Business

Which QuickBooks is right for me?

Panna Kemenes

22.06.22 (updated more than 1 year ago)

Read time 5 minutes

QuickBooks (QB) is a leading tool for tracking business income and expenses. There are several different types of QuickBooks applications. These include several online based plans, as well as different desktop versions.

Each version of QuickBooks works best for different types of users or businesses. This guide looks at all the options, and will help you answer the question: ‘Which QuickBooks is right for me?’.

Connect QuickBooks and Wise:
Sync bill payments and save time

Are there different types of QuickBooks?

QuickBooks from Intuit is available in several different versions. These offer much of the same functionalities, and ways of working. There are differences, though, in both features and access methods.

QuickBooks Online and Self-Employed are cloud-based and user-friendly solutions. QuickBooks Desktop and QuickBooks Mac Plus are traditional software options. Most of these options are offered with different pricing plans.

The following list is a summary of the main QuickBooks products and plans available:

Version	Plans
QuickBooks Online Save hours on admin with QB and Wise	Simple Start Essentials Plus Advanced
QuickBooks Self-Employed	Tax bundle Live tax bundle
QuickBooks desktop	QuickBooks Pro Plus QuickBooks Premier Plus QuickBooks Enterprise
QuickBooks Mac Plus	QuickBooks Mac Plus 2022

Which QuickBooks do I need? QuickBooks versions compared

	QuickBooks Online¹	QuickBooks Self-Employed²	QuickBooks desktop³	QuickBooks Mac Plus⁴
Number of users	Up to 25 users	1 user, plus 1 accountant user	3 users for Pro Plus; 5 users for Premier Plus; 40 users for Enterprise	Up to 3 users
Suitable for	Small and medium sized businesses	Freelancers and contractors	Large businesses, or small and medium sized businesses with advanced accounting needs	Businesses that want locally installed Mac software
Price	Simple Start: $25/month Essentials: $50/month Plus: $80/month Advanced: $180/month	QuickBooks Self-Employed: $15/month Tax bundle: $25/month Live tax bundle: $35/month	QuickBooks Pro Plus $349.99/year QuickBooks Premier Plus $549.99/year QuickBooks Enterprise From $1340.99/year	QuickBooks Mac Plus 2022 $749.99/year

💡 There may be discounts and offers available on the QuickBooks site, it's worth checking what the current best prices are for your business.

Which version of QuickBooks is right for me?

QuickBooks Online

QuickBooks Online is the main online, subscription-based product from QuickBook. It is very popular with small and medium sized businesses.
It offers a simple and easy to use interface. Functionality includes most accounting features that these businesses need.
QuickBooks Online is available in four different versions. Simple Start and Essentials are perfect for the smaller company. They are lower priced but still offer full accounting functionality.
The Plus and Advanced versions offer additional features. These include inventory management, job costing, profitability calculations, and enhanced reporting. They also allow more user access - up to 25 users in total.
QuickBooks Online can be connected to Wise Business to automatically sync bills, and save time on reconciliation.
Pricing starts at $25/month for the Simple Start package and $50/month for the Essentials package. The more advanced Plus and Advanced subscriptions are $80/month and $180/month.

Pros	Cons
Offers most features a typical medium sized business will need. Can support up to 25 users, and multiple accountants if needed. Versions allow cost-effective scaling. This is useful as businesses grow or need access to advanced features. Excellent integration options with other tools.	To access some features, you will need to upgrade. Top tier subscriptions cost more.

💡 Top tips from QuickBooks ProAdvisor, Esther Friedberg Karp
If you have the QuickBooks Online Essentials, Plus, or Advanced plan, you can use the mulicurrency feature. With multicurrency turned on and with customers assigned a specific currency, there is no doubt on the invoice as to the expected amount and currency of payment. For example, US customers will see an invoice indicating "USD" before the total due. Canadian customers will see an invoice indicating "CAD" before the total due. It’s worth using the app as a tool alongside your full subscription, so you can make the most of the features.

💡 Top tips from QuickBooks ProAdvisor, Esther Friedberg Karp

If you have the QuickBooks Online Essentials, Plus, or Advanced plan, you can use the mulicurrency feature. With multicurrency turned on and with customers assigned a specific currency, there is no doubt on the invoice as to the expected amount and currency of payment.

US customers

"USD"

Canadian customers

"CAD"

It’s worth using the app as a tool alongside your full subscription, so you can make the most of the features.

QuickBooks Self-Employed

QuickBooks Self Employed is a simpler online QuickBooks product. It is specifically designed for the self-employed worker, consultant or freelancer.
It lacks many of the advanced accounting features that larger businesses may need. There is no inventory management, advanced reporting, or chart of accounts.
It does include simple invoice features and useful tools for expense, receipt, and mileage tracking.
There are two upgraded plans offering tax filing features. This includes US tax filings and support from a CPA.
The standard QuickBooks Self Employed subscription is $15/month. The Tax Bundle is $25/month or $35/month with CPA live support.

Pros	Cons
Low cost. Specifically designed for self-employed with useful features. Can add access for an accountant. Upgraded versions available with enhanced tax features.	Only one user (plus an invited accountant). No advanced accounting features (including invoicing, reporting, chart of accounts).

QuickBooks Desktop

QuickBooks Desktop versions are aimed at larger companies that prefer locally installed software. They can also be useful for smaller companies that need specific advanced features.
The three different versions offer increased features and numbers of users.
QuickBooks Pro Plus offers invoicing, inventory tracking, reporting, billing, and expense tracking.
Premier Plus adds advanced features. These include full inventory management, job costing, project profitably, and various industry specific tools.
The top level Enterprise version offers more advanced inventory, reporting and pricing capabilities. It allows up to 40 users (but at increased cost). It also has a separate Desktop Enterprise Accountant version for easier accountant integration.
The simplest QuickBooks Pro Plus version costs $349.99/month. The more advanced QuickBooks Premium Plus version is $549.99/month. And the high end QuickBooks Enterprise costs from $1340.00. This increases to $4200 for the top level option with 40 users.⁵

Pros	Cons
Simpler versions very affordable and offer solid range of features. Premier Plus and Enterprise versions offer advanced features. Industry-specific features are available and useful for some sectors.	Can only be used on PCs. Enterprise version is expensive, especially for higher numbers of users. Mobile add-ons (including expense and receipt tracking) are not available. It's not easy to switch between the versions.

QuickBooks Mac Plus

QuickBooks Mac Plus is a desktop version of QuickBooks for Mac systems. There is only one version.
It offers a good level of accounting features. These are similar to the QuickBooks Pro Plus Desktop offering. There are no options to add advanced features or upgrades.
QuickBooks Mac Plus costs $749/month, with just one version option.

Pros	Cons
Designed for use on Macs. Solid set of accounting features including invoicing, billing, inventory tracking and reporting. Easy to set up and use.	No mobile apps are available. No access to advanced features (such as those offered by the Premier Plus or Enterprise PC versions). Supports only three users. Limited third party integration options. More expensive than comparable PC version.

How do I know which version of QuickBooks I need?

The different versions of QuickBooks may at first seem confusing. If you think about your type of business and what features you need, the best option is usually clear.

For a single self-employed worker or contractor, QuickBooks Self-Employed can be the best option. It is low cost and easy to use. Users can handle basic invoicing and accounts, and have access to mobile apps.

With more advanced features, and multiple users, QuickBooks Online is very popular. This will suit the accounting needs of most small and medium sized businesses. It is also very flexible to change levels as the business grows. QuickBooks Online features useful mobile tools. It also offers integration with a wide range of third-party solutions - including Wise Business.

The QuickBooks Desktop versions suit companies that prefer software installations to cloud solutions. Those using Mac solutions only are limited to the one choice of QuickBooks Mac Plus.

Companies with standard accounting needs can often choose either Online or Desktop solutions. Some advanced features are only available on higher-priced Desktop solutions. Useful industry specific options are also available with these packages. These can make sense if the features are useful or time-saving.

Use QuickBooks Online with Wise and save time on reconciliation

When asking ‘which QuickBooks is right for me?’ one factor to consider is wether you have international bills to manage.

With the Wise Business account, you can effortlessly pay international bills, vendors, and employees at the real mid-market exchange rate, in over 80 countries. Wise Business is even up to 19x cheaper than PayPal.

When you connect QB and Wise, you can see your unpaid bills in real time and pay them seamlessly from your ‘Bills’ page on Wise. Your bill payments and any other Wise transactions will be synced, matched and categorised in QuickBooks for simple reconciliation.

You can save time and money in one blow.

Get a Wise Business account today

Sources:

All sources checked June 22, 2022.

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