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QuickBooks vs Zoho Books

QuickBooks logo

QuickBooks

Software

Smart, simple online accounting software for small business

From
$30/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Zoho Books logo

Zoho Books

Software

Simple, smart accounting software for growing businesses

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Zoho Books has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: QuickBooks chart of Accounts is capped on every QuickBooks Online tier except Advanced; Simple Start, Essentials and Plus all have a limited entry count; Zoho Books payroll only available in Texas and California, limiting US usefulness
  • They diverge on capability: QuickBooks covers Income & expense tracking, Zoho Books covers Expense tracking.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which QuickBooks and Zoho Books actually diverge.

Attributes where QuickBooks and Zoho Books differ
AttributeQuickBooksZoho Books
Starting price$30/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionUnknown
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Ios, Android, ApiWeb, iOS, Android
Founded19831996

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 QuickBooks

  • Income & expense tracking
  • Payment processing
  • Financial reporting
  • Tax preparation
  • Bill management
  • Mobile apps
  • Square
  • Shopify

Only in Zoho Books

  • Expense tracking
  • Financial reports
  • Tax compliance
  • Zoho CRM
  • SOC 2
  • GDPR
  • Web support
  • Ios support

Both cover

  • Invoicing
  • Bank reconciliation
  • PayPal
  • Stripe

What people use each for

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

QuickBooks

  • Bookkeepingnot Zoho Books
  • Invoicing
  • Expense trackingnot Zoho Books
  • Financial reportingnot Zoho Books
  • Tax preparation

Zoho Books

  • Invoicing
  • Expense managementnot QuickBooks
  • Tax preparation

Both are used for invoicing, tax preparation, on those jobs the choice comes down to price and fit rather than capability.

Where each one falls short

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

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

Zoho Books

  • Payroll only available in Texas and California, limiting US usefulness
  • Limited access to historical financial data compared to competitors
  • Customer support is slow with long response times and frustrating workarounds
  • Fewer integrations than QuickBooks Online and Xero
  • User limit restrictions (1-15 depending on plan) compared to Xero's unlimited users
  • Occasional inaccuracies in automatic exchange rate updates for international transactions

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

Zoho Books

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 1 user + accountant
    • Unlimited invoices
  • Standard$20/month
    • 3 users
    • Core accounting
  • Professional$60/month
    • 5 users
    • Advanced reporting
  • Premium$120/month
    • 10 users
    • Inventory management

Which should you pick?

Choose QuickBooks if

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

Choose Zoho Books if

  • You need expense tracking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want financial reports.
Zoho Books review

Questions people ask

Is QuickBooks or Zoho Books better?
Neither clearly leads. QuickBooks starts at $30/month and Zoho Books at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, QuickBooks or Zoho Books?
Zoho Books has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $30/month for QuickBooks and Free for Zoho Books.
Does QuickBooks or Zoho Books run on more platforms?
QuickBooks runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api. Zoho Books runs on Web, iOS, Android.
Can I use Zoho Books for free?
Yes. Zoho Books has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. QuickBooks starts at $30/month.
What is QuickBooks best used for?
QuickBooks is most often used for bookkeeping, invoicing, expense tracking, financial reporting. Of those, bookkeeping and expense tracking are not what Zoho Books is typically brought in for.
What can QuickBooks do that Zoho Books cannot?
QuickBooks covers Income & expense tracking, Payment processing, Financial reporting, Tax preparation. Zoho Books covers Expense tracking, Financial reports, Tax compliance, Zoho CRM. Both handle Invoicing, Bank reconciliation, PayPal, Stripe.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Zoho Books: Does Zoho Books support payroll?

Zoho Books offers limited payroll integration available only in Texas and California currently. Outside these states, users must use separate payroll software.

Source
Zoho Books: How many users can access one account?

User limits vary by plan: Free tier (1 user + accountant), Standard (3 users), Professional (5 users), Premium (10 users), Elite (15 users). Each business requires separate subscription.

Source
Zoho Books: What integrations does Zoho Books support?

Zoho Books integrates with Shopify, WooCommerce, Razorpay, PayPal, Stripe, Salesforce, Google Sheets, and 500+ apps via Zapier. It integrates with other Zoho products like Zoho Inventory and Zoho Projects.

Source
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