Quicken vs QuickBooks: Which Is Best for Your Small Business?

Quicken and QuickBooks Online serve mostly different purposes, but there is some overlap. Quicken is primarily a personal finance app while QuickBooks Online is a very popular small business bookkeeping software. Quicken focuses on personal finance features, such as budgeting, investment tracking, and bill management. It also has features to track the income and expenses of rental houses and simple one-person businesses. Meanwhile, QuickBooks Online is a double-entry accounting system. It provides a broader set of features tailored to business needs, such as invoicing, payroll, vendor management, and financial reporting.

• Quicken: Best for tracking personal finances and rental property income
• QuickBooks Online: Best for small businesses seeking accounting software to track income and expenses and manage their business

Pricing	$5.99 to $10.99, billed annually	$38 to $275, billed monthly
Free Trial	✕	30 days
Money-back Guarantee	30 days	✕
Number of Users Included	1	1 to 25
Target Customer	Individuals, landlords, and sole proprietors	Sole proprietors, LLCs, partnerships, corporations, and S corporations
Double-entry Bookkeeping System	✕	✓
Payroll Add-on Available	✕	✓
Inventory Tracking	✕	✓
Separate Business & Personal Expenses	✓	✓
Schedule C & E Reports	✓	✕
Print Income Statement & Balance Sheet	✕	✓
Rental Property Center	✓	✕
Track Investments	✓	✕
Ease of Sharing With External Accountants	No built-in feature to share files with external accountant	External accountant can be added without counting it as a full user
Ease of Setup & Use	Easy	Moderate
Mobile App	iOS and Android	iOS and Android
Average Rating on Third-party Sites	3.9 out of 5 from around 400 Capterra reviews	4.3 out of 5 from around 7,000 GetApp reviews
	Visit Quicken	Visit QuickBooks

Use Cases and Pros & Cons

QuickenQuickBooks OnlineAlternatives

• Individuals managing three or fewer rental properties: While Quicken technically supports managing up to 100 rental properties with 100 units per property, I recommend it only for those with three or fewer properties. Its accounting capabilities are limited, like it lacks the ability to maintain financial records on an accrual basis. However, it’s great for tracking tenants, rental rates, and lease terms—features that even the more expensive QuickBooks Online doesn’t cover.
• Individuals wanting to budget and track personal expenses: It stands out as a personal finance tool, offering features like expense tracking, budgeting, and income monitoring. It’s definitely better suited for someone focused on managing personal finances rather than running a small business, a situation where QuickBooks Online would make more sense.
• Individuals tracking retirement assets: If you’re trying to keep an eye on your retirement investments and assets, Quicken works better than QuickBooks. I like that it offers monthly and yearly projections for your investment accounts, giving you insights to help you make better financial decisions.
• Freelancers seeking a more affordable alternative to QuickBooks Online: For freelancers who don’t need the advanced features QuickBooks Online offers, Quicken is a simpler and more affordable option. I find it’s a budget-friendly way to track income and expenses without dealing with unnecessary complexity.

Pros

• Enables you to create personalized budgets and track expenses easily
• Offers access to finances seamlessly with web and mobile apps
• Lets you manage rental properties and personal finances in one place
• Allows you to monitor investment portfolios and analyze performance effectively
• Enables you to track bills and make payments directly within the platform

Cons

• Lacks a double-entry accounting system and the ability to print a balance sheet
• Requires manual synchronization between web and desktop versions
• Doesn’t offer a monthly billing option
• Supports only a single user
• Limits functionality on Mac versions
• Restricts features on mobile and web companion apps

Read our Quicken review

Read our Quicken review

Visit Quicken

User Reviews: QuickBooks Online Wins

Average Rating on Third-party Sites	3.9 out of 5 from around 400 Capterra reviews	4.3 out of 5 from over 7,000 Capterra reviews
Users Like	Has inexpensive pricing options Offers rental management tools Can track retirement assets	Is easy to set up and use with intuitive navigation Offers over 700 integrations Has integrated payroll
Users Dislike	Is unable to invoice clients Isn’t a complete bookkeeping system Can’t track inventory	Doesn’t allow for unlimited users Is more expensive than Quicken

Reviewers of Quicken often highlight its affordability and simplicity, particularly for tracking personal expenses. Many also commend its ability to monitor retirement assets effectively. However, its most significant limitation is the lack of basic bookkeeping features. Some users note there is no client invoicing, which isn’t true in the Classic Business and Personal plan. However, I agree invoicing is a weakness as it’s pretty limited.

QuickBooks wins this category with slightly higher user reviews. QuickBooks Online users frequently mention its ease of setup and use, emphasizing its straightforward and intuitive interface. Many also appreciate the wide range of integrations that enhance its functionality. On the downside, some point out the restriction on the number of users, which can be a drawback for growing businesses.

Pricing: Quicken Wins

When I compare Quicken and QuickBooks on pricing, I’d say Quicken comes out ahead if all you need is a tool to track income and expenses for a sole proprietor or freelancer. It offers great value for the price.

QuickBooks Online, on the other hand, is significantly more expensive—its Simple Start plan costs about three times as much as Quicken Home & Business. That said, I believe the higher cost is justified if you need a full bookkeeping system with advanced features like tracking assets and liabilities, generating a balance sheet, and sending invoices to customers.

Features: QuickBooks Online Wins

QuickBooks Online outclasses Quicken in terms of features, offering a comprehensive accounting solution. I like that its double-entry bookkeeping system allows you to easily track invoices and manage bills, making it ideal for businesses requiring robust accounting tools.

However, this doesn’t mean Quicken lacks value. It is clearly designed for a specific niche—personal finance management with some light accounting capabilities for a rental or part-time freelance gig. It shines if you want a straightforward way to manage finances and investments without the complexity of full-fledged accounting software.

Ease of Use: QuickBooks Online Wins

QuickBooks Online is indeed easier to set up compared with Quicken because it is entirely web-based. I appreciate that you can access it from any browser without needing to download or install anything, making it a hassle-free choice. Its design also prioritizes business income and expense tracking, which aligns seamlessly with the needs of most small businesses.

Quicken, on the other hand, includes many personal finance features that might feel unnecessary or even confusing if you’re focused solely on business tracking. While Quicken does offer Quicken for Web as a companion app, it requires you to purchase the desktop version first to access its web features. This added step can make it less convenient if you’re seeking a straightforward, web-based solution.

Mobile App: QuickBooks Online Wins

QuickBooks Online takes the lead when it comes to mobile app features. Its app is a fully functional, standalone tool that lets you handle tasks like invoicing, expense tracking, and financial reporting directly from your phone or tablet. For small to midsize businesses, this convenience and feature set make it the better option.

On the other hand, Quicken’s mobile app feels more like a companion to its desktop version. You have to sync it with the desktop software, and it doesn’t provide the same level of functionality. While it’s fine for managing personal finances, it just doesn’t compete with the flexibility and independence offered by QuickBooks Online for business needs.

Integrations: QuickBooks Online Wins

In my opinion, QuickBooks Online easily edges out Quicken when it comes to integrations. With access to over 750 third-party apps, it offers unmatched flexibility for businesses.

I’ve seen how its built-in tools—like QuickBooks Workforce, QuickBooks Time, QuickBooks Payments, and QuickBooks Bill Pay—make managing various aspects of a business seamless. On top of that, you can integrate apps like Shopify and Square to streamline ecommerce operations, which adds significant value for online businesses.

Quicken, on the other hand, has far fewer integrations. It works with PayPal for accepting online credit card payments, Dropbox for storing important documents like rental agreements, and Zillow Zestimate for estimating home values.

While these integrations are helpful for personal and rental management, they don’t match the business-focused options that QuickBooks Online provides. That said, I do appreciate Quicken’s built-in bill payment tool, which allows you to pay bills online, similar to QuickBooks Online. However, its limited ecosystem makes it less versatile for business needs.

How I Evaluated Quicken vs QuickBooks

The criteria I used when comparing Quicken vs QuickBooks are as follows:

• Pricing: I reviewed how much the software costs and if a free trial is offered.
• Features: I looked at the features offered, including invoicing, banking and cash management, A/P, inventory management, online scheduling, and online contracts.
• Ease of use: I assessed how easy it is to set up and use both tools, especially for users without extensive technical expertise. I also checked whether the dashboard contains shortcut buttons and other tools that make navigating more intuitive.
• Integrations: I looked at the available integrations for each software and reviewed how easily they integrate.
• Mobile app functionality: I compared the mobile app functionality for each platform and checked whether apps are available for both iOS and Android users.
• Customer support: I reviewed the available customer support options, such as phone, email, live chat, chatbot, and self-help resources. I also considered whether 24/7 support is available.
• User reviews: I read through customer feedback on popular third-party review websites.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Bottom Line

When it comes to small business bookkeeping, I see QuickBooks Online as the clear choice. It has the features and scalability most businesses need to manage their finances effectively. However, I can see where Quicken might make sense for certain users, like those managing a few rental properties or solopreneurs who prefer to keep their business and personal finances intertwined through linked bank and credit card accounts.