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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    QuickBooks Desktop Pro

    Score7.8 out of 10
    N/AQuickbooks Desktop Pro is accounting software from Intuit, Inc. It includes core accounting features, plus analytics and exportable reports. It is offered in on-premise and SaaS forms.N/A

    Wave Accounting

    Score7.3 out of 10
    N/AWave Accounting is a free, cloud-based accounting platform exclusively for small businesses. It supports double-entry bookkeeping and permits unlimited user access, invoicing, and expense management. Wave Accounting integrates with Wave's invoicing, receipt scanning, payment processing and payroll apps.

    $16

    per month

    Pricing
    QuickBooks Desktop ProWave Accounting
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    Starter
    $0
    Pro
    $16
    per month
    Pro - billed annually
    $170
    per year
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    QuickBooks Desktop ProWave Accounting
    Free Trial
    NoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoYes
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    QuickBooks Desktop ProWave Accounting
    Considered Both Products
    Intuit
    No answer on this topic
    Wave
    Chose Wave Accounting
    It is a useful solution but not designed for the UK market. For a businesses that want to see their debtors, creditors, profit and loss and balance sheet it is a great solution, however with those needing legal UK compliance the software will not work as well and the other free …
    Incentivized
    Chose Wave Accounting
    Circling back to the "free" thing again. For a small business, I am getting for free what QuickBooks Online charges no less than $40/month. Moving away from "free," these other solutions I listed above do more, and these would be the right solutions for the right needs. All of …
    Incentivized
    Chose Wave Accounting
    Wave Accounting is very similar to QuickBooks Online. The functions of Wave Accounting are very similar to QuickBooks Online. The major difference is that with the low pricing of Wave Accounting, it lacks all of the bells and whistles that QuickBooks Online has like …
    Incentivized
    Chose Wave Accounting
    QuickBooks was overkill for me, with much more features and functionality that I would ever need. It assumed I had been trained as an accountant, so the help was impossible for me to understand. Customer service was not available. I spent countless hours setting up the program …
    Incentivized
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    88%
    Would buy again
    29 Answers
    53%
    Would buy again
    8 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    93%
    Delivers good value for the price
    28 Answers
    67%
    Delivers good value for the price
    10 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    97%
    Happy with the feature set
    32 Answers
    67%
    Happy with the feature set
    10 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    83%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    20 Answers
    54%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    7 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    96%
    Implementation went as expected
    25 Answers
    73%
    Implementation went as expected
    11 Answers
    Features
    QuickBooks Desktop ProWave Accounting
    Payroll Management
    Comparison of Payroll Management features of QuickBooks Desktop Pro and Wave Accounting
    Feature
    QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    6.6
    69 Ratings
    14% below category average
    Wave Accounting
    6.2
    24 Ratings
    20% below category average
    Pay calculation6.364 Ratings7.123 Ratings
    Benefit plan administration6.338 Ratings7.54 Ratings
    Direct deposit files6.656 Ratings1.220 Ratings
    Salary revision and increment management6.352 Ratings7.712 Ratings
    Reimbursement management7.754 Ratings7.48 Ratings
    Customization
    Comparison of Customization features of QuickBooks Desktop Pro and Wave Accounting
    Feature
    QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    5.7
    43 Ratings
    28% below category average
    Wave Accounting
    8.5
    13 Ratings
    12% above category average
    API for custom integration6.535 Ratings9.99 Ratings
    Plug-ins5.039 Ratings7.011 Ratings
    Security
    Comparison of Security features of QuickBooks Desktop Pro and Wave Accounting
    Feature
    QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    8.5
    101 Ratings
    4% above category average
    Wave Accounting
    6.4
    45 Ratings
    24% below category average
    Single sign-on capability8.482 Ratings6.432 Ratings
    Role-based user permissions8.695 Ratings6.436 Ratings
    Reporting & Analytics
    Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of QuickBooks Desktop Pro and Wave Accounting
    Feature
    QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    8.5
    117 Ratings
    8% above category average
    Wave Accounting
    9.5
    73 Ratings
    19% above category average
    Dashboards8.4100 Ratings9.471 Ratings
    Standard reports8.9117 Ratings9.770 Ratings
    Custom reports8.2114 Ratings9.337 Ratings
    General Ledger and Configurable Accounting
    Comparison of General Ledger and Configurable Accounting features of QuickBooks Desktop Pro and Wave Accounting
    Feature
    QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    7.5
    124 Ratings
    2% below category average
    Wave Accounting
    7.4
    76 Ratings
    3% below category average
    Accounts payable9.3119 Ratings9.659 Ratings
    Accounts receivable9.2121 Ratings9.670 Ratings
    Cash management9.2107 Ratings9.862 Ratings
    Bank reconciliation9.7119 Ratings8.565 Ratings
    Expense management9.4108 Ratings9.664 Ratings
    Time tracking7.451 Ratings9.811 Ratings
    Fixed asset management5.669 Ratings9.812 Ratings
    Multi-currency support6.931 Ratings10.019 Ratings
    Multi-division support8.958 Ratings7.19 Ratings
    Regulations compliance8.342 Ratings5.016 Ratings
    Electronic tax filing8.355 Ratings5.914 Ratings
    Self-service portal5.941 Ratings8.040 Ratings
    Global Financial Support4.217 Ratings9.02 Ratings
    Primary and Secondary Ledgers7.140 Ratings9.05 Ratings
    Intercompany Accounting7.943 Ratings4.05 Ratings
    Localizations4.219 Ratings5.23 Ratings
    Journals and Reconciliations8.876 Ratings8.530 Ratings
    Enterprise Accounting6.838 Ratings4.07 Ratings
    Configurable Accounting7.647 Ratings5.017 Ratings
    Centralized Rules Framework5.427 Ratings1.03 Ratings
    Standardized Processes8.555 Ratings7.019 Ratings
    Inventory Management
    Comparison of Inventory Management features of QuickBooks Desktop Pro and Wave Accounting
    Feature
    QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    5.8
    59 Ratings
    23% below category average
    Wave Accounting
    8.1
    11 Ratings
    11% above category average
    Inventory tracking6.056 Ratings5.68 Ratings
    Automatic reordering6.035 Ratings9.95 Ratings
    Location management6.032 Ratings8.12 Ratings
    Manufacturing module5.218 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Order Management
    Comparison of Order Management features of QuickBooks Desktop Pro and Wave Accounting
    Feature
    QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    6.8
    77 Ratings
    8% below category average
    Wave Accounting
    7.6
    53 Ratings
    3% above category average
    Pricing7.555 Ratings9.926 Ratings
    Order entry8.555 Ratings10.018 Ratings
    Credit card processing7.251 Ratings2.345 Ratings
    Cost of goods sold8.063 Ratings10.034 Ratings
    Order Orchestration5.220 Ratings5.85 Ratings
    End-to-end order visibility6.123 Ratings8.24 Ratings
    Order exception Resolution5.218 Ratings7.02 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    QuickBooks Desktop ProWave Accounting
    Small Businesses
    QuickBooks Self-Employed (discontinued)
    Score4.3 out of 10
    QuickBooks Self-Employed (discontinued)
    Score4.3 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    MYOB
    Score8.3 out of 10
    MYOB
    Score8.3 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Microsoft Dynamics GP
    Score5.5 out of 10
    Microsoft Dynamics GP
    Score5.5 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    QuickBooks Desktop ProWave Accounting
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.5
    (135 ratings)
    9.4
    (82 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    8.0
    (19 ratings)
    7.8
    (3 ratings)
    Usability
    9.1
    (42 ratings)
    9.7
    (17 ratings)
    Availability
    8.3
    (2 ratings)
    6.7
    (4 ratings)
    Performance
    -
    (0 ratings)
    2.9
    (2 ratings)
    Support Rating
    1.2
    (29 ratings)
    2.1
    (12 ratings)
    In-Person Training
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Online Training
    -
    (0 ratings)
    4.7
    (3 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    9.0
    (6 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    CPA Rating
    8.5
    (22 ratings)
    8.0
    (8 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    3.0
    (2 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    QuickBooks Desktop ProWave Accounting
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Intuit
    For a small business, QuickBooks Desktop Pro is great! For a larger, more complex business, another system may be more beneficial. We actually run multiple businesses on QuickBooks Desktop Pro, but all are very small. The help feature is sometimes so beneficial, and sometimes it seems like you just can't get the right answer and need to find a workaround - but this is usually for more complex issues.
    Read full review
    Wave
    Wave Accounting was used for a small practice without a lot of the accounting considerations a large company would have. For the price, you really can't beat what Wave offers out of the box. All of the basic tools for things like invoicing and expenses are all easy to use. End of year accounting is easy with exports of data.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Intuit
    • It is easy to manage and adjust inventory on hand.
    • It is easy to make reports and customize them to your needs.
    • We also use it to pay our employees directly.
    • It is easy to make year-to-year comparisons to see where we can make improvements and the current financial situation.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    • Reconciliation is very difficult with multiple Wave transactions that need to be deleted or merged before it can be matched to a bank transaction.
    • Payroll worked fine for us but took several days to get it set up. We have switched to another bookkeeping system and another payroll system. Canceling with Wave took several days and they charge $6 for something even though the month was paid for in advance.
    • Credit card processing is nice and worked fine for us.
    Read full review
    Cons
    Intuit
    • QuickBooks Desktop Pro has been around for a few years and after an update[,] they force you to look at the changes/updates before you can use [them] after updating.
    • QuickBooks Desktop Pro does not have 2FA.
    • QuickBooks Desktop Pro should offer a way to store backups to a personal cloud without having to map a local network drive.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    • I know that credit card processing is a way for Wave to make money, but I really wish they offered ACH payment on Invoices.
    • I do cash-based accounting, which means I have to make little journal entries at the start and end of each year to get my books to balance because Wave wants to do everything differently. This should just be a setting to flip, whether you want cash-based or accrual-based.
    • They use Yodlee for bank connection, which doesn't play nice with 2FA. Pretty much every time I log in I have to re-enter credentials, get a code sent to me, reauthenticate, and know that I'm going to have to do it again next week. Not really on Wave, but wish they could get it together nonetheless.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Intuit
    I'd love to keep using it, and do intend to - though we've not been pleased with price increases over the past several years. In fact, we used to subscribe to the payroll service, but QuickBooks priced themselves out of reach for us, so we discontinued that. Currently, pricing would be the primary reason for NOT renewing, if we didn't.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    Easy to use for clients with no accounting background and the price is right.
    Read full review
    Usability
    Intuit
    The set up was quite easy. I took some online training causes, and figured our the rest pretty quickly. The only issue I had during the implementation process was it was very hard to change some of the GL Account name to reflect the needs of a non-profit organization, such as Net Assets. At the end I had to scratch what I did, and used the existing formats that the third-party bookkeeping firm shared. Everything else is simple and easy to manage and implement.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    I am a professional bookkeeper and I have no problems using Wave and all of it's features. I can see that certain individuals who have no accounting knowledge might struggle with a few different features and entries, but that is why Wave has an emphasis in connecting users to Wave Pro's who will walk them through things
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    Intuit
    I haven't experienced a time when QuickBooks Pro was unavailable when I needed it in the entire 20 years of using the software
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    WAVE is always available when we need it ! Peter
    Read full review
    Performance
    Intuit
    No answers on this topic
    Wave
    Wave does tend to slow down when filtering your transactions screen especially by date. This is more of an issue when trying to trouble shoot certain transactions or clean-up a set of books.
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    Intuit
    They are awful. Intuit doesn't spend real money on support. They appear to have typically said, first-level script readers who are sending messages to the senior people for anything even a little bit difficult. Many of them don't speak particularly good English. Considering that they recently doubled (or, if you are paying annually, tripled) their pricing, and touted as one of the benefits that it includes [..] support, it's a real ripoff. However, we have to use the product because it is ubiquitous. I look forward to the day a competitor comes up with something good enough, which has excellent support, that matches all the features QuickBooks Desktop Pro currently has [...] or at least gives us a way to have all the functionality we currently have without excessive sacrifice [...] so that we can switch. I was very satisfied with QuickBooks for many years. This latest [rise] in price, and their sheer gall at touting the benefit of the 100 to 200% increase as being [the] inclusion of support, is what turned me so far against them.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    I never had to call Wave Support as we barely experienced any support-related problems on our side. However, I do know a few people that complained about Wave support. It would be nice as well, though if they could have more in your face tutorials for new users or how-to videos should we struggle to do something
    Read full review
    In-Person Training
    Intuit
    Best thing I ever did was to attend a two day training seminar on QuickBooks, I learned an immense amount in a short time with hands on training by experts. I strongly recommend such training for anyone using any part of the software. It will pay for itself in the first month.
    Read full review
    Wave
    No answers on this topic
    Online Training
    Intuit
    No answers on this topic
    Wave
    easy to use and east to train on ! Our WAVE clients enjoy the ease of use
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    Intuit
    We implemented the software ourselves. The training we received on the software was done by taking a community course teaching us how to use QuickBooks. It allowed me to get started with some basics of how to use the program and have not needed much assistance since completing the course work.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    No answers on this topic
    Alternatives Considered
    Intuit
    We tried switching from QuickBooks Desktop Pro to QuickBooks Online, but there were a lot of issues and bugs so we ultimately decided to stay with Desktop Pro. Unfortunately, we are losing a lot of Online Banking capabilities on 5/31 as we have an older version of QB, but we plan to stick with Desktop Pro. In terms of invoicing, SaaSOptics beats QuickBooks in almost all aspects as it's all automated and takes seconds to create and send invoices. However, SaaSOptics is not really a full ERP program so it wouldn't serve us as a main bookkeeping software like QB.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    Wave is FREE for most functions. Payment processing costs no matter where you go (as does payroll or taxes). Wave rises above tools like QuickBooks Online because they know that for our small firm, being nimble is the name of the game. We don't need exhaustive reporting and management like QB offers and we certainly don't want to pay for it
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Scalability
    Intuit
    No answers on this topic
    Wave
    Once they out grow what is ability to move up to a more robust system?
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Intuit
    • Training time is low compared to other accounting packages
    • It was difficult to adapt to DCAA requirements, [which] required [the] hiring of [a] special consultant for that
    • QuickBooks Desktop Pro is a standard for small companies and makes it easy to hire bookkeepers
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Wave
    • Wave has been ROI positive for our company. With not having to pay for the service we can use our money for growing our business.
    • The fees on credit card transactions for invoices are reasonable especially as we don't pay a monthly subscription.
    • The invoicing feature has made our lives easier for us and our customers. The invoicing piece and AR tracking has been ROI positive as well.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
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