Feeling confused about which accounting software to pick for your business?
You’re not alone…
It’s a big decision because the right software can save you time, money, and headaches.
But pick the wrong one, and you could face frustrating issues and wasted effort.
In 2025, both Zoho Books vs QuickBooks offer great tools.
So, how do you know which one is the best fit for your business?
Let’s find out which software will help your business thrive!
Overview
We tested both Zoho Books and QuickBooks.
We used them like real businesses would. This helped us see what each one does well.
Now, let’s compare them side-by-side.
With its free plan for businesses earning under $50,000 annually, Zoho Books is an excellent and accessible entry point.
Pricing: It has a free trial. The premium plan starts at $10/month.
Key Features:
- Client Portal
- Project Billing
- Inventory Management
Used by over 7 million businesses, QuickBooks can save you an average of 42 hours per month on bookkeeping.
Pricing: It has a free trial. Plan starts at $1.90/month.
Key Features:
- Invoice Management
- Expense Tracking
- Reporting
What is Zoho Books?
So, you’re curious about Zoho Books?
It’s like a helpful tool for your business money stuff.
It helps you keep track of your income and expenses.
Think of it as your digital bookkeeper!
Also, explore our favorite Zoho Books alternatives…
Key Benefits
- Offers a free plan for businesses with revenue under $50,000.
- Integrates with over 40 Zoho applications.
- Provides more than 50 pre-built financial reports.
- Has a client portal that boosts payment collection by 30%.
- No # warranty.
Pricing
- Free: $0/month.
- Standard: $10/month.
- Professional: $20/month.
- Premium: $30/month.
Pros
Cons
What is QuickBooks?
QuickBooks is like a helpful friend for your business money stuff.
It helps you keep track of what money comes in and what money goes out.
Lots of small businesses like using it.
Also, explore our favorite Quickbooks alternatives…
Key Benefits
- Automated transaction categorization
- Invoice creation and tracking
- Expense management
- Payroll services
- Reporting and dashboards
Pricing
- Simple Start: $1.90/month.
- Essential: $2.80/month.
- Plus: $4/month.
- Advanced: $7.60/month.
Pros
Cons
Future Comparison
Choosing the right accounting program is a pivotal step for any business. This comparison explores the core accounting features and advanced offerings from both Zoho Books and Intuit QuickBooks.
Helping small business owners and medium sized businesses make a data-driven choice for their business operations.
1. Overall Purpose and Core Accounting
- Zoho Books: It as a comprehensive accounting program that provides an all-in-one platform. Its core features are designed to help business owners manage a wide range of accounting tasks, from invoicing to inventory, within a single system.
- QuickBooks: It is a long-standing market leader with various quickbooks products, including an online version and a quickbooks desktop version. It is a full-fledged accounting program that quickbooks helps businesses of all sizes track money and maintain a clean chart of accounts.
2. Pricing and Scalability
- Zoho Books: It offers an affordable pricing structure, including a free plan and a free version. Its paid plans like the standard plan, professional plan, and premium plan offer a clear path for growth, making it a highly scalable solution.
- QuickBooks: It has a variety of pricing plans for its online version and an annual license for its quickbooks desktop products. The cost of a license for the quickbooks desktop version can be a competitive pricing point, but additional fees apply for extra users.
3. Invoicing and Payments
- Zoho Books: You can create invoices, send payment reminders, and set up recurring invoices with ease. The platform supports online payments through various payment gateways, including zoho payments, giving your clients a seamless experience and helping you collect accounts receivable promptly.
- QuickBooks: It is highly regarded for its invoicing. You can create invoices, get paid via online payments, and set up automated reminders. It also has specific products like quickbooks checking to help manage your business finances.
4. Expense Tracking and Bills
- Zoho Books: This software makes it easy to track expenses and manage recurring expenses. It streamlines the process of tracking and paying vendor invoices and bills. It also includes a vendor portal for efficient collaboration with your vendors.
- QuickBooks: It simplifies the process to pay bills and provides robust tools to track expenses. Its various products are also designed to help you maintain a clear picture of your finances for easier tax preparation.
5. Automation and Integrations
- Zoho Books: It offers a variety of automation tools to automate tasks and reduce manual data entry. It includes automated invoice reminders, automatic bank feeds, and powerful custom workflows. It also offers third party integrations to connect with business applications.
- QuickBooks: It has robust automation features for bookkeeping tasks, helping you save time. Intuit has a vast ecosystem of over 650 third party integrations. These integrations help users streamline many parts of their business, from sales to inventory.
6. Inventory and Reporting
- Zoho Books: It provides advanced inventory management and inventory tracking with its higher-tier plans like the elite plan and premium plan. You can also manage purchase orders and create detailed financial reports.
- QuickBooks: It has some inventory features, especially in its quickbooks desktop version. However, many of the online version plans rely on add-ons for robust inventory management. It offers extensive financial reports including balance sheets and a detailed chart of accounts.
7. Payroll and Time Tracking
- Zoho Books: For payroll, Zoho Books requires a separate service, such as zoho payments. It offers time tracking features to track employee time and to bill clients for specific projects.
- QuickBooks: It offers an integrated quickbooks payroll service, including options for direct deposit and contractor payments. It also offers quickbooks time, a dedicated tool for tracking employee time.
8. User Experience and Data Management
- Zoho Books: It has an intuitive interface and is known for its easy to use interface. You can use a dedicated mobile app to manage your finances from anywhere. The platform is secure, and you can invite multiple users to your company.
- QuickBooks: Several Quickbooks reviews often praise the online version for its modern interface, while the quickbooks desktop version has a more traditional feel. It allows users to maintain their desktop data or get online access to their files.
9. Special Features and Support
- Zoho Books: It provides advanced features like automated revenue recognition and a client portal for better collaboration. Its competitive pricing and the availability of helpful resources like the zoho books faqs make it an attractive option for businesses.
- QuickBooks: It provides advanced analytics and insights into financial health. It also has robust and fast data security measures to protect your business data and a range of customer support options. It is a powerful accounting software offers many benefits to a business.
What to look for in an Accounting Software?
- Core Financial Features and Reporting; Your best accounting software must manage your core financials, from every financial transaction to annual revenue. It should provide accurate reports and offer a clear view of your bank account and cash flow. It should also simplify tax compliance for your business. How does the software handle vendor invoices and sales tax? Can it help you stay on top of tax preparation?
- Automation and Efficiency: To minimize manual intervention, a good system offers automation tools. This is one of the key features that can save you a lot of time and help you stay organized. Look for a system that can automate tasks and handle repetitive tasks such as bank reconciliation.Can it perform transaction matching? Does it streamline the initial setup process?
- Usability and Collaboration: The right accounting software should have an easy to use interface that makes it simple to navigate on a computer. The platform should offer robust collaboration tools for your accountant and team. Integration with other platforms like Zoho CRM is a huge plus. How many users can you add to the system? Does it help you create professional invoices?
- Scalability and Customization: Your software should grow with you. Zoho Books stood out with its ability to scale from a small operation to a larger company. Look for software vendors that offer extensive customization to adapt to your unique workflow. Consider how the platform handles things like managing credit. Does the accounting software offers different pricing plans as you grow? How does the platform handle your specific business applications?
- Cost and Support: The best accounting software options provide a free trial so you can test the system before you buy. Many also have a free version for basic use. You should also check for comprehensive customer support and readily available helpful resources like zoho books compare. Look for a system that can be easily set up and used. What happens if you need to cancel your subscription? Does the software support full service bookkeeping for the self employed?
Final Verdict
After looking at everything, our pick is QuickBooks.
It’s a bit easier to use for most small businesses, especially if you need payroll.
It also connects with other apps.
While Zoho Books is good, QuickBooks just offers more features built-in.
We’ve spent many hours testing both.
We know what works best for everyday business needs.
Trust us to help you pick the right tool to manage your money smartly.
It’s about making your business life simpler!
More of Zoho Books
When choosing an accounting solution, it’s wise to compare the top options.
We’ve done the research to help you see how Zoho Books stacks up against its key competitors.
- Zoho Books vs QuickBooks: QuickBooks is a market leader, known for its extensive features and integrations. Zoho Books, however, is often praised for its clean interface and more affordable, scalable pricing, particularly for small to medium businesses.
- Zoho Books vs Xero: Xero is a popular cloud accounting platform with a focus on ease of use. While both offer strong core features, Zoho Books provides more robust inventory management in its higher-tier plans.
- Zoho Books vs FreshBooks: FreshBooks is a great choice for freelancers and service-based businesses, with a focus on invoicing. Zoho Books offers a more comprehensive accounting program with a wider range of features beyond just billing.
- Zoho Books vs Sage: Sage generally targets larger, more complex businesses. Zoho Books is a better fit for small to medium-sized businesses and is known for its user-friendly interface and competitive pricing.
- Zoho Books vs NetSuite: NetSuite is a powerful ERP solution for large enterprises. Zoho Books is an excellent alternative for small businesses that need a robust, affordable, and flexible platform that can grow with them.
- Zoho Books vs Wave: Wave is a popular option for its free version. While Wave is great for very small businesses and freelancers, Zoho Books offers a more comprehensive feature set and is a more scalable option for growing businesses.
- Zoho Books vs Dext: Dext is primarily a data extraction tool, focused on automating receipt and invoice processing. Zoho Books, on the other hand, is a full-fledged accounting software that includes expense management as one of its many features.
- Zoho Books vs Synder: Synder specializes in syncing financial transactions from various sources to accounting software. Zoho Books includes this functionality as part of its complete platform, alongside invoicing, reporting, and other core accounting features.
- Zoho Books vs Expensify: Expensify is a strong expense reporting and management tool. Zoho Books has built-in expense management, but Expensify is a more specialized option for businesses with complex expense policies.
- Zoho Books vs Docyt: Docyt uses AI to automate data entry from receipts and bank statements. Zoho Books also has automation features, but Docyt’s core focus is on this specific automation.
- Zoho Books vs Hubdoc: Hubdoc is a document management tool that automates data extraction from bills and receipts. Zoho Books offers a similar function, but Hubdoc’s main purpose is to feed data into other systems like QuickBooks or Xero.
- Zoho Books vs AutoEntry: AutoEntry is another tool for automated data entry from documents. Zoho Books is a complete accounting program, while AutoEntry is a specialized tool that can be used to support it.
- Zoho Books vs Puzzle io: Puzzle.io is an AI-driven accounting solution for startups that offers real-time financial insights.
- Zoho Books vs Easy Month End: Easy Month End is not a direct alternative, as it is a feature within Zoho Books that simplifies the closing process.
- Zoho Books vs Quicken: Quicken is mainly for personal finance and very small businesses, while Zoho Books is a full-featured solution designed for business accounting tasks.
- Zoho Books vs RefreshMe: This is not a direct comparison; RefreshMe is a resource or feature that may be associated with Zoho Books.
More of QuickBooks
- QuickBooks vs Puzzle IO: This software focuses on AI-powered financial planning for startups. Its counterpart is for personal finance.
- QuickBooks vs Dext: This is a business tool for capturing receipts and invoices. The other tool tracks personal expenses.
- QuickBooks vs Xero: This is popular online accounting software for small businesses. Its competitor is for personal use.
- QuickBooks vs Synder: This tool syncs e-commerce data with accounting software. Its alternative focuses on personal finance.
- QuickBooks vs Easy Month End: This is a business tool to streamline month-end tasks. Its competitor is for managing personal finances.
- QuickBooks vs Docyt: This uses AI for business bookkeeping and automation. The other uses AI as a personal finance assistant.
- QuickBooks vs Sage: This is a comprehensive business accounting suite. Its competitor is an easier-to-use tool for personal finance.
- QuickBooks vs Zoho Books: This is an online accounting tool for small businesses. Its competitor is for personal use.
- QuickBooks vs Wave: This provides free accounting software for small businesses. Its counterpart is designed for individuals.
- QuickBooks vs Quicken: Both are personal finance tools, but this one offers more in-depth investment tracking. The other is simpler.
- QuickBooks vs Hubdoc: This specializes in document capture for bookkeeping. Its competitor is a personal finance tool.
- QuickBooks vs Expensify: This is a business expense management tool. The other is for personal expense tracking and budgeting.
- QuickBooks vs AutoEntry: This is designed to automate data entry for business accounting. Its alternative is a personal finance tool.
- QuickBooks vs FreshBooks: This is accounting software for freelancers and small businesses. Its alternative is for personal finance.
- QuickBooks vs NetSuite: This is a powerful business management suite for large companies. Its competitor is a simple personal finance app.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Zoho Books offer a free plan?
Yes, Zoho Books offers a free pricing plan. This free plan is for businesses with less than $50,000 in yearly earnings. It also limits users and invoices, but it’s a great way to start using online accounting software without cost.
How does QuickBooks Online compare to Xero?
QuickBooks Online is known for being very common and having many features. Xero is popular for its clean design and ease of use. Both offer good online accounting features, but QuickBooks generally has more built-in tools and integrations.
What kind of integrations do Zoho Books vs QuickBooks offer?
QuickBooks provides a very wide range of integrations, connecting with hundreds of other business tools. Zoho Books also integrates well, especially with other Zoho products, offering seamless integration within the Zoho ecosystem and connections to common payment gateways.
Is payroll included with QuickBooks and Zoho Books?
QuickBooks provides built-in payroll services with its plans. Zoho Books, however, does not include payroll directly. You would need to use a separate payroll service, like Zoho Payroll, which can integrate with Zoho Books.
Which online accounting software is better for small businesses?
For many small businesses, QuickBooks Online might be better due to its broad features and widespread use by accountants. Zoho Books also provides a strong range of features and is a good choice, especially if you prefer Zoho products or a more affordable initial pricing plan.
English 
Spanish 
Chinese 
German 
French 
Russian 
Portuguese 
Japanese 
Korean