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Passbolt vs QuickBooks

Passbolt logo

Passbolt

Software

Open-source password manager for teams with self-hosted or cloud deployment

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
QuickBooks logo

QuickBooks

Software

Smart, simple online accounting software for small business

From
$30/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Passbolt has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Passbolt pro Edition requires a minimum of 10 users, making it costlier for very small teams.; QuickBooks chart of Accounts is capped on every QuickBooks Online tier except Advanced; Simple Start, Essentials and Plus all have a limited entry count
  • They diverge on capability: Passbolt covers Password sharing and folders, QuickBooks covers Income & expense tracking.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Passbolt and QuickBooks actually diverge.

Attributes where Passbolt and QuickBooks differ
AttributePassboltQuickBooks
Starting priceFree$30/month
Pricing modelopen-sourcesubscription
Free tierYesNo
Platformsweb, windows, mac, linux, apiWeb, Ios, Android, Api
FoundedUnknown1983

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

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 Passbolt

  • Password sharing and folders
  • Groups and role-based access
  • Browser extensions and CLI
  • Open API
  • LDAP provisioning and SSO
  • Activity audit log

Only in QuickBooks

  • Income & expense tracking
  • Invoicing
  • Payment processing
  • Financial reporting
  • Tax preparation
  • Bank reconciliation
  • Bill management
  • Mobile apps

What people use each for

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

Passbolt

  • Self-hosting a team password manager for data sovereigntynot QuickBooks
  • Provisioning vault access from an existing LDAP/AD directorynot QuickBooks
  • Sharing credentials across engineering or IT teams via folders and groupsnot QuickBooks
  • Automating credential retrieval through the CLI or open APInot QuickBooks

QuickBooks

  • Bookkeepingnot Passbolt
  • Invoicingnot Passbolt
  • Expense trackingnot Passbolt
  • Financial reportingnot Passbolt
  • Tax preparationnot Passbolt

Where each one falls short

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

Passbolt

  • Pro Edition requires a minimum of 10 users, making it costlier for very small teams.
  • Community Edition lacks SSO and LDAP provisioning, which many organizations need for onboarding at scale.
  • Self-hosting the Community Edition requires infrastructure and maintenance effort compared to fully managed competitors.
  • Enterprise-tier support and HA consulting require custom, quote-based pricing rather than transparent rates.

QuickBooks

  • Chart of Accounts is capped on every QuickBooks Online tier except Advanced; Simple Start, Essentials and Plus all have a limited entry count
  • Even the top Advanced tier caps bulk invoice uploads at 1,000 transaction lines per batch
  • Payroll is a separate paid add-on billed per employee per month (USD 6 to 10 depending on plan) on top of the base subscription

Pricing, plan by plan

Passbolt

Free
  • Community EditionFree
    • Unlimited users
    • Password sharing and folders
    • Role-based access control
  • Pro Edition$4.9/month
    • Minimum 10 users, billed annually
    • LDAP/AD provisioning
    • Single sign-on
  • Enterprise Edition$undefined/month
    • High availability and disaster recovery consulting
    • White-glove migration
    • Custom feature development

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 Passbolt if

  • You need password sharing and folders.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, windows, mac, linux, api.
  • You also want groups and role-based access.
Passbolt review

Choose QuickBooks if

  • You need income & expense tracking.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
  • You also want invoicing.
QuickBooks review

Questions people ask

Is Passbolt or QuickBooks better?
Neither clearly leads. Passbolt starts at Free and QuickBooks at $30/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Passbolt or QuickBooks?
Passbolt has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Passbolt and $30/month for QuickBooks.
Does Passbolt or QuickBooks run on more platforms?
Passbolt runs on web, windows, mac, linux, api. QuickBooks runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
Can I use Passbolt for free?
Yes. Passbolt has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. QuickBooks starts at $30/month.
What is Passbolt best used for?
Passbolt is most often used for self-hosting a team password manager for data sovereignty, provisioning vault access from an existing ldap/ad directory, sharing credentials across engineering or it teams via folders and groups, automating credential retrieval through the cli or open api. Of those, self-hosting a team password manager for data sovereignty and provisioning vault access from an existing ldap/ad directory are not what QuickBooks is typically brought in for.
What can Passbolt do that QuickBooks cannot?
Passbolt covers Password sharing and folders, Groups and role-based access, Browser extensions and CLI, Open API. QuickBooks covers Income & expense tracking, Invoicing, Payment processing, Financial reporting.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Passbolt: Is Passbolt free to use?

Yes. The Community Edition is free forever with unlimited users, including password sharing, folders, groups, role-based access, browser extensions, a CLI, and an open API.

Source
Passbolt: What does the Pro Edition cost and add?

Pro Edition costs $4.90 per user per month billed annually, with a 10-user minimum, and adds LDAP/AD provisioning, single sign-on, account recovery escrow, activity audit logs, and next-business-day support.

Source
Passbolt: What license is Passbolt distributed under?

All Passbolt editions, including Pro and Enterprise, are distributed under the AGPL v3 open-source license.

Source
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