Best QuickBooks Alternatives of May 2022
The best QuickBooks alternatives are easy to use, customizable and use double-entry accounting.
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QuickBooks Online has more than 5 million users globally, but this accounting product isn’t the best choice for every small business. It can be expensive and some features, like inventory management, are only available on higher-tier plans. Among other drawbacks, invoice customization options are lacking, and users without prior accounting knowledge may experience a learning curve.
Here are the best QuickBooks alternatives for small businesses:
QuickBooks Online has more than 5 million users globally, but this accounting product isn’t the best choice for every small business. It can be expensive and some features, like inventory management, are only available on higher-tier plans. Among other drawbacks, invoice customization options are lacking, and users without prior accounting knowledge may experience a learning curve.
Here are the best QuickBooks alternatives for small businesses:
Best QuickBooks Alternatives
Product | Best For | Starting at | Promotion | Learn More |
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() FreshBooks Accounting Shop now on FreshBooks Accounting's secure website | Best for Overall QuickBooks alternative | $15/mo Additional pricing tiers (per month): $25, $50, custom. | 60% off 60% off for first six months | Shop now on FreshBooks Accounting's secure website |
![]() Xero Shop now on Xero's secure website | Best for Ease of use | $12/mo Additional pricing tiers (per month): $34, $65. | 30- | Shop now on Xero's secure website |
![]() Wave Accounting Learn more on NerdWallet's secure website | Best for Free QuickBooks alternative | $0 Free (Wave makes money via payment processing). | N/A | Learn more on NerdWallet's secure website |
![]() Zoho Books Learn more on NerdWallet's secure website | Best for Invoicing | $0 Additional pricing tiers (per month): $20, $50, $70. | N/A | Learn more on NerdWallet's secure website |
![]() Sage 50cloud Learn more on NerdWallet's secure website | Best for Inventory management | $56/mo Additional pricing tiers (per month): $87.58, $145.17. | 40% off for the first year | Learn more on NerdWallet's secure website |
Our pick for
Overall QuickBooks alternative
Our pick for
Ease of use
Our pick for
Free QuickBooks alternative

on NerdWallet's secure website
Wave Accounting

Starting at
$0Free (Wave makes money via payment processing).
Promotion
N/Aon NerdWallet's secure website
Our pick for
Invoicing

on NerdWallet's secure website
Zoho Books

Starting at
$0Additional pricing tiers (per month): $20, $50, $70.
Promotion
N/Aon NerdWallet's secure website
Our pick for
Inventory management

on NerdWallet's secure website
Sage 50cloud

Starting at
$56/moAdditional pricing tiers (per month): $87.58, $145.17.
Promotion
40% off for the first yearon NerdWallet's secure website
Our picks for best QuickBooks alternatives
Click software name to read review.
Our pick for: Best overall QuickBooks alternative
Price:
Lite: $15 per month.
Plus: $25 per month.
Premium: $50 per month.
Select: Quote only.
Unlike QuickBooks Online, FreshBooks includes inventory management in all plans — and it does so for a lower price. Its customer service, in particular, gets positive reviews across multiple platforms. One downside: Unlike other products on our list, it comes with a user limit. All plans, except the Select plan, include access for only one user; additional users cost $10 each per month.
» MORE: FreshBooks vs. QuickBooks Online
Our pick for: Ease of use
Price:
Early: $12 per month.
Growing: $34 per month.
Established: $65 per month.
Xero stands out for ease of use and intuitiveness, especially for accounting novices. Its minimalist, simple design and jargon-free language are especially popular among small-business owners. Like QuickBooks Online, it's also widely used, which makes it easy to find accountants who support it. Unlike QuickBooks Online, however, it doesn’t list a phone number for customer support. Instead, users can seek help online 24/7 through chat or email, and Xero will follow up with a call if necessary.
» MORE: Xero vs. QuickBooks Online
Our pick for: Best free QuickBooks alternative
Price:
Free (Wave makes money via payment processing).
You can’t beat accounting software that’s completely free, and Wave delivers on most of the basics without requiring expensive add-ons. It’s a good alternative to QuickBooks Online if you’re on a tight budget and run a small operation, but it’s not ideal for scaling your business. Like Xero, there is no phone number available for customer support.
» MORE: Wave vs. QuickBooks Online
Our pick for: Invoicing
Price:
Free for businesses with less than $50,000 in annual revenue and one user.
Three users: $20 per month.
Five users: $50 per month.
10 users: $70 per month.
Zoho Books stands apart from QuickBooks Online because its combined invoice and accounting software product allows for more invoice customization. You can choose the invoice design, create invoices in multiple languages and accept payments in cash, check or online in different currencies. If you commit to the Zoho ecosystem, you can smoothly integrate its inventory management, CRM and other software with Zoho Books.
Our pick for: Inventory management
Price:
Pro Accounting: $56.08 per month for one user.
Premium Accounting: $87.58 (one user) to $201.58 (five users) per month.
Quantum Accounting: $145.17 (one user) to $371.08 per month (10 users).
For more than 10 users, contact Sage for pricing.
Sage 50cloud stands out for including solid inventory management and job costing features in all its plans. This could make it a better option for businesses with more complicated inventory needs, such as retail or manufacturing businesses, or service-based businesses that use job costing, like law firms. QuickBooks offers inventory tracking only in the Plus and Advanced plans. Since Sage 50cloud is a desktop software that runs only on Windows, it's different from all the other cloud-based software products on our list.
Awards for QuickBooks Online
QuickBooks Online earned a spot as one of the best products in NerdWallet roundups for these categories:
Last updated on April 25, 2022
To recap our selections...
NerdWallet's Best QuickBooks Alternatives of May 2022
- FreshBooks Accounting: Best for Overall QuickBooks alternative
- Xero: Best for Ease of use
- Wave Accounting: Best for Free QuickBooks alternative
- Zoho Books: Best for Invoicing
- Sage 50cloud: Best for Inventory management