A QuickBooks Alternative for Contractors and Trades
By Jeff Burt, founder of Invoice Goat. Published October 14, 2026.
Invoice Goat is a QuickBooks alternative for tradespeople who mostly need to quote jobs and get paid. Your customer e-signs the quote and pays the invoice from their phone, and there's one price, $79 a month or $69 billed yearly, whether it's just you or a crew sharing the login.
If you're using QuickBooks to send quotes and invoices from the job, you're paying for an accounting suite, and the bill moves up a plan each time your crew outgrows its user limit. We built Invoice Goat to do the part you actually use: the quote, the signature, the invoice and getting paid, done in the truck instead of at the kitchen table at night. And leaving QuickBooks doesn't mean retyping your customers: in the optional $199 onboarding hour, I move your data over for you.
QuickBooks Alternatives in 2026: Invoice Goat vs QuickBooks Online
Most lists for this search compare one accounting program with another. This page is for the contractor who opens QuickBooks to quote and invoice. Here's Invoice Goat next to QuickBooks Online, at the prices each company listed on October 14, 2026.1
| Feature | Invoice Goat | QuickBooks Online |
|---|---|---|
| Price | ||
| Price | Invoice Goat$79/month, or $69/month billed yearly. One plan with every feature. | QuickBooks OnlineLite $20, Simple Start $38, Essentials $85, Plus $140, Advanced $340 a month. New customers on a monthly plan get 50% off for 3 months. |
| A year for a crew of 3 or 5, paying monthly | ||
| A year for a crew of 3 or 5, paying monthly | Invoice Goat$948 either way (or $828 yearly) | QuickBooks Online$1,020 (Essentials) or $1,680 (Plus) |
| Who can use it | ||
| Who can use it | Invoice GoatOne login your crew shares, at no extra cost | QuickBooks Online1, 3, 5 or 25 users, depending on the plan |
| Free plan | ||
| Free plan | Invoice GoatNo. Free trial: one quote and one invoice, no card, no time limit | QuickBooks OnlineYes: 1 user, 2 invoices and 1 estimate a month (unlimited invoices if you qualify for and enable QuickBooks Payments) |
| Customer signs the quote | ||
| Customer signs the quote | Invoice GoatDraws a signature on their phone. The quote PDF shows the signature with the date, time and IP address. | QuickBooks OnlineAccepts or declines from the email. Intuit lists mobile signatures. |
| Quote to invoice | ||
| Quote to invoice | Invoice GoatOne tap opens a new invoice filled in from the quote. The invoice is its own record, so changing it doesn't change the quote. | QuickBooks OnlineConvert an estimate into an invoice |
| Card payments | ||
| Card payments | Invoice GoatAbout 3% + $0.30 | QuickBooks Online2.99% |
| Bank transfer payments | ||
| Bank transfer payments | Invoice GoatAbout 1%, capped at $10 | QuickBooks Online1%, no cap shown on Intuit's rates page |
| On your phone | ||
| On your phone | Invoice GoatAny phone browser, nothing to install | QuickBooks OnlineiOS and Android app, on Lite and above |
| Staying signed in | ||
| Staying signed in | Invoice GoatStays signed in on your phone | QuickBooks OnlineSigns everyone out after 1 hour idle by default; the admin can raise it to 3 hours |
| Leaving | ||
| Leaving | Invoice GoatCancel from your billing page. Export customers, invoices, quotes and your price book as spreadsheets. | QuickBooks OnlineCancel in the Intuit Account Manager. Read-only access and exports for a year after. |
| Keeps your books | ||
| Keeps your books | Invoice GoatNo. It tracks who paid; the books stay with your bookkeeper. | QuickBooks OnlineYes, it's accounting software |
Fees and plan details come from Intuit's pricing, payments and help pages, sources 3 to 7 below.
What QuickBooks Costs a Crew
What a year costs, by crew size, paying monthly
A year of Invoice Goat is $948 month to month, or $828 if you pay yearly, and that covers the whole crew on one shared login. QuickBooks sells its plans by how many people can log in. Intuit doesn't list a yearly price, so I multiplied its monthly prices by 12. A year of Essentials (up to 3 users) is $1,020, and Plus (up to 5 users) is $1,680. New customers get 50% off the first three months, which brings the first year to $892.50 and $1,470.1 Intuit also changed the prices of Essentials, Plus and Advanced for renewals on or after August 1, 2026.2
For one person, QuickBooks costs less, and I won't pretend it doesn't: Simple Start is $456 a year, and Lite is $240, though Intuit limits estimates on Lite.4 With us, the price is the same for you alone and for the crew you hire next year, with unlimited quotes, invoices and customers.
On big jobs, the payment fee can matter more than the plan. Say a customer pays a $6,000 invoice by bank transfer. QuickBooks Payments lists bank payments at 1%, with no cap shown, so that's $60.3 Through Invoice Goat, a bank transfer is about 1%, capped at $10, so it's $10. Card payments come out about even: on a $450 service call, 2.99% is $13.46 with QuickBooks, and about 3% plus 30 cents is about $13.80 with us. See Invoice Goat pricing.
Why Contractors Switch From QuickBooks
A Signed Quote Before You Start
Your customer opens the quote on their phone and draws their signature, so you have a signed quote before you unload the truck. The quote PDF shows the signature with the date, time and IP address. When the job is done, one tap opens a new invoice filled in from the quote. The invoice is its own record, so you can add the extra fitting you found behind the wall without changing what the customer signed.
“I can respond to emergencies faster and send quotes with signature approvals on the spot. Gives me confidence knowing I've got a signed contract before starting the job.” Rick T., HVAC Technician
Here's how fast customers answer. As of September 2026, 64% of quotes sent through Invoice Goat were approved within 24 hours, and 31% of invoices were paid within 24 hours.8
Paperwork Done From the Truck
Invoice Goat runs in your phone's browser with nothing to install, and it keeps you signed in. So the invoice goes out before you leave the driveway, instead of piling up for Sunday night. Intuit's help page says QuickBooks Online signs every user out after an hour without activity unless the account's admin raises it, and the most it allows is 3 hours.5
Photos and Paperwork on the Invoice
Attach before and after photos, a short video, or documents like warranty info, receipts or a W-9 to any quote or invoice. They show on the page your customer opens to sign or pay, and a quote's attachments carry over to its invoice. They don't print on the PDF, so put anything the paper copy needs in the notes.
“The before and after photo feature is huge for me. Even when customers aren't home, I can show proof of work and get paid fast.” Jose L., Landscaper
One Plan, and You Can Leave
There's one plan with every feature, so there's nothing to upgrade to. If it stops working for you, cancel from your billing page, and your plan runs to the end of the period you paid for. You can export your customers, invoices, quotes and price book as spreadsheets whenever you like.
How to Switch From QuickBooks
You don't have to start from scratch. In the optional $199 onboarding, I spend an hour with you and run my QuickBooks transfer script, so your data comes across without the retyping. Setting up on your own is free and takes a few minutes.
- Export from QuickBooks before you cancel. Under Settings, choose Export data to get your reports and lists as Excel files in one .zip file, invoices included. Estimates export separately, from your sales transactions with the type set to Estimates.6
- Book the onboarding hour, or add your customers and the items you use every week to your price book yourself.
- Send your next quote from Invoice Goat. If you want to see one first, make a quote with the free quote maker, or read how to invoice as a contractor.
- Cancel QuickBooks when your open invoices there are paid. Intuit keeps your data read-only for a year after you cancel, and you can export it during that year.7
QuickBooks Alternative FAQ
Is QuickBooks free?
QuickBooks has a free plan: $0 a month for one user, up to two invoices a month (unlimited if you qualify for and enable QuickBooks Payments) and one estimate a month, with no mobile app. Invoice Goat has no free plan, but the trial gives you one quote and one invoice with every feature, no card and no time limit, so you can try it on a real job.
How hard is it to switch from QuickBooks?
Not hard. Export your data from QuickBooks first. Then set up Invoice Goat yourself, which is free and takes a few minutes, or book the $199 onboarding hour, where I move your QuickBooks data over for you. QuickBooks keeps your data read-only for a year after you cancel, so you can still look up old invoices.
Does Invoice Goat work with QuickBooks?
Not directly. When a customer pays online, the money runs through your own Stripe account, and a QuickBooks sync app from Stripe's App Marketplace can carry those payments into QuickBooks (some charge a fee). Cash, check, Zelle and PayPal payments go into QuickBooks by hand, and you can export your invoices as a spreadsheet any time.
Do I still need accounting software?
Invoice Goat handles quotes, invoices, payments and who still owes you, with revenue and year-end reports for tax time. It doesn't keep your books or do your taxes. If a bookkeeper does that for you, they keep their tool, and you send them your invoice export instead of a shoebox of paper.
Can my whole crew use one account?
Yes. Each business gets one login that the whole crew can share, at no extra cost, and many of our customers run several techs on it. The price stays $79 a month, or $69 billed yearly, when you hire, so adding a helper doesn't move you to a bigger plan.
Try it on your next job. Your first quote and invoice are free, with no card and no time limit.
Sources and Dates
Each source as it stood on October 14, 2026.
- QuickBooks pricing page: plan prices, users, the free plan, the 3-month offer terms, and accountant access. QuickBooks Lite price on Intuit's Solopreneur page (quickbooks.intuit.com/solopreneur). https://quickbooks.intuit.com/pricing/
- Intuit, QuickBooks Online August pricing changes: Essentials, Plus and Advanced change for renewals on or after August 1, 2026. https://quickbooks.intuit.com/r/product-update/quickbooks-price-changes/
- QuickBooks Payments rates (accurate as of September 18, 2026): cards and digital wallets 2.99%, ACH bank payments 1%. https://quickbooks.intuit.com/payments/payment-rates/
- Intuit help: create and send estimates in QuickBooks Online (limited on Free and Lite; customers accept or decline from the email; convert to an invoice). https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/job-estimates/create-send-estimates-quickbooks-online/L0kOXRjoP_US_en_US
- Intuit help: change the timeout duration in QuickBooks Online (default 1 hour, up to 3 hours, set by the Master Administrator). https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/data-security/change-timeout-duration-quickbooks-online/L1osjv4ex_US_en_US
- Intuit help: export reports, lists and data from QuickBooks Online. https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/list-management/export-reports-lists-data-quickbooks-online/L1xleDrLp_US_en_US
- Intuit help: what happens to your QuickBooks Online data after you cancel. How to cancel: quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/cancel-products-services/cancel-quickbooks-online-subscription-trial/L0MFTXlbw_US_en_US. https://quickbooks.intuit.com/learn-support/en-us/help-article/access-permissions/happens-quickbooks-online-data-cancel/L6qDpbE1B_US_en_US
- Invoice Goat figures, as of September 2026: share of quotes sent through Invoice Goat approved within 24 hours, and share of invoices paid within 24 hours. Totals across all accounts.