Intuit Full Service may fit
You already use an eligible QuickBooks Online subscription, want Intuit's managed service model, and accept its current cleanup, expense-based pricing, service boundaries, and eligibility review.
Independent service comparison · Intuit facts checked July 14, 2026
QuickBooks Live vs. an independent bookkeeper: compare the service model, scope, and cost.
Intuit Expert Full Service Bookkeeping and a separately contracted bookkeeper are both human-service models. The useful decision is eligibility, included work, retained responsibilities, pricing basis, and whether the file fits the offered scope.
Name the choice correctly
This is managed bookkeeping versus a separately contracted provider—not software versus a person.
Intuit calls its current managed offer Intuit Expert Full Service Bookkeeping. Its support material also uses QuickBooks Live Bookkeeping. Intuit says a dedicated QuickBooks-certified bookkeeper, supported by a team, handles cleanup and ongoing work.
An independent provider contracts separately from Intuit and defines its own system eligibility, recurring scope, pricing unit, retained tasks, and complexity gates. Neither model should be judged from a headline price alone.
Normalize these facts
- Required accounting system and eligibility
- Starting condition and cleanup responsibility
- Accounts, transaction review, and reconciliations
- Reports, close timing, and owner questions
- Software, setup, and separately priced work
- Tasks that remain with the business owner
Current service-model matrix
Compare the published facts without inventing an apples-to-apples price.
Intuit facts below come from its current Full Service page and support article. ClearClose facts come from its current published scope and pricing. Confirm both before purchase because offers can change.
| Decision factor | Intuit Expert Full Service Bookkeeping | ClearClose independent service |
|---|---|---|
| Service identity | A dedicated QuickBooks-certified bookkeeper with team support inside Intuit's managed service. | A separately contracted service from ClearClose Books, the public brand of CurrentClose Books LLC. |
| Accounting system | Intuit's support article requires QuickBooks Online, a prior-calendar-year tax filing, and no active QBO trial. | QuickBooks is supported but not mandatory. System fit and any migration depend on the accepted scope. |
| Recurring work | Intuit describes categorization, reconciliations, closing the books, a trial balance, and P&L and balance-sheet reports. | Agreed transaction review, account reconciliations, owner questions, and reports inside an accepted monthly scope. |
| Published entry price | Intuit currently displays starting at $300 per month after an initial cleanup fee. | Starter $125, Core $199, or Growth $349 per month for files meeting published transaction and scope limits. |
| Pricing basis | Intuit's support article says ongoing price follows average expenses and is reevaluated every three months. | Published plans route by transaction volume and scope. Setup, cleanup, software, and separately scoped work can add cost. |
| Eligibility and complexity | Intuit says extremely complex files, foreign or cryptocurrency activity, heavily mixed business and personal activity, and certain federally restricted businesses might not qualify. | Self-serve plans assume one current and supportable entity, no inventory or complex workflow, and no more than 350 monthly transactions. |
| Adjacent operations | Intuit excludes sending invoices, paying bills, inventory management, AR, AP, financial advisory, tax filings, 1099 preparation, and payroll management from Full Service. | Base plans also separate setup, cleanup, payroll administration, bill pay, invoicing, collections, tax work, sales-tax work, and unusual reporting unless signed scope includes them. |
| Tax work | Intuit states Full Service bookkeepers do not provide business-specific tax advice or prepare or file taxes. | ClearClose tax preparation is a separate accepted engagement, not an automatic monthly-bookkeeping inclusion. |
Price boundary: $300 and $125 are entry displays for different service contracts. They do not prove total cost, equivalent cleanup, equivalent software, or universal savings.
Choose by operating fit
Three decision branches keep the comparison honest.
An independent scope may fit
You want a separately contracted provider, need written responsibility boundaries, and your current, straightforward file fits a published ClearClose plan or an accepted custom scope.
Neither self-serve path is ready
Behind books, unsupported balances, multiple entities, inventory, client money, foreign activity, complex revenue, or operational AP, AR, payroll, or tax work needs diagnosis or assessment first.
Retained responsibility
A managed-bookkeeping subscription does not automatically run the whole back office.
Before choosing either model, assign invoicing, collections, bill pay, payroll, inventory, 1099s, sales tax, income-tax work, software administration, and source-record delivery in writing.
ClearClose checkout starts a paid onboarding request. It does not override file fit, scope acceptance, a signed engagement, portal setup, or required records access.
Ask before paying
- Who owns cleanup and the opening balances?
- Which accounts and months are included?
- What closes the month and when?
- What remains on the owner's team?
- What triggers a scope or price change?
- How do records and credentials move securely?
Method, sources, and independence
Official Intuit pages plus current ClearClose scope—not a first-person product review.
Intuit facts were checked July 14, 2026 against its Full Service page, service and eligibility article, and Experts overview. ClearClose facts were checked against its QuickBooks service page, monthly scope, and published pricing.
Reviewed by ClearClose Books using its published QuickBooks Level 1 and Level 2 certification. ClearClose is independent and is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by Intuit. Intuit and QuickBooks are trademarks of Intuit Inc.
What this page does not claim
- First-hand use of Intuit's managed service
- A rating, testimonial, or service-quality winner
- Equivalent scopes or guaranteed savings
- Automatic ClearClose acceptance of an Intuit exclusion
- Any tax, audit, lending, or business outcome
Questions owners ask
QuickBooks Live comparison answers before you choose.
Is QuickBooks Live bookkeeping fully automated?
No. Intuit describes its Full Service offer as human bookkeeping performed by a dedicated QuickBooks-certified bookkeeper with team support.
Is ClearClose always less expensive than Intuit Expert Full Service Bookkeeping?
No universal cost conclusion is possible from entry prices. Software, cleanup, setup, file condition, included work, retained responsibilities, and future pricing changes must be normalized first.
Does ClearClose require QuickBooks Online?
No. QuickBooks is supported, but the right system and any migration decision depend on the file and accepted scope.
What if the books are behind or uncertain?
ClearClose routes behind or uncertain books to the $49 Books Health Check before cleanup or monthly work is priced.
Does ClearClose checkout guarantee plan acceptance?
No. Checkout starts a paid onboarding request. Service still requires scope acceptance, a signed engagement, active payment, portal setup, and required records access.
Next step
Check the file fit before treating either entry price as your answer.
Use the ClearClose calculator for a current, straightforward file. If the books are behind or uncertain, start with the written $49 diagnostic. Complex work needs assessment before a monthly plan is accepted.