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

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

Pick Sevdesk if

• Fits if you're a German freelancer who must send e-invoices
• Works for small businesses that share books with a tax adviser through DATEV

Look elsewhere if

• Tight if you're on Free: 3 invoices a month
• Not for you if you're outside Germany and Austria, since it's built around German tax rules
• Pricey if you want bookkeeping and bank connection: Accounting is €25.90 a month, Accounting Pro €34.90
• Watch out: marketplace integrations may carry partner fees outside the plan price

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.

Sevdesk

• Built around German tax rules; the page says included features vary by country, with versions for Germany and Austria.
• The Free plan stops at 3 invoices or e-invoices a month.
• Prices shown are monthly-billed and exclude VAT; 12 and 24-month terms are offered at 25% and 50% off.
• Marketplace integrations may carry partner fees that are not part of the plan price.

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.

Sevdesk

E-invoices and quotes

Create invoices, quotes and delivery notes in your own layout, with ZUGFeRD and XRechnung e-invoice formats from the Free plan.

Receipt capture

Scan receipts with the mobile app or upload them; the system suggests a booking category and matches them to bank transactions.

Advance VAT returns

Prepare the advance VAT return and send it to the tax office through the ELSTER interface from the Accounting plan.

Bank connection

Connect online banking, which the page says supports more than 4,000 banks, and match payments to invoices.

Tax adviser access

A DATEV and ADDISON interface and direct account access let a tax adviser work on the data.

Reminders and dunning

Send payment reminders from the Invoicing plan and run multi-level dunning notices from the Accounting plan.

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.

Sevdesk

• Free€0.00

  Up to 3 invoices or e-invoices a month in ZUGFeRD and XRechnung formats, unlimited contacts.

• Invoicing€12.90

  per month, billed monthly, excl. VAT

  Unlimited invoices and quotes, payment reminders, DATEV interface, tax adviser access and support.

• Accounting€25.90

  per month, billed monthly, excl. VAT

  Adds bookkeeping, AI receipt capture, bank connection, advance VAT returns, EÜR and trial balance.

• Accounting Pro€34.90

  per month, billed monthly, excl. VAT

  For automating bookkeeping and watching the business in real time; extends the Accounting plan.

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.

Sevdesk

• Annual discount

  25% off a 12-month term, 50% off 24 months

  The pricing section offers 12-month and 24-month terms marked as 25% and 50% cheaper than paying month to month.