Manager.io vs QuickBooks Online
We give Manager.io a 2.8 GPA and QuickBooks Online a 2.4, out of 4.0. Manager.io grades higher on value for money and the free plan. QuickBooks Online grades higher on features and platforms. They get the same grade on ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Manager.io
Free offline accounting for Windows, Mac and Linux, with a paid cloud
QuickBooks Online
Cloud accounting from Intuit, from a free plan to 25-user Advanced
How we grade them
| 2.8GPAManager.ioGood | 2.4GPAQuickBooks OnlineFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AThe desktop edition is free, with every feature and no limit on data, and it's a program anyone can download and run. You only pay for Cloud, $59 a month or $590 a year, when several people need the books, and that covers unlimited users and businesses. | CSimple Start is $38 a month for 1 user, above the dearer quarter of accounting tools at $31.10 but short of the dearest tenth at $49. Three users is $85, and inventory and budgets need Plus at $140. The 50% off lasts only 3 months. |
| Free plan and trial | AFree with every feature, no time limit, no usage cap and no ads. The only things it won't do are let a second person in or open the books away from that one computer. | CThere's a free plan, but it's 2 invoices a month, 3 reports and 1 bank account, with no accountant access or mobile app. You'll hit that fast. Paid plans have a 30-day trial instead of the discount. |
| Features | CQuotes through to delivery notes, bank rules and reconciliation, inventory, fixed assets with depreciation and payslips. The listing names the gaps: bank transactions come in by importing statements, not live feeds, and payslips are records only, with no payroll tax filing. | BBank feeds that learn your categories, invoices and payments, bill pay by ACH, reports, budgets, project profit, inventory, classes, AI that reconciles and flags oddities, and payroll as an add-on. That's the whole job. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record. You download it and start, but it's double-entry books where you import bank statements and set up bank rules yourself, so there's a bit to learn. | CNo store rating on record. Its bank feeds learn how you categorize and copy you, which helps, but there are accounts to connect and reports to learn before it runs itself. |
| Platforms and integrations | CWindows, Mac and Linux, plus a web version on Cloud or on a server you run. There's no phone app, the browser has to do on a phone, and the listing names no integrations. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with PayPal, Square, Shopify, Amazon, Etsy, eBay, Gusto and QuickBooks Time. No desktop app is listed, and the free plan gets no mobile app or third-party apps. |
| Best for | full double-entry books free on your own computer | US businesses that share the books with an accountant |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Manager.io and QuickBooks Online. How we grade
Price against what you get
Manager.io starts at $59 a month and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. QuickBooks Online starts at $38 a month and scores 2.7.
QuickBooks Online scores higher and starts $21 a month lower. Of the other accounting and invoicing tools on the chart, 16 score higher than Manager.io for less, and 5 score higher than QuickBooks Online for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Manager.io starts at $59 per month, billed monthly. QuickBooks Online starts at $38 per month, billed monthly.
- Only Manager.io lists Windows, macOS and Linux apps.
- Only QuickBooks Online lists iOS and Android apps.
- Manager.io is self-hostable, according to its own site.
- QuickBooks Online also covers payroll.
At a glance
| Manager.io | QuickBooks Online | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $59 per month, billed monthly | $38 per month, billed monthly |
| Free plan | Desktop edition for Windows, Mac and Linux: every feature, no time or usage limits and no ads, for a single user with no remote access. | 1 user, income and expense tracking, 2 invoices a month, 3 reports and 1 connected bank. No accountant access, mobile app or third-party apps. |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial of Manager Cloud, no credit card required | 30-day free trial on paid plans, taken instead of the 3-month discount |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Manager.io | Intuit Inc. |
| Price read from | manager.cloud | quickbooks.intuit.com |
| Checked | Oct 17, 2026 | Oct 17, 2026 |
Who each one suits
Manager.io
- Sole traders who want full double-entry books without a subscription
- Businesses that want their accounts on their own computer, usable offline
- Accountants who keep many client businesses on one flat-priced cloud server
QuickBooks Online
- US small businesses that want their accountant working in the same books
- Businesses that expect to add payroll, inventory or project tracking later
- Sole traders who only need to track income and send a few invoices
Worth knowing
Manager.io
- The free desktop edition is single-user; several users or remote access need the paid Cloud Edition or a self-run Server Edition.
- The Server Edition page names no price, and Manager.io does not install it for you.
- There is no phone app; the Cloud Edition is used in a phone or tablet browser.
- Bank transactions come in by importing statements, and payslips are records only, with no payroll tax filing described.
QuickBooks Online
- The advertised prices are a 50% discount for the first 3 months; the plan then renews at $38, $85, $140 or $340 a month.
- Each plan caps users: 1 on Simple Start, 3 on Essentials, 5 on Plus and 25 on Advanced.
- Payroll costs extra: Workforce Payroll alone is $50 a month plus $7 per employee, and Premium is $88 plus $13 per employee.
- These are US prices and plans; Intuit runs separate country sites for Canada, the UK, Australia, India and others.
Key features
Manager.io
- Sales and purchases
- Quotes, orders, invoices, credit notes, delivery notes, late payment fees and billable time on the sales side, with matching purchase documents.
- Bank imports and bank rules
- Import bank statements, then let bank rules allocate matching receipts and payments to accounts. Reconcile accounts against statements.
- Inventory and fixed assets
- Inventory items, kits and locations, plus fixed and intangible assets with depreciation and amortization entries.
- Employees and payslips
- Record employees and create payslips with earnings, deductions and employer contributions for each pay period.
- Works offline
- The desktop edition keeps the books on your computer, and a file made on Windows opens on Mac or Linux.
- Cloud and server editions
- Manager Cloud adds simultaneous users with permissions. The Server Edition runs the same web app on your own server.
QuickBooks Online
- Bank feeds and automatic categorizing
- Connect bank and card accounts and QuickBooks learns how you categorize transactions, then matches and records new ones the same way.
- Invoices and online payments
- Send invoices and estimates, take card and bank payments through QuickBooks Payments, and get status updates and reminders.
- Bills and accounts payable
- Organize and pay bills by ACH from paid plans. Standard ACH payments beyond the monthly allotment cost $0.50 each.
- Reports, budgets and projects
- Profit and loss and sales reports on every paid plan. Budgets, project profitability, inventory and class tracking start on Plus.
- Intuit Intelligence
- AI tools that categorize expenses, reconcile books and flag anomalies, with more of them unlocked on Plus and Advanced.
- Payroll through QuickBooks Workforce
- A separate subscription that runs full-service payroll, files payroll taxes and e-files 1099s, added from the same checkout.
Plans
Manager.io
Desktop Edition$0
Single-user software installed on your own computer. Every feature, works offline, no time or usage limits.
Cloud Edition$59
per month for unlimited users and businesses, billed monthly
The same software hosted by Manager.io at your own address, with multi-user access, user permissions, automatic backups and updates.
QuickBooks Online
Free$0
1 user, 2 invoices a month, profit and loss, balance sheet and account quick report, and 1 connected bank account.
Simple Start$38
per month for 1 user, billed monthly
Advertised at $19 a month for the first 3 months. Automated bookkeeping, invoicing with online payments, bill pay and access for 2 accountants.
Essentials$85
per month for up to 3 users, billed monthly
Advertised at $42.50 a month for the first 3 months. Adds enhanced reports, employee time on invoices and web lead forms.
Plus$140
per month for up to 5 users, billed monthly
Advertised at $70 a month for the first 3 months. Adds budgets, project profitability, inventory and up to 40 classes and locations.
Advanced$340
per month for up to 25 users, billed monthly
Advertised at $170 a month for the first 3 months. Adds custom roles, workflow automation, Excel sync, batch invoices and priority support.
Ways to pay less
Manager.io
- Annual discount
Pay ten months for a year of Cloud
Annual billing for Manager Cloud is ten times the monthly price: $590 a year instead of $708.
QuickBooks Online
- Other savings
50% off the first 3 months
New customers on a monthly plan pay half the base price for the first 3 months, then the regular price. It does not apply to per-employee fees.
