This comparison is for Canadian sole proprietors and small teams deciding whether free accounting software is enough, or whether it is time to pay for QuickBooks Online. Wave is a Toronto-based tool with a CAD $0 plan. QuickBooks Online is the full accounting system many Canadian accountants use. The real question is not which one is better in general, but what Wave's free plan covers and at what point a subscription costs less than staying on it.

This is a research-based comparison. We did not use either product hands-on. We compared both using their Canadian pricing pages, help centre articles, and payment fee schedules, plus CRA and Revenu Québec guidance. All prices are regular list prices in CAD, checked in September 2026. If you want the wider field, see our best accounting software in Canada review.

The quick answer

Stay on Wave if you are a sole proprietor with a handful of transactions a month, no employees in Quebec, and no need for your accountant to log in. Move to QuickBooks Online once you are filing GST/HST returns regularly, hiring staff, or paying an accountant to clean up your books.

Wave's free plan is enough to invoice and keep basic records. The other costs to plan for are bank transactions you enter by hand, card processing fees, and a sales tax report that is a summary rather than a return. QuickBooks costs at least CAD $20 per month, but its paid plans cover bank feeds, a GST/HST return screen, accountant access (from EasyStart), and payroll that works in every province.

FeatureWaveQuickBooks Online
Free plan
Cheapest paid plan (CAD/month)$25 (Pro), or $250/year$20 (Lite)
Plan with accountant access (CAD/month)$25 (Pro)$30 (EasyStart)
Other plans (CAD/month)NoneEssentials $70, Plus $110, Advanced $220
Automatic bank importsPro only, via Plaid2 on Lite, unlimited from EasyStart
Invite an accountantPro onlyEasyStart and up
Sales tax outputSummary reportGST/HST return screen
Card fee on invoices2.9% + $0.602.9% + $0.25
Bank payment fee1% (min $1)1%
Payroll add-on (CAD/month)$25 + $6/employeeFrom $30 + $5/employee
Payroll in Quebec
Wave vs QuickBooks Online Canada, regular list pricing in CAD, September 2026.

What does Wave's free plan include, and what needs Pro?

Wave Starter is free for invoicing and bookkeeping records. Automatic bank imports, receipt capture, late payment reminders, and inviting other users are Pro features.

According to Wave's pricing page, Starter includes unlimited estimates, invoices, bills, and bookkeeping records, the mobile app for invoicing, and the option to accept online payments. Pro, at CAD $25 per month or CAD $250 per year (a CAD $50 saving over monthly billing), adds:

  • Automatic import of bank transactions, plus auto-merging and categorizing them
  • Unlimited digital receipt capture and expense tracking
  • Automated late payment reminders
  • Adding users to your account
  • Your logo and brand colours, and removing Wave branding from invoice footers
  • A discounted card processing fee on your first 10 transactions each month

The practical effect: on Starter, every bank transaction is something you enter or upload yourself. If you have 20 transactions a month, that is manageable. If you have 200, the time adds up. Starter users can also add receipt capture as a separate paid add-on, so check the current add-on price in your account.

How much does each cost in Canada?

Wave is either CAD $0 or CAD $25 per month. QuickBooks Online ranges from CAD $20 to CAD $220 per month, and both bill in Canadian dollars.

QuickBooks Online Canada has five plans. Its pricing page shows EasyStart, Plus, and Advanced side by side, lists Lite further down under "More ways to get started" for solo and freelance businesses, and leaves Essentials off entirely:

  • Lite: CAD $20/month, one user, two bank connections, five report templates, no accountant access (details on Lite's own plan page)
  • EasyStart: CAD $30/month, one user plus your accountant, unlimited bank connections, 30+ report templates
  • Essentials: CAD $70/month, three users plus your accountant, with bill management, time entry, and multicurrency, sold from its own plan page
  • Plus: CAD $110/month, five users plus your accountant, with multicurrency, inventory, budgeting, and classes and locations
  • Advanced: CAD $220/month, 25 users plus your accountant

In September 2026 QuickBooks was advertising 90% off for six months, or a 30-day free trial instead. That promotion ends, so budget for the regular price. Prices on both sites exclude GST/HST.

For a sole proprietor, the fair comparison is usually Wave Pro (CAD $25) against QuickBooks EasyStart (CAD $30). Both give you automatic bank imports and a way to let your accountant in. QuickBooks Lite is cheaper than Wave Pro, and with two bank connections and no accountant access, it is closer to Wave Starter plus bank feeds.

What are Wave's payment processing fees in Canada?

Wave charges 2.9% plus $0.60 per Visa or Mastercard payment, 3.4% plus $0.60 per American Express payment, and 1% (minimum $1) per bank payment. Pro removes the $0.60 on your first 10 card transactions each month.

Wave's help centre lists these rates and says Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and bank payments are all available to Canadian businesses. Card payouts reach Canadian businesses in 1 business day and bank payments in 1 to 6 business days. Wave also says it does not permit surcharging, so you cannot pass the card fee to your customer on a Wave invoice.

On a CAD $1,000 invoice paid by card, Wave deducts CAD $29.60 on Starter. On Pro, the first 10 card payments of the month cost CAD $29.00 each. The most the Pro discount can save you is 10 times $0.60, or CAD $6 per month, so the payment discount alone does not cover the CAD $25 subscription.

QuickBooks Payments' Canadian pricing schedule lists 2.9% plus $0.25 per transaction for keyed card payments and 1% for EFT bank payments, with no monthly fee, in Canadian dollars. The schedule notes that not all customers are eligible for this pricing, and it was last updated in 2023, so confirm the rate you are offered when you apply. On the same CAD $1,000 card payment, that works out to CAD $29.25.

The takeaway: card fees are close enough that they should not decide this for you. If most of your customers pay by bank payment or Interac e-Transfer outside the software, fees matter even less.

How do Wave and QuickBooks handle GST/HST?

Both calculate GST/HST on invoices and bills. The difference is the output: Wave gives you a sales tax summary to work from, while QuickBooks has a return screen that walks you through preparing and recording a GST/HST return.

Wave's sales tax report shows, for each tax you set up, the sales subject to tax, the tax on those sales, the purchases subject to tax, the tax paid on purchases (only if the tax is set up as recoverable), and the net tax owing. A second section tracks payments to the government and the ending balance. You can export it as CSV or PDF. It is only available on the web version. You take those totals and enter them into your CRA return.

QuickBooks' help documentation describes a sales tax centre that fills in the filing period, lists the return's line items, and shows the balance owing or refund due. You then file through NETFILE with an access code or through CRA My Business Account, and your accountant can file through Represent a Client if authorized. QuickBooks does not pay the CRA for you: you pay outside the software and record the payment afterwards.

Neither tool files directly with the CRA. That matters because the CRA says registrants with reporting periods beginning in 2024 or later must file GST/HST returns electronically (charities and some financial institutions excepted). Either way, you are typing numbers into a CRA form. QuickBooks keeps the return, filing, and payment in one record; with Wave, you track more of that yourself.

If you are not registered yet, the CRA's small supplier threshold is CAD $30,000 in taxable supplies. You must register once you exceed it in a single calendar quarter or over four consecutive quarters. Our GST/HST registration guide and rates by province cover the details. This is general information, not tax advice; an accountant can tell you how to set up and report sales tax for your situation.

Bank connections and receipts

QuickBooks connects bank accounts on every plan (two on Lite, unlimited from EasyStart). Wave only imports bank transactions on Pro, and connections run through Plaid, which Wave says does not support every financial institution.

Wave's pricing page notes that it cannot guarantee you will be able to connect a given account. Before you pay for Pro to get bank feeds, check that your bank and credit card work with Plaid. If your bank does not connect, transactions are uploaded or typed in by hand, so confirm the connection before upgrading.

For receipts, Wave Pro includes unlimited receipt capture. On Starter it is a paid add-on. QuickBooks lists receipt capture among its features, and EasyStart includes the mobile app for recording expenses.

Payroll in Canada

Both sell Canadian payroll as an add-on. Wave Payroll is cheaper for a very small team and covers every province and territory except Quebec. QuickBooks Payroll costs more per employee and supports Quebec.

Wave Payroll costs CAD $25 per month plus $6 per active employee and $6 per independent contractor paid. Wave says it makes tax payments to the CRA automatically, handles ROEs, and generates T4 and T4A slips and summaries. It is available in every province and territory except Quebec.

QuickBooks Payroll has three tiers: Core at CAD $30/month plus $5 per employee, Premium at $55 plus $8 per employee, and Elite at $80 plus $15 per employee. QuickBooks' help centre covers remitting to both the CRA and Revenu Québec and preparing RL-1 slips for Quebec employees alongside T4s.

For a sole proprietor with two employees outside Quebec, the monthly math looks like this:

  • Wave Pro plus Wave Payroll: CAD $25 + $25 + $12 = CAD $62/month
  • QuickBooks EasyStart plus Payroll Core: CAD $30 + $30 + $10 = CAD $70/month

At that size the gap is small. Our best payroll software in Canada review compares both with standalone payroll providers.

Accountant access

Wave Starter does not let you invite an accountant as a user. QuickBooks Lite does not either. You need Wave Pro or QuickBooks EasyStart and up.

Wave's help centre says only Pro Plan subscribers can invite admins, editors, and viewers. The one role available on all plans is payroll manager, which has no access to your accounting or reports. On Starter, you would export reports and send them to your accountant instead.

This is where many sole proprietors should do the math. If your accountant bills for time spent rebuilding your books from exports at year end, a subscription that gives them direct access can cost less than those hours. Ask your accountant which system they work in before you decide.

QuickBooks Online

Strengths

  • GST/HST return screen with filing and payment recording
  • Accountant access from EasyStart at CAD $30/month
  • Bank connections on every plan, unlimited from EasyStart
  • Payroll works in Quebec, with RL-1 slips
  • Room to grow with Plus and Advanced

Good to know

  • Paid plans only, from CAD $20/month
  • Lite includes 2 bank connections; accountant access starts on EasyStart
  • Payroll adds CAD $30/month or more plus per-employee fees
  • Plus is CAD $110/month, against CAD $30 for EasyStart

QuickBooks Online

4.5

Read our full QuickBooks Online review for every plan, the payroll add-on, and how GST/HST and QST filing works.

Wave

Strengths

  • CAD $0 plan with unlimited invoices, bills, and bookkeeping records
  • Pro is CAD $25/month or CAD $250/year
  • Payroll from CAD $25/month plus $6 per employee
  • Toronto company with CAD pricing

Good to know

  • Automatic bank imports and invited users come with Pro
  • Bank connections run through Plaid, so check your institution is supported
  • Sales tax report is a summary you use to file your GST/HST return
  • Payroll covers every province and territory except Quebec
  • Card fees cannot be passed to customers as a surcharge

Wave

3.5
Visit Wave (opens NorthVetted redirect)

Read our full Wave review for what the free plan covers and when to upgrade.

When to switch from Wave to QuickBooks

Switch when staying on Wave starts costing you more time or accounting fees than a QuickBooks subscription costs. These are the concrete triggers to watch for.

  1. You hire someone in Quebec. Wave Payroll does not cover Quebec, and running a separate payroll provider next to Wave means two systems to reconcile. QuickBooks Payroll handles RL-1 slips and Revenu Québec remittances.
  2. Your accountant needs to log in and you are weighing Wave Pro anyway. Wave Pro (CAD $25) and QuickBooks EasyStart (CAD $30) are CAD $5 apart. If your accountant already works in QuickBooks, the extra CAD $5 per month is likely cheaper than the time they spend working in an unfamiliar system.
  3. Your bank does not connect through Plaid. Wave Pro's bank imports depend on Plaid support. If your bank is not supported, check whether it connects to QuickBooks before paying for Wave Pro.
  4. You file GST/HST quarterly and the return takes real time. Once you are registered and filing regularly, a return screen that also records the payment against your books saves reconciling a summary report by hand every period.
  5. You need inventory, classes and locations, or budgeting. Neither Wave plan lists these. On QuickBooks they start on Plus at CAD $110/month, which also covers five users plus your accountant.
  6. You are paying an accountant to fix your books every year end. If cleanup fees exceed a year of subscription (CAD $360 on EasyStart), that is a clear signal a paid subscription would cost less.

Stay on Wave if none of these apply: you invoice a small number of clients, enter a modest number of transactions, have no staff, and your accountant is happy working from exported reports. Switching mid-year is easier with a clean cutoff at a quarter end or year end, so time a move to match a GST/HST reporting period.

Who should pick which

Pick Wave if: you are a sole proprietor just starting out, you are not registered for GST/HST yet or file annually with few transactions, you have no employees (or employees outside Quebec only), and you want to spend nothing until the business proves itself.

Pick QuickBooks Online if: you file GST/HST regularly, you have or plan to hire staff (especially in Quebec), your accountant works in QuickBooks, or you want one system that can grow into multiple users, inventory, and job tracking.

If neither fits, our FreshBooks vs QuickBooks comparison covers the invoicing-first alternative.

Our verdict

4.5

For Canadian small teams, QuickBooks Online is the stronger choice: a GST/HST return screen, accountant access from EasyStart at CAD $30 per month, bank connections on every plan, and payroll that works in all provinces, including Quebec. Wave is the right starting point for a sole proprietor who wants to spend nothing and does not need bank feeds or accountant logins yet. Its Pro plan at CAD $25 per month adds both, but once you hire in Quebec, file GST/HST regularly, or pay an accountant to rebuild your books, QuickBooks is worth the move.

Frequently asked questions

Is Wave really free in Canada?

Wave's Starter plan costs CAD $0 and includes unlimited invoices, estimates, bills, and bookkeeping records. You pay only if you accept online payments (2.9% plus $0.60 per card payment, 1% per bank payment) or add Pro, receipts, payroll, or bookkeeping services.

Does Wave file my GST/HST return?

No. Wave's sales tax report summarizes tax collected on sales, tax paid on purchases, and net tax owing for each tax you set up. You use those totals to file with the CRA yourself. QuickBooks Online prepares a GST/HST return in the software, but you still submit it through NETFILE or your CRA account.

Can my accountant log in to Wave for free?

Not as an admin, editor, or viewer. Wave's help centre says only Pro Plan subscribers can invite those roles. On Starter, you would export reports and send them instead. QuickBooks Lite also has no accountant access; EasyStart and up include it.

Can I use Wave Payroll in Quebec?

No. Wave says its payroll is available in all provinces and territories except Quebec. QuickBooks Payroll supports Quebec employees, including RL-1 slips and remittances to Revenu Québec.

Is QuickBooks Lite enough instead of Wave Pro?

Lite costs CAD $20 per month, which is less than Wave Pro's CAD $25 monthly price, and it includes one user and two bank connections, with no accountant access. If your accountant needs to log in, compare Wave Pro with QuickBooks EasyStart at CAD $30 instead.

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