QuickBooks Desktop vs Online: the five-year cost
What QuickBooks Online and Desktop cost a small business over five years at 2026 list prices, with payroll, and how a one-time purchase compares.
6 min read · October 17, 2026
Prices below are list prices as published on October 17, 2026. Promotions, discounts and future increases change the totals; Intuit has raised QuickBooks prices several times since 2024.
QuickBooks Online
| Plan | Per month | Per year | Five years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simple Start | $38 | $456 | $2,280 |
| Essentials | $85 | $1,020 | $5,100 |
| Plus | $140 | $1,680 | $8,400 |
| Advanced | $340 | $4,080 | $20,400 |
Plus is the plan a typical Desktop Pro or Premier user needs, because it includes inventory and project tracking. Five years assumes no further price increases.
QuickBooks Desktop
- Pro Plus and Premier Plus are no longer sold to new US customers. Existing subscribers renew yearly. Intuit does not publish renewal prices on its site; accounting firms reported Pro Plus at $1,149 a year and Premier Plus at $1,609 a year from February 2026, before a further increase announced for October 1, 2026. Check your own renewal notice.
- Enterprise is still sold, on an annual subscription priced by quote.
Adding payroll
QuickBooks Desktop Enhanced Payroll, per Intuit's fee page, costs $70 a month or $700 a year, plus $7 per active employee per month. For five employees that is $700 + $420 = $1,120 a year, or $5,600 over five years. QuickBooks Online payroll is a separate subscription on top of the Online plan.
Five years side by side
| Five employees, five years | Software | Payroll | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| QuickBooks Desktop Pro Plus (reported Feb 2026 price) | about $5,745 | $5,600 | about $11,345 |
| QuickBooks Online Plus | $8,400 | separate subscription | $8,400 plus payroll |
| AcboBooks | $399.99 once | calculations included; you file and pay the returns yourself | $399.99 plus a yearly updates renewal for new payroll tax tables |
Beyond the price
- Where your data lives: Online keeps your books on Intuit's servers. Desktop and AcboBooks keep a file on your PC.
- Working offline: Online needs a connection; desktop programs do not.
- What happens if you stop paying: a lapsed QuickBooks subscription becomes view-only. A bought-once program keeps working.
- What you lose by leaving Intuit: bank feeds direct from the bank and Intuit's app ecosystem. Be honest with yourself about whether you use them.
QuickBooks® is a registered trademark of Intuit Inc. AcboBooks is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Intuit.
One payment of $399.99
AcboBooks includes payroll, inventory and multi-user on the office network, with 12 months of updates. After that it keeps working; renewing updates is optional, though payroll users need it for each year's new tax tables.
This article is general information, not tax, legal or accounting advice. Rules and dates change; check the official source or ask your accountant before acting.