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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.

1.3
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

(1808)

Attribute Ratings

Reviews

(1-2 of 2)
Companies can't remove reviews or game the system. Here's why
Adrienne Gould-Choquette, P.E. | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Incentivized
We use QuickBooks Online for our accounting needs including tracking estimates, invoicing, banking, receiving payments, bill payment, and tracking expenses. We are also able to create financial reports to help us predict volume of work trends and let us know how we are performing. Additionally, our accountant has access to QuickBooks Online so that they can retrieve the information and reports they need to prepare our taxes.
  • Receive payments
  • Invoicing
  • Tracking expenses
  • Reporting
  • They will no longer support their desktop app, which they pushed us to use
  • They drastically increased their ACH fees (with the benefit of quicker deposits--but this is not a justifiable benefit for our business model)
  • Some features are limited
If you are a small business owner who does most or all of your accounting, I recommend QuickBooks Online. It is very user friendly, intuitive to navigate, and easy to link up with your accountant. I am an engineer by profession, with no accounting background. This saves time and gives me peace of mind that my books are accurate and up to date. Much of what is done in QuickBooks Online is automated, so it also saves me time.
General Ledger and Configurable Accounting (21)
28.571428571428573%
2.9
Accounts payable
100%
10.0
Accounts receivable
100%
10.0
Cash management
100%
10.0
Bank reconciliation
100%
10.0
Expense management
100%
10.0
Time tracking
N/A
N/A
Fixed asset management
N/A
N/A
Multi-currency support
N/A
N/A
Multi-division support
N/A
N/A
Regulations compliance
N/A
N/A
Electronic tax filing
N/A
N/A
Self-service portal
N/A
N/A
Global Financial Support
N/A
N/A
Primary and Secondary Ledgers
N/A
N/A
Intercompany Accounting
N/A
N/A
Localizations
N/A
N/A
Journals and Reconciliations
100%
10.0
Enterprise Accounting
N/A
N/A
Configurable Accounting
N/A
N/A
Centralized Rules Framework
N/A
N/A
Standardized Processes
N/A
N/A
Inventory Management (4)
N/A
N/A
Inventory tracking
N/A
N/A
Automatic reordering
N/A
N/A
Location management
N/A
N/A
Manufacturing module
N/A
N/A
Order Management (7)
57.142857142857146%
5.7
Pricing
100%
10.0
Order entry
100%
10.0
Credit card processing
100%
10.0
Cost of goods sold
100%
10.0
Order Orchestration
N/A
N/A
End-to-end order visibility
N/A
N/A
Order exception Resolution
N/A
N/A
Payroll Management (5)
40%
4.0
Pay calculation
100%
10.0
Benefit plan administration
N/A
N/A
Direct deposit files
100%
10.0
Salary revision and increment management
N/A
N/A
Reimbursement management
N/A
N/A
Reporting & Analytics (3)
100%
10.0
Dashboards
100%
10.0
Standard reports
100%
10.0
Custom reports
100%
10.0
Customization (2)
50%
5.0
API for custom integration
100%
10.0
Plug-ins
N/A
N/A
Security (2)
50%
5.0
Role-based user permissions
100%
10.0
Single sign-on capability
N/A
N/A
  • Saves time and money by making sure my books are in order
  • Automatically downloads banking information to ensure all income and expenses are accurate
  • Provides my customers a quick, easy, and secure way to pay their bills
I used Intuit products for my personal finances for so long, I did not look for any other solutions. When I started using QuickBooks Online for my S-Corp, it was plug-and-play. I was up and running immediately with no learning curve. And QuickBooks Online continues to remain relevant and intuitive, so I have not had reason to explore other options.
I have no accounting experience and I find the software to be very intuitive and user friendly. I am able to do as much customizing as I wish and feel, for my purposes, I have not reached the limits of the software. I like that at a click of a button, I am able to retrieve a real-time, up-to-the-minute financial picture of my company.
I think, with very large companies, it can be difficult to get a direct answer to your software question. Oftentimes, solutions have to be researched by reading through forums. But, that being said, the times I have reached out directly for assistance, I was able to eventually get an answer to my question.
1
As my company's owner and operator, I am the QB Online user. I use QuickBooks for all account tasks including invoicing, writing checks, disbursements, tax preparation, and track banking transactions. I also use it to track business income progress and projections, evaluate how the company is performing, analyze and anticipate business cycles, and any other task that has to do with finances.
1
Our QB Online user is the company's owner and operator. My work experience and educational background are entirely unrelated to finance or accounting, and yet, I am completely proficient in QB. Since QB Online does so much of the work for you and is very intuitive, the main skills needed are general computer skills and strong attention to detail.
  • Invoicing: tracking, receiving payments
  • Spending: tracking expenses
  • Tax Preparation: quick and easy tax reporting tools
  • Track projects in queue
  • Deduce seasonal trends in workflow
  • Make cash flow projections
  • We currently pay our accountant to manage our payroll; however, we may explore QB Online for this service
  • We are beginning to move toward a cost plus quoting style. We may explore using QB online to keep track of hours worked.
QB is actually one of my favorite parts of the job. I get to see graphically how we are performing. Track the money coming in and going out. Quickly see how we are performing based on historical data. I can also monitor when my clients review their invoices. I can allow them to pay online with debit or credit. It's the "fun" part of my day.
No
  • Price
  • Product Features
  • Product Usability
  • Product Reputation
  • Prior Experience with the Product
I used QB for my personal finances for several years. Since QB had an affordable, easy to use, business version of the software I was already familiar with, it started off with a huge advantage. Other small business accounting software packages were a combination of too expensive and too cumbersome for my needs.
I have been using QB for over 7 years now. It is the first software I purchased when I started my company. Over the last 7 years, I have had very few bumps in the road with QB. These few instances were never enough for me to even contemplate looking for another solution. It just does what I need, the price is right, and it seems to be made specifically for the non-accountant small business owner.
  • Implemented in-house
No
Change management was minimal
  • No significant issues during implementation. We started with QB when we started our company, so we learned its functionality as we grew and needed more features.
The person in charge of QB needs to be very accurate with record keeping and is recommended to stay on top of tasks. The biggest issue we have is reconciliation, and those issues occur only when too much time has occurred between reconciliations.
  • no training
I found QB Online incredibly intuitive. No training was needed.
I wish invoicing could be a little more configurable; however, overall, it is just right. More configurability would probably come with more complexity and more cost. So, for my purposes, it's pretty close to perfect.
Best practices:
  • Easy for clients
  • ATTENTION TO DETAIL
  • Sometimes less is more
No - there is no facility to customize the interface
No - we have not done any custom code
If you are just starting out start small and learn as you go. There is an infinite amount of help online to help you grow when you are ready.
No, I did not purchase Premium Suppport. I have not felt the need for it and, quite honestly, I did not know this was a feature. If; however, Premium Support is an option, I still don't think it is something that would be of value to me as a non-accountant business owner.
No
Any time I reach out to QB I get exceptional support. The times where I am a bit disappointed is when there seems to be a feature lacking in the software, and I see that many other people have requested this enhancement, and the enhancement is still not implemented. This is few and far between for sure. But in general, their support is always excellent and efficient.
  • Writing Checks
  • Invoicing
  • Banking Reconciliation
  • Tracking income and expenses
  • Sometimes reconciliation can be thrown off by online deposits.
Yes
It is not a easy to use as the desktop version; however, it is definitely good to have access on the go. If a client need an invoice resent, or has a question regarding invoicing - it's great to be able to answer them right away without having to wait to return my desk to give them a response.
As we have grown along our professional path, we have also expanded our use of QB. The scalability is easy and features seem to be waiting for you until you need them. We have increased profits by over 10x from our first year in business to the current and have yet to find a reason to look elsewhere.
Always up and running. I can't really recall an availability issue over the last 7 years.
This is just a non-issue. QB Online is always up and always work as expected.
  • Zapier
  • Jotform
  • Gmail
I use Zapier to automate my work flow. Zapier can be a little cumbersome to set up, but once it is, it is like having an assistant working for you. And my invoices are consistent with gmail labels, gmail tasks, and jotform proposals. Less entering means less room for error.
  • AutoCAD
  • Right-Suite Universal
  • EnergyGauge Summit & USA
It would be great to include my industry-specific software with my integrations. I added these software packages for the completeness of the survey, but I don't think it is probable or practical that these integrations would be available any time soon.
  • File import/export
QB is the only software in my integration scheme that is ever the least bit finicky.
It's a huge timesaver and worth the setup time and effort.
I initially purchased QB for Self Employeed when I should have purchased QB for small business. They were very helpful and very quickly got me the right software and my mistake did not cost me. I will always be thankful for their help and guideance.
There is a plethora of online help, and their technical support is very responsive. No complaints at all.
I did not even contemplate negotiating. The software had a price and I paid it. I am currently on an annual subscription.
Regarding purchasing software, if you are a larger company, maybe you have room to negotiate or come to an alternate agreement to what is listed on their website, but for me circumstance, I just correspond through their website.
Yes
Really just a reboot - no downtime, no glitches, no unexpected impacts because of the new release.
  • Security
  • Enhanced security
No
No
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
General Ledger and Configurable Accounting (21)
27.142857142857146%
2.7
Accounts payable
90%
9.0
Accounts receivable
100%
10.0
Cash management
80%
8.0
Bank reconciliation
100%
10.0
Expense management
N/A
N/A
Time tracking
N/A
N/A
Fixed asset management
100%
10.0
Multi-currency support
N/A
N/A
Multi-division support
N/A
N/A
Regulations compliance
N/A
N/A
Electronic tax filing
N/A
N/A
Self-service portal
N/A
N/A
Global Financial Support
N/A
N/A
Primary and Secondary Ledgers
N/A
N/A
Intercompany Accounting
N/A
N/A
Localizations
N/A
N/A
Journals and Reconciliations
100%
10.0
Enterprise Accounting
N/A
N/A
Configurable Accounting
N/A
N/A
Centralized Rules Framework
N/A
N/A
Standardized Processes
N/A
N/A
Inventory Management (4)
N/A
N/A
Inventory tracking
N/A
N/A
Automatic reordering
N/A
N/A
Location management
N/A
N/A
Manufacturing module
N/A
N/A
Order Management (7)
N/A
N/A
Pricing
N/A
N/A
Order entry
N/A
N/A
Credit card processing
N/A
N/A
Cost of goods sold
N/A
N/A
Order Orchestration
N/A
N/A
End-to-end order visibility
N/A
N/A
Order exception Resolution
N/A
N/A
Payroll Management (5)
N/A
N/A
Pay calculation
N/A
N/A
Benefit plan administration
N/A
N/A
Direct deposit files
N/A
N/A
Salary revision and increment management
N/A
N/A
Reimbursement management
N/A
N/A
Reporting & Analytics (3)
80%
8.0
Dashboards
60%
6.0
Standard reports
100%
10.0
Custom reports
80%
8.0
Customization (2)
N/A
N/A
API for custom integration
N/A
N/A
Plug-ins
N/A
N/A
Security (2)
45%
4.5
Role-based user permissions
N/A
N/A
Single sign-on capability
90%
9.0
  • QBO makes bookkeeping simple. If I have questions, I can use "the community" or call directly to Priority Circle. This saves time
  • The accuracy of QBO makes reports easy to understand. Studying and reviewing those reports is almost pleasant pleasant. If there is something questionable, all I need to do is click on it and I am transported to that transaction. I can see what happened and/or make corrections. This saves money
I have not used any other products like QBO, nor have I used previous versions of Quickbooks. My Company requires QBO and from the get go, I've been very pleased with it.
When I first began using QBO, I did not know what to expect as I had no bookkeeping experience for a general business rather than medical which was my previous job. However, there were many similarities.The reports feature is really super with the ability to customize. Paying bills is a multi step breeze. When a check is cashed, QBO matches it with the bill which generated it and everything falls into place. For expenses, I can add a copy of a register receipt directly. QBO keeps track of vendors and makes sure that vendors with similar spelling are noted when using. Also. each vendor profile has ability to note Tax ID and 1099 tracking.
The agents in Priority Circle should all have a 10 rating, but, alas, there are some who clearly started 5 minutes ago. I don't have time for that nonsense. The excellent agents stand out with their knowledge and ease of using the program. They are part translator and psychologist as there are times when the frustration level is so high that I can not get the correct words out. But they remain calm and are able to ferret out what's going on. Their solutions can be quick and elegant depending on the situation. Many times they can show me multiple ways to fix my problems and I really appreciate that. Sometimes, it may take hours to reach a conclusion or solution but they always remain cheerful and engaged. They are devoted to making sure that I am satisfied with their answers and never have I felt rushed. After contacting an agent, I am sent a survey with various standard questions and an opportunity to write why I answered as I did. I always complete the surveys because I think that QBO should know when the agents do an outstanding job.
  • no training
No, it was not easy to learn. And I can speak Greek! I was the only employee in the brand new office of a brand new business so there was no one who had been there before to give direction. However, the QBO telephone agents made me aware that there were online lessons that were included in my subscription and I began to study those. I watched You Tube videos. The QBO online lessons were made for situations in which nothing went wrong, but I persevered. I made hundreds of mistakes and problems for myself but the telephone agents were always there to bail me out. Slowly, I began to understand why QBO wants things done a certain way (the QBO way) and as I continued, things began to make much more sense to me. After a year or so, I returned to some of the online QBO lessons and now they made sense to me. And with my current knowledge, and rewatching those online lessons, I could refine my skills.
I would recommend the solo method only if you are a self starter, are passionate about making things work right, are determined that you will master this stuff, and have the time to call in to QBO for their excellent agents who are equally determined to see you succeed in business and in QBO
Premium support is included in my subscription and I love it. The agents are dedicated to all things Quickbooks and devoted to finding solutions to my questions and problems. With few exceptions, they are all amazing and have vast experience with QBO. The usual wait for an agent is under 10 minutes. There have been a few agents who sound like they started 5 minutes ago and I don't have time for that nonsense, so I hang up and try again. The agents will not stop working until they are satisfied that I have a complete understanding of why things went wrong, how they fixed it and how I can avoid this problem in the future
No
This is a hard to choose option since there have been too many instances of exceptional service. About a year ago, when I first started QBO I made many, many problems for myself. Things were recorded wrong, categories were wrong, numbers didn't add up, vendor transactions had multiple entries for the same amount. It was a nightmare for me. When I would call in, I told the agents I don't care what they do to fix it, just please fix it. I gotta tell you, it was like riding around with Indiana Jones. With the screen share Smart Look, I had to do all the work as they could see but not control my screen. As we worked together, I had seen screens that I never knew existed. I learned that I could unreconcile things that were reconciled, fix the situation and then poof!, I could reconcile again (with admonishments not to do this without supervision). The frequency and numbers of my mistakes, along with with excellent QBO agents, were actually instrumental in my QBO education. No one learns anything when things are perfect. The more mistakes I made, the more solutions I learned! and I learned agents approached the solutions differently--which gave me more solutions to use. This, on the whole, has been a fun learning process.
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