Is QuickBooks Free? (UK Answer) + Cheapest Way to Get It

The honest answer

QuickBooks Online UK is a paid subscription. Intuit does not offer a free version for UK small businesses. Anyone advertising "QuickBooks free forever" is either talking about a different product, a limited accountant licence, or an unofficial copy you should avoid.

There are two ways to pay less:

• A 30 day free trial, then full price.
• 90% off for 6 months, with no trial.

You cannot combine them. Intuit's terms say taking the discount makes you ineligible for the trial.

The cheapest way to get QuickBooks

The lowest cost path is Sole Trader Plus on the current promotion. You pay £1 a month + VAT for 6 months, which is about £6 in total, then £10 a month after that.

That is cheaper than a single month of most other plans at full price. It suits sole traders and landlords who are not VAT registered. If you need VAT returns, Simple Start on the deal is the cheapest VAT capable option at £1.60 a month.

Free trial vs discount: which is "more free"?

The trial gives you one month at zero cost. The discount gives you 6 months at almost zero cost. Over six months on Sole Trader Plus, the trial path costs £50 while the discount path costs £6. Try it on every plan with our QuickBooks free trial vs discount calculator.

Free QuickBooks alternatives in the UK

If you want something genuinely free, here are the honest options and their trade offs:

Bank bundled software

Some UK business bank accounts include free bookkeeping software while you bank with them. These can be good value, but you are tied to that bank and features vary.

Free invoicing apps

Basic invoicing tools are free but rarely do bank feeds, Self Assessment estimates, CIS or MTD submissions.

Spreadsheets plus bridging software

Spreadsheets are free, but for MTD for Income Tax and MTD for VAT you need bridging software to send figures to HMRC, and you lose bank feeds and receipt capture.

HMRC's own tools

HMRC does not offer free software for MTD. It publishes a list of recognised products, some of which have free tiers with strict limits.

What you give up with free tools

• Automatic bank feeds and transaction matching.
• HMRC recognised MTD for Income Tax quarterly updates.
• VAT returns, CIS tracking and mileage logging.
• Accountant access and reliable support.

For a few pounds a month during the promo, most people find QuickBooks saves more in time and missed expenses than it costs. See every plan in our QuickBooks cost UK breakdown, or read about QuickBooks and MTD.

What "free" really costs you

Free tools often look cheaper until you count the hours. If you spend two extra hours a month matching bank lines by hand, and value your time at even £15 an hour, that is £30 a month, far more than £1 on the deal. Missed expenses cost money too: a forgotten £40 receipt for a basic rate taxpayer means paying roughly £8 more Income Tax plus National Insurance.

There is also the MTD question. Once MTD for Income Tax applies to you, from 6 April 2026 if your qualifying income from self employment and property is over £50,000, from 6 April 2027 over £30,000 and from 6 April 2028 over £20,000, you need HMRC recognised software. Confirm your dates on GOV.UK. Free tools that cannot submit quarterly updates will not be enough.

Cheapest path by business type

• Sole trader or landlord, not VAT registered: Sole Trader Plus at £1 a month + VAT for 6 months.
• VAT registered: Simple Start at £1.60 a month + VAT, the cheapest plan with VAT returns.
• Limited company: Simple Start, then upgrade when you hire.

How to claim the cheapest price

1. Click a deal button on this page.
2. Pick Sole Trader Plus, or Simple Start if you need VAT.
3. Choose Buy Now, not Free Trial.
4. Check the 90% discount shows before you pay.

The cheapest way to run QuickBooks, month by month

If cost is your main concern, this is the lowest spend route for a sole trader or landlord who is not VAT registered:

• Month 1: £1 + VAT.
• Months 2 to 6: £1 + VAT each.
• Month 7 onwards: £10 + VAT, cancel any time.
• Year one total: £66 + VAT, or £79.20 including VAT.

That is roughly the price of a coffee each month for the first half year.

Getting the cheapest price: what to click

1. Use our link rather than searching for "free QuickBooks", which tends to surface trial pages and unofficial downloads.
2. Select Sole Trader Plus. If you are VAT registered, select Simple Start at £1.60 + VAT instead.
3. Choose Buy Now. The Free Trial button removes the 90% discount.
4. Confirm the basket shows the promotional price before entering payment details.

Avoid "free QuickBooks download" sites

Pages offering a free QuickBooks download or crack are risky. They can carry malware, the software will not connect to HMRC, and your financial data is exposed. QuickBooks Online is a web service, so there is nothing legitimate to download for free.

Free alternatives compared honestly

A bank bundled bookkeeping tool can be genuinely free while you hold that account, and for a very simple sole trader it may be enough. The trade off is lock in: change bank and you change software, often losing history. Free invoicing apps cover getting paid but not tax. Spreadsheets give total control but no bank feed, no receipt matching and no HMRC connection without separate bridging software.

QuickBooks sits above all of these on features. The question is whether £1 a month + VAT during the promotion, then £10, is worth the time it saves. For most people with more than a handful of transactions a month, it is.

Who should not pay for QuickBooks yet

• Someone with a tiny side income under the £1,000 trading allowance who does not need to file a return for it.
• A landlord with one property, low rent, simple costs and qualifying income well below the MTD thresholds, who is happy with a spreadsheet for now.
• An employee who only needs to track a few expenses for a tax refund.

If that is you, revisit the decision when your income grows or MTD for Income Tax gets close.

Mistakes when looking for free QuickBooks

Taking the trial as the "free" option

Over a year on Sole Trader Plus, the trial path costs £110 + VAT against £66 on the discount. Free for a month is not free for a year.

Choosing a free tool that cannot do MTD

If MTD for Income Tax applies to you, a tool that cannot submit quarterly updates will need replacing mid year.