Puzzle vs QuickBooks Online (2026): which should you pick?

Pick Puzzle if

• Fits if you're a startup that wants AI to categorize transactions
• Works for founders who link Stripe, Mercury or Ramp

Look elsewhere if

• Tight if you lean on the AI: 25 lifetime credits on Starter and Core, 100 a month on Complete
• Skip it if you're a team: Starter has 1 seat and Core 5, with unlimited from Complete at $100
• Pricey if you want bookkeeping done for you: from $171 a month with Core, and it needs a subscription
• Watch out: a QuickBooks migration costs $149 one-time unless you add catch-up bookkeeping or Full Service

Pick QuickBooks Online if

• Fits if your accountant wants to work in the same books as you
• Works for US businesses that expect to add payroll, inventory or project tracking later

Look elsewhere if

• Pricey if you're a small team or need inventory and budgets: $85 a month for 3 users, $140 for Plus with 5
• Watch out: the advertised prices are half off for 3 months only, then $38, $85, $140 or $340 a month
• Tight if you're on the free plan: 2 invoices a month, 1 bank, and no accountant access or mobile app
• Pricey if you need payroll, at $50 a month plus $7 an employee on top
• Skip it if you're outside the US, as these are US plans and prices and other countries have their own sites

Puzzle

• Starter allows one seat and Core five; unlimited seats start at Complete.
• AI credits are limited: 25 for the lifetime of Starter and Core, 100 a month on Complete.
• Bookkeeping services start at $171 a month with Core, for up to $10K in monthly expenses, and need an active subscription.
• A QuickBooks migration costs $149 one-time unless catch-up bookkeeping or Full Service is added.

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.

Puzzle

AI categorization and close

Categorizes most transactions automatically, reconciles accounts and drafts financial statements; an AI suite adds chat, cowork and close tools.

Cash and accrual books

Keeps both bases, with accrual automation for prepaid expenses and fixed assets and revenue recognition on Complete.

Startup metrics

Cash, burn, runway and margin insights plus spend and revenue tracking, from the Core plan.

Integrations

Connects to Stripe, Mercury, Ramp, Brex, Gusto and other finance tools through live API links.

Accounting services

Expert Reviewed and Full Service bookkeeping, priced by monthly expenses and sold only alongside a subscription.

API and MCP

An API and MCP server let you connect the books to Claude and ChatGPT.

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.

Puzzle

• Starter$25

  per month, billed annually ($30 billed monthly)

  1 seat; 85 to 90% of transactions categorized automatically, cash and accrual books, 25 lifetime AI credits.

• Core$60

  per month, billed annually ($72 billed monthly)

  5 seats; adds cash, burn and runway insights, variance analysis, custom chart of accounts and multi-entity.

• Complete$100

  per month, billed annually ($120 billed monthly)

  Unlimited seats; adds AI accuracy review and reconciliations, revenue recognition, priority support; 100 AI credits a month.

• Scale$300

  per month, billed annually ($360 billed monthly)

  High-volume accounting with subledgers, no transaction or integration limits, backup and restore; 300 AI credits a month.

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.

Puzzle

• Annual discount

  12 months for the price of 10

  The pricing page's yearly option charges for 10 months of the monthly price, which is $25 against $30 on Starter.

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.