QuickBooks Live vs Pilot Bookkeeping 2023 Comparison

QuickBooks Live offers an affordable solution to basic bookkeeping tasks while Pilot Bookkeeping is more expensive but provides a large array of more sophisticated services targeting startup and high-growth companies. Working with an online bookkeeping service can offer many benefits to your business. By taking bookkeeping off your hands, it can help you maintain a strong and accurate grasp of your financial position.

QuickBooks Live vs Pilot Bookkeeping at a Glance

Who It’s Best For	QuickBooks Online users seeking a QuickBooks ProAdvisor to complete basic bookkeeping tasks	Venture-backed startups and fast-growing businesses seeking CFO services and tax management
Pricing Plans	Starts at $200 per month plus a QuickBooks Online Plus subscription that starts at $30 per month	Starts at $599 per month plus a QuickBooks Online Plus subscription that starts at $30 per month
Our Overall Rubric Score	✕	2.45 out of 5 points
Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Services	✕	Starts at $900 per month
Tax Services	✕	Starts at $1,950 per year
Accounts Receivable (A/R) & Accounts Payable (A/P) Tracking	✕	Starts at $125 per hour
Invoice Customers	✕	Starts at $125 per hour
Pay Bills	✕	Starts at $125 per hour
Account Reconciliation	✓	✓
Account Cleanup	✓	✓
	Visit QuickBooks Live	Visit Pilot Bookkeeping

Who Should Use Each

See our guide to the best small business accounting software to learn more about the leading solutions for your operation.

Who Should Use an Alternative

• Small businesses seeking tax preparation and advice along with bookkeeping: If your business isn’t big enough to need or justify the services of Pilot, we recommend trying Bench, our overall best online bookkeeping service. Bench Premium includes bookkeeping along with tax preparation and advice for only $499 per month for companies of any size.
• Businesses looking for basic bookkeeping support at a low cost: Because both QuickBooks Live and Pilot can be costly, you may want to consider Merritt Bookkeeping, which offers monthly bookkeeping for a flat fee of $190 per month.

QuickBooks Live vs Pilot Bookkeeping: Pricing

With a similar approach to the pricing of their basic bookkeeping services, QuickBooks Live and Pilot offer three subscription levels that vary in price based on the monthly expense cap. However, while QuickBooks Live is a “lightweight” assisted bookkeeping service, Pilot allows you to add on services like payroll, invoicing customers, and bill pay for an hourly rate. Since QuickBooks Live and Pilot both require a subscription to QuickBooks Online, the price for the software must be factored in as well.

QuickBooks Live’s services are provided monthly, and after an initial $500 onboarding fee, you’ll be responsible for the monthly fee that applies to your business. Pilot also charges an onboarding fee that’s equal to one month of bookkeeping.

We awarded QuickBooks Live 5 out of 5 points for pricing since it offers affordable and upfront pricing with no add-ons. We awarded Pilot 0 out of 5 points because its basic bookkeeping services and add-ons are more expensive than other online bookkeepers. That’s not to say that Pilot couldn’t provide value to the right company that can benefit from its advanced offerings like CFO and Controller services.

QuickBooks Live vs Pilot Bookkeeping: Features

QuickBooks Live and Pilot Bookkeeping are quite different in the services that they provide. While QuickBooks Live focuses on basic bookkeeping services like reconciling accounts and generating financial reports, Pilot offers several add-on services that will appeal to venture-backed startups and businesses that are growing quickly.

QuickBooks Live offers something that Pilot doesn’t—a 100% Accurate Books Guarantee that lets you request a free audit if you suspect potential errors with your books. It also has many attractive features, such as a dedicated bookkeeper who is a certified expert with QuickBooks Online, the ability to analyze reports with your bookkeeper, and assistance with setting up your accounts and customizing them. These features may not be as sophisticated as Pilot’s, but they’re a good fit for a business that doesn’t require additional services like payroll, invoicing, and bill pay.

Besides Pilot’s virtual bookkeeping, it offers a menu of services that will serve businesses looking for CFO or tax services or rapidly growing businesses like high-growth technology startups. You also have the option of adding services, such as invoicing customers and paying bills. Accrual-basis accounting is included with all plans, and Pilot doesn’t have cash-basis accounting.

QuickBooks Live vs Pilot Bookkeeping: Ease of Use

QuickBooks Live offers a seamless approach to virtual bookkeeping, allowing you to contact your bookkeeper through your preferred means of communication. You’ll be granted access to the QuickBooks Live Hub, which is a secure portal where your bookkeeper will post their ongoing action item list that will be updated as tasks are completed. It allows you to check on your bookkeeper’s progress and make an appointment for a virtual meeting.

QuickBooks Live Hub
(Source: QuickBooks)

Pilot Bookkeeping customers will find that the software is easy to use, but there are a couple of requirements to keep in mind. Besides having to use QuickBooks Online, Pilot requires you to have electronic transaction access and expense reporting software. Also, to ensure the accuracy of your books, Pilot doesn’t allow any commingling of personal expenses.

QuickBooks Live vs Pilot Bookkeeping: Integrations

QuickBooks Online users who work with QuickBooks Live have access to several built-in and third-party integrations, while Pilot Bookkeeping has far fewer integrations.

• QuickBooks Live integrations: QuickBooks Payroll, QuickBooks Time, QuickBooks Payments, Shopify, Fathom, Method:CRM, Insightly, Hubdoc, AutoEntry, TradeGecko, and more
• Pilot Bookkeeping integrations: QuickBooks, Stripe, Square, Gusto, Rippling, Shopify, Brex, Bill.com, and Ramp

QuickBooks Live vs Pilot Bookkeeping: Mobile App

You’ll have access to the QuickBooks Online mobile app with either service to work on your books while away from the office. However, neither QuickBooks Live nor Pilot Bookkeeping offers a mobile app that allows communicating with your bookkeeper or uploading documents.

QuickBooks Live vs Pilot Bookkeeping: Customer Support

QuickBooks Live offers more customer support options than Pilot Bookkeeping, which only allows you to speak with your account manager through the QuickBooks portal or by email. In contrast, QuickBooks Live provides unlimited support via phone, email, live chat, and one-way video calls. You can also browse the searchable knowledge base and reach out for support from the user community.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Does Pilot Bookkeeping use QuickBooks Online?

Yes, Pilot Bookkeeping handles all of its bookkeeping in QuickBooks Online.

How much does QuickBooks Live charge?

QuickBooks Live charges from $200 to $400 per month, depending on your company’s monthly expenses.

Does Pilot Bookkeeping perform cash-based bookkeeping?

No, Pilot Bookkeeping only performs accrual-based bookkeeping.

Bottom Line

QuickBooks Live and Pilot are two very different virtual bookkeeping services. While both offer a choice of three subscription plans for basic bookkeeping services, Pilot allows for additional services that are geared towards rapidly growing companies like technology startups and ecommerce businesses. These include CFO advisory, payroll, tax management, and back-office services, such as paying bills and invoicing customers, for an additional fee. If you have a business with minimal needs, then QuickBooks Live is the better option.