Found vs QuickBooks: Which Is Right for Small Business?

If you're tired of juggling multiple apps to manage your business finances—paying for separate banking, bookkeeping software, and tax tools—you're not alone. Most self-employed professionals and freelancers find themselves switching between 3-4 different platforms just to handle basic financial tasks.

Found offers a fundamentally different approach: all-in-one banking, bookkeeping, and tax tools in a single platform. This guide compares Found and QuickBooks side-by-side, focusing on costs, features, and which solution works best for your business in 2025.

Found vs. QuickBooks: Feature Comparison at a Glance

Data compiled October 2025 and subject to change. Features, pricing, and availability may vary. Always confirm current details directly with the providers.

²The Found Mastercard Business debit card is issued by Lead Bank pursuant to a license from Mastercard Inc. and may be used everywhere Mastercard debit cards are accepted.

⁴Optional subscription to Found Plus for $19.99/month or $149.99/year. There are no monthly account maintenance fees, but other fees such as transactional fees for wires, instant transfers, and ATM apply. Read more.

¹⁰Tax payments are available for Found Plus subscribers who file a Schedule C.

¹⁴1.5% APY on balances up to $20K for Found Plus subscribers

*QuickBooks offers an additional contractor payments add-on for the cost of $15/month base for 20 contractors + $2/month per additional contractor. Promotions often offered, but pricing subject to change. 

Found Wins – Best for All-in-One Financial Management

Found differentiates itself by offering a truly integrated financial experience, simplifying tasks that often require multiple tools and separate logins.

Best for Business Banking + Built-In Bookkeeping: Found

Found’s business checking account serves as the foundation of your entire financial system. Unlike QuickBooks, which requires you to connect a separate bank account and log into multiple platforms, Found eliminates the juggling act entirely. Your banking, bookkeeping, and tax tools live in one place.

When you spend with your Found debit card, transactions are automatically logged and categorized in real time. There's no waiting for imports, no manual reconciliation, and no syncing delays. You see your finances update instantly without ever leaving the app.

Found also offers Pockets, or subaccounts with their own virtual account numbers, to help you organize funds for specific purposes, like taxes or operating expenses. You can set up automatic allocations so a percentage of every deposit goes directly into your "Taxes Pocket"—building financial discipline into your everyday workflow without extra effort.

This integrated approach means you're not paying for multiple subscriptions or maintaining login credentials across different platforms. Everything you need lives in one intelligent system.

Best for Tax Prep Without Add-ons: Found

For many self-employed individuals or small business owners, tax season is a major headache. Found aims to take the stress out of it with its built-in tax tools. For Schedule C filers, Found provides real-time tax estimates that update automatically as you earn income and log expenses. This means you have an estimate of what you’ll own, rather than being surprised by a large tax bill at year-end.

Depending on your business structure, Found also auto-generates your Schedule C, 1120, or 1120-S tax forms based on your categorized transactions. This pre-populated form can save countless hours of data entry and reduce the likelihood of errors. While QuickBooks Solopreneur helps prepare 1099s and organizes data for Schedule C, Found takes it a step further by generating the form itself. If you’re a Schedule C filer, Found Plus⁴ even allows you to make federal quarterly tax payments directly from the app, streamlining a critical compliance task. This moves beyond just reporting to actively facilitating payment—a key differentiator from software-only solutions.

Best for Managing and Paying 1099 Contractors: Found

Found provides comprehensive, built-in contractor management that eliminates the need for separate payroll services or add-on fees. You can onboard contractors directly in the app, collect and store W-9s, and pay them through flexible methods—including free, instant Found-to-Found payments if they’re also a Found customer. When tax season arrives, Found automatically generates 1099-NEC forms for any contractor you've paid $600 or more, and even handles e-filing on your behalf.

This end-to-end contractor workflow is included at no extra cost with your Found account. By comparison, QuickBooks charges additional fees for contractor payments and 1099 filing services. If you regularly work with freelancers, consultants, or other independent contractors, Found's integrated approach saves both money and hassle.

Best for Small Business Simplicity: Found

Found is designed to simplify financial management. Its focus on automation—from expense categorization to tax savings—reduces the manual effort typically associated with bookkeeping. The ability to manage your banking, track expenses, send invoices, handle contractor payments, and prepare for taxes all within one cohesive platform reduces "tool overload" and streamlines your workflow. It's built to be intuitive, enabling small business owners to focus more on their craft and less on their finances.

QuickBooks Wins – Specialized Edge Cases

While Found excels at all-in-one simplicity, QuickBooks offers specific advantages for certain business needs.

Best if Your Accountant Requires QuickBooks: QuickBooks

If you already have an established relationship with a CPA or bookkeeper who primarily uses QuickBooks, or if they've built your financial workflows specifically around the platform, switching may create more friction than it's worth. Your accountant likely has deep expertise with QuickBooks and established processes for managing your books, tax prep, and financial reporting. While Found offers Accountant Access, allowing your CPA to view and update bookkeeping activity, QuickBooks remains the dominant tool in the professional accounting world. If your accountant explicitly requires QuickBooks access, it's often the path of least resistance.

Best if You Need Sales Tax Tracking and Filing: QuickBooks

For businesses that sell physical products or taxable services, especially across multiple states, QuickBooks Simple Start offers built-in sales tax calculation and tracking. You can set up tax rates for different jurisdictions, automatically calculate the correct tax on invoices, and track what you've collected and owe. This becomes essential as your business grows and tax compliance gets more complex. Found doesn't currently offer dedicated sales tax features, making QuickBooks the better choice if sales tax management is a regular part of your business operations.

Best if You Need Accrual Accounting or Inventory Management: QuickBooks

If your business requires accrual-based accounting—recognizing revenue when earned and expenses when incurred, regardless of when cash changes hands—QuickBooks generally offers more robust support across its various plans. This matters for businesses with significant accounts receivable/payable, those required to use accrual methods for tax purposes, or companies seeking financing or investment where accrual accounting provides a clearer picture of financial health.

Similarly, for businesses that manage physical inventory, QuickBooks Online Plus offers integrated inventory tracking with purchase orders, cost of goods sold calculations, and stock level alerts. Found's design is geared towards simpler, cash-basis financial management common for most freelancers and service-based sole proprietors.

Which Tool Is Right for Your Small Business?

Choosing the right financial tool depends on your specific needs and priorities.

Choose Found if you:

• Want a complete business banking solution with no required monthly fees⁴

• Work with contractors and need built-in 1099 payments and filings

• Want automated tax tracking and quarterly tax estimates

• Need free, unlimited invoicing with payment tracking and reminders

• Are a freelancer, sole proprietor, or small business owners looking to simplify your financial technology stack

Choose QuickBooks if you:

• Work with an accountant or bookkeeper who requires QuickBooks access for your financial workflows

• Need to track and file sales tax across multiple states 

• Are required to use accrual-based accounting 

• Need a fully customizable Chart of Accounts for specific industry or regulatory requirements

• Manage physical inventory with purchase orders, cost of goods sold tracking, and stock level alerts

Bottom line: If you're managing your finances solo or with a small team, and value an integrated banking, bookkeeping, and tax solution that reduces complexity and saves money, Found offers compelling value. It provides everything you need without monthly costs for its core features, complex integrations, or tool overload.

QuickBooks remains a solid choice if your accountant requires it, you need sales tax tracking, or your business has grown to require accrual accounting or inventory management. But for most freelancers, sole proprietors, and small service-based businesses, Found's all-in-one approach eliminates the hassle of connecting separate tools—letting you focus on running your business, not managing your financial tech stack.

FAQs

Can Found replace bookkeeping software like QuickBooks? 

Yes, for many small businesses, freelancers, and sole proprietors, Found can replace dedicated bookkeeping software. Found offers automatic expense tracking, categorization, receipt capture (with Found Plus), and comprehensive reporting including Profit & Loss statements to manage cash flow. It's especially effective if your primary business transactions flow through your Found account.

Does Found help with taxes? 

Absolutely. Found is built with taxes in mind. For Schedule C filers, it provides real-time tax estimates, helps you identify write-offs, and automatically generates your Schedule C report. With Found Plus⁴, you can even make federal quarterly tax payments directly from the app. 

Can I still work with a tax professional if I use Found? 

Yes, Found offers a dedicated Accountant Access feature that allows your tax professional to securely view and update your bookkeeping activity, view financial reports, and access your auto-generated Schedule C directly within the Found platform. You can also easily export your financial data to share with them.

Does Found support invoicing and payment collection? 

Yes, Found has a robust invoicing platform built into the core plan. You can create and customize invoices, send them to clients, set up recurring invoices, and send automatic payment reminders. Clients can pay via a variety of methods. Found also offers "Tap to Pay" for in-person contactless payments directly on your smartphone.

Disclaimer: The information on this website is not intended to provide, and should not be relied on, for tax advice. Users are advised to consult with professionals with specific advice.

Data compiled October 2025 and subject to change. Features, pricing, and availability may vary. Always confirm current details with providers directly.

⁴Optional subscription to Found Plus for $19.99/month or $149.99/year. There are no monthly account maintenance fees, but other fees such as transactional fees for wires, instant transfers, and ATM apply. Read more.