plus $6 per user.
Choose it if you bill a manageable number of clients for your time, such as consultants, designers and agencies. The client limits make Lite and Plus a poor fit for businesses with many one-off customers.
Which one should you pick?
- Spending nothing: Wave Starter.
- Several people in the books: Xero Growing, with no per-user fees.
- Billing a few dozen clients for time: FreshBooks Plus.
- Already deep in QuickBooks with an accountant who uses it: staying put may be cheaper than switching, once you count your accountant's time. Use Intuit's three-month discount to test whether you need a higher plan.
Running payroll as well? See what QuickBooks Payroll costs before you decide.