USA · HelloBooks vs QuickBooks
HelloBooks vs QuickBooks for US small businesses
QuickBooks’ free tier allows 2 invoices a month. HelloBooks Free is $0 with invoices, bills and quotes within 200 transactions/year, one live bank feed and no credit card. When you grow, HelloBooks Pro is $39.99/month with unlimited users, and your QuickBooks data migrates in under an hour.
Free plan vs free plan: HelloBooks and QuickBooks
HelloBooks Free ($0/mo)
- Unlimited invoices, bills and quotes
- Unlimited email payment reminders
- 1 live bank feed through Plaid
- 2 users
- No credit card and no expiry date
QuickBooks
QuickBooks’ free tier allows 2 invoices a month.
Source: QuickBooks pricing (checked September 2026)
QuickBooks is a trademark of its owner. HelloBooks is not affiliated with or endorsed by QuickBooks.
HelloBooks vs QuickBooks Online (US)
| Feature | HelloBooks | QuickBooks Online |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price (USD) | Free Plan; Pro $39.99/mo, unlimited users | Simple Start $38/mo, 1 user; Plus $140/mo at 5 users (raised again in 2026) |
| Plaid bank feeds | 11,000+ US banks included on Free Plan | Multi-provider feeds; intermittent re-auth disruptions reported |
| AI categorization | Built-in AI agent, 95%+ accuracy, every plan | Six named agents, five GA since 1 Jul 2025; AI bank feed default since 8 May 2026. Human-in-the-loop — high-confidence transactions are grouped for one-click review, not posted unattended. Agent availability varies by plan |
| AI cost vs the plan price | AI categorizations bundled in Pro — AI never costs extra for a typical SMB | Pay up to Essentials ($85/mo) to reach Accounting AI and Payments AI |
| 1099-NEC tracking & e-file | Free Plan up to 3 contractors; unlimited on Pro | Requires QuickBooks Contractor add-on; per-contractor fee at filing |
| Per-user fees | Unlimited users on Pro at $39.99/mo flat | Seat counts capped per tier (1 → 25); need Advanced ($340/mo) for more |
| Avalara sales tax | Included on Pro; multi-state computation per line | Separate Avalara subscription required |
| SOC 2 Type II | Current cert; report available from /trust-center | Yes |
| Data export at cancellation | Free CSV/QBO/Xero export, 90-day read-only window | Limited export; data lock-in risk for migration off |
| CPA Practice tier | Per-client pricing, batch close, unlimited firm staff | ProAdvisor program separate; QuickBooks Accountant subscription |
QuickBooks Simple Start vs HelloBooks Free
Simple Start is QuickBooks Online's entry paid plan. HelloBooks Free is a permanent $0 plan. Here is how the two entry points line up.
| QuickBooks Simple Start | HelloBooks Free | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $38/mo (regular price) | $0/mo, no time limit |
| Users | 1 user, plus access for 2 accountants | 2 users |
| Bookkeeping | Automated bookkeeping | 1 live bank feed |
| Invoices, bills, quotes | Invoice and get paid; bill pay | Unlimited invoices, bills and quotes |
| AI | AI chat and expense categorisation | free AI credits to get started |
Where Simple Start is ahead: it comes with expert-guided onboarding and access for 2 accountants, and it has no Free-plan meters. On HelloBooks, export, recurring invoices and multi-currency are paid features; Starter is $14.99/mo if you outgrow Free.
QuickBooks figures read from quickbooks.intuit.com/pricing on 2026-09-30; introductory discounts not shown. HelloBooks figures from our live US price list.
US migration runbook
- 1
Export from QuickBooks
Sign in to QuickBooks Online → Gear → Export Data → choose date range → download the .QBO or CSV bundle. The export includes COA, customers, vendors, items, opening balances, and transactions. Takes 5–15 minutes for a typical SMB workspace.
- 2
Import into HelloBooks
On your new HelloBooks workspace, navigate to Settings → Import → QuickBooks. Upload the .QBO file. The mapping screen lets you adjust QuickBooks account names to your preferred HelloBooks chart structure before commit. Auto-runs in 2–10 minutes.
- 3
Verify trial balance
Open Reports → Trial Balance and confirm the totals match your QuickBooks closing balances at migration cutoff. The HelloBooks ledger now has every transaction with the correct GL account, vendor, and customer mapped.
- 4
Hook up Plaid bank feeds
Settings → Bank Connections → Add. Sign in to your bank through Plaid, choose accounts, and HelloBooks pulls the last 24 months of transactions for AI categorization against your imported chart.
- 5
Run dual books for one cycle (optional)
Many US clients keep QuickBooks active for one month after migration as a sanity check — HelloBooks two-way sync keeps both ledgers aligned. After one clean month-end close on HelloBooks, cancel QuickBooks.
- 6
Move 1099 vendors over
Vendors marked 1099-eligible in QuickBooks come across with the flag set. HelloBooks tracks YTD payments and generates 1099-NEC forms in January for IRS e-filing — included on Pro, no per-contractor fee.
US QuickBooks switch — frequently asked
Try HelloBooks free next to QuickBooks
Free Plan, no credit card. Pro at $39.99/month with unlimited users and AI included. Plaid feeds and 1099 included.
Start Free — migrate from QuickBooks