It offers a comprehensive set of invoicing features that allow you to create custom invoices, automate recurring billing, manage expenses, and handle multiple currencies. Because of its poor bank reconciliation feature and inability to print checks and connect bank accounts in the free plan, it also scored low in banking. However, the free plan does allow you to upload your banking transactions from a CSV file. Its inventory and project features are almost non-existent, so it took a hit there as well. While the platform is fairly easy to use, its mobile app and integrations are lacking. These are all features that QuickBooks Online offers, as well as the ability to track using classes and locations.
You can also plan project schedules and set employee costs and client billing rates. It took a hit for ease of use because it is not that intuitive to navigate and requires accounting software integration. In addition, since it is dedicated solely to invoicing, it lacks essential accounting features, such as expense tracking and bank reconciliation. If you’re seeking bookkeeping features alongside invoicing, you might want to check out more powerful software like Zoho Books. We selected Invoicera as the best standalone invoicing software as an alternative to QuickBooks because its features can be customized to the needs of your business.
QuickBooks, on the other hand, offers a choice of a 30-day free trial or 50% off for the first three months. It also didn’t score as well for its customer support, mainly because it offers only email support for Free users, requiring you to upgrade to a paid plan for all forms of customer support. QuickBooks Online offers plenty of customer support options, including phone, email, live chat, and chatbot.
It also doesn’t allow you to combine multiple checks in a single deposit, issue a credit memo, or add tracked expenses to an invoice, also features that are available with QuickBooks. It aced our evaluation of integrations because it integrates with more than 115 third-party applications in several categories, though QuickBooks Online offers more than 750 integrations. Meanwhile, it didn’t score very well for its pricing because its plans are priced for one user only, with additional seats costing $11 per user, per month. It also didn’t perform well in banking because you can’t reconcile bank statements unless you connect to your bank account, while QuickBooks lets you reconcile with or without a bank connection.
Everything about the platform is designed for ease of use, which results in some features being fantastic for new business owners, albeit a bit confusing for experienced bookkeepers. Aside from its features, QuickBooks has a vast network of certified public accountants (CPAs), bookkeepers, and firms that offer accounting support through the QuickBooks ProAdvisor program. This program helps businesses get access to professional accounting help, locally and internationally. What’s more, the platform has a client portal where customers can view outstanding invoices, pay bills online, and check completed projects. Sage 50 also scored relatively high for inventory management and customer service, mainly because it is available 24/7 for phone and online chat support. However, it received one of the lowest marks in this guide for pricing because it is more expensive than its competitors, especially if you have more than one user.
- You can also record a fixed asset in QuickBooks Online and assign labor and inventory to projects.
- You can also plan project schedules and set employee costs and client billing rates.
- However, it faced some usability concerns, as it requires integration with Zoho Books to unlock access to accounting features.
- Software is rated based on its price for various levels of users, including one, three, and five users.
We chose Wave for individuals wanting a free option for basic accounting needs such as tracking expenses, issuing invoices, and tracking unpaid bills—something QuickBooks doesn’t offer. Even though we discussed that Zoho Books has a free version, it has a $50,000 annual revenue limit while Wave Starter is free without a revenue limit. A good invoicing software must also provide sufficient customer support options for users, like phone support and live chat.
Sage 50: Best QuickBooks Desktop Alternative for Multicompany Accounting
Unlike QuickBooks Online, if you think a certain Zoho Books plan’s features are enough for your needs, you don’t need to upgrade to get more users. Instead, you can pay for additional seats at an affordable price of $3 per user, per month. QuickBooks dominates the market for small business accounting—but it isn’t always the best answer, and there are many alternatives to QuickBooks to consider. Depending on your budget, required features, and industry, you might find an option that will meet your needs better.
It provides customizable invoice templates and multiple payment gateway integrations, and it supports various payment methods, making it suitable for businesses of different sizes and industries. However, it has no live bank feeds or other essential bookkeeping features like paying bills or reconciling your account, features that QuickBooks does offer. Despite being a free tool, Zoho Invoice received high ratings for its invoice customization and overall invoicing features.
What Is Bookkeeping and What Does a Bookkeeper Do?
A good mobile app should be able to perform all the same functions as the computer interface. You can evaluate Sage 50 presenting restricted cash and cash equivalents in not by clicking “Take a test drive” on its website, which will allow you to access a hosted version of it with sample data.
It lets you select from different templates, change the invoice colors, edit the invoice fields, and upload your company logo to make your invoice look more professional. It also received perfect scores for its invoicing features, pricing, and mobile app. In our review of Xero, we found that it performed especially well for its general accounting features, where it received a perfect mark, and nearly perfect scores for its A/R and A/P features. It also aced our evaluation of integrations, with more than 100 apps available in the Xero App Store.
Zoho Invoice: Best Free Standalone Invoicing Software
Zoho Books is our top QuickBooks alternative because of its scalability and mobile app functionality. Wave is second on our list as it has a free plan that provides sufficient support for businesses with basic bookkeeping needs. We recommend Wave as the best free alternative to QuickBooks because it has a free plan for invoicing https://intuit-payroll.org/ and accounting. Along with subjective evaluation by our accounting experts, the ease-of-use score indicates whether the software is cloud-based. Other components include whether it requires a third-party bookkeeping software integration. Another consideration is access to a network of experts, which Square Invoices lacks.
You can also record a fixed asset in QuickBooks Online and assign labor and inventory to projects. The closest solution to QuickBooks Online that offers these capabilities is QuickBooks Desktop. It also took a big hit for its mobile app, which can only capture receipts but not send invoices or enter bill payments. Also, it has a steep learning curve and a difficult setup process, so its score was docked in the ease of setup and use categories while QuickBooks Online earned near-perfect scores.
Why should I look for an alternative to QuickBooks?
You can also track using classes and locations as well as record fixed assets with QuickBooks Online. FreshBooks has a solid mobile app that lets you perform many of the same functions as the desktop interface except assigning expenses to projects. It also integrates with more than 70 software programs, earning it a perfect score for integrations.
However, Xero fell short in customer service, with only a chatbot, email, and self-help information available to its users. While Xero does have an advisor network, it is small compared to the QuickBooks ProAdvisor Network. It also is difficult to set up without some accounting knowledge, so Xero took a hit in ease of setup.
In addition, it allows you to bill your clients directly from time entries and billable expenses—which is great for businesses that offer services billed by the hour or project. To help you speed up payment collection, you can add payment links to your invoices, which your clients can use to conveniently process their payments. We selected Zoho Invoice as the best free standalone invoicing software because, despite being free, it offers a wide range of invoicing features that are crucial for businesses. It allows users to create and send professional invoices and supports multiple currencies and tax regulations. Also, although Zoho Books offers a 14-day free trial, it doesn’t offer a discount for new customers.
However, we also considered any limitations on transactions, vendors, or customers. Square Invoices is an excellent invoicing solution for smaller businesses and individuals as it’s free and easy to use, although it’s not the most robust invoicing solution on the market. It allows you to set up customer profiles with stored payment information and provides automations for reminders and estimate conversions. Customer service is evaluated based on the number of communication channels available, such as phone, live chat, and email. Companies also receive points based on other resources available, such as self-help articles and user community. Finally, companies are awarded points based on the ease with which users will find assistance from independent bookkeepers with expertise in the software.