COMPARISON | 5 MIN READ

Acumatica vs. QuickBooks

Compare a mid-market ERP with a small business accounting solution.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acumatica and QuickBooks are both popular ERP solutions with overlapping features and functions. However, the two solutions are designed with different business types in mind. Read on to discover whether Acumatica or QuickBooks Enterprise is a better fit for your business.

Cloud ERP vs SMB Accounting Software

QuickBooks Enterprise is the go-to accounting solution for small businesses. Its accessible features, no-frills design, and affordable price point make it a desirable choice for organizations with limited budgets and small teams.

While small businesses thrive on basic software like QuickBooks Enterprise, it’s common for those organizations to outgrow QuickBooks and search for more robust financial software. Some even expand into the realm of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), which includes accounting plus operational features like business intelligence, supply chain management, human resource management, and more. It’s common for businesses that start with QuickBooks to exchange it for more powerful solutions like Acumatica later down the line.

Acumatica vs. QuickBooks Comparison Report

Review a side-by-side comparison of modern ERP software vs SMB accounting software. Find out what sets them apart and learn which one may fit your business and industry the best.

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Features

Acumatica and QuickBooks Enterprise both offer financial management functionality to help accounting teams get more done in less time. However, Acumatica has a broader feature scope than QuickBooks that encompasses multiple industry-specific modules, sales and marketing capabilities, and much more:

Acumatica Core Features:

General Ledger
Accounts Payable
Accounts Receivable
Cash Management
Tax Management
Customer Management
Payments
Reporting & Dashboards

Acumatica Advanced Modules:

Manufacturing Edition
Distribution Edition
Retail Edition
Construction Edition
Professional Services Edition
Global Financials
Fixed Assets
Payroll
Intercompany Accounting
Deferred Revenue
Contracts
Fixed Assets
Cash Basis Reporting
Expense Management
AP Document Recognition
Sales Force and Marketing Automation
Case Management
Portals
Inventory Control
Order Management
Shipping Carrier Integration
Warehouse Management

QuickBooks Enterprise Core Features:

General Ledger
Accounts Payable
Accounts Receivable
Inventory Management
Pricing
Reporting
Hosting
Field Service Management
Order Management
Job Costing

QuickBooks Enterprise Additional Modules:

Built-in Reports
Advanced Reporting
Salesforce CRM Connector
Warehouse Management
Order Management
Barcode Scanning
Cost Tracking
Pricing Features
Optimal Pricing

Pricing

Cost is a crucial differentiator between Acumatica and QuickBooks. Smaller businesses are attracted to QuickBooks’ lower price point, but Acumatica’s unique pricing structure is suitable for organizations of all sizes.

QuickBooks Enterprise’s traditional pricing model charges a monthly fee based on functionality and user requirements. Gold, Platinum, and Diamond tier subscriptions are available; Gold and Platinum include 1–10 or up to 30 users, and Diamond includes 1–10 or up to 40 users. More robust accounting features are available at the Platinum and Diamond tiers, but the Gold tier includes all the accounting basics that a small team could need.

Rather than charging a per-user fee, which most traditional accounting and ERP solutions do, Acumatica’s cost is based on transaction volume. Businesses with more monthly transactions will pay a higher subscription cost than those with fewer transactions, but this comes at the unique advantage of more flexible user licensing.

See Acumatica and QuickBooks pricing go head-to-head in our comparison report.

Implementation Timelines

The length of a software implementation varies between organizations based on several factors, such as which software is being implemented, how much training is required, and the complexity of syncing the new software with existing systems.

Since QuickBooks is a straightforward solution for small businesses, its implementation timeline is shorter than most other accounting and ERP solutions. QuickBooks Enterprise can be implemented in 1.5 to 2 months, and this quick launch window is especially enticing for organizations that don’t already have dedicated accounting software.

Because Acumatica is a broader solution than QuickBooks Enterprise, it requires more time to implement. The average Acumatica implementation can take at least 2 to 3 months, with longer implementation cycles for organizations investing in Acumatica’s advanced modules.

Keep in mind that your chosen implementation partner will influence the length of the implementation. Communicative, experienced implementation partners will ensure the process is smooth and your team is equipped to handle the learning curve of new software.

Integrations

QuickBooks Enterprise and Acumatica are both designed with integration in mind; hundreds of third-party applications sync seamlessly with these two top solutions.

QuickBooks Enterprise integrates with popular e-commerce and payment platforms like PayPal, Shopify, and Square, as well as tools for payroll, inventory, sales and marketing, and more. Most of these integrations are “plug-and-play” and can be used right out of the box, requiring minimal investment from IT teams.

Since Acumatica offers additional operational features on top of its financial capabilities, it supports more complex integrations. If an Acumatica user can’t find the right third-party tool for a specific feature or function, Acumatica’s open-source platform allows software developers to build specific workflows and customizations. While custom-built modules are pricier than out-of-the-box ones, they can accommodate the unique needs of growing organizations.

Sum It Up

QuickBooks Enterprise is a basic accounting solution for small organizations with limited budgets. Its price, features, and implementation requirements are user-friendly and accessible, but businesses investing in QuickBooks run the risk of outgrowing it.

Acumatica is an ERP solution with accounting and operational features. Its unique pricing structure and variety of business editions make it a great fit for organizations of all kinds. While it may be too broad and pricey for small businesses, it’s designed to grow alongside mid-sized businesses and can even fulfill the needs of enterprise-level organizations.

At Cargas, our expert consulting team specializes in ERP and financial management solutions, including Acumatica. If you’re struggling to determine which of these solutions is the best fit for your business, we’d love to help. Fill out the form below to unlock our comparison report and take the next step in your software journey.