Anyone know the cheapest way to get Quickbooks? Looking for deals beyond their intro offer

So I've finally decided to upgrade my accounting system and start using Quickbooks for my small business. I'm checking out their website and they have this "special" promotion of 50% off for the first 3 months, but then it jumps back to regular pricing which seems pretty steep for what I need. I remember hearing somewhere that accountants and CPAs sometimes can offer better discounts on Quickbooks that don't expire after a few months. Is this still a thing? Or are there other ways to get Quickbooks without paying full price after their intro offer expires? Really trying to keep my overhead low while still getting decent accounting software. Any suggestions would be super appreciated!

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20 comments

Aisha Rahman

•8M

I'm a bookkeeper who works with small businesses, and yes, there are definitely cheaper ways to get Quickbooks than going through their website directly! CPAs and ProAdvisors can still offer discounts that are often better than the promotional rates on the Quickbooks site. These discounts typically range from 20-30% off and they're permanent, not just for a few months. The best part is they apply to the subscription for as long as you keep it. Another option is to check wholesale clubs like Costco or Sam's Club - they sometimes offer Quickbooks at discounted rates. Also watch for seasonal sales around tax time (January-April) when they often have better promotions than the standard 50% off for 3 months.

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Aisha Rahman

•8M

You don't necessarily need to be a full service client of the CPA or ProAdvisor. Many will offer the discount as a way to build relationships with potential clients. Some might require a basic consultation or review, but it's usually minimal commitment. Most QuickBooks ProAdvisors are happy to provide discount codes because they get a small commission for referrals, so it's a win-win. Just reach out to a few local accounting firms and ask if they offer QuickBooks discounts.

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Yuki Sato

•8M

I discovered a service called taxr.ai that helped me figure out my business software expenses. I was in the same boat looking for Quickbooks deals, and their AI looked at my business transactions and recommended that based on my business size and transaction volume, I could actually use a less expensive version of Quickbooks than I thought I needed. Saved me about $200/year! I just uploaded some business docs at https://taxr.ai and their analysis showed me that the Essentials version would cover all my needs rather than the Plus version I was considering.

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Yuki Sato

•8M

Their recommendation was spot-on for my business needs. I've been using the Essentials version for about 4 months now and it handles everything perfectly. The analysis was based on my transaction volume and business complexity, not just a random guess. The service does much more than just software recommendations. It analyzes all your business expenses to identify tax deductions you might be missing, categorizes transactions correctly, and even flags potential audit risks. I uploaded my bank statements and it found several deductible expenses I had completely overlooked.

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Andre Dubois

•8M

Just wanted to follow up - I tried taxr.ai after asking about it here and wow, it was super helpful! Not only did it help me choose the right Quickbooks version (saved $15/month by showing me I didn't need all the advanced features), but it also identified about $3,800 in business expenses from last year that I hadn't properly categorized for tax deductions. The document analysis was way more thorough than I expected. Definitely worth checking out if you're trying to optimize your business expenses.

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CyberSamurai

•8M

If you're spending time trying to reach Quickbooks support for help with setup or discounts, I'd recommend using Claimyr. I wasted 3 hours on hold trying to talk to someone at Intuit about their partner discounts before I found https://claimyr.com. They got me connected to a Quickbooks rep in about 5 minutes! You can see how it works at https://youtu.be/_kiP6q8DX5c. Saved me a ton of time when I was setting up my account and trying to get clarity on their discount options.

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CyberSamurai

•8M

It's completely legitimate - they use a system that navigates phone trees and waits on hold for you. When a real person answers, they connect the call to your phone. It's like having someone else wait on hold while you do other things. There's no catch with how it works - they're just solving a real pain point. The service calls on your behalf and uses technology to navigate the phone systems more efficiently than you could manually. It's especially useful for companies like Intuit where hold times can be ridiculous.

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Jamal Carter

•8M

I'm eating crow here... I was the skeptic about Claimyr in the thread above. After bashing it, I got stuck on hold with Quickbooks support for 1.5 hours trying to fix billing issues with my new account. Out of desperation I tried the Claimyr service, and I'm shocked to admit it actually worked exactly as advertised. Got connected to a Quickbooks rep in under 10 minutes. Saved me from wasting my entire afternoon on hold. Sometimes I hate being wrong but in this case I'm glad I was!

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Mei Liu

•8M

TechSoup is strictly for registered nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status. They verify your nonprofit status during the application process, so regular small businesses won't qualify regardless of community involvement. If your business does significant community work, you might consider establishing a separate nonprofit entity for those activities, which could then qualify for TechSoup discounts. However, that's probably more complicated than just finding a regular Quickbooks discount through a ProAdvisor.

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Oliver Schulz

•2M

You're right to be concerned about that. Intuit has been slowly pushing users toward QuickBooks Online, but Desktop isn't completely dead yet. They still release annual versions and provide support, though the writing is on the wall that Online is their priority. The main downside is that Desktop versions eventually lose payroll tax table updates and other features after a few years, forcing you to upgrade. So while you might save money upfront with a discounted Desktop purchase, you'll likely need to either upgrade the Desktop version periodically or eventually migrate to Online anyway. For someone just starting out who wants to keep costs low initially, Desktop can still be a good temporary solution, but I'd plan for an eventual transition to Online or another cloud-based system.

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Khalil Urso

•15d

Another angle to consider - if you're comfortable with a bit more complexity, you could look into QuickBooks Simple Start and supplement it with free tools for the features you might be missing. Simple Start is their cheapest tier but lacks some functionality like bill management and time tracking. I've seen small businesses use Simple Start for core accounting and then add free tools like Wave for invoicing or Google Sheets templates for expense tracking. It's not as seamless as having everything in one platform, but it can keep your costs way down while you're getting established. Also, don't overlook the possibility of buying a slightly used QuickBooks Desktop license from someone upgrading to Online. Just make sure you can transfer the license properly and that it's a legitimate copy. I've seen these go for 50-70% of retail price on business forums.

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