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Accounting · head to head

Empower vs QuickBooks

Empower logo

Empower

Accounting

All your finances. One app.

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
QuickBooks logo

QuickBooks

Accounting

Cloud accounting from Intuit with country specific editions, seat caps by plan and payroll charged separately

From
$30/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Empower specific advisory fees not published; Form ADV consultation required; QuickBooks plans cap the number of billed users, so an approver who signs off bills and a manager who only reads reports each consume a seat and can force an upgrade to a higher tier for reasons that have nothing to do with accounting complexity.
  • They diverge on capability: Empower covers Net worth tracking, QuickBooks covers General ledger.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Empower and QuickBooks actually diverge.

Attributes where Empower and QuickBooks differ
AttributeEmpowerQuickBooks
Starting priceOn request$30/month
Pricing modelquotesubscription
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb, Ios, Android, Api
Founded20091983

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Accounting).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Empower

  • Net worth tracking
  • Investment tracking
  • Retirement planner
  • Cash flow
  • 401k fee analyzer
  • Bank connections
  • Brokerage accounts
  • SOC 2

Only in QuickBooks

  • General ledger
  • Bank feeds
  • Reconciliation
  • Sales invoicing
  • Bills and expenses
  • Sales tax and value added tax
  • Multi currency
  • Inventory

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Empower

  • Wealth trackingnot QuickBooks
  • Retirement planningnot QuickBooks
  • Investment analysisnot QuickBooks

QuickBooks

  • A small business whose accountant works in QuickBooks and can take a free access seat rather than being sent exportsnot Empower
  • An owner who wants to be able to replace their bookkeeper without also replacing the accounting systemnot Empower
  • A service business needing project level profitability without buying a separate job costing toolnot Empower
  • A company that wants a large third party app ecosystem to fill gaps rather than a system that must do everything itselfnot Empower

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Empower

  • Specific advisory fees not published; Form ADV consultation required
  • High minimum investment thresholds ($100,000 for Personal Strategy)
  • Detailed fee structure available only in Form ADV documents

QuickBooks

  • Plans cap the number of billed users, so an approver who signs off bills and a manager who only reads reports each consume a seat and can force an upgrade to a higher tier for reasons that have nothing to do with accounting complexity.
  • Multi currency is confined to the higher tiers and, once enabled, cannot be turned off and the home currency cannot be changed, so a single foreign currency invoice permanently changes the shape of the file and the plan you must remain on.
  • Inventory is average cost only, with no first in first out or standard costing, so a business whose accounts or tax position depend on a different costing method has to track stock outside the ledger and post adjustments.
  • There is no multi entity consolidation, so a group runs a separate subscription and file per company and consolidates in a spreadsheet, and the cost and the manual consolidation both grow with each new entity.
  • The country edition is selected at setup and cannot be changed afterwards, and the editions differ in tax handling and features, so a business that redomiciles or discovers it chose the global edition rather than a localised one starts a new file rather than switching a setting.

Pricing, plan by plan

Empower

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the Empower review.

QuickBooks

$30/month
  • Simple Start$30/month
    • Income & expense tracking
    • Invoice & payments
    • Tax deductions
  • Essentials$60/month
    • Everything in Simple Start
    • Bill management
    • Time tracking
  • Plus$90/month
    • Everything in Essentials
    • Inventory tracking
    • Project profitability
  • Advanced$200/month
    • Everything in Plus
    • Dedicated account team
    • 25 users

Which should you pick?

Choose Empower if

  • You need net worth tracking.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want investment tracking.
Empower review

Choose QuickBooks if

  • You need general ledger.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
  • You also want bank feeds.
QuickBooks review

Questions people ask

Is Empower or QuickBooks better?
Neither clearly leads. Empower starts at On request and QuickBooks at $30/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Empower or QuickBooks?
Empower starts at On request and QuickBooks at $30/month.
Does Empower or QuickBooks run on more platforms?
Empower runs on Web, Ios, Android. QuickBooks runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
What is Empower best used for?
Empower is most often used for wealth tracking, retirement planning, investment analysis. Of those, wealth tracking and retirement planning are not what QuickBooks is typically brought in for.
What can Empower do that QuickBooks cannot?
Empower covers Net worth tracking, Investment tracking, Retirement planner, Cash flow. QuickBooks covers General ledger, Bank feeds, Reconciliation, Sales invoicing.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Empower: Does Empower have a minimum investment requirement?

Empower's advisory services require different minimums based on service level. Personal Strategy advisory requires a minimum of $100,000 in investable assets. Private Client services require $1,000,000 or more.

Source
QuickBooks: Which country editions actually exist?

Intuit sells localised editions principally for the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, with a global edition for other markets that has lighter tax localisation. Check that your country has a genuine localised edition before assuming filing support, and note the edition cannot be changed after setup.

Empower: How are Empower's advisory fees calculated?

Advisory fees are calculated based on the amount of assets being managed under advice. Specific fee rates are not disclosed on the homepage.

Source
QuickBooks: Does the subscription include payroll?

No. Payroll is a separate subscription with a per employee charge in every market that offers it. Price it alongside the plan rather than after you have committed.

Empower: Is the high-yield cash account free?

Yes. Empower's high-yield cash account has no account fees and no minimum balance required.

Source
QuickBooks: How many users do I get?

It depends on the tier, and the limits are lower than most buyers expect. Accountant access seats are free and separate, but internal approvers and read only reviewers count against the billed limit, so count everyone who needs to sign in before choosing a plan.

Empower: Are there fees for stock and ETF trading?

Empower offers commission-free trading for stocks and ETFs with low fees.

Source
QuickBooks: Can my accountant work directly in my file?

Yes, that is one of its main advantages. Accountants use a separate practice console and take a free access seat in your company, which is also why so many practices standardise on it.

QuickBooks: Is QuickBooks Desktop still available?

The desktop line persists in the United States for larger installations, but Intuit stopped selling new subscriptions of the smaller desktop products to new customers and the investment is in the online product. Treat desktop as a legacy path rather than a choice for a new business.

QuickBooks: How hard is it to migrate to or from QuickBooks?

Getting in from another system is well trodden and there are tools and specialists for it, though transaction history usually arrives partially rather than completely. Getting out is the harder direction, because your accountant's working knowledge, your app integrations and years of coded history all have to be reproduced. Most businesses move at a year end for that reason.

QuickBooks: Can it consolidate multiple companies?

No. Each legal entity needs its own subscription and file, and the consolidation happens outside the system. Groups with several entities should price that reality in from the start.

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