The best QuickBooks training courses offer flexible training sessions for students (the option of live or self-paced), are expert-led, and come with supplemental resources—such as reference manuals, study guides, and instructional videos. You’ll find some free courses, but you usually have to pay a fee to access premium lessons and maximize your learning experience.
There are plenty of QuickBooks training courses, but we narrowed it down to our top seven:
- QuickBooks Training: Best overall training for QuickBooks Online and Desktop programs
- Fit Small Business QuickBooks Tutorials: Best for free online QuickBooks training
- QuickBooks Support: Best for learning very specific QuickBooks tasks
- Advanced Webinars by Hector Garcia, CPA: Best for live webinars
- Certstaffix Training: Best for on-site group training
- College of Southern Idaho: Best instructor-led college classes
- LinkedIn Learning QuickBooks Online Essential Training: Best online training for beginners
Comparison of the Best QuickBooks Online Training Courses
Training Course | Cost | Instructor/Creator | Key Strengths | Key Weaknesses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | $679.95 (one-time fee) plus $29.95 per month to maintain live services (optional) | QuickBooks Experts |
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 | Free | Tim Yoder, Ph.D., CPA |
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 | Free | QuickBooks staff and users |
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 | From $200 per year | Hector Garcia, CPA |
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 | From $435 | Certstaffix instructors |
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 | From $105 | Scott Paxton, CPA |
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 | $39.99 | Bonnie Biafore |
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QuickBooks Training: Best Overall QuickBooks Training Courses
Pros
- Cost-effective course bundles are available for both QuickBooks Online and Desktop
- A wide range of courses available for all skill levels and industries, from accountants and contractors to nonprofits and enterprises
- Offers a money-back guarantee: if class doesn’t meet expectations, you can request a refund
- Has both live and self-paced training programs
Cons
- Price per course is higher than most QuickBooks training options
- Only the most current version of QuickBooks Desktop is taught; no option to work with previous versions
Pricing
QuickBooks Training offers both live classes and self-paced training sessions (VIP Membership).
- Live Classes: $679.95 for the first attendee; $250 off on each additional attendee, two-day duration
- VIP Membership (self-paced): $679.95 (one-time fee), plus $29.95/month to maintain live services (optional), 200+ hours duration
Students can validate their QuickBooks knowledge by becoming an Intuit QuickBooks Certified User. The QuickBooks Certification examination is offered at universities and technical schools. While it costs $156 to take the test, it’s free with enrollment. QuickBooks certification can be obtained with either live classes or self-paced training.
QuickBooks Training offers online and self-paced courses for both the Online and Desktop versions. With on-demand training, users can start and stop the course as their schedule allows. You can watch the video tutorials as often as you like, and live classes are also available.
Because of the wide range of courses offered and the option of live or self-paced, we selected QuickBooks Training as the best overall training for QuickBooks Online and Desktop programs. If you haven’t purchased a QuickBooks subscription, you should study the differences between QuickBooks Online vs Desktop before deciding.
Fit Small Business: Best Free Online QuickBooks Training Courses
Pros
- Watch the tutorials at your own pace and on your own time and focus on the topics that interest you
- Completely free
- Plenty of bite-sized lessons on QuickBooks Online
- Offers several QuickBooks Desktop courses
Cons
- No one-on-one training offered
- No option for live interaction
Pricing
These QuickBooks training courses are all offered free of charge with no email required.
Fit Small Business offers lessons for beginners and supplemental training for those wanting to boost their existing knowledge of QuickBooks. It has 46 tutorials, which run anywhere from 2 to 15 minutes.
By breaking down longer lessons into bite-sized tutorials, students can digest them better. Each one contains a step-by-step guide and a video demonstration of the concepts, helping them understand the lessons better. Fit Small Business offers several courses on both QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Desktop.
QuickBooks Online, our best small business accounting software, has advanced and complex accounting features. However, they can be mastered easily if you follow along in your own account while watching the Fit Small Business tutorial videos.
QuickBooks Support: Best for Learning Specific Tasks
Pros
- All information is available for free
- Best for learning specific QuickBooks tasks
- Video tutorials always include the most recent features in the software since Intuit updates them regularly
Cons
- No live support
- Since some articles are authored by QuickBooks employees and users as opposed to certified QuickBooks experts, there is no guarantee that information is completely accurate
- QuickBooks certification courses are unavailable
Pricing
There’s no charge to access the webinars, video tutorials, and articles through QuickBooks Support.
If you have a specific question on how to perform a QuickBooks task, QuickBooks Support is a free, comprehensive option. It offers help articles, community discussions with other QuickBooks users, video tutorials, and more, and free Live QuickBooks webinars are offered regularly. However, there’s no actual live support available, which can make it challenging to find an answer to a specific question.
Advanced Webinars by Hector Garcia, CPA: Best for Live Webinars
Pros
- Both QuickBooks Online and Desktop courses are available
- Each industry-specific course delves into each topic with a lot of detail
Cons
- Paid courses are not ideal for those looking for a basic overview of QuickBooks
- Access to some courses is only available for a limited time
Pricing
Prices vary depending on the type and duration of the course and the level of the QuickBooks topic covered. For instance, a two-day live basic to intermediate course—like Learn QuickBooks Desktop 2013 to 2022—costs $200 per year.
Hector Garcia, a CPA and Advanced Certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor, has created a series of webinars that aim to introduce the software and encourage users to feel comfortable with using it. He has produced hundreds of videos on topics related to both QuickBooks Desktop and QuickBooks Online, and his YouTube videos will help you troubleshoot common QuickBooks issues.
Currently, he has a paid course available through Advanced Webinars, which is intended for contractors and project-based businesses. He also recorded a course for manufacturers and wholesalers and accountants supporting multiple industries.
Certstaffix Training: Best for On-site Group Training
Pros
- Each QuickBooks course offered provides the training needed to understand and use the program
- With on-site training, the course is scheduled based on dates that you provide and completed in a convenient session of your choosing
- Software for class is provided in an online lab environment
Cons
- Mac versions of QuickBooks aren’t supported
- Course options are limited depending on the method of delivery
Pricing
Prices for classes offered vary depending on the type and duration of the course and whether it’s a public or a private class. Currently, Certstaffix Training offers three live QuickBooks training courses, which cost $435 each for a duration of seven hours. Certstaffix also offers an E-Learning Bundle for those wanting to learn QuickBooks at their own pace.
If you want on-site training at your office or group live online class, you should contact Certstaffix Training directly to request a customized quote.
Certstaffix offers training for several versions of QuickBooks, and all classes are delivered by one of its expert trainers. It also provides QuickBooks Certified User Desktop training classes. From hands-on, instructor-led live online QuickBooks training for individual employees to private online or on-site group training, you’ll find a flexible training option that suits your learning needs.
College of Southern Idaho: Best Instructor-led Courses for College Classes
Pros
- Taught in a college; which means the environment is more structured for learning
- Prices are relatively affordable compared to other QuickBooks training courses
- Can interact with the instructor
Cons
- Instructor moderation and group discussions are only available with instructor-led courses
- There aren’t any QuickBooks Desktop courses available for versions newer than 2019
Pricing
College of Southern Idaho currently offers 15 courses, with prices ranging from $105 to $199.
At the College of Southern Idaho, students can participate in instructor-led or self-paced courses on a variety of QuickBooks topics. As part of the CSI Workforce Development and Training Program, CSI provides training and apprenticeship opportunities for individuals to master new expertise and opportunities for companies to utilize local training for their employees.
LinkedIn Learning QuickBooks Online Essential Training: Best Online Training for Beginners
Pros
- Earn certificate of completion to add to your LinkedIn profile
- 30-day money-back guarantee
- Lifetime access to course
- Remote and offline access to videos available
Cons
- No training offered for advanced users
- Mac versions of QuickBooks aren’t supported
Pricing
The cost for the QuickBooks Online Essential Training course is $39.99.
The instructor’s other QuickBooks-related courses include:
- QuickBooks Payroll Essential Training: $34.99
- QuickBooks Pro 2021 Essential Training: $39.99
- QuickBooks Pro 2020 Essential Training: $39.99
- QuickBooks Online Tips and Tricks: $34.99
With the QuickBooks Online Essential Training course, instructor Bonnie Biafore shows beginner users how to pay bills online, receive payments, and run reports to evaluate how the business is doing. She also shows how to set up customers, vendors, products, and services; record transactions; reconcile bank statements; and pay sales tax.
In addition to the short videos that present topics in an organized fashion, users have the ability to post questions in the Q&A forum and to save notes on the course. They can access video transcripts as well.
How We Evaluated QuickBooks Training Courses
We evaluated these training courses based on many factors, including cost, accessibility, course curriculum, and access to instructors:
- Price: While some courses are available at no cost, others run upward of $600.
- Available training methods: Many of these training courses are offered as self-paced training or live, instructor-led courses. We also evaluated the programs that offer in-person training.
- Types of courses offered: Whether it’s a topic-specific video tutorial or a course dedicated to a specific version of QuickBooks Desktop or QuickBooks Online, these programs offer a variety of courses for novices to accountants and advanced users.
- Course instructors: Whether the courses are taught by certified QuickBooks ProAdvisors or CPAs, it’s important to know the level of expertise that’s provided.
- Additional support available: Examples include reference manuals, study guides, course videos, and access to the instructor for questions.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Intuit QuickBooks Training offers both live classes and self-paced training sessions (VIP Membership). Live Classes are $679.95 for the first attendee with $250 off on each additional attendee. Self-paced classes are $679.95 (one-time fee), plus an optional fee of $29.95 per month to maintain live services.
There are several options for learning QuickBooks Online, which include live classes, self-paced training, and free online tutorials.
Yes, companies such as Fit Small Business offer free QuickBooks Online tutorials.
Bottom Line
QuickBooks training courses come in various forms, including on-demand videos, online instructor-led or self-paced lessons, live virtual and in-person classrooms, and video tutorials. Most classes cover QuickBooks basics and generally are taught by certified QuickBooks ProAdvisors and/or CPAs who provide bookkeeping services to small business clients.
QuickBooks classes are ideal for small business owners, bookkeepers, and anyone who is seeking to become a Certified QuickBooks User. Classes may also include structured lessons, access to an instructor, practice exercises or exams, a quiz or final exam, and a certificate of completion.
