Learn about usage limits

by Intuit •

2245 •

Updated 5/29/2026 14:27

QuickBooks Online has usage limits that vary by subscription tier. These limits define how many billable users, chart of accounts, classes, locations, and custom fields you can add to QuickBooks. This reference helps you quickly understand these limits and how to manage them.

Note: This feature is limited for QuickBooks Online Free and QuickBooks Online Lite. Upgrade your plan to get more features. Go to Settings , then Subscriptions and billing. Then select Upgrade your plan.

How to check usage limits

To view your current usage limits in your account:

Sign in to QuickBooks Online as an admin.
Go to Settings , then select Account and settings.
Select the Usage tab.

If you’re an accountant, sign in directly to your client’s account to see the most up-to-date usage limits.

How to see list-specific limits

In list view, you have an option to see limits on list items.

Select Settings ⚙. Then select All Lists.
Select the list item you want to view.
Select the ▼ icon next to the Filter by name field.
Select Counts toward limits to view items that count toward usage limits.
- Note: The Counts toward limits filter option is only available for the Classes and Locations lists.

Note:

You can’t see users in the list view.
QuickBooks Online Advanced has no usage limits for list items.

Usage limits by subscription

Here are the usage limits for each subscription level:

QuickBooks Online Simple Start

Billable users: 1 user.
Non-billable users: 2 accountant firm users. Reports-only and time tracking-only users are not available for this subscription.
Classes and locations (combined): Not available for this subscription.
Chart of accounts: Maximum of 250 accounts.
Custom fields: 1 per transaction.
QuickBooks Commerce Accounting: Maximum of 1 sales channel connected.

QuickBooks Online Essentials

Billable users: 3 users.
Non-billable users: 2 accountant firm users. Unlimited time tracking only users. Reports-only users are not available for this subscription.
Classes and locations (combined): Not available for this subscription.
Chart of accounts: Maximum of 250 accounts.
Custom fields: 4 per transaction.
QuickBooks Commerce Accounting: Maximum of 3 sales channels connected.

QuickBooks Online Plus

Billable users: 5 users.
Non-billable users: 2 accountant firm users. Unlimited time tracking-only and reports-only users.
Classes and locations (combined): 40 combined classes and locations.
Chart of accounts: Maximum of 250 accounts.
Custom fields: 4 per transaction.
QuickBooks Commerce Accounting: Unlimited sales channels can be connected.

QuickBooks Online Advanced

Billable users: 25 users.
Non-billable users: 3 accountant firm users. Unlimited time tracking-only, and reports-only users.
Classes and locations: Unlimited classes and locations.
Chart of accounts: Unlimited accounts.
Custom fields: 12 per transaction.
QuickBooks Commerce Accounting: Unlimited sales channels can be connected.

QuickBooks Workforce Payroll, Premium, and Elite

If you have both a payroll subscription and a QuickBooks Online subscription, usage limits are determined by the QuickBooks Online subscription plan. Payroll-only subscribers have 5 billable users available.

Only active (or invited) users, accounts, classes, locations, and custom fields, count toward the limit in each category.

Some user types, like View company reports and Track time only, don't count toward the user limit. Make sure each user in QuickBooks has the access that's right for them. If you have QuickBooks Online Advanced, here's how to set up custom roles.

What happens when I reach my limit?

When you reach your usage limits and can’t add any more items, like users or accounts, there are two options. You can either upgrade your subscription, or reduce your usage. If you have more than one company, you’ll need to check usage for each one.

To reduce usage, you can do the following:

Upgrade your subscription, or
Reduce usage by:
- Delete an account user if you have too many users in your account.
- Make an account inactive to reduce your usage in chart of accounts.
- Delete classes or delete locations if you go over your limits for class and location. (Only available in QuickBooks Online Plus or Advanced.)
- Deactivate custom fields you no longer use.
- Disconnect a sales channel if you've closed stores or have unneeded channels.