QuickBooks Online Essentials vs Plus: Key Differences Explained
Choosing between QuickBooks Online Essentials vs Plus depends largely on how complex your business accounting has become. Both plans include core accounting features, but Plus adds capabilities that are particularly useful for businesses that sell products, manage inventory, or need to track profitability by project.
According to Intuit's current plan information, Essentials supports up to 3 users, while Plus supports up to 5 users. Plus also includes inventory tracking and project profitability features that aren't included in Essentials.
QuickBooks Online Essentials vs Plus: Quick Comparison
Feature | QuickBooks Online Essentials | QuickBooks Online Plus |
Best for | Service-based and growing small businesses | Businesses needing inventory/project tracking |
Users | Up to 3 | Up to 5 |
Income & expense tracking | Yes | Yes |
Invoicing | Yes | Yes |
Bill management | Yes | Yes |
Time tracking | Yes | Yes |
Detailed reports | Yes | Yes |
Accounts payable | Yes | Yes |
Inventory tracking | No | Yes |
Project profitability | No | Yes |
Purchase orders | No | Yes |
Class/location tracking | More limited | Yes |
1099 contractor management | Yes | Yes |
Intuit describes Essentials as a plan for businesses needing enhanced billing and reporting, while Plus is aimed at businesses that need inventory management and project profitability tracking.
What Is QuickBooks Online Essentials?
QuickBooks Online Essentials is designed for small businesses that need more than basic bookkeeping.
It includes features for:
Tracking income and expenses
Creating invoices and estimates
Managing bills
Tracking accounts payable
Running detailed financial reports
Entering employee or contractor time
Tracking mileage
Managing 1099 contractors
Capturing receipts
Supporting multiple users
Essentials currently allows up to three users, making it suitable for a business owner who also needs access for a bookkeeper, accountant, or another employee.
Who Should Choose Essentials?
Essentials can be a good fit if your business:
Primarily provides services
Does not need inventory tracking
Needs multiple users
Manages regular vendor bills
Needs detailed accounts receivable and payable reports
Tracks billable employee or contractor time
Has relatively straightforward project requirements
For example, a consulting company, marketing agency, or professional service provider may find Essentials sufficient.
What Is QuickBooks Online Plus?
QuickBooks Online Plus includes the features available in Essentials and adds tools for businesses with more complex operational requirements.
The most important additions include:
Inventory tracking
Project profitability
Purchase orders
Up to five users
Additional class and location tracking capabilities
Intuit specifically identifies inventory and project profitability as major differences between Essentials and Plus.
Who Should Choose Plus?
Plus may be a better choice if your business:
Sells physical products
Maintains inventory
Needs to monitor stock levels
Purchases products from vendors
Uses purchase orders
Manages multiple projects
Wants to measure profitability by project
Needs access for more than three users
1. User Access: Essentials vs Plus
The first major difference is the number of users.
Essentials: Up to 3 usersPlus: Up to 5 users
If your company has an owner, bookkeeper, accountant, and employees who need regular access, Plus provides greater user capacity.
However, if three users are sufficient, upgrading solely for additional users may not be necessary.
2. Inventory Tracking
Inventory is one of the biggest reasons a business may move from Essentials to Plus.
QuickBooks currently makes inventory tracking available with Plus and Advanced. The inventory tools can help businesses track products, quantities on hand, reorder needs, and related purchasing information.
Essentials
Essentials is generally more appropriate for businesses that don't need built-in inventory management.
Plus
Plus is designed for businesses that sell products and need to track inventory.
For example, a retailer selling 500 different products may need to know:
How many items are available
Which products need replenishment
What products are selling
What inventory was purchased
How much inventory remains
In this situation, Plus can be more appropriate than Essentials.
3. Project Profitability
Another major difference is project profitability.
Plus allows businesses to organize income and expenses by project and determine how profitable individual projects are. Intuit lists project profitability as an additional Plus capability.
This can be useful for businesses such as:
Construction companies
Contractors
Marketing agencies
Consulting firms
Design companies
Professional service businesses
For example, if a business completes three customer projects, it may want to compare revenue and expenses for each project separately.
Essentials can handle many service-business accounting requirements, but businesses needing dedicated project profitability tracking may find Plus more suitable.
4. Purchase Orders
Businesses that regularly purchase products from suppliers may benefit from Plus.
Current QuickBooks plan information lists purchase orders among the inventory-related capabilities available with Plus.
A purchase order can help a business document what it intends to purchase before the transaction is completed.
This becomes particularly useful when inventory and vendor purchasing are important parts of daily operations.
5. Reporting Differences
Both Essentials and Plus provide detailed financial reporting, but Plus includes additional reports and tracking capabilities.
Intuit's current report documentation shows that some reports are available specifically at the Plus level, including certain budget, class, location, and profitability-related reports.
If your business needs basic financial reporting, Essentials may be enough.
If you need deeper reporting around:
Projects
Inventory
Classes
Locations
Budgets
Product profitability
Plus may provide the additional functionality you need.
6. Class and Location Tracking
Businesses with multiple departments, locations, or business segments may need more advanced tracking.
QuickBooks' current plan comparison lists class and location tracking among the capabilities available with Plus.
This can help businesses analyze performance across different parts of the organization.
For example, a company with two locations may want to compare revenue and expenses between Location A and Location B.
QuickBooks Online Essentials vs Plus for Different Businesses
Service-Based Business
A consulting company that doesn't sell physical products may not need inventory management.
Better fit: Essentials
The business can use features such as:
Invoicing
Bill management
Time tracking
Expense tracking
Detailed reporting
Retail Business
A retailer selling physical products needs to monitor inventory and purchasing.
Better fit: Plus
Inventory tracking and purchase orders make Plus more appropriate for this type of business.
Construction or Project-Based Business
A contractor may need to know whether each project is profitable.
Better fit: Plus
Project profitability tracking can help compare project revenue against associated costs.
Small Professional Service Business
A small agency with three users and no inventory may not need Plus.
Better fit: Essentials
If the company later expands into project profitability or requires more users, upgrading to Plus may make sense.
QuickBooks Online Essentials vs Plus: Which Is Better?
There is no universal answer.
Choose Essentials if:
You run a service-based business.
You need up to three users.
You manage bills and expenses.
You need detailed financial reports.
You track employee or contractor time.
You don't need inventory management.
You don't need project profitability tracking.
Choose Plus if:
You sell physical products.
You need inventory tracking.
You need purchase orders.
You manage multiple projects.
You need project profitability reporting.
You need up to five users.
You need additional class or location tracking.
Can You Upgrade From Essentials to Plus?
Yes. If your business starts with Essentials and later needs inventory or project profitability features, upgrading to Plus can be an option.
This can be useful for a growing business because its accounting requirements may change over time.
For example:
Starting stage → Essentials
A service business has three users and primarily needs invoicing, expense tracking, bills, and reporting.
Growth stage → Plus
The business begins selling products, adds inventory, starts using purchase orders, or needs to track profitability by project.
At that point, Plus may better match the company's workflow.
Is QuickBooks Online Plus Worth It?
Plus can be worthwhile when your business actually needs its additional capabilities.
If you don't manage inventory, don't need project profitability, and have three or fewer users, Essentials may already provide the functionality you need.
On the other hand, businesses selling products or managing complex projects may benefit from Plus because those features are central to their accounting workflow.
The goal isn't necessarily to choose the most feature-rich plan. It's to choose the plan that matches your business requirements.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between QuickBooks Online Essentials and Plus?
The main differences are user capacity and additional business-management features. Essentials currently supports up to three users, while Plus supports up to five. Plus also adds inventory tracking and project profitability capabilities.
Does QuickBooks Online Essentials have inventory tracking?
Standard inventory tracking is currently available with QuickBooks Online Plus and Advanced. Businesses using Essentials that need inventory can consider an available inventory add-on or upgrading their subscription.
How many users can use QuickBooks Online Plus?
QuickBooks currently lists Plus as supporting up to five users.
Is Essentials good for a service business?
Yes. Intuit specifically describes Essentials as being designed for service-based businesses and includes features such as time tracking, bill management, detailed reporting, and up to three users.
Is Plus better for a product-based business?
Generally, yes. Plus includes inventory tracking and purchase-order functionality, making it more appropriate for businesses that sell and manage physical products.
Does QuickBooks Online Plus include Essentials features?
Yes. Intuit states that Plus includes the features of Essentials and adds capabilities such as inventory tracking and project profitability.
Which QuickBooks plan should a small business choose?
A service-based business with straightforward accounting requirements may find Essentials sufficient. A business that needs inventory, project profitability, purchase orders, or more user access may be better suited to Plus.
Final Thoughts
When comparing QuickBooks Online Essentials vs Plus, focus on the features your business actually uses.
Essentials can be a strong option for service-based businesses that need multi-user access, bill management, time tracking, and detailed financial reporting.
Plus is more suitable when the business needs inventory management, purchase orders, project profitability, or access for up to five users.
If you're currently using Essentials and your business is growing, review your accounting requirements before deciding whether an upgrade is necessary.
For additional assistance with choosing or working with QuickBooks Online Essentials, you can call +1-866-408-0444.
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