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Accounting | Editorial Review

QuickBooks Self-Employed Review: Features & Pricing

Updated April 1, 2024

Updated Apr 1, 2024

Published December 13, 2023

Published Dec 13, 2023

REVIEWED BY: Tim Yoder, Ph.D., CPA

WRITTEN BY: Danielle Bauter

This article is part of a larger series on Accounting Software .

• 2 Alternatives
• 3 User Reviews
• 5 New Feature for 2023
• 7 Customer Service & Ease of Use
• 9 Bottom Line

QuickBooks Self-Employed is a cloud-based accounting software specially designed for self-employed individuals, such as freelancers, real estate agents, rideshare drivers, and independent consultants. It lets you monitor income and expenses, track mileage to and from clients, and file your taxes with its QuickBooks Self-Employed Tax Bundle. It offers three pricing plans that range from $20 to $40 per month.

The platform scores high among users, with praise given for its ease of use and integration with TurboTax. However, because it is designed for a specific user base, it may lack some of the more advanced features that larger businesses might need, such as payroll and inventory management. The reporting capabilities are also more basic compared to other QuickBooks products.

QuickBooks Self-Employed is no longer available to new users and has been replaced with QuickBooks Solopreneur. Jump to our alternatives table to find the QuickBooks Self-Employed Alternative for your business.

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• Deciding Factors

• Separate business and personal expenses paid from the same bank account
• Track mileage and expenses on the go
• Calculate quarterly estimated tax payments
• Transfer Schedule C tax information to TurboTax (available in Self-Employed Live Tax Bundle)
• Doesn't accommodate multiple businesses
• Lacks a balance sheet
• Can't track unpaid bills
• Has limited invoicing functionality
• Lacks integrated payroll
• Freelancers who need to track revenue and expenses: With QuickBooks Self-Employed, you can categorize expenses and bill customers, if needed. It also offers assisted tax filing features to help you file your federal and state tax returns easily.
• Freelancers who pay business and personal expenses from the same bank account: QuickBooks Self-Employed allows you to designate payments from your bank account as “personal,” so they are disregarded in calculating your business income and loss.
• Freelancers who work outside of their home or office often: QuickBooks Self-Employed has its own mobile app that lets you create and send invoices, track business mileage, and scan receipts from your mobile app.
• Schedule C businesses that want to prepare their own tax returns: If you sign up for one of QuickBooks Self-Employed’s tax bundles, you’ll be able to import your data into TurboTax, and it includes one federal and one state tax return. You’ll also receive access to TurboTax Live experts and a certified public accountant (CPA) review of your tax return if you sign up for QuickBooks Self-Employed Live Tax Bundle. Read our review of TurboTax for more information about its features.

QuickBooks Self-Employed Alternatives & Comparison

• When To Use an Alternative

Check out our QuickBooks Online vs QuickBooks Self-Employed comparison to see how the two stack up against each other in terms of pricing, assisted bookkeeping, features, and more.

If you think QuickBooks Self-Employed doesn’t fit the bill, check out our recommendations for the best accounting software for small businesses .

QuickBooks Self-Employed Reviews From Users

Most of those who left a QuickBooks Self-Employed review commended its intuitive user interface. Many reviewers said that they like that they can add new transactions instantly and that the software guides them when filing taxes.

However, some wish that it had more features, such as recurring invoices and the ability to send estimates, a payroll integration, and the ability to manage 1099 contractors. We agree that its features are very limited and recommend QuickBooks Online if you send invoices to customers regularly or have employees.

Below are QuickBooks Self-Employed’s ratings from popular review websites:

• Software Advice [ 1 ] : 3.9 out of 5 stars based on around 100 reviews
• TrustRadius [ 2 ] : 8 out of 10 stars based on around 50 reviews

QuickBooks Self-Employed Pricing

QuickBooks Self-Employed has three pricing plans that range from $20 to $40 per month. All subscriptions include income and expense tracking, business mileage tracking invoicing, and a mobile app.

If you want to file one state and one federal tax return and pay quarterly estimated taxes online, you need at least the Self-Employed Tax Bundle. This tier also lets you get unlimited live help from TurboTax experts or talk to a real certified public accountant (CPA) when needed.

Users who want to have a TurboTax pro prepare the return for them cannot bundle this service with QuickBooks Self-Employed—they must instead purchase the service separately. The price for TurboTax Live Full Service Premium is $409 for federal and $64 for state returns.

See the table below for more information about the features that are included with each plan:

QuickBooks Self-Employed New Feature for 2023

• Tags: You can use customized tags to sort transactions based on key metrics that are important to your business. For instance, if you want to track more details about your locations, you can set up tags, such as a specific business site or region.

QuickBooks Self-Employed Features

While QuickBooks Self-Employed doesn’t have a balance sheet and can’t track assets and liabilities, it includes many features that help you organize your income and expenses.

The dashboard includes a left navigation bar where you can access its features, including income and expense entry, tax tracking, invoicing, and reporting. It also shows important numbers, including your profit and loss (P&L), expenses, accounts, invoices, mileage, and estimated taxes.

QuickBooks Self-Employed’s dashboard

Income & Expense Tracking

You can categorize the transactions downloaded from your bank account or those that you have entered in QuickBooks Self-Employed manually from the Transactions menu. When an income or expense is recorded, you can mark it easily as personal or business.

If you’re using the desktop interface, click the transaction entry you wish to categorize. Then, select the Mark as business or Mark as personal button in the top menu bar of the Transactions screen as shown below.

Categorizing transactions as business or personal (desktop interface)

An easier way to categorize your transactions is by using the mobile app. You can categorize your expenses with a swipe—swipe left to categorize it as business and swipe right for personal.

Tip: Any payments from your bank account not related to your business should be categorized as personal expenses so that they aren’t deducted from your tax return. For example, you’ll want to classify a mortgage or rent payment as a personal expense.

Our guide on how to separate business and personal finances can help you avoid potential issues.

There’s no law preventing a Schedule C business from paying personal expenses out of their business checking account, but an IRS audit will go much more smoothly if you keep personal activity out of your business. It’s better to keep business and personal activity in separate checking accounts with a periodic transfer from your business checking account to your personal account as needed for personal expenses. For other helpful practices, see our bookkeeping and accounting tips for small businesses .

Income & Expense Summary Printing

QuickBooks Self-Employed allows you to classify income and expenses using categories that align with the IRS Schedule C, such as utilities, legal fees, and commissions. Once this information is entered, you can view and print a summary of your taxable income and expenses, which can take some of the guesswork out of filing your taxes. If your plan doesn’t include the Tax Bundle, you can use this summary to input your Schedule C information into a tax program of your choice manually.

Mileage Tracking

If you drive for business reasons, you can deduct a standard rate per mile or actual vehicle expenses. QuickBooks Self-Employed has a mileage tracker app that you can download on your Android or iOS phone. It’ll log all of your car travel automatically and keep a running tally of your business miles, calculating the corresponding deduction at the current IRS mileage rate.

You can download your bank and credit card transactions directly into your QuickBooks Self-Employed account. From there, you can categorize each transaction into the appropriate expense category or designate it as a personal expense.

QuickBooks Self-Employed’s invoicing feature allows you to generate and track invoices. It also lets you sign up to make the invoices payable online. If you choose this option, be aware that while bank transfer transactions are free, credit card payment rates are 2.99%. Once your invoice is completed, you can email it to your customer as a PDF attachment. You can also send invoices through the mobile app.

Compared to invoices in QuickBooks Online, invoices in QuickBooks Self-Employed are not that customizable. While you can upload your logo and change the font color, there are no templates to choose from. Here’s an email and PDF preview of a sample invoice in QuickBooks Self-Employed.

PDF and email preview of a sample invoice in QuickBooks Self-Employed

Tip: If you don’t see the Invoicing feature in your dashboard, then you need to enable it by toggling the invoicing button to On under Settings (gear icon).

Receipt Capture

The QuickBooks Self-Employed mobile app for iOS and Android allows you to take a picture of a receipt and attach it to a transaction directly from your mobile phone. Not only will this save you time, but it’ll also provide the documentation required by the IRS to deduct an expense.

QuickBooks Self-Employed Labs is a place where Intuit experiments with new features. It can be accessed by clicking the gear icon on the desktop site and then selecting “Labs” under TOOLS.

You’ll be able to view the latest integration and innovations available for you to opt into, such as its integration with Amazon. When you link your Amazon account to QuickBooks Self-Employed, you can label individual items in your order as business or personal without having to calculate the split yourself. Other items featured in the lab include custom color-coded tabs and the ability to import mileage trips from Google.

Schedule C Export to TurboTax

The QuickBooks Self-Employed Tax Bundle includes a subscription to TurboTax. You can transfer all of your Schedule C information automatically to TurboTax to complete your tax return. You should choose this plan if you prepare your own taxes.

Federal & State Tax Filing

QuickBooks Self-Employed Tax Bundle includes both a federal and state tax return for $15 per month or $180 per year. Purchased separately, TurboTax Home & Business costs $130 and includes the state return.

Quarterly Federal Tax Payment Calculation

Based on the tax profile that you complete during setup, QuickBooks Self-Employed will project your annual profit, calculate your estimated tax payment, and alert you of tax due dates. This valuable tool helps protect you from an underpayment penalty because of not making the required quarterly estimated tax payments. Just be sure to stay up to date on categorizing your transactions and inputting your business income.

It’s important to note that QuickBooks Self-Employed only offers federal quarterly tax estimates. So, if your state collects income tax and requires estimated quarterly payments, then you’ll need to calculate that on your own.

Read our guide on independent contractor taxes for the list of taxes, tax rates, and deductions. We also include the steps on how to file the taxes, the dates of when to pay them, and some tips on how to keep independent contractor taxes organized.

Quarterly Federal Tax Online Payment

The platform will calculate your quarterly tax liability, and the QuickBooks Self-Employed Tax Bundle allows you to pay the quarterly tax online. It may help avoid a federal underpayment penalty but excludes state-estimated tax payments, which might be due, depending upon where you live. Remember that to pay your federal quarterly taxes through QuickBooks Self-Employed Tax Bundle, you need to sign up for the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS).

Is your small business growing and are you looking for accounting software that can accommodate your need for more advanced features? Our guide on how to switch from QuickBooks Self-Employed to QuickBooks Online will walk you through each step.

QuickBooks Self-Employed Customer Service & Ease of Use

QuickBooks Self-Employed has an intuitive dashboard that’s easy to navigate. The tabs on the left side of the dashboard make it easy to explore the other features. Overall, it’s intuitive and not cluttered with unnecessary information, making it approachable for accounting novices. When setting up your account for the first time, you can choose to connect your bank account or manually enter transactions.

Add transactions manually or connect your bank accounts

Meanwhile, QuickBooks offers multiple customer support options. These include QuickBooks blogs, video tutorials, a built-in live chat, a help center called Learn & Support, a community forum, and an in-software automated assistant.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Is quickbooks self-employed scalable.

No, it isn’t, as it supports only one user and lacks advanced features. When your business and accounting needs grow, you need to switch to a different solution, like QuickBooks Online.

Is QuickBooks Self-Employed easy to use?

Yes, it is. The cloud-based software has a streamlined interface that’s easy to navigate. It uses simple language and doesn’t have unnecessary features, so it takes very little time to get acquainted with it.

What are the top QuickBooks Self-Employed alternatives?

If you want options similar to QuickBooks Self-Employed, you can choose from our top-recommended QuickBooks Self-Employed alternatives , which includes QuickBooks Online Simple Start, Zoho Books, ZipBooks, and Wave.

What is the difference between QuickBooks and QuickBooks Self-Employed?

While QuickBooks is a full-featured small business accounting software that’s available both for desktop and online, QuickBooks Self-Employed is suitable for freelancers needing to track their income and expenses for tax purposes. However, it has limited features and customization options, no integration with other software, and limited customer support. For more information, read our comparison of QuickBooks Online vs Self-Employed .

Bottom Line

QuickBooks Self-Employed isn’t a true double-entry accounting program like QuickBooks Online, but its simple features make it very easy to use. It has an excellent mobile app that can serve modern freelancers in terms of invoicing their clients, tracking business mileage, and monitoring business expenses. It’s a good choice to monitor your deductions, and it uses that information to complete your tax return.

If you’re a freelancer needing a solid solution for tracking income and expenses, sign up and receive 50% off the first three months. However, if you anticipate outgrowing QuickBooks Self-Employed, we suggest that you choose QuickBooks Online.

1 Software Advice 2 TrustRadius

About the Author

Find Danielle On LinkedIn

Danielle Bauter

Danielle Bauter is a writer for the Accounting division of Fit Small Business. She has owned Check Yourself, a bookkeeping and payroll service that specializes in small business, for over twenty years. She holds a Bachelor's degree from UCLA and has served on the Board of the National Association of Women Business Owners. She also regularly writes about business for various consumer publications.

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Home > Finance > Accounting

QuickBooks Self-Employed vs. QuickBooks Small Business 2023

Data as of 12/12/22. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.

We are committed to sharing unbiased reviews. Some of the links on our site are from our partners who compensate us. Read our editorial guidelines and advertising disclosure .

The bottom line: In spite of their names, QuickBooks Online is actually best for most business owners, including self-employed freelancers. QuickBooks Self-Employed is too bare-bones for all but the smallest of businesses, but it can work well for tax-conscious freelancers who rely on end-of-year deductions.

QuickBooks Self-Employed is Intuit’s accounting solution for freelancers, while QuickBooks Online is Intuit’s more fully featured small-business accounting software. QuickBooks Self-Employed could work for freelancers who want a stellar interface and easy integration with Intuit’s tax software, TurboTax. Meanwhile, QuickBooks Online’s high-value accounting features, third-party integrations, and additional users set it apart.

• Top feature comparison
• QuickBooks' strengths and weaknesses
• Best for basics : QuickBooks Self-Employed
• Best features : QuickBooks Online
• Best value for price : QuickBooks Online
• Best third-party integration : QuickBooks Online

The takeaway

If you're searching for accounting software that's user-friendly, full of smart features, and scales with your business, Quickbooks is a great option.

QuickBooks Self-Employed vs. QuickBooks Simple Start for small businesses

Overall intuit quickbooks strengths and weaknesses.

Before deep-diving into how QuickBooks Self-Employed differs from QuickBooks Online for small businesses, let’s talk about what we like and don’t like about QuickBooks' online products in general.

Shared QuickBooks strengths

All QuickBooks accounting products (with the exception of some QuickBooks Desktop plans) have incredible mobile accounting apps that are user-friendly and straightforward for on-the-go freelancers and employers alike.

Second, QuickBooks’ cloud-based accounting solution is ridiculously easy to use and was made for small-business owners first . While FreshBooks and Xero rival QuickBooks’ ease of use, QuickBooks’ sleek interface and user-first approach keep it ahead of the curve (at least for now).

Shared QuickBooks weaknesses

As is typical of Intuit products, both QuickBooks Self-Employed and QuickBooks Online have higher starting prices than most other freelance and small-business accounting plans on the market.

If you want to collaborate or add users to a growing business, QuickBooks’ small-business user limit maxes out at 25. A product like Xero, which has unlimited users, or FreshBooks , which lets you add users as your business grows for a monthly fee, might work better for you than a QuickBooks product.

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Best basic bookkeeping features: QuickBooks Self-Employed

If you’re a freelancer who works just a few small jobs a month, QuickBooks Online for small businesses might be too complex for your needs. In that case, you’ll want QuickBooks Self-Employed, which sticks to bookkeeping basics:

• Business expense tracking
• Receipt scanning and organization
• Basic annual reports (like profit and loss statements )
• Automatic mileage tracking
• Quarterly tax estimation
• Basic invoice creation
• Basic payment acceptance (via invoice)

These features can help you track basic income, get paid on time, and make the most of your end-of-year tax deductions . They’re also ideal for helping you separate business expenses from personal expenses—which is a crucial financial step for every small-business owner, including freelancers working just a few jobs a year.

What they can’t do is help you grow your business. You can’t track your cash flow at less than an annual level, turn estimates into invoices, or look at big-picture financial reports to trim losses and up profits—and for many freelancers, that’s perfectly fine.

If you want basic help tracking your side gig’s income separately from your personal finances, QuickBooks Self-Employed fits the bill. But if you want to eventually grow your business from a smaller venture into a larger company, potentially one with partners and employees, QuickBooks Online Simple Start will work better.

At $15 a month, QuickBooks Self-Employed is at the higher end of freelance accounting software. Most of QuickBooks’ main competitors charge less: Zoho Books is free for businesses with less than $50K in annual revenue, Xero starts at $12 a month, and Wave Accounting is completely free. (Like QuickBooks Self-Employed, FreshBooks also starts at $15 a month, but its invoicing is notably better than QuickBooks Self-Employed.)

With plans starting at $15 a month, FreshBooks is well-suited for freelancers, solopreneurs, and small-business owners alike.

• Track time and expenses
• Create custom invoices
• Accept online payments

Best accounting features for growing businesses: QuickBooks Online

Whether you’re a freelancer hoping to expand your client base or small-business owner with employees, QuickBooks Online for small businesses has more of the tools you need to actively grow your business.

For ten dollars more than QuickBooks Self-Employed, QuickBooks Simple Start (the most basic QuickBooks small business plan) does everything QuickBooks Self-Employed does, and then some:

• In-depth cash flow tracking, including cash flow forecasting
• Customized estimates with mobile signature acceptance and invoice conversion
• Automatic sales tax calculation and tracking
• End-of-year 1099 tax form preparation
• Integration with ecommerce tools like Shopify

Pay particular attention to QuickBooks Simple Start’s ecommerce integration. If you sell physical products, you can’t use QuickBooks Self-Employed —at least, not if you want to integrate your bookkeeping software with your sales apps. (The lack of ecommerce integration helps explain why QuickBooks Self-Employed lacks a sales tax tracking feature, but it’s still annoying.)

Bookkeeping usually refers to the process of keeping your financial records in order, while accounting refers to using that financial information to make informed business decisions. Software like QuickBooks Self-Employed can help you keep accurate financial records , but it doesn’t offer many analytic tools. In contrast, QuickBooks for small businesses includes bookkeeping and accounting features, like profit and loss tracking and management.

Pricier QuickBooks Online plans add even more analytics and more thorough accounting and bookkeeping features:

• Additional users (up to 25 with QuickBooks Online Advanced)
• Bill management, including scheduled payments and fee-free online bill pay
• Time, project, and inventory tracking
• Batched recurring invoices and bill payments

These more extensive accounting tools are best suited to growing businesses with plenty of bills to manage and projects to track. And since QuickBooks’ small business plans allow for multiple users, they also work best for businesses in which multiple people have eyes on the books, like multi-partner LLCs or large corporations with a full accounting department. (Both QuickBooks Simple Start and QuickBooks Self-Employed allow for only one user.)

Sole proprietors, on the other hand, should do well with either QuickBooks Online Simple Start or QuickBooks Self-Employed. QuickBooks Online still includes quarterly estimated taxes and tax deduction optimization—its plans just offer more accounting help alongside the basic QuickBooks Self-Employed features.  

Best value for price: QuickBooks Online

QuickBooks Self-Employed is cheaper than QuickBooks Online—so shouldn’t it have the best value for the price? You’d think so, but frankly, QuickBooks Self-Employed doesn’t have enough features to justify its high cost. And that’s just talking about the basic Self-Employed plan, not the higher-priced tax bundles, which—for most businesses, anyway—aren’t worth the price.

QuickBooks Self-Employed plans and pricing 2023

Unless you’re already planning to use TurboTax to file during tax season , we don’t recommend either of the QuickBooks Self-Employed tax bundles. The extra tax features aren’t worth an entire $25 a month—especially when you don’t get any extra accounting and bookkeeping features along with the increased price. If you want more features at a cheaper price, we recommend Wave (which is free) or Xero (which is $12 a month). 

To learn more about filing your self-employment taxes, read this article .

QuickBooks Online has one of the higher starting prices of most popular accounting tools. In fairness, though, it also has more (and better) features than a lot of top competitors.

For instance, with QuickBooks’ built-in time tracking, project tracking, and inventory management, you don’t have to pay extra for a third-party solution (unless you want to). Unlike Xero , QuickBooks includes business expense management with every plan QuickBooks Self-Employed is cheaper than QuickBooks Online—so shouldn’t it have the best value for the price? You’d think so, but frankly, QuickBooks Self-Employed doesn’t have enough features to justify its high cost. And that’s just talking about the basic Self-Employed plan, not the higher-priced tax bundles, which—for most businesses, anyway—aren’t worth the price.

And while it’s frustrating that QuickBooks limits user numbers by plan, we like that the user pricing is built into the overall cost. (In contrast, each FreshBooks plan has unlimited users—but you’ll pay an extra $10 a month for each one, which quickly inflates the overall price.)

QuickBooks Online plans and pricing 2023

Data as of 11/9/22. Offers and availability may vary by location and are subject to change.

Best third-party integration: QuickBooks Online

Since QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Desktop are two of the most popular accounting software in the world, they integrate with just about any third-party app you can think of. Along with other QuickBooks and Intuit programs like TurboTax and QuickBooks Payroll, they sync with dozens of third-party apps for inventory management , time tracking, project management, payroll —and virtually anything else you can think of.

In contrast, QuickBooks Self-Employed doesn’t sync with much beyond TurboTax. Most importantly, it doesn’t sync with popular payment acceptance and ecommerce apps, including Square and Shopify . So if you sell a service (like landscaping or editing), you can use QuickBooks Self-Employed. But if you sell on Amazon, Etsy, or eBay, you’ll likely get more out of an accounting solution that syncs with ecommerce apps . 

Even though QuickBooks Self-Employed is geared towards freelancers, we still recommend QuickBooks Online over Self-Employed for most freelancers, contractors, sole proprietors, and other small-business owners. It has more accounting features that help you track your profit and loss, find new ways to grow your business, and collaborate with extra users.

However, if you’re looking for a streamlined bookkeeping solution with excellent quarterly tax estimation features and mileage tracking, QuickBooks Self-Employed is a good option. It’s not the cheapest freelance software out there, but its user-friendly interface and exceptional mobile app help justify its above-average price. 

Not interested in either QuickBooks product? Read through our list of QuickBooks alternatives , most of which have a cheaper starting price and can work for freelancers and midsize business owners alike.

Related content

• Accounting 101: A Guide for Small-Business Owners
• What Are Generally Accepted Accounting Principles?
• Check Out Business Owners’ Top QuickBooks Tips, Tricks, and Integrations
• 7 Reasons Business Owners Prefer QuickBooks Payroll

QuickBooks Self-Employed vs. QuickBooks Online FAQ

QuickBooks Small Business is a general term for the QuickBooks’ small business plans: QuickBooks Simple Start, Essentials, Plus, and Advanced. All four QuickBooks Online plans cater to small businesses, from sole proprietorships to large corporations. You can use QuickBooks Online to manage bill payments, send invoices, manage 1099 contractors, and much more depending on the plan you choose.

In contrast, QuickBooks Self-Employed is focused on basic bookkeeping for freelancers and others who file their taxes as sole proprietors. Since it was built for people who attach Schedule C forms to their income tax forms, its quarterly tax estimation, mileage tracking, and built-in tax optimization are incredibly thorough. QuickBooks Self-Employed also gives you basic financial tracking tools, such as simple income tracking and end-of-year profit and loss assessments. 

No. QuickBooks Online has four plans for small businesses. QuickBooks Self-Employed is a separate, standalone bookkeeping solution for freelancers. Our in-depth reviews of each product can give you a more thorough look at QuickBooks Self-Employed vs. Simple Start .

Can I use QuickBooks Self-Employed for an LLC?

If you file a Schedule C form as part of your end-of-year taxes, you can likely use QuickBooks Self-Employed. Typically, that includes sole proprietors and single-member LLCs.

Other types of business owners—including multi-member LLCs, partnerships, S Corps, and C Corps—should not use QuickBooks Self-Employed to track finances or file taxes. Additionally, you shouldn’t use QuickBooks Self-Employed if you have employees (even just one). These types of businesses should all use QuickBooks Online or QuickBooks Desktop Premier, not QuickBooks Self-Employed.

Is QuickBooks Self-Employed worth it, or do I need QuickBooks for small businesses?

QuickBooks Self-Employed is more expensive than some other self-employed accounting options, but it might be worth it for freelancers who rely heavily on tax deductions (a.k.a. tax write-offs) to save money at the end of the year. Its quarterly tax estimation is helpful and accurate, as is its app-based mileage tracking. Its basic invoices and receipt-scanning features help you charge clients and keep your finances in order.

However, if you want features other than basic reports, bookkeeping, and tax assistance, we recommend QuickBooks Online or another accounting software program. QuickBooks Self-Employed has a higher starting price than many other freelance and contractor bookkeeping options, and it doesn’t have as many features as cheaper accounting companies like Wave Accounting .

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Financial Tips, Guides & Know-Hows

Home > Finance > How To Set Up Quickbooks For Small Business

How To Set Up Quickbooks For Small Business

Published: November 25, 2023

Learn how to set up Quickbooks for your small business and streamline your finance management. Increase efficiency and accuracy with our step-by-step guide.

(Many of the links in this article redirect to a specific reviewed product. Your purchase of these products through affiliate links helps to generate commission for LiveWell, at no extra cost. Learn more )

Table of Contents

Introduction, step 1: creating a quickbooks account, step 2: setting up company information, step 3: customizing chart of accounts, step 4: adding products and services, step 5: adding customers and vendors, step 6: setting up sales and expense categories, step 7: setting up tax preferences, step 8: entering opening balances, step 9: connecting bank accounts, step 10: setting up payroll (optional).

Welcome to the world of small business finance! As a small business owner, managing your finances effectively is crucial for the success and growth of your venture. One powerful tool that can simplify this process is QuickBooks. QuickBooks is an accounting software that helps you track income and expenses, manage invoices, and generate financial reports.

In this article, we will guide you through the process of setting up QuickBooks for your small business. Whether you’re just starting out or looking to transition from traditional bookkeeping methods, QuickBooks can streamline your financial management tasks and provide you with accurate and up-to-date insights into your business’s financial health.

Setting up QuickBooks may seem daunting at first, but with the right guidance, you’ll be up and running in no time. We’ll walk you through each step, from creating a QuickBooks account all the way to connecting your bank accounts and setting up payroll.

Before we dive in, it’s important to note that while QuickBooks is user-friendly, it’s always a good idea to have a basic understanding of accounting principles. Having a solid foundation will help you utilize QuickBooks to its full potential and make informed financial decisions for your business.

Now, let’s get started with the first step: creating a QuickBooks account!

The first step in setting up QuickBooks for your small business is creating a QuickBooks account. This involves signing up for a subscription and providing some basic business information.

Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you through the process:

• Go to the QuickBooks website and click on the “Sign Up” or “Get Started” button. You’ll be prompted to choose which version of QuickBooks is right for your business. QuickBooks offers various plans designed for different types and sizes of businesses.
• Select the plan that best suits your needs and click on the “Buy Now” or “Subscribe” button. You may have the option to start with a free trial. Take advantage of this to explore the software before committing.
• Fill in your business information, including your business name, address, industry type, and federal tax ID number (if applicable). Double-check that the information is accurate, as it will be used for your financial reports.
• Choose a username and password to create your QuickBooks account. Make sure to select a strong password to secure your financial data.
• Review the terms of service and privacy policy, and then click on the “Create Account” or “Sign Up” button to complete the registration process.

Once your QuickBooks account is created, you’ll have access to the QuickBooks dashboard, where you can start setting up your company and customizing the software to suit your business needs.

Congratulations! You have successfully completed the first step of setting up QuickBooks for your small business. In the next step, we’ll guide you through the process of setting up your company information.

After creating your QuickBooks account, the next step in setting up QuickBooks for your small business is to input your company information. This includes details such as your company name, address, logo, and fiscal year.

Follow these steps to set up your company information:

• Log in to your QuickBooks account and navigate to the QuickBooks dashboard.
• Click on the “Gear” icon in the upper right corner, then select “Account and Settings” from the drop-down menu.
• On the left-hand side, click on “Company” and then select “Company Information.”
• In the “Company Name” field, enter your business name as you want it to appear on your financial documents and reports.
• Provide your business address and contact information in the respective fields. This information will be used for invoices, statements, and other customer-facing documents.
• If you have a company logo, click on the “Upload Logo” button and follow the prompts to add your logo to your QuickBooks account.
• Specify your fiscal year by selecting the month your fiscal year starts from the drop-down menu. If you’re unsure, consult with your accountant or refer to your official business documents.
• Take a moment to review and confirm that all the information entered is accurate.
• Click on the “Save” or “Done” button to save your company information.

By setting up your company information in QuickBooks, you ensure that your financial documents are professional-looking and accurately reflect your business identity. It also allows QuickBooks to generate reports and insights tailored to your specific business needs.

Great job! You’ve successfully completed the second step of setting up QuickBooks for your small business. In the next step, we’ll show you how to customize your Chart of Accounts.

The Chart of Accounts is a crucial component of your QuickBooks setup. It organizes your business’s financial transactions into categories, making it easier to track income, expenses, assets, and liabilities. Customizing your Chart of Accounts allows you to tailor it to your specific business needs and industry.

Follow these steps to customize your Chart of Accounts:

• From the QuickBooks dashboard, click on the “Gear” icon in the upper right corner and select “Chart of Accounts” from the drop-down menu.
• You’ll see a list of default accounts based on the industry you selected during the setup process. Review the list and identify any accounts that are not applicable to your business.
• To add a new account, click on the “New” button. Choose the appropriate account type from the drop-down menu, such as “Bank,” “Expense,” “Income,” “Asset,” or “Liability.”
• Provide a name for the new account. Be specific and use descriptive terms that accurately represent the purpose of the account.
• Optional: If necessary, you can designate the account as a sub-account by checking the “Is sub-account” box and selecting the parent account from the drop-down menu.
• Once you’re finished adding the account details, click on the “Save and Close” button.
• To edit an existing account, locate the account in the Chart of Accounts list and click on the dropdown arrow next to the “Action” column. From there, select “Edit” and make the necessary changes.
• If you have accounts that you no longer need, you can make them inactive by selecting “Make inactive” from the action dropdown. This will hide them from your list of active accounts, but you can still access them for historical reporting purposes if needed.
• Repeat the steps above to customize and tailor your Chart of Accounts to fit your business’s unique needs and structure.

By customizing your Chart of Accounts, you can ensure that your financial transactions are accurately categorized, making it easier to generate reports and analyze your business’s financial performance.

Well done! You’ve now completed the third step of setting up QuickBooks for your small business. In the next step, we’ll cover how to add products and services to your QuickBooks account.

Adding your products and services to QuickBooks is an essential step in setting up your small business’s financial records. By entering detailed information about what you sell, you’ll be able to easily track inventory, generate sales reports, and accurately invoice your customers.

Follow these steps to add products and services to your QuickBooks account:

• From the QuickBooks dashboard, click on the “Sales” tab in the left-hand navigation menu.
• Click on the “Products and Services” tab to access the product and service list.
• Click on the “New” button to start adding a new product or service.
• Choose whether you want to add a product or a service. If you offer both, you can create separate entries for each or combine them into one if applicable.
• Provide a name for the product or service. Be specific and use descriptive terms that accurately represent what you offer.
• You can also add additional information such as a description, SKU (stock keeping unit), price, cost, and income account.
• If you track inventory, specify the starting quantity and cost of the item. This allows QuickBooks to keep track of stock levels and generate useful inventory reports.
• Click on the “Save and Close” button to add the product or service to your list.
• Repeat the process to add all your products and services to QuickBooks.

With your products and services added to QuickBooks, you can now easily create invoices for your customers, track sales, and monitor inventory levels. This information will also be useful when generating financial reports and analyzing the profitability of your offerings.

Congratulations! You’ve successfully completed the fourth step of setting up QuickBooks for your small business. In the next step, we’ll guide you through the process of adding customers and vendors to your QuickBooks account.

Adding your customers and vendors to QuickBooks allows you to easily manage your relationships and track transactions with them. By entering their information into the system, you can generate invoices, track payments, and access important contact details whenever needed.

Follow these steps to add customers and vendors to your QuickBooks account:

• From the QuickBooks dashboard, click on the “Sales” or “Expenses” tab in the left-hand navigation menu, depending on whether you’re adding a customer or a vendor.
• Click on the “Customers” or “Vendors” tab to access the respective list.
• Click on the “New” button to start adding a new customer or vendor.
• Enter the relevant information for the customer or vendor, such as their name, address, contact details, and payment terms.
• You can also add additional details like a contact person, alternate contact information, and any notes that may be important for your records.
• For customers, you can specify their preferred method of contact and add a payment method if you have recurring payment arrangements.
• For vendors, you can provide their tax ID number, vendor type, and account number for reference.
• Click on the “Save and Close” button to add the customer or vendor to your list.
• Repeat the process to add all your customers and vendors to QuickBooks.

With your customers and vendors added to QuickBooks, you can easily generate invoices, track payments, and manage your relationships. This information will be essential when it comes to generating financial reports, analyzing sales patterns, and maintaining accurate records of your transactions.

Well done! You’ve successfully completed the fifth step of setting up QuickBooks for your small business. In the next step, we’ll cover how to set up sales and expense categories in QuickBooks.

Setting up sales and expense categories in QuickBooks is essential for properly tracking and categorizing your income and expenses. By organizing your revenue and costs into specific categories, you can generate accurate financial reports and gain valuable insights into your business’s financial performance.

Follow these steps to set up sales and expense categories in QuickBooks:

• From the QuickBooks dashboard, click on the “Accounting” tab in the left-hand navigation menu.
• Select “Chart of Accounts” to access your list of accounts.
• Review your existing accounts and identify any sales-related accounts (e.g., Sales Revenue) and expense-related accounts (e.g., Advertising Expense).
• To add a new sales category, click on the “New” button.
• Choose the appropriate account type, such as “Income” for sales or “Expense” for costs.
• Enter a name for the category that accurately represents the type of sales or expense. For example, you might have categories like “Product Sales,” “Service Revenue,” or “Marketing Expenses.”
• Specify whether the category is a sub-account by selecting the appropriate parent account from the drop-down menu.
• Save the new category by clicking on the “Save and Close” button.
• You can repeat these steps to add additional sales and expense categories as necessary.

By setting up sales and expense categories in QuickBooks, you’ll be able to easily allocate income and expenses to specific categories, enabling you to analyze your business performance more effectively. This will also facilitate the generation of accurate financial statements and give you a clearer picture of your business’s profitability.

Great job! You’ve successfully completed the sixth step of setting up QuickBooks for your small business. In the next step, we’ll cover how to set up tax preferences in QuickBooks.

Setting up tax preferences in QuickBooks is crucial for accurately calculating and tracking your tax liabilities. By configuring your tax settings properly, you can ensure that your sales tax, payroll tax, and other tax obligations are handled correctly within the software.

Follow these steps to set up tax preferences in QuickBooks:

• From the QuickBooks dashboard, click on the “Taxes” tab in the left-hand navigation menu.
• Click on the “Sales Tax” or “Payroll Tax” tab, depending on the type of tax you need to set up.
• For Sales Tax: Click on the “Set up sales tax” button.
• For Payroll Tax: Click on the “Set up payroll tax” button.
• Follow the prompts and fill in the necessary information, such as your tax agency name, tax ID number, and tax rates. It’s crucial to have accurate and up-to-date tax information.
• Choose whether you want to set up automated sales tax calculation and how frequently you want to file your sales tax returns.
• Save your preferences by clicking on the “Save” or “Done” button.
• If you have multiple tax jurisdictions or complex tax requirements, you may need to consult with a tax professional to ensure that your tax preferences are set up correctly.

By setting up tax preferences in QuickBooks, you’ll be able to streamline your tax calculations, avoid errors, and stay compliant with your tax obligations. QuickBooks can automate tax calculations, saving you time and effort when it comes to filing and reporting taxes.

Fantastic! You’ve successfully completed the seventh step of setting up QuickBooks for your small business. In the next step, we’ll cover how to enter opening balances in QuickBooks.

Entering opening balances in QuickBooks is an important step to ensure that your financial records accurately reflect the state of your business at the beginning of your accounting period. This includes recording outstanding invoices, unpaid bills, bank balances, and other financial transactions that occurred before starting to use QuickBooks.

Follow these steps to enter opening balances in QuickBooks:

• Select “Chart of Accounts” to access the list of accounts.
• Locate and click on the account for which you need to enter an opening balance.
• In the account details page, click on the “Edit” button.
• Enter the correct opening balance for the account. This can be the outstanding balance on an unpaid invoice, the current balance in a bank account, or the amount owed on an outstanding bill.
• Save the changes by clicking on the “Save and Close” button.
• Repeat these steps for other accounts that require opening balances.

It’s important to note that entering opening balances should be done carefully and accurately. Reconciling your accounts and reviewing previous financial statements can help ensure that the opening balances entered in QuickBooks are correct.

By entering opening balances in QuickBooks, you establish a starting point for your financial records, allowing you to track transactions accurately and generate precise financial reports. This helps maintain the integrity of your financial data and ensures that your business’s financial position is accurately reflected in QuickBooks.

Well done! You’ve successfully completed the eighth step of setting up QuickBooks for your small business. In the next step, we’ll guide you through connecting your bank accounts to QuickBooks.

Connecting your bank accounts to QuickBooks allows you to streamline your bookkeeping process by automatically importing your bank transactions into the software. This not only saves time but also helps ensure the accuracy of your financial records.

Follow these steps to connect your bank accounts to QuickBooks:

• From the QuickBooks dashboard, click on the “Banking” tab in the left-hand navigation menu.
• Click on the “Connect Account” button to start the process of linking your bank account.
• Search for your bank by typing its name in the search box, or select it from the list of popular banks.
• Enter your bank’s login credentials (username and password) in the secure login window. QuickBooks will encrypt and protect your login information.
• Select the account(s) you want to connect to QuickBooks. This may include your checking account, savings account, credit card accounts, and any other accounts you want to track in QuickBooks.
• Authorize QuickBooks to access your bank account information by following the prompts and accepting any terms and conditions.
• Wait for QuickBooks to establish the connection with your bank. This may take a few minutes as it retrieves your transaction history.
• Review the imported bank transactions in QuickBooks and match them with the corresponding entries in your books.
• Repeat the process for each bank account you want to connect to QuickBooks.

By connecting your bank accounts to QuickBooks, you’ll have real-time access to your financial transactions, enabling you to reconcile accounts more efficiently and easily track your income and expenses.

Congratulations! You’ve successfully completed the ninth step of setting up QuickBooks for your small business. In the next step, we’ll cover how to set up payroll in QuickBooks (optional).

If you have employees and want to automate your payroll process, QuickBooks offers an integrated payroll system that can help simplify your payroll management. Setting up payroll in QuickBooks allows you to efficiently calculate employee wages, withhold taxes, and generate pay stubs and tax forms.

Follow these steps to set up payroll in QuickBooks:

• From the QuickBooks dashboard, click on the “Employees” tab in the left-hand navigation menu.
• Click on the “Payroll Setup” or “Get Started” button to begin the payroll setup process.
• Follow the on-screen prompts to provide the necessary information about your business, such as your business type, federal and state tax IDs, and your payroll tax filing frequency.
• Enter your employees’ information, including their personal details, withholding allowances, and pay rates.
• Set up your payroll schedule and payment method, whether it’s a direct deposit or printing physical paychecks.
• Configure your payroll tax settings by specifying the appropriate tax rates and tax agencies.
• Review and finalize your payroll setup by double-checking the details and ensuring that everything is accurate.
• Once your payroll is set up, you can start processing payroll by entering hours worked, bonuses, and other earnings for each employee.
• QuickBooks will automatically calculate the net pay, withhold taxes, and generate pay stubs for each employee.
• After running payroll, you can print paychecks or initiate direct deposits for your employees.

Setting up payroll in QuickBooks can save you time and help ensure accuracy in managing your employee wages and payroll taxes. QuickBooks will handle the necessary calculations and generate the required forms, such as W-2s and 1099s, making it easier for you to comply with payroll tax obligations.

Good job! You’ve successfully completed the tenth and final step of setting up QuickBooks for your small business. By following these steps, you’ve laid a solid foundation for using QuickBooks to manage your finances effectively.

Remember, while QuickBooks is a powerful tool, it’s always a good idea to consult with an accountant or financial professional to ensure that you are using the software to its full potential and complying with all applicable accounting and tax regulations.

Now, go ahead and explore the various features of QuickBooks to streamline your financial management and gain valuable insights into the financial health of your small business.

Congratulations on completing the setup process for QuickBooks in your small business! By following the steps outlined in this guide, you’ve taken a significant step towards streamlining your financial management and gaining better control over your business’s finances.

QuickBooks provides a robust platform for tracking income and expenses, managing invoices, generating financial reports, and automating tasks like payroll. With your QuickBooks account set up and customized to fit your business needs, you’ll be able to save time, make informed financial decisions, and stay on top of your financial obligations.

Remember, as you move forward with using QuickBooks, it’s important to stay engaged with the software and regularly review your financial information. This includes reconciling accounts, regularly updating your records, and keeping track of any changes that may affect your business’s financial health.

Additionally, consider taking advantage of the various resources offered by QuickBooks, such as tutorials and customer support, to enhance your understanding of the software’s capabilities and features. This will enable you to leverage QuickBooks to its full potential and gain deeper insights into your business’s financial performance.

Lastly, while QuickBooks is a powerful tool, it’s always beneficial to seek guidance from a certified accountant or financial professional when necessary. They can provide expert advice tailored to your specific business needs, ensuring that you are utilizing QuickBooks effectively and meeting all accounting and tax requirements.

By setting up QuickBooks for your small business, you’ve taken an important step towards achieving financial success. With accurate financial records, real-time insights, and streamlined processes, you’ll be well-equipped to make informed decisions, seize opportunities, and navigate the ever-changing landscape of small business finance.

Embrace the power of QuickBooks and watch as it becomes an invaluable companion on your journey to financial success. Good luck!

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QuickBooks Online Review 2024: Pros, Cons, Alternatives

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Table of Contents

QuickBooks Online at a glance

How does quickbooks online work, pricing and features, benefits of quickbooks online, drawbacks of quickbooks online, awards for quickbooks online, quickbooks online alternatives.

Known as the industry standard for small-business accounting software , Intuit’s QuickBooks Online is a solid choice for a variety of businesses, especially those that plan to regularly work with bookkeepers or accountants. Its range of features can support very small operations as well as growing companies that need granular reporting tools to assess different areas of their business.

Although QuickBooks Online is user-friendly, there can be a learning curve, particularly if you’re unfamiliar with the basic principles of accounting . Additionally, QuickBooks can be expensive for many businesses, even more so if you add on time tracking or payroll. Competitors can offer simpler, more affordable alternatives.

QuickBooks Online

After you sign up for QuickBooks Online, you’ll be able to log in to your account and access the main dashboard view. If you’re moving to QuickBooks from another accounting software, you can import your existing files to your new account.

The main dashboard will give an overview of your QuickBooks account, showing your profit and loss overview, invoices, expenses and sales.

Using the Banking tab on the left side of the dashboard, you can connect your bank and credit card accounts so that QuickBooks automatically imports transactions and categorizes them for you. Later, when reconciling your books, you’ll be able to review these transactions in the For Review tab within the Banking menu.

Next, you can customize invoices, set up automatic sales tax tracking (if necessary) and learn how to enter mobile receipts and bills. You can edit all of your business’s account settings using the gear icon in the upper right corner.

If you want to invite your bookkeeper or accountant to your QuickBooks Online account, you can do so using the My Accountant tab or the Manage Users page in Settings — you can also search for an accountant if you don’t already have one.

This video helps explain how to set up and navigate QuickBooks Online.

» MORE: What is accounting software?

Promotional discounts may apply. All plans include access to QuickBooks Online mobile apps, customer support and third-party app integrations. Add-on services — including QuickBooks Payroll and QuickBooks Payments — will incur separate costs.

Need accounting software for your side hustle? QuickBooks offers a separate product — QuickBooks Self-Employed — designed for freelancers and independent contractors, with plans starting at $15 per month. If you’re considering desktop offerings, try exploring QuickBooks’ other small-business products and checking out our full breakdown of QuickBooks pricing .

» MORE: QuickBooks Online vs. Desktop

Robust feature set

QuickBooks Online ranks high for its selection of features, which includes reporting, invoicing, inventory management and mobile app functionality. Here are a few features, in particular, that stand out:

Record-keeping and reporting: It’s easy to keep thorough, detailed records with QuickBooks Online. When you’re adding an expense, for example, you have the option of adding reference numbers, permit numbers, attachments and memos. You can also split the expense into multiple categories or items.

You aren't required to fill out every field in an expense or income entry, but the more detailed your records are, the more useful certain reports can be. For example, with QuickBooks Online Plus and Advanced, you can track inventory and do job costing — that is, you can figure out how much you spent to complete a certain project.

Even without those higher-level plans, you can create custom tags and run reports to show where you make and spend the most money. These features can help you organize your finances and provide insights such as cost-cutting opportunities or sales trends that you can use to improve and grow your business.

Inventory management: With QuickBooks Online Plus and Advanced, you can track inventory and cost of goods, and set up reorder points. You can also create purchase orders, manage vendors and sync your inventory with third-party platforms like Amazon and Shopify.

Competitors like Xero and FreshBooks offer basic inventory tracking for less, but it isn’t as advanced.

Integrations include live, in-house bookkeeping

QuickBooks Online gives you access to a marketplace of over 750 apps, including third-party tools as well as QuickBooks add-ons. One of those add-ons is QuickBooks Live for bookkeeping . The solution is ideal for business owners who’d like to step away from day-to-day bookkeeping tasks and outsource them elsewhere to save time.

QuickBooks Time (formerly TSheets), another add-on, lets you track employee time directly inside QuickBooks and approve timesheets. Other apps can help you prepare for taxes, get business funding, run payroll, manage customer accounts and generate various financial reports and insights. Some apps (including QuickBooks Time and QuickBooks Live) have associated fees, whereas others are free.

» MORE: Best accounting and bookkeeping apps for small businesses

Easy to find QuickBooks resources

Whether you decide to manage your bookkeeping on your own or work with a professional, you’ll have no trouble accessing online resources for QuickBooks Online . The company offers video tutorials, webinars and training classes, as well as community forums, support topics and other resources on its website. You have the option of contacting QuickBooks customer support directly for any help you may need too.

You can also use QuickBooks’ ProAdvisor network to find certified accountants and bookkeepers. Given QuickBooks Online’s number of users, accountants outside of the network should be familiar with the software.

Monthly plans can be expensive

QuickBooks Online Simple Start costs $30 per month, includes only one account user (plus access for two accountants) and does not offer billable hours tracking, bill pay or inventory management. For multiple users, bill pay and the ability to add billable hours to invoices, you’ll need to upgrade to the Essentials plan, which costs $60 per month. For inventory management, you’ll need to opt for the Plus plan at $90 per month.

Competitors can offer plans with lower monthly fees and similar features. For example, Xero ranges from $13 to $70 per month and includes unlimited users and basic inventory management in all plans. Similarly, FreshBooks ranges from $17 to $55 per month, with time tracking in all plans.

» MORE: Top QuickBooks Online alternatives

Learning curve

Though QuickBooks Online has a handful of convenient features that can speed up your workflow and even automate some of it, the software can be complex. You'll get the most out of it if you have some knowledge of basic accounting concepts. Whereas you might be able to use some software alternatives without explanation, it may take some time to get the hang of QuickBooks.

Watching tutorials, reading support pages or consulting experts for advice are all great options to learn how to use QuickBooks Online for your business.

QuickBooks Online earned a spot as one of the best products in NerdWallet roundups for these categories:

Business software.

Small-business accounting software.

Construction accounting software.

Consultant accounting software.

Farm accounting software.

Freelancer accounting software.

Property management accounting software.

Small retail business accounting software.

SaaS businesses accounting software.

Small manufacturing business accounting software.

Pricing: Lite plan starts at $17 per month.

Pros: With a robust mobile app, FreshBooks is a strong option for freelancers and independent contractors, as well as self-employed professionals on the go. All FreshBooks plans have a client self-service portal, estimates, invoices, time tracking and expense tracking. This software also offers mobile mileage tracking, basic inventory tracking and live phone support.

Cons: With the Lite and Plus versions of FreshBooks, you’re limited to five and 50 billable clients, respectively. Additionally, double-entry reports and accountant access don’t come with all plans, and you have to pay to add team members to your account: $11 per person per month.

» MORE: FreshBooks vs. QuickBooks Online

Pricing: Early plan starts at $13 per month.

Pros: Like QuickBooks Online, Xero is a powerful and fully functional accounting software. Xero offers lower-priced plans with unlimited users and inventory management included in each. Additionally, Xero is known for its user-friendly and intuitive setup and design.

Cons: With Xero’s Early plan, you can send/approve only 20 quotes and invoices and enter five bills. It also includes time tracking only in the highest-level plan — the Established plan ($70 per month). Finally, Xero’s customer service is lacking. There is no live chat support and while a representative will call you if necessary, the company doesn’t provide a phone number to customers.

» MORE: Xero vs. QuickBooks Online

Pricing: Free. Add-ons will have associated costs.

Pros: Wave is one of the only truly free accounting software options on the market. It’s easy to use and offers unlimited invoicing, income and expense tracking, bank and credit card connections and account users. The Wave Payments add-on also allows you to accept credit card and ACH payments and set up recurring billing.

Cons: Wave does not offer some of the more advanced features that competitors can provide — such as third-party integrations or project profitability. Additionally, it only offers self-serve support through its Help Center or chatbot, unless you subscribe to a paid Wave service like Wave Payroll. In that case, you can chat online with a live agent.

» MORE: Wave vs. QuickBooks Online

In addition to QuickBooks Online, Intuit offers a desktop product called QuickBooks Desktop, which is locally installed rather than cloud-based. QuickBooks Enterprise is the desktop lineup’s most robust plan — it allows up to 40 users and has industry-specific versions. To see which lineup is best for you, compare QuickBooks Online vs. QuickBooks Desktop plans’ main features and pricing.

QuickBooks Online is not free to use, but new customers can choose between a 30-day free trial or a 50% discount for three months.

You’ll get the most value out of QuickBooks Online if you understand how to use its transaction tags and reporting capabilities. If you’re not sure whether you’re getting the most of these features, consider asking your accountant to review your chart of accounts and how you’re categorizing transactions.

QuickBooks Online’s solid set of features (invoicing, inventory management, reporting, etc.) makes it a great solution for a variety of small businesses. It’s easy to loop in your accountant and, unlike some competitors, it can scale to meet a growing business’s changing needs.

One of QuickBooks Online’s biggest downsides is its price. To access some of the product’s most valuable features, like inventory management and project profitability tracking, you have to subscribe to the Plus plan or higher. Some very small businesses that only need basic income and expense tracking, along with invoicing capabilities, may find that a less expensive solution does the trick.

In addition to QuickBooks Online, Intuit offers a desktop product called QuickBooks Desktop, which is locally installed rather than cloud-based.

QuickBooks Enterprise

is the desktop lineup’s most robust plan — it allows up to 40 users and has industry-specific versions. To see which lineup is best for you, compare

QuickBooks Online vs. QuickBooks Desktop

plans’ main features and pricing.

NerdWallet’s accounting software ratings favor products that are easy to use, reasonably priced, have a robust feature set and can grow with your business. Ratings are based on weighted averages of scores in several categories, including range of features, cost, ease of use, accounting standards compliance, scalability, ease of sharing with accountants, integrations, customer support, pricing transparency and availability of a free trial period. Learn more about how we rate small-business accounting software .

These ratings are meant to provide clarity in the decision-making process, but what’s best for your business will depend on its size, growth trajectory and which features you need most. We encourage you to research and compare multiple accounting software products before choosing one.

NerdWallet does not receive compensation for any reviews. Read our editorial guidelines .

On a similar note...

QuickBooks Online Pricing: How Much Does QuickBooks Cost for 2024?

Our content is funded in part by commercial partnerships, at no extra cost to you and without impact to our editorial impartiality. Click to Learn More

QuickBooks Online’s pricing starts at just $15 per month for its Simple Start tier, but its costs can run to $200 per month for 25 users on the QuickBooks Advanced plan. Fortunately, QuickBooks Online consistently runs special offers to keep costs low – in fact, you can currently get 50% off your first three months , but you have to forgo QuickBooks’ 30-day free trial to claim the deal.

How does QuickBooks Online’s pricing compare to competitors? FreshBooks starts at $19 per month (but is currently offering 70% off for four months ), while Zoho Books boasts a free plan , and paid plans that start at $15 per month.

QuickBooks Online comes with more features than FreshBooks, making it the best pick for large or growing businesses. Our accounting software comparison list offers more detail. As another alternative, we’d recommend looking into Zoho Books, which offers a 14-day free trial on its paid plans, as well as a totally free plan for small businesses.

Read on for a breakdown of QuickBooks Online’s plans and costs, along with guidance on which package is right for your business. From pros and cons to hidden fees and add-ons, we’ll explain everything you need to know about this top-rated accounting software’s pricing.

In this guide:

• QuickBooks Online Pricing Plans

Who Is QuickBooks Best For?

• QuickBooks Additional Fees

QuickBooks Online vs QuickBooks Desktop

• Integrations & Payment Gateways

Which QuickBooks Online Pricing Plan Is Right For Me?

• Our Methodology: How We Evaluated QuickBooks as the Best
• Verdict – Is QuickBooks Online Good Value?

QuickBooks Online Pricing Plans 2024

QuickBooks Online pricing offers five main plans, plus a host of add-ons for an extra monthly charge.

There are no contracts, monthly and annual payments cost the same, and all plans are available through a 30-day free trial, which is useful for letting potential customers try it out first. QuickBooks is also currently running a special deal: opt out of starting with the free trial, and you can get your first three months half price.

Here are the prices and features for each plan.

• best for freelancers
• $10 per month for first three months
• best for small businesses
• $15 per month for first three months
• best for growing small businesses
• $30 per month for first three months
• best for mid-sized businesses  
• $45 per month for first three months
• best for enterprises
• $100 per month for first three months

QuickBooks Online Self-Employed plan

First, there’s the Self-Employed plan. This is available for just $20 per month and supports a single user.

This plan is designed for freelancers who file a Schedule C IRS form to report their income as sole proprietor.

Key features are the ability to track income and expenses, photograph and organize receipts, estimate quarterly taxes , send invoices, accept payments, create basic reports, and track miles on the mobile app. 61% of freelancers today say their biggest problem is landing clients, so streamlining their process can clear room in their schedule to pursue their next gig.

Features that are not included in the self-employed plan, but are available with the Simple Start plan, include sales and sales tax tracking, 1099 contractor management, and the ability to create and send estimates.

The Self-Employed plan comes with two additional bundles on top of the original plan:

• Self-Employed Tax Bundle:  For $30 per month , you’ll get the Self-Employed plan, plus the functionalities to pay quarterly estimated taxes directly through QuickBooks and to transfer data to Turbo Tax.
• Self-Employed Live Tax Bundle: For $40 per month , you’ll get the Self-Employed Tax Bundle, plus “unlimited” access to a CPA.

See how QuickBooks compares to a key rival in our QuickBooks vs FreshBooks head to head guide

The QuickBooks software interface is easy to use.

QuickBooks Online Simple Start plan

The QuickBooks Simple Start plan costs $30 per month  and supports one user. As part of a special deal, the first three months will only cost you $15 per month , provided you skip the free trial.

This plan is best for small businesses, whether an LLC run by just one individual or a simple partnership. It’ll help someone keep their accounting data in one place, although it doesn’t offer many bells and whistles that could be useful for a larger operation.

Simple Starts includes all the features from the Self-employed Plan but adds a range of helpful additions covering everything from basic bookkeeping to budgeting.

For example, you can start recording fixed assets. You can also create a supplier database and generate purchase orders to help manage your accounts payable.

Similarly, you can create a client database and track overdue client payments to keep on top of who owes you what.

Finally, you can start creating budgets and cash flow projections based on your client and supplier information.

You can create an unlimited number of invoices and estimates, as well as tracking your expenses, managing business contacts — you can also manage up to 1,099 contractors. You can bring live bank feeds into your account and access a range of third-party integrations.

Reporting tools are available on the Simple Start plan but they are a bit limited. Vehicle tracking is included, too, should you need to invoice for fuel and driving time for any job.

What’s New: As of our December 2023 update, QuickBooks has added a “bookkeeping automation” tool across all plans, including Simple Start. This feature auto-sorts expenses into the right business category for tax purposes, and lets you set up rules to categorize recurring transations.

QuickBooks Essentials expands access to expense management tools. 

QuickBooks Online Essentials plan

The Essentials plan costs  $60 per month , supports three users, and brings a range of accounts payable functions to small businesses compared to the Simple Start plan. If you take part in the deal and skip the free plan, the first three months will only cost you $30 per month . These prices rose slightly back in early 2023, when this plan cost just $55 per month.

The Essentials plan is a great fit for growing small businesses that have an increased number of suppliers, employees, and clients.

You’ll be able to track bills, set up recurring billing, track expenses, record payments in multiple currencies, and scan bills to keep abreast of all the money your company is owed.

Time tracking is another new feature this plan offers. With it, users can track their billable hours, categorizing them under the correct client and employee, while automatically adding them to invoices. These hours can be added by the manager manually, though the employee in question can also be given permission to add their hours themselves.

Invoicing templates can be created and re-used with QuickBooks software. 

QuickBooks Online Plus plan

The QuickBooks Plus plan costs $90 per month , supports five users, and includes several advanced features compared to the Essentials plan. If the three-month deal is applied, this price is dropped to $45 per month . As with Essentials, Plus prices rose by $5 a month in 2023, when it cost $85 per month.

The Plus plan is best for mid-sized businesses that need to manage the complexities of billable hours across a raft of clients, as well as any businesses with an inventory of products or a growing number of ongoing projects that would be tough to manage otherwise.

The ability to track project profitability is another big benefit to this plan: A project management feature gives users a single location to view all projects, letting them see any given project’s labor costs, payroll, and expenses, in order to efficiently track project profitability and generate reports.

Under the Plus plan, products and the cost of goods can also be managed, with automatic notifications signaling when certain inventory is low and needs to be reordered. Product data can be imported from Excel or synced with Amazon, Shopify, Etsy, and other platforms.

 Tracking project profitability through QuickBooks software. 

QuickBooks Online Advanced plan

The QuickBooks Advanced plan offers the most features for the highest cost: It’s $200 per month , supporting 25 users. The special deal drops this to $100 per month for the first three months.

QuickBooks Advanced is best for enterprise businesses with support for extra users and the new features which help businesses operate more efficiently at scale.

For example, it brings a dedicated account manager, priority customer support, customer user permissions, and online training courses.

It also supports batch importing, to help a single user create, edit, and send multiple invoices, checks, expenses, or bills. You can also automate key accounting tasks such as setting reminders for invoices, payments, or deposits. You can automatically notify customers when their payments have been received and you can route invoices through pre-set approval flows.

You can track KPIs with in-depth analysis tools, consolidate data from multiple companies into singular reports, and compare different companies, clients, or franchises. You also get access to exclusive premium apps such as LeanLaw, HubSpot, DocuSign, Bill.com, Salesforce, and more.

The QuickBooks software offers dropdown menus for easy access to its many tools. 

QuickBooks Online has a large potential customer base. Our researchers ranked it the highest overall with a research score of 4.7 points out of 5, meaning that it’s the top pick for the average business, small or large .

If you need a rock-solid, feature-packed accounting solution at a fair price, QuickBooks is the best. But other accounting tools come with slightly different strengths, so read our complete guide to the best small business accounting software to see if another option is best for your unique needs.

QuickBooks Online Additional Fees and Features

That’s not all, folks: QuickBooks offers a host of useful add-ons for an extra monthly charge. First, there’s payroll processing, a function that’s hugely useful for a business with more than a few employees, but one that’s rarely included in an accounting software service’s main offering.

QuickBooks Payroll

QuickBooks Payroll pricing comes in three plans — Core, Premium, and Elite — with each offering more features than the previous one. Here are their features and standalone prices:

• Core – $75 per month , plus $5 per employee , per month . This plan does the basics: It automatically runs payroll, files payroll taxes, and offers employee services like health benefits and workers’ comp.
• Premium –  $160 per month, plus $8 per employee, per month . This plan adds role-based access, same-day direct deposit, and automatic time tracking for more granular, yet still automated control over paychecks.
• Elite –  $125 per month , plus $10 per employee , per month . This plan includes tax penalty protection, and a professional to offer hands-on help with setting up and troubleshooting.

The plans can be upgraded at any time, so if you’re in doubt, start with Core and see if it works for your payroll needs.

Core can also be packaged with either the Simple Start accounting plan for $75 plus $5 per employee, per month , or the Essentials plans for  $100 plus $5 per employee, per month .

The QuickBooks Payroll software tracks employees by name, pay rate, pay method, and current status.

QuickBooks Live Bookkeeping

Paying for software doesn’t fully keep your accounting on track: You’ll still need to know how to use QuickBooks properly in order to get the most out of it. The QuickBooks Live Bookkeeping service solves this issue by connecting businesses with a live, certified expert to keep their books in order. The expert will categorize transactions, reconcile accounts, create reports including an income statement and balance sheet, and close the books every month.

The custom price varies depending on the size of your business but should be somewhere between $200 and $600 per month.

QuickBooks Setup Fee

Worried about setting up your QuickBooks account? For just $50 , QuickBooks Live Bookkeeping will set you up with an expert for one session.

Setting up the software involves plenty of one-time tasks that you’ll want to get right the first time, like connecting your bank account and setting up a series of automated processes and templates. Through Live Bookkeeping, you’ll get a single one-on-one session that can clear up any questions and start your accounting software subscription off on the right foot.

QuickBooks Capital

Also available from the service is a lending program called QuickBooks Capital. Those with QuickBooks Online accounts are potentially eligible, though they’ll still need to qualify on the strength of their accounting history.

Tax Forms & Support

QuickBooks sells tax forms directly to its users for an extra cost that will vary depending on which state your business is located within. They also sell some as kits, which come with the correct envelopes too. Here’s which forms you’ll likely need:

QuickBooks has also stopped allowing users to file their sales taxes online through the service. You’ll need to file business taxes manually, and update your QuickBooks account with the information afterward.

Some Payroll plans include printed forms at no additional cost. The Premium and Elite plans also support automatic filings for state new hire paperwork.

QuickBooks also sells physical checks. You can buy:

• Standard checks – Starting at $60.98 for 50
• Wallet Checks – Starting at $47.07 for 50
• Manual Checks – Starting at $70.79 for 300
• Secure Plus Personal Checks – Starting at $42.79 for 120
• Voucher Checks – Starting at $71.68 for 50
• Office and Away Checks – Starting at $113.74 for 250

Are they worth getting? Well, they’re far pricier than many other vendors selling similar checks, so likely not.

However, the “Secure” brand of checks offer in-depth fraud protection measures that may justify the price, provided you anticipate security risks at your business.

QuickBooks sells branded paper checks.

QuickBooks Online Pricing vs. Competitor Pricing

QuickBooks Online isn’t perfect for every business, but how does its pricing compare to the costs charged by its competitors?

FreshBooks’ pricing starts at $17 per month , so it costs a little less than QuickBooks’ $20-per-month plan. FreshBooks stands out for a great set of features, but it does not offer the payroll processing or advanced tools that QuickBooks has.

Zoho Books is a top choice for small and growing businesses. Zoho Books has a free plan , while QuickBooks does not, and both Zoho Books and QuickBooks offer a large range of features on their higher-priced plans. However, Zoho Books plans (after the free one) tend to be equal to or more expensive than comparable QuickBooks plans: Zoho’s popular plans cost $15, $40, and $60 per month , compared to QuickBook’s $20, $30, and $60 per month costs.

Some of Xero’s plans cost less than QuickBooks’ plans, but most do not. Xero’s plans cost $13, $37, and $70 per month , compared to the QuickBooks $20, $30, and $60 per month plans.

If you’re trying to decide between two of these specifically, check out our direction comparison guides, like Zoho Books vs. QuickBooks .

Before we dive into the details of each QuickBooks plan and its value, here’s a look at the latest accounting software deals and discounts from the biggest and best QuickBooks alternatives on the market.

At the most basic level, QuickBooks Online is the cloud-based version of QuickBooks. All your data is stored in QuickBooks’ cloud and you’ll be able to access it anywhere on any device. QuickBooks Desktop, on the other hand, is locally installed with a license pricing model.

However, there are a serious of other changes which are worth considering. For instance, with QuickBooks Online, your security is handled by QuickBooks. However, as QuickBooks Desktop is locally installed, you’ll be responsible for your own data security.

QuickBooks Online has a monthly pricing structure — you pick the right plan and then pay every month for the service. QuickBooks Desktop, however, has a three-year license, or you can pay for yearly updates.

QuickBooks Online allows up to 25 users on its most expensive plans. However, the QuickBooks Desktop Pro requires you to pay $299 for every additional user, up to a maximum of three. Desktop Premier and Enterprise, meanwhile, allow up to five and 30 users, respectively.

QuickBooks Online also offers more automation features, which might be a better fit for small businesses — the more tasks you can delegate to the software, the more efficient your business will be. QuickBooks Desktop also has a more dated and harder-to-navigate UI than QuickBooks Online.

QuickBooks Online Integrations & Payment Gateways

Any sized business has paperwork, even just a single freelancer. But with the right accounting or invoicing software for small businesses , filing tax information can be a simple and streamlined process. QuickBooks makes this process even easier thanks to a huge range of integrations and plug-ins you can use, with familiar names such as PayPal, Shopify and MailChimp all present and accounted for.

QuickBooks Online Integrations

QuickBooks’ range of over 650 integrations will help you connect your account to useful third-party apps and services. Perhaps you’ve already used some, like Google’s G Suite or Microsoft’s 365, or perhaps you just need to be able to accomplish something that QuickBooks doesn’t support. Whatever the case, the right integration will make your business operations even more streamlined.

Here’s a quick, non-exhaustive list of the most popular QuickBooks Online integrations, how they work, and how much they cost:

• PayPal — free — import PayPal sales, fees, taxes, tips, discounts into QuickBooks as well as generating sales receipts.
• Square — free — import transactions into QuickBooks, review transactions, support multiple locations.
• Shopify — starting at $30 — automatically bring your sales data into QuickBooks.
• TSheets (now QuickBooks Time) — starting at $8 per user per month plus $20 per month base fee — access accurate employee time tracking for easy payroll.
• Fathom — starting at $44 per month — adds extra analysis tools and metrics to see how your business is performing.
• Gusto — starting at $40 per month plus $6 per month, per employee — payroll automation tool with automatic federal, state, and local tax filings.
• MailChimp — $7.99 — automatically updates new and changed customer records from your QuickBooks records.
• Housecall Pro — starting at $49 per month — allows you to easily keep track of jobs and customers with scheduling, dispatch, CRM, and automatic estimates and invoices.

QuickBooks has over 650 third-party integrations.

How does that compare to all the best accounting solutions? Find out now:

QuickBooks Online Payment Gateways

QuickBooks also offers connections to a variety of online payment processing services. PayPal and Square are included, as our integrations section above touches on, while Stripe and Authorize.Net are two more potential payment services.

In total, QuickBooks Online support around 25 payment processors. If you’d prefer to keep it in-house, there’s QuickBooks Payments, which supports a variety of payment mediums, each with a different transaction fee:

• 1% charge for ACH transfers, up to a maximum of $10
• 2.4% + $0.25 for swiped cards
• 2.9% + $0.25 for invoices
• 3.4% + $0.25 for keyed-in cards

Supported credit cards include Mastercard, Visa, American Express, Discover, and Apple Pay.

Your business size and structure will determine which QuickBooks Online plan is best. If you’re a single freelancer, you won’t need to manage any other employees, and you won’t need to track many sales (if any) – so the Self-Employed Plan is best for you. We’ve ranked the best self-employed accounting software , and QuickBooks is at the top.

If you’re a small business looking for accounting software , you might want the Simple Start Plan , which allows you to create and manage invoices, estimates, bills, and sales taxes.

Once your business is large enough to require more automation and more employees, the Plus Plan likely makes sense, as it allows for recurring payments in addition to time tracking. It also includes inventory tracking, making it a must for an operation that sells more than a few products. Due in part to these reasons, QuickBooks is our pick for the best hospitality accounting software .

Finally, there’s the QuickBooks Advanced plan. This option is best for large businesses that could benefit from the extra support features, like a dedicated manager or virtual training classes.

Our Methodology: How We Evaluated QuickBooks Online Pricing

In order to accurately compare top accounting software, the Tech.co research team picked out the eight core categories to divide their efforts along, from help and support to accounts payable tools.

But for this guide, one of those categories was deemed the most important: “Pricing Factors,” the research category that covers price plans and the features included with each, as well as free trials or demos, deals, add-ons, and hidden costs. By comparing plan costs with the number and quality of features they provide, our team could determine whether the ratio of features to price made the plan a good deal or not.

Our team ranked all the best accounting solutions using a points-system for each category. Once they were done, they compiled all category scores for each brand into a single 5-point score. This allows us to rank each software in comparison to the rest while tracking each and every feature. Once the dust had cleared, the winner was QuickBooks with a top score of 4.7 points overall.

Verdict – Is QuickBooks Online a Good Value?

Yes, QuickBooks Online offers good value for its price across all plans. Granted, the right plan for you will vary depending on your needs, and there are alternative accounting software options on the market that may also be a good fit. Still, QuickBooks Online offers an unbeatable range of features, packaged in a solid interface with good support.

If you’re ready to try it out, all QuickBooks Online pricing plans are available for a 30-day trial or 50% the first three months . If you want to check out the competition first, try our experts’ online comparison page:

QuickBooks Online Pricing FAQs

Is quickbooks online cheaper than desktop, do i still need an accountant if i use quickbooks, is quickbooks online better than desktop, what's the difference between quickbooks and quickbooks online, how easy is quickbooks online to use, how simple is it to change from one quickbooks online plan to another, is quickbooks online a one-time purchase.

If you click on, sign up to a service through, or make a purchase through the links on our site, or use our quotes tool to receive custom pricing for your business needs, we may earn a referral fee from the supplier(s) of the technology you’re interested in. This helps Tech.co to provide free information and reviews, and carries no additional cost to you. Most importantly, it doesn’t affect our editorial impartiality. Ratings and rankings on Tech.co cannot be bought. Our reviews are based on objective research analysis . Rare exceptions to this will be marked clearly as a ‘sponsored’ table column, or explained by a full advertising disclosure on the page, in place of this one. Click to return to top of page

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More From Forbes

18 strategies to improve communication with small business owners and their accounting teams.

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Maintaining transparency and good communication with clients is crucial for financial business leaders. This is especially important when those clients are small business owners, who are often stretched thin with other business priorities. As such, you'll want to streamline and strengthen your interactions with small businesses and their in-house financial teams to keep everyone on the same page.

To help, 18 Forbes Finance Council members share key tactics for improving communication with small business owners and their accounting teams. Here's how you can support mutual understanding and financial prosperity for all parties.

1. Deliver Clear And Succinct Messaging

Small business owners are constantly wearing many hats and need to prioritize their time based on what will bring the business the most value. For this reason, it pays to be clear and succinct when delivering your message to a client. If they can't quickly understand the value of what you are communicating and why it is worth their time, they may be letting great opportunities go by the wayside. - Shaune Scutellaro , CohnReznick LLP

2. Define Objectives And Roles

When working with small businesses, financial leaders should define clear objectives for financial management and establish expectations for communication frequency, reporting formats and decision-making processes. Ensure that everyone understands their roles and responsibilities, encourage open dialogue and actively listen to concerns, questions and feedback from the in-house team. - Lawrence Pross , Nexi

3. Support Associations With Financial Partners

One strategy I have used is to support associations that represent various financial partners. For me, working with exchange investors is incredibly important. So, I recently attended an annual conference for this group and had the opportunity to speak about how Delaware Statutory Trusts can help their 1031 exchange clients which provided me with many referrals. - Betty Friant , Kay Properties & Investments

Best High-Yield Savings Accounts Of 2024

Best 5% interest savings accounts of 2024, 4. explain and sell the transformation.

We need to build bridges for our clients through communication. Tell them exactly what process they can expect. Show them what happens before, during and after their purchase. We talk a lot about features and benefits and many of us do a good job of selling the "transformation" — but not enough of us educate clients on how we get them to that desired result. - Leo Anzoleaga , Leo Anzoleaga Group at NEO Home Loans

5. Gather As Much Information As You Can

As with any personal return, the small business tax-gathering chore should include as much detail as you can find. We would suggest QuickBooks for businesses just like Quicken for your personal tax filing. Assuming that you don't apply or use QuickBooks, you need to assemble as much detail using your business credit card for the business or your personal credit card for your personal taxes. - Richard Martin , Bluestone Wealth Partners

Forbes Finance Council is an invitation-only organization for executives in successful accounting, financial planning and wealth management firms. Do I qualify?

6. Explain The Benefits Of Specific Products

When working with small businesses, financial leaders should explain the benefits of specific banking products and how they fit into small business models. Be transparent about fees and make efforts to connect business owners to wrap-around services, including opportunities to improve their financial fitness. This, coupled with proactive communication, can help strengthen your client's business. - Monique Johnson , Beneficial State Bank

7. Tailor Communication To Each Business

Banks should be saying the right things, at the right time, to the right businesses. Gone are the days when banks could get away with mass generic communications. Now, tech tools enable more bespoke communications that are unique to each business and individual, so banks need to ensure they're using the right tools correctly. - Fiona Roach Canning , Pollinate

8. Explain Options And Offer Suggestions

It’s essential financial leaders are transparent. Explaining the options available and suggesting what best suits each business will build trust and yield the best results for both entities. Services should be tailored with the business's unique offerings and financial circumstances in mind. - Austin Mac Nab , VizyPay

9. Utilize Video Emails

Financial leaders can improve their communication by making use of brief video emails. A video should be three minutes or less and packed with relevant, useful and timely information that the business owner can use. The advantage of video communication is that it tends not to get lost in the sea of emails the business owner and their key team members are inundated with daily. - Ronald Gelok , Ronald Gelok & Associates

10. Explain The 'Why'

Focus on the "why." Ultimately, the decision lies with the small business owner and often they don't have enough information to make it, so they trust what someone tells them. Empowering them with the reasons to or not to consider when thinking about a possible direction will build their confidence as a business leader. - Marjorie Adams , Fourlane

11. Maintain Transparency With A Third-Party Communications Firm

Communication is key to operating any business, whether it be with employees, customers or stakeholders. This is more important when engaging with smaller operators given potential information asymmetry or misunderstandings. To minimize issues, increase transparency either directly or via a third party such as a communications firm, and time should be spent allowing all questions to be answered. - Manoj Jain , Maso Capital

12. Understand Business Models, Goals And Challenges

Understanding a small business's model, challenges and goals requires dedicating time to learn about the intricacies of the operations market in which they operate and the specific financial reporting obstacles faced by the in-house accounting team. Tailor communication in such a way that it addresses the unique needs and objectives of the team and culture to be more relevant and impactful. - Peter Goldstein , Exchange Listing LLC

13. Speak In Person Or On The Phone

Ditch the email. Pick up the phone. Better yet, meet in person. The art of communicating seems to be lost these days as we tend to use emails as our primary means of communicating. - Ken Hodgkins , Metro Testing & Engineering

14. Utilize Cloud-Based Software

Technology can play a key role in improving communication and preventing crucial errors. Using cloud-based software to streamline financial processes and improve transparency or adopting an OCR tool that is also trained to extract information, validate documents and process data with financial logic embedded can reduce manual errors, ensure accurate data extraction and improve communication. - Tomer Guriel , ezbob Ltd.

15. Explain 'Who, What, How And When'

It's critical for financial business leaders to effectively communicate the "who, what, how and when" to small business owners and their accountants. This means not only explaining financial strategies and processes clearly but also ensuring they understand who is involved, what actions will be taken, how these actions contribute to their goals and when they can expect results. - Chris Seveney , 7e investments

16. Actively Listen And Show Genuine Interest

Establishing trust and rapport with small business owners and their financial team is essential. This can be achieved through open and transparent communication, active listening and showing genuine interest in their concerns and goals. - Abiodun Sowemimo , CapitalMetriQ Swift Bank

17. Institute Regular Communications Channels

To enhance communication, financial leaders should institute regular channels, such as scheduled meetings or digital platforms. This ensures ongoing transparent dialogue with small business owners and their financial teams. Regular interactions facilitate timely information exchange, problem-solving and a shared understanding of financial goals and strategies. - Richard Polgar , CFG Merchant Solutions

18. Explain How Growth Plans Depend On Accounting Teams

Bookkeeping and accounting are the building blocks of any company's financial structure and are a basis for making vital decisions by business leaders. Communication can be improved by explaining company goals and growth plans to bookkeepers and accountants and making them understand how decisions like plant expansion or expansion into new geography are dependent on the data provided by them. - Raghavkumar Parmar , MMA Pan Asia Fund Management

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GROWING YOUR BUSINESS

Small businesses post fewer job vacancies in first quarter of 2024

Small business job vacancies down by 20,000 in first 3 months of 2024

UK small businesses with 1-9 employees had 20,000 fewer job vacancies at the end of March 2024 than at the end of December 2023, according to the latest release from the Intuit QuickBooks Small Business Index. In total, these businesses currently have 124,000 open positions, compared to 144,000 in December: a quarterly decline of 14.93%. Year-over-year, the decline is larger, with 40,000 fewer small business job vacancies in March 2024 compared to March 2023: an annual decline of 27.78%.

Q1/2024 serves as another illustration of small businesses' increased susceptibility to broader economic conditions.” Professor Ufuk Akcigit

Jump to: Sectors | Regions | Analysis by Professor Ufuk Akcigit

Lower appetite for hiring

These trends are broadly in line with the latest labour market report from the Office for National Statistics. In the latest quarter for which data is available (ending February 2024) job vacancies fell by 43,000 across small, medium and large businesses in the UK — the 20th consecutive quarterly decline. At 3.9%, unemployment was higher in the quarter ending January 2024 (again, the latest data available), than in the same quarter a year earlier. 

Rising unemployment suggests the decline in vacancies is due to lower appetites for hiring among UK businesses rather than open positions being filled by job-hungry workers. There are now 1.5 unemployed people for every job vacancy , according to the latest data from the ONS — up from 1.4 in the previous quarter. In response, the UK government has recently announced a new apprenticeship scheme and measures to reclassify 132,000 businesses in the UK as small businesses to reduce regulation.

One sector increased hiring, others pulled back

Small businesses in the administrative and support services sector ( SIC N ) posted 100 more job vacancies from December 2023 to March 2024 than in the previous quarter, an increase of 7.68% to 2,000 vacancies. Over the 12 months from March 2023, vacancies were up by 200, an annual increase of 12.84%. This was the only sector in the UK with job vacancy growth at small businesses over both timeframes. Similarly, in its latest report , the ONS reports both quarterly and annual job vacancy growth for the administrative and support services sector (including small, medium and large businesses), up by 7.7% and 21.2% respectively.

The other 12 sectors tracked by the Index all posted fewer vacancies in Q1/2024 on a quarterly (vs December 2023) and annual basis (vs March 2023) — see table below. All data insights from the Index are seasonally adjusted.

Sectors with largest declines in job vacancies

The wholesale and retail sector ( SIC G ) had the largest quarterly decline, with 2,500 fewer job vacancies posted by small businesses in Q1/2024 (-13.92%). Annually, the decline was larger: down by 4,200 to 16,800 in March 2024 vs March 2023 (-22.14%). The decline may be explained in part by national retail sales falling 0.4% in February 2024 compared to the previous quarter, according to data from the ONS . 

The professional services sector ( SIC M ) was close behind wholesale and retail, with 2,300 fewer job vacancies in Q1/2024 (-14.73%). Annually, the decline was the largest of all sectors, at 6,200, leaving 14,800 job vacancies (-34.57%). The ONS shows a smaller quarterly decline for the sector, of 2.7%, suggesting job vacancies are not falling as fast at larger businesses.  

The arts, entertainment, and recreation sector ( SIC R ) had the fastest rate of decline in Q1/2024, at -21.04%, with 1,200 fewer small business job vacancies at the end of March 2024 than at the end of December 2023. This reflects the overall picture for the sector according to the ONS , with vacancies down by 19.8% across small, medium and large businesses compared to the previous quarter. Annually, according to the Index, the rate of decline was 18.48%, leaving small businesses with 4,700 job vacancies.

Job vacancies down in all four UK nations and every region of England

Small business job vacancies declined in all regions and nations of the UK in Q1/2024 on both a quarterly and annual basis, according to the Index. Across England as a whole, small businesses currently have 110,000 job vacancies. This is 17,900 fewer than the previous quarter and 35,600 fewer than a year earlier. 

The North West of England had the fastest quarterly and annual declines in Q1/2024 — ahead of every other region of England as well as Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Vacancies were 17.75% lower at the end of March 2024 compared to the end of December 2023 (down by 2,400) and 30.56% lower compared to March 2023 (down by 4,400). Current job vacancies: 12,300.

The neigbouring North East region, on the other hand, had the slowest quarterly and annual declines in small business job vacancies both regionally and nationally in Q1/2024. Vacancies were 11.83% lower in March 2024 vs December 2023 (down by 500) and by 24.72% vs March 2023 (down by 1,100). Current job vacancies: 3,800.

Of the four UK nations, Northern Ireland had the slowest quarterly rate of decline in Q1/2024, down by​ 13.51%, with 300 fewer job vacancies in March 2024 compared to December 2023. Current job vacancies: 1,900. Wales was close behind, with a decline of 14.02%, with 700 fewer vacancies, finishing the quarter with 4,400 in total.

Expert analysis

Ufuk Akcigit , the Arnold C. Harberger Professor of Economics at the University of Chicago, explores the trends in more detail.

“2023 proved a challenging year for the UK economy, marked by various factors including the Ukraine conflict, supply chain disruptions, and lingering effects of COVID-19, resulting in high inflation and weak economic performance. 

“This struggle continues into the present. The ONS highlighted the economy's underwhelming performance, with GDP growth registering at -0.1% in Q3 and -0.3% in Q4, indicative of a technical recession defined by two consecutive quarters of negative growth. Labor market conditions have also been unfavorable, as indicated by the latest ONS announcement reporting a stagnant overall month-to-month job creation rate of 0.0% in January and 0.1% in February. Additionally, vacancy numbers saw a notable decline, dropping by 43,000 to 908,000 from December to February for small, medium, and large businesses . In terms of monetary policy, the Bank of England maintained the interest rate at 5.25% to combat inflation, which remains at 3.4%. 

“The majority of the UK economy, more than 95%, comprises businesses with fewer than nine workers. How have they fared amid these economic conditions? According to the Intuit QuickBooks Small Business Index , small business job vacancy numbers continued to decline in Q1/2024, experiencing a quarterly rate decrease of 14.93%, corresponding to a yearly growth decrease of 27.78%. This decline has persisted since Q2 of 2022, reflecting overall macroeconomic health. Notably, the arts and entertainment sector witnessed the most significant decline in vacancies, with a decrease of 21.04%, aligning with the ONS statistics noted above, which reported a sharp 19.8% decline in vacancies for all business sizes in this sector. Conversely, administrative and support services was the sole sector in the Index showing positive vacancy growth in Q1/2024, at 7.68% for the quarter. Vacancy declines were evident across all regions in the UK, with North West England experiencing the largest quarterly decline in Q1/2024, at 17.75%, and North East England showing the smallest decline, at 11.83%. During challenging macroeconomic conditions, all businesses, especially small ones, bear the brunt of the impact.

“Q1/2024 serves as another illustration of small businesses' increased susceptibility to broader economic conditions. The adverse figures in the Index concerning small business vacancies should hardly be surprising, given the prevailing weak demand and persistently unfavorable financial conditions. Moreover, inflation compounds the pressure on small business costs, exacerbating the situation further. The future of the UK economy appears uncertain, posing higher risks for small businesses. But there could be a silver lining for small businesses here: as vacancies decrease, reduced labor market tightness could facilitate small businesses' ability to compete for talent and potentially accelerate growth in the sector.”

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