QuickBooks Review Australia 2026: Is It Worth It?

Last updated: November 2026 · Prices verified from official AU vendor sites · Affiliate disclosure

QuickBooks is a capable accounting platform that ranks a distant third in the Australian market - not because the software is bad, but because of ecosystem. Most Australian bookkeepers and accountants work in Xero or MYOB. Support is limited compared to both. And payroll runs through a separate Employment Hero subscription rather than being built in.

For most Australian businesses, Xero is the better choice. QuickBooks makes sense in specific situations - this review explains exactly when.

QuickBooks at a glance
Starting price	$32.72/month (Simple Start)
Payroll	Add-on via Employment Hero ($6/employee/month)
Free trial	30 days, no credit card
Support	Limited Australian support
Integrations	750+ apps
BAS / STP / Super	✓ ATO compliant
Offline access	✗ Cloud only
Our rating	★★★☆☆

Free Tool

True Cost Calculator

QuickBooks payroll adds $6 per employee per month on top of the plan. See your real total monthly cost.

Try the calculator →

QuickBooks pricing in Australia (2026)

Plan	Price/mo	Users	Payroll
Simple Start	$32.72	1	+$6/emp/mo
Essentials	$60	3	+$6/emp/mo
Plus	$81.81	5	+$6/emp/mo
Advanced	$125.45	25	+$6/emp/mo

Payroll is a separate line rather than a hidden penalty. With 5 employees, QuickBooks Essentials plus Employment Hero is $60 + $30 = $90/month, against Xero Comprehensive at $107, so QuickBooks comes out $17 cheaper. At 10 employees it is $81.81 + $60 = $141.81 against Xero Ultimate 10 at $143, so QuickBooks is $1.19 cheaper, close to a dead heat. MYOB Business Pro undercuts both at $86.36 for five people. Price is not the reason to avoid QuickBooks in Australia.

QuickBooks key features

Bank feeds and reconciliation

QuickBooks connects directly to Australian bank accounts via bank feeds, automatically importing transactions daily. Reconciliation works by matching imported transactions against your records - it's clean and reliable, broadly on par with Xero. Most major Australian banks are supported including Commonwealth, NAB, ANZ, Westpac, and the major business credit cards. The matching logic is solid for straightforward accounts; businesses with high transaction volumes will find it handles the bulk work without issues.

BAS lodgement and ATO compliance

QuickBooks is fully ATO compliant - BAS preparation, Single Touch Payroll (STP Phase 2), and superannuation reporting are all supported. GST tracking is automatic, and the BAS summary report pulls the figures you need for lodgement. The actual lodgement still happens through your tax agent or myGov; QuickBooks prepares the numbers rather than lodging directly. This is the same process as Xero and MYOB for most small businesses.

Reporting

QuickBooks includes over 80 standard reports - profit and loss, balance sheet, cash flow, aged receivables/payables, and GST reports. The reporting interface is straightforward and most reports can be customised by date range, account, or customer. For a small business with a single entity, this is more than enough. Where it falls behind Xero is in multi-entity reporting and the depth of customisation available on the higher Xero plans. For most sole traders and small businesses though, the standard reports cover everything needed.

Mobile app

The QuickBooks mobile app (iOS and Android) covers the essentials - sending invoices, capturing receipts, checking cash flow, and recording expenses on the go. It's competent but not the strongest in class; Xero's mobile app is generally considered more polished. For a tradie or sole trader who mainly needs to send invoices and photograph receipts from their phone, it does the job. For more complex mobile workflows, Xero has the edge.

Invoicing

Invoicing is a genuine strength. QuickBooks offers professional templates, automatic payment reminders, online payment links (via Stripe or PayPal), and a customer portal where clients can view and pay invoices. Recurring invoices are easy to set up. For a service business where invoicing is the primary accounting activity, this is well executed and competitive with Xero.

Payroll (via Employment Hero)

QuickBooks doesn't include native payroll - it connects to Employment Hero (formerly KeyPay) as an add-on at $6 per employee per month. The integration works reasonably well once set up, with STP Phase 2 compliance and super payments handled through Employment Hero. The issue isn't quality or cost, and both hold up better than this review used to claim. It's that payroll lives in a second platform, with a second login and a second bill, which is friction Xero and MYOB don't hand you. Employment Hero is a capable product in its own right. Whether you want to run it alongside your ledger is the real question.

What QuickBooks does well

Clean, modern interface

QuickBooks Online has a genuinely well-designed interface - modern, logical, and easy to navigate. New users often find it easier to learn than MYOB and roughly on par with Xero. The dashboard gives a clear overview of cash flow, invoices, and expenses without requiring an accounting background to interpret.

International consistency

If you're running a business with operations in multiple countries - particularly the US - QuickBooks offers consistent software across markets. Migrating data between QuickBooks US and QuickBooks AU is more straightforward than switching between different platforms entirely.

Price at entry level

Simple Start at $32.72/month is $4.28 cheaper than Xero Ignite ($37), though MYOB Business Lite is cheaper again at $31.82. For a sole trader with no employees and very simple needs, it's a legitimate cost consideration - though the $4.28/month saving over Xero Ignite needs to be weighed against Xero's better support and ecosystem.

Where QuickBooks falls short in Australia

The ecosystem problem

This is the central issue. Australian bookkeepers and accountants predominantly work in Xero - by a wide margin. Many bookkeepers exclusively work with Xero clients and either decline QuickBooks work or charge a premium for it. If you use QuickBooks and want to hire a bookkeeper, your pool of options is smaller and often more expensive. Your accountant may also take longer in your file if they're not fluent in QuickBooks, which means higher fees.

Payroll lives in a second platform

At $6 per employee per month the add-on does not make QuickBooks dearer than Xero, and at five employees it is $17 cheaper. What it does add is a second subscription to set up, administer and reconcile, and a second vendor to deal with when a pay run goes wrong. If you want payroll in the same place as your ledger, Xero and MYOB both do that and QuickBooks does not.

Limited Australian support

QuickBooks' Australian support is primarily online help articles and community forums. Phone support is available but limited compared to Xero's 24/7 online ticket support or MYOB's Australian business hours team. When something goes wrong before a BAS deadline, this matters more than it sounds.

Fewer specialist integrations

With 750+ integrations, QuickBooks covers mainstream tools well - Shopify, Stripe, Square all connect fine. But specialist Australian industry tools (trade job management, property management, medical practice software, NDIS platforms) are more likely to have deep native Xero integrations. Always check your specific tools before committing.

QuickBooks vs MYOB

Most Australian comparisons focus on QuickBooks vs Xero, but if you're considering leaving MYOB, here's how they stack up directly. Our MYOB vs QuickBooks comparison goes further on payroll and inventory.

	QuickBooks	MYOB
Entry price	$32.72/mo (Simple Start)	$31.82/mo (Lite)
Payroll included	✗ Add-on $6/emp	✓ Built in, $4.55/emp on Lite and Pro
Australian support	Limited (online/chat)	Business hours phone
Bookkeeper availability	Low	Medium
Interface	Modern, clean	Functional, dated
Bank feeds	✓	✓
BAS / STP / Super	✓ Compliant	✓ Compliant
Offline access	✗ Cloud only	✗ Online only (offline mode ended)
Integrations	750+ apps	Fewer AU-specific integrations
Best for	Sole traders, international businesses	Businesses wanting payroll included

The headline difference: MYOB includes payroll from its entry plan, while QuickBooks charges extra. For a business with even 2-3 employees, MYOB's total cost is often lower than QuickBooks + Employment Hero. QuickBooks has the better interface and more integrations, but MYOB's payroll-included model is a real advantage for the Australian market. Neither is a strong alternative to Xero for most businesses - but if you're choosing between the two, payroll is the deciding factor.

Who QuickBooks is actually right for

Situation	Verdict
Sole trader, no employees, price-sensitive	✓ Simple Start at $32.72 is a competitive entry point
Already using QuickBooks internationally	✓ Consistency across markets is a real advantage
Your existing bookkeeper uses QuickBooks	✓ Don't change what's working
Business with 2+ employees	✓ Cheaper than Xero on price, but payroll runs in a separate platform
Hospitality, trade, medical, NDIS	✗ Ecosystem and integrations favour Xero
Need 24/7 support	✗ Xero is the only option

Common questions

Why don't Australian accountants use QuickBooks more?

It's not that accountants dislike it - it's that Xero became the industry standard in Australia over the past decade and the profession built its workflows, training, and tooling around it. An accountant with 100 clients, 90 of whom use Xero and 5 who use QuickBooks, will be less efficient in QuickBooks files simply through lack of practice. That inefficiency gets passed to you in higher fees or slower turnaround.

Is QuickBooks good for Australian small businesses?

For very small businesses - sole traders with simple needs - QuickBooks Simple Start at $32.72/month is capable and affordable. For businesses with employees, QuickBooks plus payroll usually costs a little less than Xero, but payroll runs in a separate platform. For businesses needing specialist integrations or 24/7 support, Xero is the stronger choice.

Can I switch from QuickBooks to Xero?

Yes - both Xero and MYOB offer free data migration assistance for businesses switching from QuickBooks. Chart of accounts, contacts, and transaction history can be migrated. The process takes a few days and is most manageable at the start of a financial year.

See your real monthly cost

Compare QuickBooks, Xero and MYOB on your exact business size and employee count.

Try the cost calculator →

Start Free

Try QuickBooks free for 30 days

No credit card required. Full access to your chosen plan, cancel anytime.

Start your free trial →

StackPick may earn a commission if you subscribe through our links, at no extra cost to you. This does not influence our recommendations. See our affiliate disclaimer.