A detailed comparison of Wave and QuickBooks to help you choose the right tool for your needs.
Free accounting software for small businesses with invoicing and payments.
Leading small business accounting software by Intuit.
| Plan | Wave | QuickBooks |
|---|---|---|
| Free Tier | ✓ Completely free accounting | ✗ No |
| Lowest Paid | $0 (payroll extra) | $30/mo |
| Enterprise | N/A | $200/mo |
| Feature | Wave | QuickBooks |
|---|---|---|
| Free accounting | ✓ | — |
| Free invoicing | ✓ | — |
| Receipt scanning | ✓ | — |
| Financial reports | ✓ | — |
| Payments processing | ✓ | — |
| Payroll (paid) | ✓ | — |
| Invoicing | — | ✓ |
| Expense tracking | — | ✓ |
| Bank connections | — | ✓ |
| Reports | — | ✓ |
| Payroll | — | ✓ |
| Tax preparation | — | ✓ |
| Inventory | — | ✓ |
| Time tracking | — | ✓ |
| Projects | — | ✓ |
| Mobile app | — | ✓ |
| Open Source | ✗ | ✗ |
| Rating | ⭐ 4.4 | ⭐ 4.2 |
Choose Wave if: You need freelancers and micro-businesses wanting completely free professional accounting software. Wave excels with its 100% free for core features and full accounting suite.
Choose QuickBooks if: You need small businesses needing comprehensive accounting. QuickBooks stands out with its industry standard and comprehensive features.
Best free option: Wave offers a free tier (Completely free accounting).
It depends on your needs. Wave is better for freelancers and micro-businesses wanting completely free professional accounting software, while QuickBooks is better for small businesses needing comprehensive accounting. Both are excellent tools rated 4.4 and 4.2 respectively.
Wave starts at $0 (payroll extra) while QuickBooks starts at $30/mo. Wave also has a free tier.
Most tools offer import/export features to help you migrate. We recommend trying QuickBooks's trial before fully committing to a switch.
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