QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Desktop operate on true double-entry accounting principles and have both accrual and cash-basis accounting. Each offers a detailed chart of accounts, journal entries, bank reconciliation, accounts payable, accounts receivable, and the basic reports needed to run a company. However, QuickBooks Desktop offers better reporting and supports more complex accounting.

• Go to the Settings gear icon and click “Export Data.” Then, select your reason for leaving.
• Keep in mind that if you do decide to have QuickBooks Desktop hosted, there will be an additional fee.
• QuickBooks Self-Employed is different from the other QuickBooks Products in that it isn’t quite accounting software.
• The QuickBooks Desktop comes in the list of locally installed software with a license purchase system whereas QuickBooks Online is a cloud-based system with a monthly pricing model.

Subscription clients in QuickBooks Desktop 2023 (R1) or older versions will need to update to the latest 2023 (R3) version before their subscription expires. While there are significant differences between QuickBooks Desktop and QuickBooks Online, both applications offer solid accounting capability for small businesses. And while QuickBooks Desktop comes out on top in this comparison, only you can decide which one is best for your business. If neither application catches your eye, why not take a look at some QuickBooks alternatives or check out The Ascent’s accounting software reviews.

Easy Process

If you can’t decide if QuickBooks Online, QuickBooks Desktop, or another QuickBooks version is right for your business, this guide is for you. Tax1099 provides a comprehensive suite of features including year-round eFiling, prior year eFiling, corrected forms, and more, making eFiling an easy and efficient the accrual basis of accounting process. Tax1099.com simplifies the eFiling experience, ensuring that managing tax forms has never been more convenient. In this guide, we’ll help you understand what each version is capable of, what type of business is best for each version of QuickBooks, and the main differences between these products.

• Pro Plus and Premier Plus limit customer service hours to just 12 hours a day, weekdays only.
• This feature is ideal for service-based businesses that charge work by the hour, such as lawyers and independent contractors.
• If you want to learn more, you can read about each of the products on our dedicated landing pages.
• Four pricing plans for QuickBooks Online are available, ranging from $30 to $200/month (with an additional $45+/month for payroll).

In contrast, QuickBooks Desktop offers hardly any payment gateways, making it difficult for the modern merchant to accept online invoice payments easily. The online version of QuickBooks is much easier to use than the desktop version. Even though QB Desktop has more comprehensive features in general, there are some key features that only QuickBooks Online has, such as bookkeeping support. In comparison with QuickBooks Desktop, QuickBooks Online is cloud-based, cheaper, easier to use, supports more integrations, and is unlikely to be discontinued by QuickBooks. Katherine Haan, MBA is a former financial advisor-turned-writer and business coach. For over a decade, she’s helped small business owners make money online.

QuickBooks Online VS QuickBooks Desktop Pricing:

QuickBooks Premier is robust, locally-installed software with plenty of features and 200+ integrations. QuickBooks Self-Employed is different from the other QuickBooks Products in that it isn’t quite accounting software. QuickBooks Self-Employed is tax software created to help freelancers manage their finances.

Which is more Suitable for Your Business QuickBooks Online or QuickBooks Desktop?

The additional user license for QuickBooks Desktop Pro cost is $299 which seems slightly expensive. QuickBooks Desktop Premier permits five users & QB enterprise users to allow 40 users. One of the essential differences is QuickBooks Desktop is a license-based pricing structure whereas QuickBooks online has a monthly SaaS. You can purchase a QuickBooks desktop license for three years or do annual payments for the updates instead of monthly payments.

QuickBooks Online vs. QuickBooks Desktop 2023

While there might be occasional challenges with navigating the interface, QuickBooks Online is, on the whole, remarkably user-friendly. QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Desktop are two solid accounting products from Intuit. While both software types have plenty of perks, QuickBooks Online is a more flexible, affordable, and scalable option for most small-business owners.

For $27.50 per month for the first three months, then $55 per month after that, get up to three users, manage and pay bills and track time with its Essentials plan, which is its most popular plan. Upgrade to Plus for $42.50 per month for the first three months, then $85 per month afterward, and you will receive access for up to five users, inventory tracking and the ability to track project profitability. Terms, conditions, pricing, special features, and service and support options subject to change without notice. QuickBooks Online is a cloud-based solution while QuickBooks Desktop requires you to download software onto your computer.What does that mean exactly? The QuickBooks online version is much simpler to use than the QuickBooks desktop version. One of the most frequent complaints about QuickBooks desktop is its expensive learning curve.

Is QuickBooks Online cheaper than QuickBooks Desktop?

QuickBooks Online offers a large selection of reports, but they aren’t industry-specific. Businesses that have purchased one-time licenses of the locally-installed QuickBooks Desktop versions that have been sunset can still use the software’s accounting features. However, these versions don’t receive security updates, live support, or access to cloud-based services such as live bank feeds, QuickBooks Desktop Payments, or QuickBooks Desktop Payroll.