Comparison guide for users: Fintruck vs. Quickbooks

Looking for QuickBooks for trucking companies?

Looking for the best accounting software for trucking companies? Want an alternative to QuickBooks Online? Fintruck’s real-time cash flow and accounting solution is the leading option for trucking and is to become “QuickBooks for trucking companies, but much better.”

Selecting accounting software is a significant decision for any accountant or users as it can influence owner's experience and efficiency, compliance, and success— or create inefficiencies and challenges.

By contrasting Fintruck's innovative AI-powered solution with QuickBooks' legacy capabilities, this guide will give a greater understanding of the two platforms, enabling you to choose the one that best suits your trucking needs and goals.

We've assessed both options to enable you to make an informed decision confidently. Read on to learn why Fintruck is the preferred solution for trucking

QuickBooks Online vs. Fintruck: the foundational difference

‍Fintruck is built for fast moving, ambitious trucking who care about speed and accuracy and weekly reports. Fintruck is designed to help accountants/users do more in less time, and helps trucking professionals feel empowered about their business.

There are many differences between Fintruck and QuickBooks Online (QBO) listed in the guide, but the key differences is the underlying technology, which creates key new capabilities:

Fintruck is built for fast moving, ambitious trucking who care about speed and accuracy and weekly reports. Fintruck is designed to help accountants/users do more in less time, and helps trucking professionals feel empowered about their business.

There are many differences between Fintruck and QuickBooks Online (QBO) listed in the guide, but the key differences is the underlying technology, which creates key new capabilities:

1. Fintruck is built for trucking. QBO is not.

2. Fintruck is the first real-time solution built for trucking and is the first accounting solution to reach Level 3 Autonomous Accounting. QBO is not real-time.

3. Fintruck's dashboard was built to provide trucking metrics like weekly reports, cash flow analytics, spend management, money burn and operating ration, cash profit and loss, that are useful for owners of trucking company. QBO does not provide trucking metrics.

4. Fintruck offers simultaneous accrual and cash accounting. QBO does not.

5. Fintruck offers AI-powered workflows like AI Categorizer and AI Vendor. QBO does not.
   

Fintruck vs. QuickBooks Online: Capabilities Comparison

1. Design and User Experience

🧩 Fintruck

• User-friendly workflows for non-financial trucking business owners and accountants.

• Designed specifically for modern trucking teams seeking a unified source of financial truth.

📚 QuickBooks Online (QBO)

• Often described as clunky and difficult to navigate.

• Dr. Lindsay Padilla, CEO of HelloAudio:
“QuickBooks feels like a tool I pay for others to use. I don’t have confidence I’ll find what I need. Fintruck feels like it’s for me.”

• While some call it user-friendly, there’s a learning curve, especially for those unfamiliar with accounting—often a challenge for truck owners.

  
  

2. Trucking Metrics Access

🧩 Fintruck

• Real-time trucking and fundraising metrics on the dashboard: burn, net burn, runway, MRR, ARR.

  
  

📚 QuickBooks Online (QBO)

• No trucking metrics on dashboards.

• Users must manually calculate and maintain them via spreadsheets.

  
  

3. Real-Time Financial Reports

🧩 Fintruck

• Real-time trucking and fundraising metrics on the dashboard: burn, net burn, runway, MRR, ARR.

  
  

📚 QuickBooks Online (QBO)

• No trucking metrics on dashboards.

• Users must manually calculate and maintain them via spreadsheets.

  
  

4. Time Commitment

🧩 Fintruck

• Autonomous Accounting features drastically reduce time spent.

• Some owners spend only 30 minutes monthly on review.

  
  

📚 QBO

• Closing a single month can take 5 to 21 days regardless of who manages the books.

  
  

5. Onboarding and Setup

🧩 Fintruck

• Set up in minutes with self-serve or high-touch CPA-led onboarding.

  
  

📚 QuickBooks Online (QBO)

• Complex navigation and manual setup (e.g. categorization rules) delay the process.

6. Integrations

Native Integrations

🧩 Fintruck

• Built with native APIs for the trucking fintech stack (e.g. Datatruck).

• 90–95% of categorization automated.

• Integrates with banks via Plaid.

  
  

📚 QBO

• Connects to 750+ business apps.

• Many integrations are third-party and not trucking-specific (e.g. TMS and factoring require workarounds).

Banking Integrations

🧩 Fintruck

• Native integration with Datatruck and Plaid.

• Direct API integrations increase data robustness and reliability.

• 90% of transactions auto-categorized; remaining 10% left for manual context review.

  
  

📚 QBO

• Supports many banks but lacks native Mercury and Brex support.

• Limited metadata compared to native integrations.

7. Key Features

AI-Powered Workflows

🧩 Fintruck

• Fintruck AI Categorizer: Auto-categorizes 90–95% of transactions.

• Fintruck AI Lookup: “Ask AI” within transactions for categorization suggestions via plain English prompts.

  
  

📚 QBO

• No comparable AI-powered workflows currently available.

Auto-Categorization

🧩 Fintruck

• No comparable AI-powered workflows currently available.

  
  

📚 QBO

• Rule suggestions based only on historical company data; must be manually created.

Collaboration Workflows

🧩 Fintruck

• In-app collaboration on transactions (e.g. category review, context requests).

• Instant notifications via email.

  
  

📚 QBO

• Relies on third-party tools like Karbon for collaboration.

Spending Insights

🧩 Fintruck

• Spend Explorer: Visual graphs by category, vendor, top purchases, and timeline.

  
  

📚 QBO

• Graphs available but not easily accessible or integrated into main dashboard.

Auto-Accruals

🧩 Fintruck

• Enables dual cash and accrual accounting.

• Auto-reversing accrual entries linked to original cash transactions.

How it works:

1. User selects auto-accrual in a transaction.

2. Specifies the accrual date.

3. Fintruck creates and reverses entries automatically.

   
   

📚 QBO

• No auto-accrual workflow; manual journal entries required.

Bank Reconciliations

🧩 Fintruck

• Automatic imports and integrity checks.

• Pre-validation and reconciliation automation via APIs like Mercury and Brex.

  
  

📚 QBO

• Standard reconciliation features, but lacks automated pre-checks.

Fixed Asset Ledger

🧩 Fintruck

• Auto-schedules straight-line depreciation.

  
  

📚 QBO

• Manual setup required for depreciation schedules.

8. Investment and Support

Cost-to-Value

🧩 Fintruck

• 14-day free trial

• Four pricing tiers + partner plans available.

  
  

📚 QBO

• Starts at $30/month.

• 30-day free trial and partner discounts offered.

Scalability

🧩 Fintruck

• Built for growing trucking businesses.

  
  

📚 QBO

• Better suited for general industries like retail, manufacturing, or freelancing.

Customer Support

🧩 Fintruck

• Talk to real humans via email or chat.

• Book 1:1 calls for support.

  
  

📚 QBO

• Access via help articles, forums, or QuickBooks Live Bookkeepers.

• Rated 4/5 on GetApp for support.

What Companies Say About Fintruck

Fintruck is the trusted choice for over 1,000 trucking founders who need:

• Real-time trucking and financial metrics like burn, ARR, MRR, runway.

• Fast and reliable financial reporting.

• Effortless tax preparation.

  
  

"Fintruck is accounting software of the future."


— Erick, S&D Global LLC

Which One Is Right for You?


Choose Fintruck if you want:

• Instant trucking metrics and visual dashboards

• Native integrations with trucking systems

• AI-powered categorization and assistance

• Real-time financial data and reports

• Support tailored for trucking businesses

Choose QBO if you need:

• Broad feature sets for general industries like retail or construction

• Advanced invoicing, inventory, and payroll options

• A widely adopted solution with a large app marketplace