Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central vs. QuickBooks Online

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
Score 6.7 out of 10
N/A
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central (formerly Dynamics NAV) is one of the ERP products in the Dynamics family. The technology is based on the Navision product acquired by Microsoft in 2002. This product is the best-selling Microsoft ERP platform, and is often used by companies in the manufacturing and distribution verticals.
$8
per month per user
QuickBooks Online
Score 8.3 out of 10
N/A
QuickBooks Online is a SaaS version of the QuickBooks product. It contains all of the features found in the local version. Higher-priced plans include greater automation, payment management, inventory and time tracking, and analytics features.
$38
per month
Pricing
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business CentralQuickBooks Online
Editions & Modules
Dynamics 365 Business Central Team Members
$8
per month (billed annually) per user
Dynamics 365 Business Central Essentials
$70
per month (billed annually) per user
Dynamics 365 Business Central Premium
$100
per month (billed annually) per user
Simple Start
$38
per month
Essentials
$75
per month
Plus
$115
per month
Advanced
$275
per month
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business CentralQuickBooks Online
Free Trial
YesYes
Free/Freemium Version
YesNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoYes
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business CentralQuickBooks Online
Considered Both Products
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
Chose Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
We looked at both Quickbooks and Multiview, and ultimately felt that Quickbooks was too limiting for our growth, while Multiview met our needs but didn't offer quite as much ease-of-use as Business Central. I believe it was the dashboarding, reporting, and single-sign-on …
QuickBooks Online
Chose QuickBooks Online
I have used Wave Accounting for another business. I selected QuickBooks Online over Wave because of the features available from QuickBooks. Wave is great since it is free, but I feel that paying for QuickBooks Online is worth it for the features. In addition there is such a …
Chose QuickBooks Online
Currently using Blackbaud Financial Edge (we're a nonprofit) and I miss the ease and flexibility of QuickBooks Online. I've considered switching (downgrading?) to QBO, although we have needs that are unique to nonprofits. Not sure QBO could handle fund accounting very well.

I …
Features
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business CentralQuickBooks Online
Payroll Management
Comparison of Payroll Management features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
4.0
7 Ratings
57% below category average
QuickBooks Online
8.4
81 Ratings
9% above category average
Pay calculation2.07 Ratings7.572 Ratings
Benefit plan administration2.05 Ratings7.033 Ratings
Direct deposit files2.06 Ratings9.067 Ratings
Salary revision and increment management00 Ratings9.046 Ratings
Reimbursement management00 Ratings9.448 Ratings
Customization
Comparison of Customization features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
5.8
18 Ratings
27% below category average
QuickBooks Online
8.3
71 Ratings
8% above category average
API for custom integration5.817 Ratings8.757 Ratings
Plug-ins5.815 Ratings8.058 Ratings
Security
Comparison of Security features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
8.7
22 Ratings
6% above category average
QuickBooks Online
9.7
112 Ratings
15% above category average
Single sign-on capability7.418 Ratings9.684 Ratings
Role-based user permissions10.021 Ratings9.7106 Ratings
Reporting & Analytics
Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
5.2
23 Ratings
33% below category average
QuickBooks Online
8.2
136 Ratings
4% above category average
Dashboards4.919 Ratings8.7128 Ratings
Standard reports5.823 Ratings8.3132 Ratings
Custom reports4.922 Ratings7.6120 Ratings
General Ledger and Configurable Accounting
Comparison of General Ledger and Configurable Accounting features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
7.7
23 Ratings
0% below category average
QuickBooks Online
8.6
147 Ratings
10% above category average
Accounts payable7.422 Ratings9.2125 Ratings
Accounts receivable6.921 Ratings9.4135 Ratings
Global Financial Support5.310 Ratings8.318 Ratings
Primary and Secondary Ledgers5.89 Ratings8.837 Ratings
Journals and Reconciliations6.412 Ratings9.476 Ratings
Configurable Accounting5.812 Ratings7.940 Ratings
Standardized Processes5.813 Ratings8.652 Ratings
Cash management00 Ratings8.9123 Ratings
Bank reconciliation00 Ratings9.2141 Ratings
Expense management00 Ratings8.8125 Ratings
Time tracking00 Ratings6.957 Ratings
Fixed asset management00 Ratings8.355 Ratings
Multi-currency support00 Ratings7.024 Ratings
Multi-division support00 Ratings9.345 Ratings
Regulations compliance00 Ratings9.341 Ratings
Electronic tax filing00 Ratings9.468 Ratings
Self-service portal00 Ratings8.869 Ratings
Intercompany Accounting00 Ratings8.931 Ratings
Localizations00 Ratings8.323 Ratings
Enterprise Accounting00 Ratings8.327 Ratings
Centralized Rules Framework00 Ratings8.426 Ratings
Inventory Management
Comparison of Inventory Management features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
5.9
18 Ratings
29% below category average
QuickBooks Online
7.6
49 Ratings
3% above category average
Inventory tracking5.818 Ratings8.046 Ratings
Automatic reordering5.811 Ratings7.023 Ratings
Location management2.014 Ratings8.323 Ratings
Manufacturing module00 Ratings7.018 Ratings
Order Management
Comparison of Order Management features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
4.7
21 Ratings
50% below category average
QuickBooks Online
8.4
90 Ratings
8% above category average
Pricing2.018 Ratings8.056 Ratings
Order entry5.818 Ratings8.054 Ratings
Credit card processing2.012 Ratings8.666 Ratings
Cost of goods sold2.016 Ratings9.370 Ratings
Order Orchestration6.47 Ratings8.022 Ratings
End-to-end order visibility00 Ratings9.021 Ratings
Order exception Resolution00 Ratings8.019 Ratings
Subledger and Financial Process
Comparison of Subledger and Financial Process features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
7.4
13 Ratings
1% below category average
QuickBooks Online
-
Ratings
Billing Management6.411 Ratings00 Ratings
Cash and Asset Management6.412 Ratings00 Ratings
Travel & Expense Management5.88 Ratings00 Ratings
Budgetary Control & Encumbrance Accounting5.89 Ratings00 Ratings
Period Close5.412 Ratings00 Ratings
Project Financial Management
Comparison of Project Financial Management features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
8.7
8 Ratings
13% above category average
QuickBooks Online
-
Ratings
Budgeting and Forecasting10.08 Ratings00 Ratings
Project Costing10.07 Ratings00 Ratings
Cost Capture10.08 Ratings00 Ratings
Capital Project Management8.05 Ratings00 Ratings
Customer Contract Compliance10.06 Ratings00 Ratings
Project Revenue Recognition8.04 Ratings00 Ratings
Project Execution Management
Comparison of Project Execution Management features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
6.2
5 Ratings
11% below category average
QuickBooks Online
-
Ratings
Project Planning and Scheduling2.04 Ratings00 Ratings
Task Insight for Project Managers2.04 Ratings00 Ratings
Project Mobile Functionality2.04 Ratings00 Ratings
Definable Resource Pools2.04 Ratings00 Ratings
Grants Management
Comparison of Grants Management features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
9.7
3 Ratings
26% above category average
QuickBooks Online
-
Ratings
Award Lifecycle Management10.03 Ratings00 Ratings
Procurement
Comparison of Procurement features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
6.9
8 Ratings
0% below category average
QuickBooks Online
-
Ratings
Bids Analyzed and Compared2.04 Ratings00 Ratings
Contract Authoring2.04 Ratings00 Ratings
Contract Repository2.04 Ratings00 Ratings
Requisitions-to-Purchase Orders Integrated5.87 Ratings00 Ratings
Supplier Management5.85 Ratings00 Ratings
Risk Management
Comparison of Risk Management features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
7.3
5 Ratings
11% above category average
QuickBooks Online
-
Ratings
Risk Repository5.44 Ratings00 Ratings
Control Management4.95 Ratings00 Ratings
Control Efficiency Assessments5.84 Ratings00 Ratings
Issue Detection5.45 Ratings00 Ratings
Remediation and Certification5.44 Ratings00 Ratings
Logistics
Comparison of Logistics features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
5.4
4 Ratings
21% below category average
QuickBooks Online
-
Ratings
Transportation Planning and Optimization2.03 Ratings00 Ratings
Transportation Execution Management2.03 Ratings00 Ratings
Trade and Customs Management2.03 Ratings00 Ratings
Fulfillment Management1.04 Ratings00 Ratings
Warehouse Workforce Management2.03 Ratings00 Ratings
Manufacturing
Comparison of Manufacturing features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
4.5
4 Ratings
49% below category average
QuickBooks Online
-
Ratings
Production Process Design2.03 Ratings00 Ratings
Production Management2.04 Ratings00 Ratings
Configuration Management2.03 Ratings00 Ratings
Work Execution2.03 Ratings00 Ratings
Manufacturing Costs2.04 Ratings00 Ratings
Supply Chain
Comparison of Supply Chain features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
3.5
6 Ratings
68% below category average
QuickBooks Online
-
Ratings
Forecasting1.06 Ratings00 Ratings
Inventory Planning2.06 Ratings00 Ratings
Performance Monitoring2.06 Ratings00 Ratings
Product Lifecycle Management
Comparison of Product Lifecycle Management features of Product A and Product B
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
7.3
3 Ratings
2% above category average
QuickBooks Online
-
Ratings
Proposal Management2.02 Ratings00 Ratings
Product Master Data Management2.02 Ratings00 Ratings
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Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business CentralQuickBooks Online
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User Ratings
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business CentralQuickBooks Online
Likelihood to Recommend
6.4
(23 ratings)
8.8
(165 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
10.0
(1 ratings)
1.9
(24 ratings)
Usability
9.0
(3 ratings)
8.9
(80 ratings)
Availability
8.0
(1 ratings)
2.0
(5 ratings)
Performance
-
(0 ratings)
1.0
(4 ratings)
Support Rating
10.0
(2 ratings)
1.1
(68 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
3.0
(6 ratings)
Configurability
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Ease of integration
-
(0 ratings)
1.3
(2 ratings)
Product Scalability
-
(0 ratings)
1.0
(2 ratings)
Vendor post-sale
-
(0 ratings)
1.0
(2 ratings)
Vendor pre-sale
-
(0 ratings)
1.0
(2 ratings)
User Testimonials
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business CentralQuickBooks Online
Likelihood to Recommend
Microsoft
Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central is well suited for inventory management in all aspects. Its accessibility, along with my other apps, when out of the office is unparalleled. I find it easy to work with on a desktop or laptop; however, it could use some work on a mobile device.
Read full review
Intuit
I appreciate the ability to auto-generate invoices for recurring transactions, which saves time, as well as the option to set up auto-generated transactions. The report option is super helpful when reviewing information, as you can click to view the details in the report without having to go back and forth.
Read full review
Pros
Microsoft
  • Automate the creation of bills of materials for production. We can now generate a BoM from a sales order.
  • Organization of all data pertaining to thousands of parts, assemblies, and finished goods. Engineering and purchasing have a common portal.
  • We can create sales orders from quotations instead of re-entering them (this did require some bolt-on software). Less redundant work with fewer entry errors.
  • Accounting can provide reports based on specific criteria stored in NAV. We can pull better and more detailed intelligence.
Read full review
Intuit
  • Workflows for accounts payable invoice review are terrific.
  • Bill payment allows you to pay vendors online via ACH or check without having to write a physical check, which reduces admin time.
  • The cloud based login lends well to a remote or hybrid work environment for staff.
  • QuickBooks Online allows you to pre-configure vendors' general ledger expense accounts. This helps with general ledger coding accuracy and consistency.
  • QuickBooks Online integrates with Rippling HRIS, Coast, Capital One, JPMorgan Chase, etc., which lends well to an efficient month-end closing and reduced administrative time.
Read full review
Cons
Microsoft
  • Some functions could be a bit more user friendly, intuitive.
  • Better migration from previous ERP software (especially other Microsoft products). "Growing pains" associated with change?! Maybe.
  • A few redundancies and procedural missteps on menus and tabs can make the portal a bit crowded.
Read full review
Intuit
  • The upsells have gotten worse over time and are on every screen in the most awkward positions. I don't need a constant reminder to upgrade, especially on a very old account that's paid thousands over the years.
  • The interface has never been especially intuitive, but I was an old Quicken user and it was somewhat familiar. Over time, it's gotten worse, and in the last 2 years, the program seems to move things more often than I would expect.
  • The software constantly adds features that I don't want and want to turn off, but the interface is so difficult to use that I find myself skipping it. Imagine seeing a message that the system recognized invoices that hadn't been paid so it prepared reminder notices for you that can be sent at the click of a button. Who thinks using canned reminders that you've never seen is a good thing?
  • A lot of functionality seems to derive from connecting your bank accounts to QBO. I don't want Intuit to have an always-on connection to any bank accounts, even checking.
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
Microsoft
We've already decided to continue using this software. It is too expensive for us to upgrade so we made a workaround by using the virtual computer with Windows XP installed on it. We did research replacing this software, but it was a better financial decision to keep what we had instead
Read full review
Intuit
It like the product 'right out of the box' and I trust Intuit will continually improve it over the years based on my experience with their desktop products. The large providers of Apps makes customizing the entire package relatively easy and seamless for a wide variety of business types.
Read full review
Usability
Microsoft
Best in terms of reporting or coming up with a great dashboard. Seamlessly collaborated with teams without depending on particular device as its web version is the buddy for people with work flexibility. Licensing price and integrations can be the areas of improvement and can simplify the interface which will be easy for a new user.
Read full review
Intuit
I had very little trouble setting up the program and migrating from our old accounting system. The daily usage is also very intuitive and easy. Anytime we run into minor trouble with the program, there are always tons of help available on YouTube, so we don't even look up the online manual anymore.
Read full review
Reliability and Availability
Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Intuit
We have rarely had outages in the last 10 years. I can only recall 2 times in the last 10 years where we were not able to access our client files.
Read full review
Performance
Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Intuit
Everything process has its bugs lately with the new interface. Nothing has worked smoothly since this all began last month.
Read full review
Support Rating
Microsoft
It provides one to efficiently be able to manage bookkeeping and inventory without much challenges. One can easily navigate through workflow processes while managing usages and budgets. Being able to produce reports in Word, Excel or PDF means one is able to have a working document to produce trends and graphs or produce pivot tables.
Read full review
Intuit
In my experience, most representatives keep me on the phone for hours, literally, for a single issue and then usually cannot resolve it satisfactorily. I have 10 open cases that need resolution and, in my experience, there has been NO follow-up communication on any of them.
Read full review
Implementation Rating
Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Intuit
The person in charge of QB needs to be very accurate with record keeping and is recommended to stay on top of tasks. The biggest issue we have is reconciliation, and those issues occur only when too much time has occurred between reconciliations
Read full review
Alternatives Considered
Microsoft
I have personally supported all of the Dynamic family of ERP systems and made the decision to concentrate on NAV as the solution of choice. From a support and development standpoint there are few if any packages that can compare. It is not uncommon for most of the companies that I support to only call me once or twice a month after the first year. This is due to the ease of tracking down problems and errors and the ability for a developer to provide the end-user with routines that automatically correct the most basic kind of error
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Intuit
As a freelance bookkeeper, the Desktop version of QuickBooks Online doesn't allow for ease of access from any device. Having to be on a computer with the software downloaded creates additional work to gain access to all required filings etc. Also, I personally find the linking functionality on the Online version to be much more streamlined and user friendly.
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Scalability
Microsoft
No answers on this topic
Intuit
As we have grown along our professional path, we have also expanded our use of QB. The scalability is easy and features seem to be waiting for you until you need them. We have increased profits by over 10x from our first year in business to the current and have yet to find a reason to look elsewhere
Read full review
Return on Investment
Microsoft
  • Automation processing, including EDI functionality, has increased employee efficiency and prevented the need for adding additional employees.
  • Implementation of the warehouse functionality, including cycle counts, has resulted in better inventory control/less shrinkage.
  • Implementation of e-Ship and e-Receive, has resulted in greater efficiency and order accuracy.
Read full review
Intuit
  • QuickBooks has given us a useful portal by which to get an overview of our financials.
  • QuickBooks has given us a relatively easy way to send out invoices quickly and efficiently.
  • Due to the customization limitations on QuickBooks, we've had to get creative in third-party implementations to better represent our brand and to track financials.
Read full review
ScreenShots

QuickBooks Online Screenshots

Screenshot of the accounting and bank transactions interfaceScreenshot of an overview of the accounting inventoryScreenshot of book marksScreenshot of the business tax overviewScreenshot of the customer hubScreenshot of the dashboard