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Accounting · head to head

QuickBooks vs Workiva

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
Workiva logo

Workiva

Accounting

Connected reporting platform for SEC filings, iXBRL tagging, SOX and sustainability disclosure

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: 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.; Workiva pricing is quoted per solution and per user and is not published, and because moving a filing cycle off the platform carries deadline risk, renewal negotiations favour the vendor heavily.
  • They diverge on capability: QuickBooks covers General ledger, Workiva covers Linked data.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which QuickBooks and Workiva actually diverge.

Attributes where QuickBooks and Workiva differ
AttributeQuickBooksWorkiva
Starting price$30/monthOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionquote
PlatformsWeb, Ios, Android, ApiWeb
Founded1983Unknown

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 QuickBooks

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

Only in Workiva

  • Linked data
  • Inline XBRL tagging
  • SEC filing
  • SOX and controls
  • Sustainability reporting
  • Audit trail
  • Collaboration
  • Data connectors

What people use each for

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

QuickBooks

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

Workiva

  • A newly public company facing its first 10-K where the tie-out process in Word and Excel is not survivable at the deadlinenot QuickBooks
  • A European group preparing CSRD sustainability disclosure that must be assurance-ready rather than a marketing documentnot QuickBooks
  • A finance team whose auditors keep raising review points about version control and unsupported changes in the reporting packnot QuickBooks
  • A group with several statutory filers that wants one set of numbers feeding many jurisdictional reportsnot QuickBooks

Where each one falls short

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

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.

Workiva

  • Pricing is quoted per solution and per user and is not published, and because moving a filing cycle off the platform carries deadline risk, renewal negotiations favour the vendor heavily.
  • Cost is difficult to justify for smaller filers whose reporting burden is a single 10-K a year, where an outsourced financial printer is cheaper.
  • Getting the initial linked-data structure right is a substantial project, and companies that rush the first cycle end up with links that break and a manual tie-out anyway.
  • The spreadsheet interface is deliberately not Excel and finance teams accustomed to Excel keyboard behaviour and modelling features find it slower for anything analytical.
  • ESG and sustainability modules were added later than the financial reporting core and buyers report them as less mature, so a company buying primarily for CSRD is buying the newer and weaker half of the product.

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Workiva

On request
  • Workiva Platform$undefined/year
    • Linked data across documents and spreadsheets
    • SEC and ESEF filing with iXBRL tagging
    • SOX, internal audit and statutory reporting modules

Which should you pick?

Choose QuickBooks if

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

Choose Workiva if

  • You need linked data.
  • You also want inline xbrl tagging.
Workiva review

Questions people ask

Is QuickBooks or Workiva better?
Neither clearly leads. QuickBooks starts at $30/month and Workiva at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, QuickBooks or Workiva?
QuickBooks starts at $30/month and Workiva at On request.
Does QuickBooks or Workiva run on more platforms?
QuickBooks runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api. Workiva runs on Web.
What is QuickBooks best used for?
QuickBooks is most often used for a small business whose accountant works in quickbooks and can take a free access seat rather than being sent exports, an owner who wants to be able to replace their bookkeeper without also replacing the accounting system, a service business needing project level profitability without buying a separate job costing tool, a company that wants a large third party app ecosystem to fill gaps rather than a system that must do everything itself. Of those, a small business whose accountant works in quickbooks and can take a free access seat rather than being sent exports and an owner who wants to be able to replace their bookkeeper without also replacing the accounting system are not what Workiva is typically brought in for.
What can QuickBooks do that Workiva cannot?
QuickBooks covers General ledger, Bank feeds, Reconciliation, Sales invoicing. Workiva covers Linked data, Inline XBRL tagging, SEC filing, SOX and controls.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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.

Workiva: Does Workiva do the XBRL tagging for me?

The platform provides tagging tools and validation, and Workiva offers services, but the tagging judgement remains the filer's responsibility.

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.

Workiva: Is it only for US SEC filers?

No. It supports European ESEF filings, statutory reporting in several jurisdictions and sustainability frameworks such as CSRD and ISSB.

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.

Workiva: What does it cost?

Not published. Expect tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars a year depending on solutions and user count.

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.

Workiva: Can it replace our consolidation system?

No. It reports on consolidated numbers and connects to ERP and consolidation tools, but it does not perform the consolidation.

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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