Wave vs. QuickBooks: Comparing Cost and Features

The accounting process is one of the critical business functions that defines a business’s success. Therefore, organizations must put in focused efforts to choose an accounting software platform.

However, because of several options in the market, this task is easier than it sounds.

In this blog, we will discuss two of the most prominent accounting solutions available in the market – Wave and QuickBooks Enterprise, based on different parameters, such as features, business size, customer support, and more.

Let’s discuss this in detail.

Overview of QuickBooks and Wave

QuickBooks Enterprise

QuickBooks Enterprise is Intuit’s most advanced accounting solution that offers enhanced visibility and collaboration into the business process. It offers automation of critical tasks with workflows that can be customized as per your business.

Be it customer, vendor, warehouse, or inventory management, QB Enterprise ensures a seamless data flow between different business functions. Moreover, you can integrate QB Enterprise with over 200 apps to accomplish complementary tasks.

QuickBooks Enterprise Desktop offers advanced features related to invoicing, billing, shipping, pricing, payment, and sales order tracking that make it a complete ERP solution. It offers a maximum of 30 users with the option to upgrade to 40 in the Diamond version.

Wave

Wave Accounting is a cloud-based financial software platform tailored to the needs of small businesses, freelancers, and entrepreneurs. Launched in 2010, Wave has quickly grown into a popular choice for those seeking a user-friendly and cost-effective solution to manage their finances without the complexity or price tag of larger, enterprise-level accounting software.

With its intuitive interface and powerful features, Wave offers a comprehensive suite of tools, designed to streamline financial management, making it easier for small business owners to focus on what matters most—growing their business.

QuickBooks vs. Wave: A Comparison

Features Comparison

Time Tracking

Wave does not offer a time-tracking feature. If you want to track employee time, you need to integrate Wave with third-party apps, such as Toggle.

QuickBooks Enterprise, on the other hand, is integrated with QuickBooks Time to manage employee time and streamline payroll services. It enables you to track time on an hourly basis, create and approve timesheets automatically, and manage your team.

Transaction Fees

Here is a comparison of the transaction fees between QuickBooks and Wave. However, Wave offers the payment feature as an add-on, whereas QuickBooks Payments is included with QuickBooks Enterprise.

Payroll

Wave offers the Payroll feature at additional charges of $20 per month. You can pay employees easily and file taxes in multiple states. Moreover, you can track payroll expenses, automate tax filing, and generate W2 forms. Wave offers a 30-day free trial for the Payroll software.

In comparison, the QuickBooks Enterprise Payroll feature comes with a built-in Payroll feature at no additional cost. The QuickBooks Payroll is more advanced than Wave with features, like automated workflows, time tracking, HR and employee benefits, and more.

Customer Support

QuickBooks Enterprise subscription plans include Priority Circle – a premium customer support service by Intuit. Priority Circle offers 24/7 dedicated phone and chat support. You can also get a resolution to your queries through the online community platform, knowledgebases, and training material.

Wave’s customer support is more limited. Free users can access email support and the online help center, which includes articles and video tutorials. Paid users (those using payroll or payment services) have access to live chat and phone support. While adequate for most small businesses, the level of support does not match that of QuickBooks Enterprise, particularly for users with more complex needs.

Data Security

Wave offers a robust cloud accounting solution for small businesses. It is a PCI DSS-compliant platform that ensures secure credit card payments. Other security methods include multi-factor authentication, fraud detection, and 256-bit data encryption. However, as Wave is not HIPAA compliant, it does not support the healthcare industry.

QuickBooks Enterprise, as a desktop software, has more inbuilt security features than Wave. It offers granular user permissions with customizable roles. Moreover, you can create new roles and edit permissions. Like Wave, it also offers 256-bit data encryption. Other features include password expiry and online backup features. Moreover, if you want to add another layer of data security, you can always opt for QB Enterprise cloud hosting.

Pricing Plans

QuickBooks Enterprise

QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise has a subscription-based pricing model. It offers four pricing plans but you can also contact them for a custom quote.

• Silver – $114/user/month
• Gold – $155/user/month
• Platinum – $185/user/month
• Diamond – $311/user/month

Ace Cloud Hosting offers genuine QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise licenses at discounted prices.

Wave

Wave offers a free application subscription that includes basic features, such as estimate creation, payment acceptance, and invoicing.

However, if you want additional features, such as more users, transaction categorization, and auto-import bank transactions, you must opt for the paid plan – Pro for $16 per month.

Furthermore, you can add additional functionalities not included in the Free and Pro plans.

• Payroll – $20/month
• Hire a Bookkeeper – $149/month

Customer Reviews and Industry Opinions

Here are some customer ratings from the best software review platforms that will help you get a clear picture of both accounting platforms.

Pros and Cons

QuickBooks

Wave

QuickBooks Enterprise or Wave: Which is Best for Your Business?

Both QuickBooks Enterprise and Wave can help you streamline accounting operations by optimizing invoice management, payment processing, bookkeeping, and more. However, you must make the decision based on your business type and scale.

If you are an individual contractor or own a startup/small business, you can opt for Wave. Wave offers you basic accounting features at no cost to help you cater to your budget. Moreover, it has an easy-to-use interface, enabling a professional, even with no accounting experience, to keep track of the finances.

On the other hand, QuickBooks Enterprise suits mid to large businesses that want a comprehensive ERP solution to run their business process. It might cost more than Wave but it offers a higher return on investment as you get everything on one platform. With Wave, you must integrate other third-party applications to create a complete business solution.

Conclusion

As a business, choosing the best accounting solution for your process ensures an error-free and compliant accounting process. The pointers above will help you choose the best accounting app. However, you must assess your requirements before selecting one of them. You should also weigh the features against the pricing to analyze the products wisely.

If you have decided to choose QuickBooks Enterprise for your business but also want a cloud solution, you can try out QuickBooks cloud hosting. It is a process of hosting the QuickBooks Desktop (any version) on the cloud platform of a third-party service provider. Hosting QuickBooks on the cloud combines all the QuickBooks Enterprise features with cloud capabilities. Some of them include remote access, advanced cloud security, disaster recovery, all-time availability, automatic scalability, and more.

Ace Cloud Hosting offers QuickBooks Enterprise hosting on high-performance servers. We ensure multi-level data security, 24/7/365 customer support, and 99.99 percent uptime.

FAQs – QuickBooks vs Wave

You May Also Like:

• QuickBooks Vs Xero
• QuickBooks Vs FreshBooks