QuickBooks Online Hikes Prices 15-25% Across All Plans — Here's What You'll Pay
Intuit raises QBO prices across all tiers effective May 1. The Plus plan jumps from $90 to $110/month. Here's the full breakdown and what to do about it.
QBO Plus (the most popular plan) goes from $90 to $110/month on May 1. Bundled with Payroll, some businesses will pay $80+/month more than last year.
Intuit just announced the largest single price increase in QuickBooks Online history. Every subscription tier goes up 15-25% on May 1, 2026 — and if you bundle Payroll, the combined hit could add $80+/month to your software costs.
The New Prices
Here's what each plan costs now vs. May 1:
| Plan | Current | New (May 1) | Increase |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simple Start | $30/mo | $35/mo | +17% |
| Essentials | $60/mo | $70/mo | +17% |
| Plus | $90/mo | $110/mo | +22% |
| Advanced | $200/mo | $250/mo | +25% |
Payroll Gets Hit Too
QuickBooks Payroll, which 68% of QBO subscribers bundle with their accounting plan, is getting a separate ~20% increase. For a business on Plus + Payroll, the combined monthly cost jumps from roughly $170 to $215 — an extra $540/year.
Why Now?
The timing isn't random. Intuit has poured over $2 billion into AI development for the QuickBooks platform over the past two years, including the "Intuit Assist" AI bookkeeper that launched in beta last fall. The price increases are funding continued AI development.
"We're investing in capabilities that will fundamentally change how small businesses manage their finances," Intuit CFO Sandeep Aujla said during the company's Q2 earnings call.
Translation: you're paying more now for AI features that may eventually reduce your need for the software in the first place.
Who's Actually Affected
QuickBooks Online has roughly 7.5 million subscribers in the U.S. The Plus plan — the most popular tier for businesses with more than a handful of transactions — accounts for an estimated 40% of those subscribers. That's 3 million businesses seeing a $20/month increase they didn't budget for.
The Advanced tier increase is the steepest in percentage terms, but those businesses tend to have the budget to absorb it. The real pain is in the Plus tier, where small businesses with $500K-$2M in revenue are the core customer — and $240/year is noticeable.
What You Can Do Before May 1
- Audit your plan. Many businesses pay for Plus features (inventory tracking, project profitability) they don't use. Essentials covers most service-based businesses.
- Lock in annual pricing if you're on monthly billing. Annual plans typically discount 10-15% — locking in now at the old rate could save you money even after the increase.
- Evaluate alternatives. Xero starts at $29/month with similar features. FreshBooks and Wave are also competitive. Switching is painful but the gap is widening.
The May 1 deadline is firm. If you're going to switch plans or billing cycles, do it before then.