Replace QuickBooks? When it makes sense, and when it doesn't

What QuickBooks costs at 10 and 25 seats

Annual cost at list price (annual-billing price where the vendor shows one)

Plan	Price (as listed)	10 users / yr	25 users / yr	Source
QuickBooks Online	Simple Start $38/mo, Essentials $85/mo, Plus $140/mo, Advanced $340/mo (list; 50% off 3 months promo). Advanced: 25 users	$1,020 $85/mo × 12	$1,020 $85/mo × 12	source, Oct 14, 2026 · User limits for Simple Start/Essentials/Plus not captured

Excludes taxes, add-ons and usage fees. Email-marketing and accounting tools are priced by contacts or by company, so 10- and 25-person costs are the same.

Free and low-cost alternatives

Editorial picks, ordered by our view of fit for 5-50 person teams. We haven't lab-tested them, and no vendor paid for placement. "Best value" marks the lowest verified annual cost for 10 users among these picks; it isn't a quality score.

Heads up: "Try" links may be affiliate links. If you buy, we may earn a commission at no cost to you, and it never changes our rankings. How we make money

#1Xero

Low-cost

Try Xero (opens in new tab) ↗

Full accounting from $27/mo; Growing $59/mo.

Price: Early $27/mo, Growing $59/mo, Established $97/mo (intro discounts for first 3 months)

• Full accounting with bank reconciliation
• Large accountant network

• Payroll is an add-on

Source: xero.com/us/pricing-plans · checked Oct 14, 2026 · Per-user limits not verified

#2Zoho Books

Free planLow-cost

Try Zoho Books (opens in new tab) ↗

Standard $15/org/mo billed annually (3 users); free plan for solo owners.

Price: Free (1 user + accountant). Standard $15/org/mo billed annually ($20 monthly), 3 users. Professional $50/org/mo monthly

• Free plan for solo owners
• Priced per organization, not per user

• Standard includes only 3 users
• Smaller US accountant ecosystem than QuickBooks

Source: zoho.com/us/books/pricing · checked Oct 14, 2026

#3Wave

Best valueFree plan

Try Wave (opens in new tab) ↗

Free Starter plan for very small businesses.

Price: Starter $0. Pro $19/mo monthly or $190/yr

• Free tier with unlimited invoices
• Flat pricing, not per seat

• US/Canada focus
• Fewer integrations than QuickBooks/Xero

Source: waveapps.com/pricing · checked Oct 13, 2026

#4FreshBooks

Low-cost

Try FreshBooks (opens in new tab) ↗

Good for service businesses that bill time.

Price: Lite $23/mo, Plus $43/mo, Premium $70/mo (list). Team members +$11/mo each

• Strong time-to-invoice flow

• Per-user add-ons add up

Source: freshbooks.com/pricing · checked Oct 13, 2026

Feature comparison

Feature comparison (from vendor pricing pages)

Feature	QBO Essentials	Xero Growing	Zoho Books Standard	Wave Starter
Price/mo	$85 (list)	$59	$15 (annual)	$0
Pricing basis	Per company	Per company	Per org, 3 users	Per business
Payroll	Add-on	Add-on	See vendor	See vendor

✓ = included, — = not included on that plan or not offered. "See vendor" = we couldn't confirm it on the pricing page.

Annual savings, with the math

Savings use the verified list prices above. Real savings depend on your seat count, billing period, discounts and switching time. Run your own numbers.

Honest tradeoffs

• Don't switch if your accountant or bookkeeper works only in QuickBooks; the extra fees can wipe out the savings.
• Don't switch mid-year: close the year, then move.
• Inventory, payroll, multi-entity and industry add-ons are hard to replicate.
• Historical data usually comes over only as opening balances.

Migration difficulty: Hard

Agree with your accountant, pick a cut-over date (ideally year end), import opening balances, reconnect bank feeds, and keep read-only QuickBooks access for history.

Before you switch, read when NOT to switch and use our migration checklist.