Aplos vs QuickBooks Online
By ChurchTechStack · Prices and facts from each vendor's own pages, with sources. Anything we couldn't confirm is left out.
VS
QuickBooks Online
Free plan; Simple Start $38/moChurch bookkeeping eventually forces this question: stick with the software every accountant knows, or switch to software built for fund accounting.
Ask whoever closes your books at year-end before you decide.
At a glance
| Aplos | QuickBooks Online |
|---|
| Starting price | $79/mo (Lite) | Free plan; Simple Start $38/mo |
|---|
| Pricing model | tiered | tiered |
|---|
| Who it's for | Small and mid-size churches needing fund accounting. | Churches with a bookkeeper or CPA. |
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| Pricing source | official pricing page | official pricing page |
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Pricing, in plain terms
Aplos
- Lite: $79/month. Core: $129/month. Advanced: $229/month.
- A 50%-off promo for 3 months was showing when we checked.
From Aplos pricing, checked 2026-10-29.
QuickBooks Online
- Free plan available. Simple Start: $38/month. Essentials: $85. Plus: $140. Advanced: $340.
- An intro 50%-off-for-3-months offer was showing. No annual contract.
From QuickBooks pricing, checked 2026-10-29.
Key features
Aplos
- Fund accounting: Track restricted funds.
- Free trial: 15 days, no card.
- General ledger: Double-entry books built for funds.
- Budgeting: Budgets by fund.
- Financial and giving reports: Statements and contribution reports.
- Donor management: Track donors and gifts.
QuickBooks Online
- Accounting: Standard bookkeeping.
- Classes and locations: For fund-style tracking on Plus.
- Classes for funds: Tag transactions by fund on Plus and Advanced.
- Bank and card feeds: Automatic transaction import.
- Reports by class: P&L by fund.
👍 What each does well
Aplos
- Real fund accounting built for nonprofits source
- A free trial with no credit card source
- Capterra 4.4/5 (189 reviews), with praise for ease of use and reporting source
QuickBooks Online
- Widely known by accountants, and churches track funds with Classes source
- TechSoup donation: QBO Plus for an $80 admin fee (501(c)(3) required) source
- Familiar to most bookkeepers, with strong bank and card integrations source
⚠️ Where each falls short
Aplos
- Gets pricey at Advanced ($229/month) source
- We couldn't find enough independent church reviews to report on source
- Unreliable or limited bank integrations source
- Limited customization of budgets and reports source
QuickBooks Online
- Not true fund accounting. Fund balance reports need manual year-end work. source
- Repeated complaints about price increases source
- One church lost classes and budgets in a Desktop-to-Online conversion, per bookkeepers source
📘 Want to pay less for church software?Our free Savings Guide has a savings scorecard and a five-day plan to trim your software and giving costs.
Get the free guideOur verdict
QuickBooks Online is fine if your CPA already uses it. Simple Start is $38 a month, and eligible 501(c)(3)s can get QBO Plus through TechSoup for an $80 admin fee. It isn't true fund accounting, though; you track funds with Classes and do manual year-end work on fund balances.
Aplos is built for nonprofit fund accounting and makes sense once restricted funds and designated gifts get complicated. Lite starts at $79 a month and Advanced reaches $229. Reviewers mention limited bank integrations and budget customization.
Read the full reviews: Aplos review · QuickBooks Online review