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QuickBooks Online

QuickBooks Online

Overview

What is QuickBooks Online?

QuickBooks Online is a SaaS version of the QuickBooks product. It contains all of the features found in the local version. Higher-priced plans include greater automation, payment management, inventory and time tracking, and analytics features.

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Recent Reviews
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Awards

Products that are considered exceptional by their customers based on a variety of criteria win TrustRadius awards. Learn more about the types of TrustRadius awards to make the best purchase decision. More about TrustRadius Awards

Popular Features

View all 44 features
  • Bank reconciliation (137)
    6.2
    62%
  • Accounts receivable (131)
    6.0
    60%
  • Standard reports (128)
    5.3
    53%
  • Dashboards (124)
    4.7
    47%

Reviewer Pros & Cons

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Pricing

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Self-Employed

$15

Cloud
per month

Simple Start

$25

Cloud
per month

Plus

$75

Cloud
per month

Entry-level set up fee?

  • No setup fee

Offerings

  • Free Trial
  • Free/Freemium Version
  • Premium Consulting/Integration Services
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Product Demos

QuickBooks Online Demo | CAN

YouTube
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Features

Payroll Management

Provides for pay calculation and benefit plan administration, in addition to managing direct deposit, salary revisions and payroll tracking.

3.1
Avg 7.5

Customization

This addresses a company’s ability to configure the software to fit its specific use case and workflow.

2.5
Avg 7.1

Security

This component helps a company minimize the security risks by controlling access to the software and its data, and encouraging best practices among users.

3.7
Avg 8.0

Reporting & Analytics

Users can report on and analyze usage, performance, ROI, and/or other metrics of success.

5.3
Avg 7.6

General Ledger and Configurable Accounting

Financial management solution, including capabilities for general ledger and configurable accounting

3.7
Avg 7.4

Inventory Management

The ability to track and manage the flow of goods or materials into and out of an inventory.

1.2
Avg 7.0

Order Management

The ability to process orders, and track them from quote to cash.

3.7
Avg 7.4
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Product Details

What is QuickBooks Online?

QuickBooks Online is a SaaS verison of the QuickBooks product. It contains all of the features found in the local version, features typical of similarly priced accounting software. The monthly fee for this service starts at $10 and climbs to $30 with the Plus version, which has the richest features. The base level allows for unlimited invoices and estimates, expense tracking, importing from Excel or Quickbooks desktop, data backup, mobile accessibility, and integration with many other applications. The Essentials pricing plan contain more automation, more bill and payment management, as well as inventory and time tracking, and the Plus package contains budgeting and analytic features.

QuickBooks Online Competitors

QuickBooks Online Technical Details

Deployment TypesSoftware as a Service (SaaS), Cloud, or Web-Based
Operating SystemsUnspecified
Mobile ApplicationNo

Frequently Asked Questions

QuickBooks Online is a SaaS version of the QuickBooks product. It contains all of the features found in the local version. Higher-priced plans include greater automation, payment management, inventory and time tracking, and analytics features.

Priority AccountEdge, FreshBooks, and Zoho Books are common alternatives for QuickBooks Online.

Reviewers rate Cash management highest, with a score of 6.3.

The most common users of QuickBooks Online are from Small Businesses (1-50 employees).
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Comparisons

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Reviews and Ratings

(1809)

Attribute Ratings

Reviews

(51-75 of 161)
Companies can't remove reviews or game the system. Here's why
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We're a drop-shipping e-commerce store. Our web store is built on Shopify.<br><br>It's pretty easy to use. I like how it syncs automatically with my bank and with Shopify.
  • Linking to bank, credit cards, and Shopify
  • Fairly fast to enter transactions
  • Flexible reporting
  • It's hard to see the audit trail of a transaction as debits and credits to the General Ledger.
Small business accounting with multiple people (as QuickBooks superuser) in which internal controls are not systemically enforced through the software.
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
QuickBooks is not being using by the whole company just by our accounting department. We use QuickBooks to enter in invoices for payment, record bank transactions, pay bills, currently run a variety of reports, enter in bank deposits and create invoices to mail to customers.
  • Vendor bills
  • Print checks
  • Pay bills
  • Customer invoice
  • Reports
  • Vendor Expense set up
  • New button set up
QuickBooks helps a small company like us keep track of basic bookkeeping. We currently use invoicing from customers and vendors which we pay our bills and make deposits in QuickBooks as well. We track reporting which is easy to read and understand. Printing checks is easy to set up and use. QuickBooks for us, can run into connection issues which makes it frustrating at times.
Score 7 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
QuickBooks is used as main accounting software. We are a small company and the basic software version suits all our needs. The cloud version provide access by our accountant to do end of month verification, AR and invoicing.
  • Could access
  • multiple user support
  • easy of use event for non accountant user
  • More feature without having to pay more, like inventory management, having independant fleet tracking system
  • Some interactive tutorial to assist non accountant user
  • Add dedicated control, like which user can do what.
The software cover the basic part of accounting. Easy to enter supplier/vendor invoicing as well as customer invoices. On an other side, there is some room to improve the exporting feature as well as the weekly timesheet.
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
QuickBooks Online is being used by our accounting for social media department where we specifically do all accounting for social media marketing and advertising. We found it best fit to manage this segment of our expenses and revenues. Revenues include brand deals, commission based sales, and ad hoc other items. Expenses include content creation and marketing expenses.
  • Easy to use user interface, intiative, and clean
  • Reconcilations are easy to do
  • Can use tags to catagorize expenses
  • Reporting is pretty standard and basis. Limited customization
  • Connection with banks can be unstable, there were a couple times it got disconnected and you have to re-connect and download data
  • While you can have a dashboard view, , it is not customizable
QuickBooks online is best suited for business with simple accounting transactaions and structure. It does allow you to setup a chart of accounts as needed by industry but it is pretty high level and you will have to configure it to best meet your business needs. In cases where you may have complex accounting or high level of transactions, this may not be the best choice. There is also limited online support available even though they do offer it for free.
Score 1 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
The only department that used it was the finance department. It was a short term solution for a rapidly growing company. It was used for over a year there before transitioning to Oracle's netsuite. We used the system for the entirety of the accounting function for which I oversaw payroll and accounts payable.
  • User Friendly
  • Easy to learn
  • Works well for small, low employee count companies with inexperienced accounting personnel
  • Lack of accounting controls across the board
  • Updates are pushed down from QBO that affect current GL mapping within payroll without notification or explanation of changes
  • Lack of ability to truly track audit trail items, QBO does not track everything
  • It will let you adjust or put anything, anywhere, therefore allowing easy non accountant users to make errors
QuickBooks is NOT something I would recommend to a colleague. It is antiquated, and not well designed. It is designed for the small business owner who needs to do very little detailed accounting work, and is handled by someone without accounting knowledge. otherwise as an accountant I would constantly run into things where QuickBooks would make recommendations that did not make sense for true accounting and GAAP.
Score 7 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Managing P and L. It allows us to consolidate expenses and income in one place.
  • Sync bank transactions
  • Categorize expenses
  • Ui can be complex if you want to automate activities like classifying expenses.
Might be cumbersome if company has many vendors and customers with many transactions
Score 5 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
I use this to look into my payroll. Initially we used ADP but I'm not sure why my employer switched to this.
  • Good UI representation of payroll
  • Good for small orgs (may be)
  • Navigation
  • Login. It has N number of ways to login which confused me a lot. Every time i have to reset my password.
Small organizations can use this because of the price it has I believe(My employer uses this because of its low price)
May 01, 2021

Quickbooks and Me

Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
QBO is being used by me, the accountant and my boss. I use it for bookkeeping exclusively. It is used for recording and paying bills, tracking expenses, making reports, managing 1 bank account and 2 credit card accounts--three if we count QBO's own charging system. My boss uses it to generate invoices, make deposits, and integrate with proprietary software of his company. No other employees use QBO as there is no need. Since I work from home, it is very easy to communicate what each of us is doing because it appears instantly.
  • QBO Advanced has extremely excellent customer service via the telephone. Agents are knowledgeable, helpful, and usually determined to solve the (user caused) problems. I think that he agents used to be hired to troubleshoot issues but they really have become almost-accountants because this is what is demanded by users.
  • The accountant likes the ability to see in real time any problems that we have. Sometimes it is just a category selection issue--such as which is the proper category to put a particular expense
  • I like the ability to WFH with immediate integration with my boss and his part of the work equation
  • Although there is a steep learning curve for new (never before)users, it is extremely easy to navigate once you accept that QBO must be obeyed. It is difficult to make a mistake as QBO sort of guides your thinking to reach the correct and logical conclusion
  • There are too many self advertisements which pop up. Although it is interesting to note what QBO can offer, I have yet to take advantage of any.
  • QBO has power outages, or whatever they are called when we simply cannot use QBO, which are distressing interruptions to our work.
  • Updates are somewhat frequent and have no warnings
  • It is expensive to maintain and QBO credit card swipe fees are quite uncompetitive
it is the best software for small businesses who want to invest in their business with accurate and competitive bookkeeping, creating and managing invoices, creating and paying bills and keeping track of expenses, managing their own "financial health" and preparing for taxes--including business, payroll and quarterly. I have found the accuracy is spot on. The downloading of checks, credit card charges, and expenses is fast, accurate and convenient.
When isn't it appropriate? I don't know. We have been in business for
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Quickbooks is being used primarily by me. I use it to automate my accounting and run helpful reports.
  • Integrates with 3rd party software
  • Stores receipts
  • Sends invoices & reocurring bills
  • Reporting is sub par. Their monthly statements and dashboard overviews are some of the worste in the industry.
  • Exporting information to an accountant that isnt using quickbooks is a pain.
  • They don't scan receipts and auto upload information like other softwares do.
Quick books is just about perfect for anyone who needs accounting software. It's not so great if you have a business with multiple streams of income and expenses that need to be credited to specific accounts.
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
QuickBooks Online is my go-to accounting system. All of my business transactions are uploaded to QuickBooks Online every month so that I can track my income and expenses. I also use QuickBooks Online to send invoices and receive payments from customers. It's a great overall accounting system that allows me to review my financials. As a QuickBooks Online ProAdvisor, I also offer assistance to others when needed.
  • Invoice can be sent to clients
  • Categorize expense and income transactions by creating a rule
  • Allow you to view your income and expenses on the dashboard
  • You can view any unpaid invoices and how many days outstanding
  • Clients can pay invoice once it is sent
  • You have to be careful when using the "Add" or "Transfer" button for transactions. You want to make sure you are selecting the right function for your transaction.
  • Before you add a transaction, you want to make sure the category is correct. It would be great if there was a button that asked you about categories first so that you don't have to undo transactions.
  • Bank transfers between accounts are typically not reported accurately in QuickBooks Online and may require adjustments.
QuickBooks Online is perfect for those who want to maintain accurate and reliable financial records for third-party users. During the pandemic, I received a ton of questions about using QuickBooks Onine to prove profits to third-party lenders. I was able to help business owners navigate QuickBooks Online so that they could provide lenders with the right documentation need to secure pandemic loans.
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We began using Quickbooks software about 15 years ago, but recently (in the past 8 years) migrated to QuickBooks Online. What a wonderful difference this made. The online version is so easy to use and we all love that it updates when necessary. While it's important that I find it easy to use, what's more important for me is that my staff has absolutely no problem using it. They find it simple to use and they love the different help boxes that guide them. The reporting is also very good and definitely solves some of the problems we had in terms of drafting reports to look at earnings from year to year and quarter to quarter.
  • Their different pre-generated reports are so handy for tax time
  • I love how there's auto save options and the ability to backup is so quick/easy
  • I have multiple companies and they make it so easy to switch back and forth between companies
  • The online version could have a better expert mode for advanced users
  • I suppose there could be a few more generated reports based on the type of industry you're in
  • It would be nice to have a quicker way to share reports (outside of the system or through email)
I think just about every industry and every company would benefit from QuickBooks Online. I own an MSP and have no problem recommending QuickBooks Online as the main accounting software for my clients. For small businesses, this software supports a wide variety of integrations and it's so affordable that businesses would be silly not to consider it.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Most of my clients are using QuickBooks Online companywide. There are not many dimensions available they can use, such as location, segment, department, project and so on.
  • Easy to use whether accountant or non-accountant, except setup and adjustments.
  • Simple processes on banking (cash transaction match) and bank/account reconciliations.
  • Great dashboard where you can see an overview of financial performance at a high level simultaneously instead of running individual reports.
  • As I mentioned earlier, we sometimes need to have more than one account dimension like 'Class' to record transactions for companies/clients who have complicated organization structures or/and business lines.
  • Payroll services are not really very comprehensive.
QuickBooks Online is a good fit for small/medium size businesses and nonprofits and self-employed, not for corporations due to complex payroll and taxes.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
It is being used to have better control over our finances, as well as financial reporting and integration with our outside accountants. It is allowing us to have clearer insights into our financial position and identify any cash flow issues that may arise because of our case census.
  • Financial reports
  • Integration with our financial institutions.
  • Integration with our outside accounting firm.
  • Bank and credit card account feed goes back 90 days.
  • Giving a bit of control over your data.
  • Expensive to maintain and add features.
It provides the necessary tools for controlling the finances of a small law firm and provides useful integrations and accountant access to streamline their access to financial data. If you are a larger firm, say over 20 employees, it may not be the best option. Your accountant would be the best source of information on the utility of Quickbooks online.
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We initially began using QuickBooks Online as our financial reporting and invoicing system and began using it for time tracking in January of 2021 which includes Payroll and associated taxes. As an agency, we bill our clients for our time (our primary revenue stream), so we try to use it to manage how much time we spend vs. how many hours the client has authorized.
  • The canned reports are very helpful, and the ability to customize them makes them even more useful.
  • I use the Dashboard daily since it provides a good snapshot of our monthly status.
  • Views by Customer are helpful, allowing me to see invoices and payments in one place, which I had been doing on a spreadsheet.
  • The invoices tab lets me see which invoices are due at a glance rather than having to dig through each customer record.
  • It times out too quickly, frustrating that I have to log in again on the same computer multiple times a day.
  • The chart of accounts is frustrating, we need to find a better way to tell people how to categorize expenses. And it's not set up very well for a SERVICE business, specifically an agency.
  • Really hating Quickbooks Time (TSheets) that we moved to in January 2021. We made the move with the promise that it would associate time with the related client billing, and we take great pains to make sure time entries are added to the invoices when we create them, but when I go to pull a report by customer it doesn't show the related time expense for an accurate P&L. Tragic mistake to have chosen TSheets, we did it only at our Accountant's recommendation because he could help us with implementing it, but I ended up paying him a couple thousand dollars for his help which was really just a learning curve. And it still doesn't give us the info we wanted. If I had it to do again, I would have chosen an app for our time tracking that was created for agencies, NOT TSheets.
I've heard that FreshBooks is much easier to work with and works better for service industries. I think it's much better suited to businesses that manufacture and sell products. One good thing about having our time tracking tied into QuickBooks is that it does a nice job of tracking tax payments due and paid.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
I use QuickBooks Online to record all accounting information related to my entire small business. I have it integrated with my Ecommerce platform to automatically record customer data and order information, while also using it for my wholesale operation to track orders and payments. It is the easiest and most cost effective way to capture all sales and expense data, while giving me the power to generate extremely helpful reports which I can use to make business decisions.
  • Software integration - QuickBooks is an industry leading brand and is easily integrated into nearly any software package or service available for businesses.
  • Easy to generate reports - the handy search box allows you to type a few keywords to find the exact report you're looking for
  • Accessibility - handy apps for every device from your desktop computer to your smartphone. The apps are well built and intuitive, they don't leave me frustrated trying to find the button I'm looking for.
  • Banking Integration - this was another must have feature for me to reduce the amount of time I spend entering data from one system into another.
  • Tone down the advertisements for related Intuit products - every year they keep adding more reminders that they offer various other services to help my small business.
  • Too many screens/layouts not necessary for every business. I wish there was a way to deactivate sections like payroll since I'm not using them currently.
  • Products & Services section is rather limited - I'd love to see some sort of rudimentary inventory control system to keep track of stock levels
I really like the QuickBooks Online platform for its versatility and integration capabilities. I think QuickBooks Online is well suited to small to medium size businesses who need a better way of bookkeeping using automated integration to reduce the amount of workload entering data into the system. I don't believe QuickBooks Online would be well suited for Medium-Large businesses with multiple bookkeepers who might require additional meta-data on records such as date of entry and user who entered info.
Darryl Goossen | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 1 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
I'm the owner of a small electrical company. I do my own bookkeeping.
  • Quickbooks is universal
  • Many people use it
  • Most accountants are familiar with the product
  • Customer service is non-existant
  • Quickbooks merchant services will hold on to your payments for as long as they want.
  • No-one answers the phone when you call for support.
  • There are easy ways to suggest improvements, but Quickbooks does not follow up.
Quickbooks is a very poor product if you're in a business where getting paid is important.
Bronwyn Jones | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 1 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
I use QuickBooks in my business to write up invoices.
  • Invoice format
  • Invoice structure
  • Ability to send invoices
  • Customer service
  • Sorting out of issues is complex and frustrating
  • No personal contact available. It is computer-generated assistance. When you do get to speak to a human they cannot help. You get the typical run around especially when they have a "hold" on your funds.
If you want to have personal assistance and problems solved quickly then this is not a company that I can recommend.
September 04, 2020

QBO Expert and Easy

Sandeep Malhotra | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Use QBO as our primary bookkeeping and accounting software. Integrated with our bank account and company credit cards. Our CPA's are also have accountant access so it's a seamless way to do our quarterly reporting and annual reporting with tax filings. We primarily use it for Chart of Account, Balance Sheet and Profit and Loss. We do NOT use AP or AR or other transactional functionality.
  • Simplicity of use.
  • Completely oriented towards accounting, well designed.
  • Intuitive to use.
  • Great help functions.
  • Slow performance.
  • Hard to navigate between modules.
It is well suited for all businesses for the core accounting needs. It is deeply rooted in accounting principles so any business can keep their books and corporate financials organized and properly recorded, regardless of size. Obviously there are complexities in each industry and QBO may not be able to handle all the upstream needs of a specific industry but as a system of financial record, it is excellent. I would advise smaller companies and sole proprietorships to consider if QBO is too much for them despite its simplicity of use. It takes commitment to set up QBO properly and consistently use it.
Mike Bannan | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 2 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Accounting, bookkeeping and invoicing are the major functions that we use. Their Payroll and merchant services are just overpriced, We are a smaller sized business with 11 employees that bills clients via Bank ACH, Invoice and Credit Card. We use the live bookkeeping service from QBO. We have two users with access. The "Bookkeeping Live" service is a plus but with the basic software broken it is almost pointless. I have to upload manual bank accounting transaction and credit card accounts.

For the last few months, we have run into a problem that QB's customer support and technical teams can not seem to fix. Our bank feeds only work for some of our accounts when they have been working normally for years. This is our 6th and probably the final year of using QBO. We are currently looking to get rid of the product all due to their crappy, horrible, non-responsive, and disorganized lack of support.
  • Easy to get reports.
  • Very fluid chart of accounts.
  • Good dashboard where I can see my important financial concerns.
  • Customer service is nil.
  • Tech support is very difficult and time consuming to work with.
  • Cases and case numbers get lost or are not entered properly meaning start all over.
  • Automatic matching is very unreliable and if not closely watched your finances may be wrong.
Product is generally good with some exceptions like the automatic matching which is very rudimentary and if not carefully watched can cause your reporting to be wrong.

If you are not accounting savvy you need a bookkeeper. The program is not designed for a parttime user.

The "Bookkeeping Live" service that they offer is good and priced decently.

Before the bank feeds crapped out (and their support can't fix) the system was good.
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
QB was being used by the Finance Department for a period of time to handle invoicing to clients, as well as expenses for travel, and accounts payable.
  • As an online-based software, it can be accessed from anywhere in the world, which is of particular interest to those working remotely and on different continents.
  • It can be user-friendly for those who are new to accounting software.
  • Easily manipulated which is good for clients with intricate wording necessary on their invoices.
  • Cannot do intricate accounting reports or entries like a desktop version allows.
Well suited for international businesses or businesses that may not run out of one office, but multiple offices or remote locations. Not so well suited Finance Departments that depend on their accounting software to spit out several varieties of reporting.
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
QuickBooks Online is used by our finance department to manage our inventory and bookkeeping. Additionally, our CPA has access to it. QuickBooks Online makes it easy for multiple people to access our account information and update items simultaneously without having to worry about manually backing up our books on a regular basis. If anything were to ever happen to our facility, our accounting information is backed up to the cloud and accessible from anywhere in the world, which is a HUGE for us.
  • QuickBooks Online makes it very easy to run basic financial reports.
  • QuickBooks Online integrates with all major banks, making adding transactions quick and easy.
  • QuickBooks Online is cloud based, which means you can access your financial data from anywhere in the world with internet access.
  • First-time set-up with QuickBooks Online isn't difficult, but it would be helpful if they provided tips/advice for those who may be moving from another platform.
  • QuickBooks Online likes to push their other services, for example using their system to accept payments. I wish there were a way to opt out of seeing certain options that you choose not to use.
  • Getting help from an actual QuickBooks Online support member is difficult. Often times if you post a question online, the answer provided doesn't actually answer or address your question and the issue is closed before you're able to elaborate more.
I would highly recommend QuickBooks because it is currently the best accounting software available that is also cloud-based. QuickBooks Online is well suited for businesses that are primarily e-commerce based and/or for businesses that have work-from-home or remote employees. Because it can automatically import transactions, not only with your bank, but also with larger online marketplace/website platforms, it makes it easy to use.
Score 9 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
QuickBooks Online is convenient for my company that has 4 locations. Each location can enter into one account and update without personal traveling from company to company.
  • Real time updating.
  • Medium user-friendly.
  • Projections and reports.
  • A bit difficult for our novice users.
  • Faster loading of software.
  • Better help support.
QuickBooks Online is well suited for companies that engage telecommuters, several branches, and accountants. From the owner to an associate, information can be seen without printing out needless reports.
Chloe Tollefson | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
QuickBooks Online is used across the whole organization. We use it for reporting purposes as well as accounting purposes. We also use it to send and receive payments. It is an extremely helpful tool, you can send a payment instantly via card or bank account. We keep track of all revenues via QuickBooks Online as well.
  • Ease of use
  • Simple to understand
  • I think some of the reports that you can generate are designed for as if you are an accountant or have a background in finance. It would be nice for them to be a little more straightforward or the terminology more simple and straightforward.
  • It sometimes takes days and days to receive the money that you are sent, meaning that sending payments through your bank could likely be quicker and easier.
It is simple to set up clients and send invoices as well as invoice reminders using QuickBooks Online. I think where it gets complicated is reporting. Overall, I think for someone like me who has no background in accounting or finance it is simple to use, other than generating reports because I don't understand much of that accounting terminology. I usually obtain the information I seek from clicking on a client and going from there.
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
QuickBooks is being used in my organization on a daily basis and addresses all of my accounting needs.
  • QuickBooks Online gives me the ability to create customized reports and financial statements in seconds.
  • This software allows me to keep track of accounts payable and receivables and also allows me to receive payments from clients online.
  • This software allows me to keep up with my books in real time and offers assistance through live chat and information lookup.
  • This software is not always user friendly and allows for multiple routes to be taken to accomplish the same outcome which at times can be confusing and lead to multiple answers.
  • This software allows chat but not the ability to have a quick question answered over the phone unless enrolling in virtual bookkeeping services.
  • This software does take quite a while familiarize with.
This bookkeeping software addresses all basic book keeping needs and much, much more. It can be appropriate for any individual necessities and has a wide range of functionality, way outside of the range of basic bookkeeping.
Drew West | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
Quickbooks Online (QBO) is essential to our business because it provides a combination of functionalities that no other software service packages together for a small business of our size. Our small business ships products across the US. We collect and remit sales tax to 43 different state jurisdictions, so in addition to handling our accounting, bookkeeping, tax preparation, issuing our 1099s and giving our CPA access to our books. Quickbooks Online also serves the critical function of calculating the sales tax due with each package we ship. When I create an invoice for our customer through QBO, I enter the 'Ship From' and 'Ship To' addresses, and the software automatically calculates the amount of sales tax that we need to collect and adds it to the invoice total before I send it to our customer. In case you don't know, every state has different sales tax requirements and depending on where you are shipping. You may need to collect sales tax at the state, county, and city level jurisdictions. But QuickBooks does all the calculations for you and is accurate more than 99% of the time. And when it comes time to file our sales tax returns to each state, QuickBooks Online has helpful reports to show the amount due for each jurisdiction.
  • QuickBooks Online is the total package for small businesses that need comprehensive accounting software support at an affordable price. There are other options for medium-to-large size businesses, like NetSuite, but their subscription costs are much higher. In contrast, QuickBooks Online offers functionality that will serve most small businesses for a fraction of the cost.
  • In the small-business accounting software category, other companies offer competing products. Still, after doing my own research and reading reviews from other users, I found that QuickBooks Online is regarded as the most robust and feature-rich in terms of all of the accounting needs and reporting functionality that your business might need.
  • QuickBooks Online has a great feature called Receipt Capture, which allows you to snap a photo of your receipt and automatically upload it into the system for your approval. The software tries to auto-fill the appropriate information like merchant name, transaction date, transaction amount, and account category. The auto-fill suggestions aren't 100% accurate, but the functionality is helpful and is improving with time.
  • I have requested a callback from QuickBooks Online customer support numerous times in my two years as a customer, and the callback is usually within 5 minutes. The support is generally beneficial and able to resolve the issue. If your question or problem is easier to address by the representative looking at your session with you, there is functionality built right into QuickBooks Online that allows you to screen share your session with the representative so you can walk through the issues together. It is beneficial, and I appreciate this feature.
  • As of February 2020, QuickBooks Online advertises that you can e-file your state sales tax returns directly through QuickBooks Online. This functionality has never been available to me, and I manually fill out and submit my returns directly through each state's online portal. I don't believe this functionality is available for most QuickBooks Online users, despite advertisements indicating that it is.
  • As of February 2020, the following QuickBooks Online subscription levels: Simple Start, Essentials, and Plus, do not allow users to bulk upload or import multiple invoices at once. These tiers only will enable you to create one invoice at a time. The highest subscription level, QuickBooks Online Advanced, does allow users to import multiple invoices at once using Excel import, but the price is much higher. For users who can't afford the subscription price of QuickBooks Online Advanced but need the functionality of bulk uploading invoices, there is a software service called Transaction Importer Pro that does a good job, and the price is $20/month.
  • Every once in awhile, I find a page in QuickBooks Online that doesn't allow a user to sort, filter, or display the information the way I think would be most useful. Even after submitting feedback using the online feedback tool, I haven't received any response to my communication about these small changes. These are minor issues, but they don't dampen my enthusiasm for all of the other wonderful functionality that QuickBooks Online enables.
Quickbooks Online is a well-priced solution for most small businesses to solve their accounting and bookkeeping needs. It is the industry leader for software services in this space, and it's also the service that most professional accountants and CPAs use, which makes it even more useful because you can grant them access to your account. They can make changes to your books if necessary while preparing your tax return. Quickbooks Online also offers professional payroll services and full-service bookkeeping, which would be useful for businesses that want to handle all of their financial needs in the same software system. (Disclosure: I have not used QBO payroll services or full-service bookkeeping, so I can't attest to the experience, but I imagine that Intuit guarantees exceptional quality and service around these products).
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