The Front Desk Review

Best Accounting Software · head-to-head

QuickBooks Online vs FreshBooks

A sourced, side-by-side comparison for accounting software. QuickBooks Online has the lower entry price. Every figure links to the public page it was captured from — the vendor's own wherever the vendor publishes the number, otherwise the named public source — with the date we captured it.

QuickBooks Online has the lower entry price — QuickBooks Online starts at $20/mo, FreshBooks at $23/mo. Free tier: QuickBooks Online No, FreshBooks No. HIPAA: QuickBooks Online —, FreshBooks —.

As of 2026-09-02 · figures link to their source below

Side by side

QuickBooks Online

$20/mo entry
Entry price$20/mo (Solopreneur Lite)
Free tierNo
HIPAA (BAA)—
SOC 2—
GDPR—
Best forSmall businesses wanting the broadest accountant network

FreshBooks

$23/mo entry
Entry price$23/mo (Lite)
Free tierNo
HIPAA (BAA)—
SOC 2—
GDPRYes
Best forFreelancers and service businesses billing by client

Sources — QuickBooks Online: quickbooks.intuit.com (verified 2026-09-02) · FreshBooks: freshbooks.com (verified 2026-09-02)

Key features

QuickBooks Online: Largest accountant/bookkeeper ecosystem in US; Mileage tracking via mobile app; Project profitability reporting (Plus+); Batch invoicing and custom user roles (Advanced); Built-in payroll and payments add-ons

FreshBooks: Client-centric invoicing with built-in retainers and recurring billing; PCI DSS Level 1 certified payment processing; Time tracking with automatic invoice population; Project profitability reporting (Premium+); 100+ app integrations via FreshBooks AppStore

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