Top 9 of 36 alternatives
9 QuickBooks Online alternatives, 2 with a free plan (2026)
The closest alternatives to QuickBooks Online in October 2026 are Zoho Books, FreeAgent and Puzzle.
9 tools compared · entry plans $13.40 to $79 a month · 2 with a free plan · prices checked 26–28 October 2026
Reviewed by the Tick Mark Books editorial team.
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QuickBooks Online and its alternatives at a glance
| Tool | Best for | Starts at | A month at 100 transactions | Better than QuickBooks Online at | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QuickBooks Online | Small businesses that want one ledger plus payroll, payments and an accountant login | Free, then $38 a month source | $38 | 28 October 2026 | |
| Zoho Books | Small businesses and startups that want one ledger plus the wider Zoho app suite | Free, then $20 a month source | $20 | Reconciles your accounts, Getting your books out | 26 October 2026 |
| FreeAgent | UK sole traders and small limited companies filing their own VAT and Self Assessment | From about $13 a month source | About $25 | Notice before a price rise, Reconciles your accounts | 26 October 2026 |
| Puzzle | A US startup on Mercury, Brex, Ramp, Stripe and Gusto that wants to replace QuickBooks | Price not established | $30 | Catching up past months, Stripe | 26 October 2026 |
| Pilot | A US startup or small business that wants its books done for it in QuickBooks Online | Price not established | $137 | Reconciles your accounts, Stripe | 26 October 2026 |
| Booke AI | A business or bookkeeping firm already on QuickBooks Online or Xero | Price not established | $156 | Getting your books out, Several businesses | 26 October 2026 |
| SimpleAI | Accounting firms and finance teams processing high volumes of invoices and bank statements | From $79 a month source | $106 | Past your plan’s limits, Reconciles your accounts | 27 October 2026 |
| FreshBooks | Service businesses and freelancers who bill clients and want their books in the same place | From $23 a month source | $43 | Catching up past months, Your own bookkeeper | 28 October 2026 |
| Xero | Small businesses wanting the whole team and their advisor on the books, no per-user fees | From $27 a month source | $27 | Notice before a price rise, Reconciles your accounts | 28 October 2026 |
| QuickBooks Solopreneur | Self-employed one-person businesses filing a Schedule C | Free, then $20 a month source | $20 | 27 October 2026 |
“About” figures are converted at the European Central Bank rate of 30 October 2026.
Closest alternatives to QuickBooks Online
The ones people open most here come first, then the closest matches. How we rank
- From Free
Cloud accounting ledger with Zia AI, bank feeds, sales tax and 1099 e-filing, from $20 a month.
Why it's on this listReconciles your accounts: YesBank and card accounts are reconciled inside the product, with matched and pending transactions in one view and reconciliation statements exportable as PDF per account and date range.
- From £10 a month (about $13)
UK cloud accounting with HMRC filing, bank feeds and AI receipt capture, priced per business type.
Why it's on this listNotice before a price rise: YesThe terms of service promise at least 60 days' advance notice of a price or payment-term change, and a chance to decide whether to carry on before any increase.
- Price not established
AI-native accounting software with optional bookkeeper services for startups and small businesses.
Why it's on this listCatching up past months: YesFrom $300 per month of books. Catch-up bookkeeping is a one-time add-on on the pricing page: the team reviews, cleans up and closes each unfinished month, from $300 per month of books (the page's example: eleven months is $3,300).
The rest of the shortlist
- Price not established
Pilot
A bookkeeping and tax service for startups that pairs software-driven dashboards with human financial advisors.
- Price not established
Booke AI
An AI bookkeeper that works inside QuickBooks Online and Xero to categorize transactions and match documents.
- From $79 a month
SimpleAI
AI agents that extract, classify and reconcile accounting documents, then publish them into Xero or QuickBooks.
- From $23 a month
FreshBooks
Double-entry small-business ledger built around invoicing, with a read-only Claude connector for questions.
- From $27 a month
Xero
Small-business ledger with a JAX assistant that answers questions in plain language; unlimited users on every plan.
- From Free
QuickBooks Solopreneur
Intuit's one-person-business ledger: bank feeds, receipts, mileage and Schedule C tax readiness.
Compare QuickBooks Online with the shortlist
Compare alternatives to QuickBooks Online
The digest
What changed in tools. New tools and articles, by email, at most once a week.
Questions buyers ask
What are the best alternatives to QuickBooks Online?
Zoho Books, FreeAgent and Puzzle are the closest. They share the most of QuickBooks Online's features.
What is the cheapest alternative to QuickBooks Online?
2 of the 9 have a free plan: Zoho Books and QuickBooks Solopreneur. The lowest paid plan is FreeAgent, from about $13 a month. Price checked on 26 October 2026.
How much do QuickBooks Online alternatives cost?
Entry plans run from $13.40 to $79 a month, and half cost $23 or less.
When were these prices checked?
We read each price between 26 October 2026 and 28 October 2026 on the maker's own pricing page.
Sources and method
Closest first: most of QuickBooks Online's features, then the fewest gaps. How we rank
Every price was read on the maker's own pricing page.
- QuickBooks Online: quickbooks.intuit.com/pricing, checked 28 October 2026
- Zoho Books: zoho.com/us/books/pricing, checked 26 October 2026
- FreeAgent: freeagent.com/pricing, checked 26 October 2026
- SimpleAI: simpleaiworks.com/en/pricing, checked 27 October 2026
- FreshBooks: freshbooks.com/pricing, checked 28 October 2026
- Xero: xero.com/us/pricing-plans, checked 28 October 2026
- QuickBooks Solopreneur: quickbooks.intuit.com/solopreneur, checked 27 October 2026
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