QuickBooks Online is accounting software. It tracks income and expenses, sends invoices, takes payments through QuickBooks Payments, connects to your bank, and produces the reports your accountant needs. Alori is the all-in-one app for service businesses, starting with HVAC. You describe the business in plain words, and Alori assembles an app from modules for customers, quotes, scheduling, jobs and invoices. For most trades businesses this is less a choice between the two than a question of which job each one should do.
The short version
- Pick QuickBooks for the books: bookkeeping, bank feeds, taxes, payroll-adjacent reporting, and the file you hand your accountant.
- Pick Alori for running the work: customers, quotes, scheduling, jobs and invoices for a plumbing, electrical, HVAC, roofing or construction company, in an app that uses your words.
- Many shops will want both. Alori is not accounting software, and QuickBooks is not built around dispatching crews.
Different starting points
QuickBooks starts from the money. Its screens are built around transactions, accounts, categories and reports. It does handle estimates and invoices, and its higher plans add project profitability and, on Advanced, construction financials. The point of view is still the ledger.
Alori starts from the work. A customer calls, you quote, the job gets scheduled, the crew does it, you invoice. Those records already exist as modules. You describe how your shop runs, or paste your website, and the app uses your words. A plumber sees customers and jobs. A contractor sees clients, estimates and projects. You change a screen by asking in a sentence.
| QuickBooks Online | Alori | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Cloud accounting software | An app built from service-business modules |
| Center of gravity | Transactions, accounts, reports | Customers, quotes, scheduling, jobs |
| Invoices | Yes, with online payment through QuickBooks Payments | Yes, sent by text or email from your app |
| Scheduling and job tracking | Not the core of the product | Built-in modules |
| Users | Set by plan | Unlimited users on every Alori plan |
What QuickBooks includes that Alori does not
Be straight about the gap. As of October 2026, QuickBooks' pricing page lists features Alori does not have:
- Accounting itself: income and expense tracking, profit and loss, balance sheet, bank connections, and automated categorization.
- Online payments by card and bank transfer inside the invoice, through QuickBooks Payments.
- Bill pay, with ACH, and accountant access on paid plans.
- Project profitability and inventory on Plus, and construction financials and advanced project financials on Advanced.
Alori can email a quote or an invoice when that module is in the app and the customer has an email on file. Accounting, card payments, online booking, and a client portal are not in the default modules. If you use both, Alori's QuickBooks connector syncs customers and invoices, so you do not retype them.
What it costs
As of October 2026, the US version of QuickBooks' pricing page lists:
- Free: $0 a month, 1 user, with up to 2 invoices a month (more if you qualify for and enable QuickBooks Payments), and 1 connected bank.
- Simple Start: $38/mo, shown at $19/mo for the first 3 months.
- Essentials: $85/mo, shown at $42.50/mo for the first 3 months, with 3 users.
- Plus: $140/mo, shown at $70/mo on the page we read.
- Advanced: $340/mo, shown at $170/mo, with 25 users.
The page did not show a user count for Simple Start or Plus in the version we read, and payment processing fees are separate. Intuit runs regular promotions, and prices differ by country, including Canada. Read the page for your region before you budget.
Alori is free to start, with no credit card and 10 credits, on the pricing page. Every plan includes unlimited users. Solo starts at $99 a month for 375 credits. Business starts at $249 a month for 1,000 credits. A typical change costs about one credit. Emailing a quote or invoice costs 0.01 credits per recipient. Prices are in US dollars, and the page is the source of truth.
How you set Alori up
- Describe the business in a sentence, or paste its website. Alori picks up the business name, colors and what it does.
- Answer a couple of simple multiple-choice questions where your description is unclear. Alori asks instead of guessing.
- Get an app with the modules you need, working at the office and on a phone.
- Change anything by asking in a sentence.
Changes are tried on a copy first. Your team keeps using the live app until you publish, and you can go back to an earlier version. Apps go live at name.alori.dev, or on your own domain (a custom domain is listed on Solo). Hosting, database, sign-in and SSL are handled, with no config screens. Apps are available in English and French.
More on the process in how Alori builds your app.
For agencies building for clients
Your service-business clients probably already have QuickBooks or an accountant who uses it. That is not the app you would build for them. What they often lack is the operations side: who called, what was quoted, which crew goes where, what is ready to invoice.
One Alori account can hold many projects. Each project has its own data and its own team, so you invite that client's staff to their app only, and their books stay where they are. See how to sell custom software to local businesses.
When QuickBooks is the better pick
- You need the books done. Taxes, reconciliation, payroll-adjacent reports, and an accountant who logs in.
- Card payments on invoices matter today. QuickBooks Payments does that. Alori does not, yet.
- Your work is simple enough that invoices are the whole workflow. If you do not schedule crews or track jobs, accounting software may be all you need.
- You need construction financials or job costing tied to the ledger, which QuickBooks lists on Advanced.
When Alori is the better pick
- Quotes, jobs and schedules live in a spreadsheet, a whiteboard or a group text. That is the gap Alori is built for.
- You want one app for customers, quotes, scheduling, jobs and invoices, and you keep QuickBooks for the books.
- The crew needs access on a phone, and unlimited users matter.
- You want the app in English or French, in your words.
- You are an agency and each client needs their own project.
Questions to ask before you choose
| Question | If the answer is yes |
|---|---|
| Do we need bookkeeping, tax reports, or an accountant in the system? | QuickBooks. Alori does not do accounting. |
| Do we schedule crews and track jobs from quote to invoice? | Alori is built for that. |
| Do customers need to pay invoices by card online? | QuickBooks Payments does that today. |
| Do we retype the same job in three places? | Read quote to invoice without retyping. |
| Do we want screens in English or French, in our words? | Alori starts there. |
The simplest test: keep QuickBooks, set up the Alori app from a sentence about your shop, and run a week of real jobs through it.
Product details change. Check each vendor's site for current features and pricing.
Frequently asked questions
Is Alori a QuickBooks alternative?
Not for accounting. Alori does not keep your books. It is an alternative to running quotes, schedules and jobs out of spreadsheets, or out of QuickBooks screens that were not built for that. Most service companies that use Alori would still use accounting software.
Does Alori connect to QuickBooks?
Yes. The QuickBooks connector syncs your customers and invoices, so you do not retype them. Alori still does not keep your books: accounting stays in QuickBooks.
How much does QuickBooks Online cost?
As of October 2026, the US QuickBooks pricing page lists Free at $0, Simple Start at $38/mo, Essentials at $85/mo, Plus at $140/mo and Advanced at $340/mo, with introductory discounts shown on the page. Prices differ by country and change with promotions.
Can QuickBooks schedule my crews?
Scheduling and dispatch are not the core of QuickBooks Online, based on its pricing page. Intuit also sells other products, and many field service tools connect to QuickBooks. Alori includes scheduling and job modules made for service companies.
Try Alori on your business
Describe your service business in a sentence or paste your website, and see the all-in-one app. It is free to start, with no credit card and no account needed. Try it free.
