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Learn how terms differ in QuickBooks Desktop and QuickBooks Online

by Intuit•6• Updated 6 days ago

If you plan to switch from QuickBooks Desktop to QuickBooks Online, there will be some changes to consider. In this article, you’ll learn how terms differ between both platforms.

Note: For information on how to switch to QuickBooks Online, check out Learn about switching from QuickBooks Desktop to QuickBooks Online.

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Transactions

QuickBooks Desktop	QuickBooks Online
Bank Feeds	Online Banking / Bank Transactions
Use Register (For Banks/Accounts)	View Register
Sales Receipts	Sales Receipts
Item Receipts	Expenses Bills
Credit Memos	Credit Memos
Refund Receipts	Delayed Credits
Batch Invoices	Batch transactions (QuickBooks Online Advanced)
Receipt Management	Receipts
Other Charges	N/A
Subtotals	Subtotal
Discounts	N/A
Memorized transactions	Recurring transactions
Chart of accounts	Chart of accounts
Transfer Funds	Transfer
Enter Statement Charges	N/A
Statements	Statements
Payment Reminders	Reminders / Automatic invoice reminders

Sales

QuickBooks Desktop	QuickBooks Online
Estimates	Estimates
Invoices	Invoices
Checks	Checks
Purchase Orders	Purchase Orders
Undeposited Funds	Undeposited Funds
Make Deposits	Payments to deposit
Assemblies	Bank Deposits
Groups	Bundles (Products & services)
Services	Bundles (Products & services)
Jobs	Sub-customers Projects
Items	Products and services
Sales Orders	N/A
Income Tracker	All Sales
Customer Groups	N/A
Job & Item Estimates vs Actuals	N/A

Expenses

QuickBooks Desktop	QuickBooks Online
Bills	Expenses Bills Vendor Credits
Credit Card Charges	Expenses Credit Card Credits
Bill Tracker	Vendors window
Upload & Review Bills	Receipts
Schedule Online Payment	Online Bill Pay
Forecast	Budgets
Budgets	Budgets
Reconcile	Reconcile
Payments	Payments
Receive Payments	Receive Payments
Pay Bills	Pay Bills
Purchase Orders	Purchase Orders
Vendors	Vendors (for all Vendors) Contractors (for Vendors tracked for 1099)
Billing Rate Levels	N/A

Customers & Leads

QuickBooks Desktop	QuickBooks Online
Customers	Customers
Leads	N/A
Other Names	N/A
Sales Reps (Customer & Vendor Profile Lists) Vendor Types	N/A
Vendor Types (Customer & Vendor Profile Lists)	N/A
Job Types (Customer & Vendor Profile Lists)	N/A
Customer Messages (Customer & Vendor Profile Lists)	N/A
Ship Via (Customer & Vendor Profile Lists)	N/A
Vehicles (Customer & Vendor Profile Lists)	Manage vehicles
Customer Types (Customer & Vendor Profile Lists)	Customer Types
Terms (Customer & Vendor Profile Lists)	Terms
Payment Methods (Customer & Vendor Profile Lists)	Payment Methods

Reports

QuickBooks Desktop	QuickBooks Online
Memorized reports	Custom reports
Scheduled reports	Custom reports
Commented reports	N/A
Custom reports	Custom reports (QuickBooks Online Advanced)
Company Snapshot	Business Snapshot
Payroll Reports: • Payroll Details report • Tax Liability report • Direct Deposit report • Workers Comp report • Sick and Vacation report	Payroll Reports: • Payroll Summary report • Liability Balance report • Employee Direct Deposit Listing • Workers Comp report • Sick and Vacation History report

Payroll

QuickBooks Desktop	QuickBooks Online
Scheduled Payroll	Run Payroll
Unscheduled Payroll	Run Payroll Bonus Only
Payroll Item List	Edit Pay Items
Weekly Timesheet	Time Entries (if Time tab is available) Weekly Timesheet (if Time tab isn’t available)
Time / Enter Single Activity	Time Entries (if Time tab is available) Single Time Activity (if Time tab isn’t available)
Employees	Employees

Inventory

QuickBooks Desktop	QuickBooks Online
Inventory Parts	Inventory
Non-inventory Parts	Non-inventory
Adjust Quantity/Value on Hand	Inventory Quantity Adjustment

Administrative

QuickBooks Desktop	QuickBooks Online
Edit, then Preferences	Settings ⚙, then Account and settings Settings ⚙, then Payroll settings
Documents / Doc Center	Attachments
My Company	Settings ⚙, then Account and settings
Calendar	N/A
Set Up Users	Manage Users
To Do List	Tasks (QuickBooks Online Advanced)
Reminders	N/A
Letters	N/A
Make General Journal Entries	Journal Entries

Other

QuickBooks Desktop	QuickBooks Online
Price Levels	N/A
Fixed Asset Items	Available in QuickBooks Online Advanced
Templates	Custom Form Styles
Add/Edit Multiple List Entries	N/A
Classes	Classes (and Locations)

Next steps

Learn how features and data transfer from QuickBooks Desktop to QuickBooks Online
For a full list of each platform’s features, check out our QuickBooks Desktop and QuickBooks Online comparison chart.

QuickBooks Desktop Mac PlusQuickBooks Desktop Premier PlusQuickBooks Desktop Pro PlusQuickBooks Online AdvancedQuickBooks Online EssentialsQuickBooks Online PlusQuickBooks Online Simple Start