A free QuickBooks alternative
QuickBooks Online is a paid product with no free plan. Spark Books is free bookkeeping for Canadian small businesses. Here's an honest comparison, and how to switch if it suits you.
What QuickBooks Online costs in Canada
Checked on quickbooks.intuit.com/ca in October 2026.
- No free plan. There’s a 30-day free trial with no credit card required. After that, you pay.
- Five plans. Lite, EasyStart, Essentials, Plus and Advanced. Lite is for one user. EasyStart is one user plus your accountant. Essentials allows up to 3 users, Plus up to 5 and Advanced up to 25.
- Lite is listed from $20 a month, with an introductory discount showing when we checked. It includes 2 bank connections and no accountant access. For payroll, QuickBooks points you to EasyStart or higher.
- Payroll is an optional add-on, and inventory tracking comes with Plus and Advanced.
Prices change and promotions come and go. For today’s prices, see QuickBooks’ own Canadian pricing page.
Side by side
| Spark Books | QuickBooks Online (Canada) | |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Yes, $0 with no card | No; 30-day free trial |
| Paid option | $350 a month, with a Spark bookkeeper doing your books | Five plans, Lite listed from $20 a month |
| Getting transactions in | Upload bank and card statements (CSV, OFX/QFX/QBO, PDF) | Bank connections |
| Sorting transactions | AI sorts each one into a Canadian chart of accounts and asks you when it's unsure | See QuickBooks' site |
| GST/HST | Return figures, regular or quick method, with due dates. You file. | GST/HST/PST calculations |
| Invoices | Yes, in your business name, with payments matched | Yes |
| Receipts | Photo, read and matched to the transaction | Receipt capture |
| Payroll | No | Add-on |
| Inventory | No | Plus and Advanced |
| App integrations | No | See QuickBooks' site |
| Year-end | Package mapped to GIFI (corporations) or T2125 (sole proprietors) | See QuickBooks' site |
QuickBooks details are from quickbooks.intuit.com/ca as of October 2026. “See QuickBooks’ site” means we didn’t confirm the detail there, not that it’s missing.
What Spark doesn’t do
If you need any of these, QuickBooks may suit you better.
No live bank feed
QuickBooks Online connects to your bank and pulls transactions in. Spark doesn't yet. You download statements from your bank's website and upload them, a few minutes a month.
No payroll
QuickBooks offers payroll as an add-on. Spark doesn't run payroll. If you pay employees, you'll need a payroll service alongside Spark.
No inventory
QuickBooks Plus and Advanced track inventory. Spark doesn't. If you count stock, Spark isn't the right fit today.
No app marketplace
Spark doesn't connect to other apps. What it does, it does on its own.
What Spark does do is on the Spark Books page: AI sorting with GST/HST split out, double-entry books, invoices, receipts, a 13-week cash forecast and a year-end package for your accountant.
Moving from QuickBooks
- 1Export from QuickBooksDownload your trial balance as at the day you want to switch, plus your customer and supplier lists.
- 2Bring them into SparkSpark sets your opening balances from the trial balance and adds your customers and suppliers.
- 3Upload statements from that day onDownload statements from your bank's website and upload them. Spark sorts each transaction from there.
- 4Keep your old recordsSpark doesn't bring your full history across. Before you cancel QuickBooks, save the reports you or your accountant may need later.
Questions
- Is QuickBooks free in Canada?
- No. As of October 2026, QuickBooks Online Canada has no free plan. It offers a 30-day free trial with no credit card required, then a paid plan.
- How much does QuickBooks Online cost in Canada?
- As of October 2026, QuickBooks' Canadian pricing page lists five plans: Lite, EasyStart, Essentials, Plus and Advanced. Lite, the smallest, is listed from $20 a month, and an introductory discount was showing when we checked. Payroll is an optional add-on. Check quickbooks.intuit.com/ca/pricing for today's prices.
- Is Spark Books a good QuickBooks alternative?
- For a small Canadian business outside Quebec that doesn't run payroll or track inventory, yes. Spark sorts your transactions into a Canadian chart of accounts, splits out GST/HST, keeps double-entry books and produces a year-end package for your accountant, for free. If you need payroll, inventory, a live bank feed or app integrations, QuickBooks does things Spark doesn't.
- Can I move from QuickBooks to Spark?
- Yes. Export your trial balance and your customer and supplier lists from QuickBooks, and Spark brings the balances and names across. Spark doesn't import your full transaction history, so your old history stays in QuickBooks.
- Can Spark read my QuickBooks bank files?
- Spark reads statements you download from your bank's website as CSV, OFX, QFX, QBO or PDF. If your bank offers a QBO download, that works too.
- Does Spark file my GST/HST return?
- No. Spark works out the figures for your GST/HST return, regular or quick method, with the date it's due. You or your accountant file it with the CRA.
More comparisons
Free software
- Spark BooksEverything Spark Books does, and the two plans.
- Free bookkeeping software in CanadaWhat's actually free, and the catch with each.
- Free accounting software in CanadaWhat it has to do for the CRA, and when you still need an accountant.
- AI bookkeepingWhat it gets right, what it gets wrong, and why Spark asks.
Switching from
- A free Xero alternativeHow Spark compares with Xero for a Canadian business.
- A Wave alternativeWhat changed on Wave's free plan, and your options.
- A free FreshBooks alternativeFreshBooks' Canadian plans next to Spark Books.
Head to head
- QuickBooks Online vs XeroPlans, prices, GST/HST and payroll in Canada.
- Wave vs QuickBooks OnlineFree with manual work, or paid with a bank feed.
QuickBooks and Intuit are trademarks of Intuit Inc. Spark Finance isn’t affiliated with or endorsed by Intuit.
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