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Overview of custom fields capabilities in QuickBooks Online

by Intuit612 Updated 1 week ago

Learn about the capabilities and limitations of custom fields by reading this help article and FAQ.

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On March 17th 2025, we added custom fields to most plans, as shown in the table below. We’ve also expanded the capabilities of custom fields to support both sales and expense forms. Each custom field will support up to 100 values with a dropdown format.

Plan levelFrom: # of custom fieldsTo: # of custom fields per transaction
LedgerNot applicableNot applicable
Simple Start01 per transaction
Essentials3 in total4 per transaction
Plus3 in total4 per transaction
Advanced12 per transaction12 per transaction

Note: There’s no limit to the number of transactions that can have custom fields. The only limit is the number of custom fields a transaction can have. For example, if you use Simple Start, you can have 1 custom field on every transaction, and you can pick from 100 values in your dropdown list.

Add custom fields to sales and expense forms

Learn how to add custom fields to your sales forms and purchase orders in QuickBooks Online.

FAQs

Which regions are affected?
This is a global change to QuickBooks Online and affects all customers worldwide.

All about custom fields

Data types for custom fields have increased
Custom field capabilities have expanded. Now all plans support a dropdown per custom field.

Plan LevelFormatUse on
Simple StartDropdown listTransactions
EssentialsDropdown list or text fieldTransactions
PlusDropdown list or text fieldTransactions
AdvancedDropdown list or text, number, date fieldsTransactions, Customers, Vendors, Projects

Number of values available
Each custom field has 100 values. For example, if you are a Simple Start subscriber, you have 1 custom field containing 100 values. Let’s say you have 60 tags that track different areas of your business. You can add those 60 tags, or values, to your custom field.

Previously, only Advanced had the dropdown option. Now all plans have a dropdown for each custom field. For example, Simple Start has 1 dropdown with 100 values. Whereas, Essentials has 4 dropdowns with 100 values each.

Plan LevelNumber of Custom FieldsTotal Number of Values
Simple Start1100
Essentials4400
Plus4400
Advanced121200

Can I add and remove custom fields like I do with tags?
Yes. For example, if you want to notate a transaction for review, you can do that with a custom field. Once the transaction has been reviewed, you can remove the custom field.

Which forms support custom fields?
Both sales and expense forms support custom fields. Plus and Advanced are the only plans that support Purchase Orders.

Plan LevelSales FormsExpense Forms
Simple StartInvoice, Estimate, Sales receipt, Credit memo, Refund receiptExpense, Check, Bill, Vendor credit, Credit card credit
EssentialsInvoice, Estimate, Sales receipt, Credit memo, Refund receiptExpense, Check, Bill, Vendor credit, Credit card credit
PlusInvoice, Estimate, Sales receipt, Credit memo, Refund receiptPurchase order, Expense, Check, Bill, Vendor credit, Credit card credit
AdvancedInvoice, Estimate, Sales receipt, Credit memo, Refund receiptPurchase order, Expense, Check, Bill, Vendor credit, Credit card credit

Which reports support custom fields?

ReportsSimple StartEssentialsPlusAdvanced
Business overview
Transactions - adjusted gains/losses
Transactions - realized gains/losses
Who owes you
A/R aging detail report
Customer balance detail report
Collections
Open invoices
Invoice List
Sales and customer reports
Customer contact list
Sales by class summary
Sales by customer detail
Sales by customer summary
Estimates by customer
Sales by customer type detail
Sales by location detail
Inventory valuation detail
Sales by location summary
Sales by product/service detail
Sales by product/service summary
Transaction list by customer
Sales by class detail
What you owe
Unpaid bills
Expenses and vendors
Open purchase order list by vendor
Transaction list by vendor
Vendor contact list
Sales tax
Taxable sales detail
Taxable sales summary
For my accountant
Transaction detail by account
Transaction list with splits
Transaction list by date
Recent transactions

Can I create a P&L report by custom field?
No. This capability doesn't exist.

Can I add custom fields within bank feeds and rules?
No. However, you can manually add them to your transactions and sales and expense forms.

QuickBooks LedgerQuickBooks Online AdvancedQuickBooks Online EssentialsQuickBooks Online PlusQuickBooks Online Simple Start

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