If you are a small business owner or a freelancer, then you know how important it is to have a reliable accounting software to help you manage your finances. QuickBooks by Intuit is one of the most popular accounting software options available in the market, but which one should you choose, QuickBooks Desktop or QuickBooks Self-Employed?
In this post, we will provide an unbiased comparison between QuickBooks Desktop and QuickBooks Self-Employed and help you make an informed decision.
QuickBooks Desktop
QuickBooks Desktop is a powerful accounting software that has been around for years. It offers a wide variety of features that make it ideal for small businesses and medium businesses.
- Pricing: QuickBooks Desktop has a one-time purchase price and offers three different plans, ranging from $299.99 to $1099.99.
- Number of users: QuickBooks Desktop can be used by up to 5 users.
- Features: QuickBooks Desktop offers a wide variety of features including invoicing and billing, inventory tracking, management of bills and expenses, job costing, and time tracking. It also offers industry-specific features like inventory management, non-profit accounting, and construction accounting.
- Cloud-based: QuickBooks Desktop is not cloud-based, which means users need to install the software on their system.
- Data security and privacy: QuickBooks Desktop offers data security and privacy measures like physical and electronic safeguards to protect against unauthorized access.
QuickBooks Self-Employed
QuickBooks Self-Employed is designed specifically for freelancers and independent contractors. It offers features that are tailored to the needs of self-employed individuals.
- Pricing: QuickBooks Self-Employed has a monthly subscription fee that ranges from $15.00 to $35.00, depending on the plan you choose.
- Number of users: QuickBooks Self-Employed can only be used by one user.
- Features: QuickBooks Self-Employed offers basic features such as income and expense tracking, invoicing, and tax tracking. It also offers a mileage tracker to help you track your business-related driving.
- Cloud-based: QuickBooks Self-Employed is cloud-based, which means users can access their data from anywhere with an internet connection.
- Data security and privacy: QuickBooks Self-Employed offers data security and privacy measures like encryption and multi-factor authentication to protect against unauthorized access.
Which one should you choose?
The answer to this question depends on your business needs. If you are a small business or medium business with multiple employees, then QuickBooks Desktop is the best choice for you. It offers a wide variety of features to help you manage your business finances.
On the other hand, if you are a freelancer or independent contractor, then QuickBooks Self-Employed is the best choice for you. It offers basic features that are tailored to your needs and is more affordable than QuickBooks Desktop.
At the end of the day, it's important to choose an accounting software that meets your specific needs and helps you manage your finances effectively.
Conclusion
In this post, we have provided an unbiased comparison of QuickBooks Desktop and QuickBooks Self-Employed. Both software options come with their own unique features and pricing plans. It's important to choose the software that fits your specific business needs.
Hopefully, this post has provided you with enough information to make an informed decision about which software you should choose.