QuickBooks alternatives for multi-currency and international businesses
In QuickBooks Online, multicurrency needs Essentials or higher and can never be turned off. Here's where foreign-currency features start in Zoho Books, Xero, FreshBooks and Wave, using each vendor's official pages. Checked .
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The short version
- QuickBooks Online locks you in once multicurrency is on. Intuit's help center says it's only on Essentials, Plus and Advanced, it can't be turned off, you can't drop back to Simple Start, and your home currency can't change unless you delete all your data and start over.
- Cheapest full multi-currency ledger: Zoho Books Professional, $50/mo or $40/mo billed annually. Zoho's pricing page lists "Record multi-currency transactions" as a Professional feature, and exchange rates update automatically.
- Want Xero? Multiple currencies are only on Xero Established, $97/mo. Early ($27) and Growing ($59) don't include it. Xero's US page shows 90% off the first 6 months for new customers, ending November 2, 2026.
- Just invoicing foreign clients? FreshBooks sets a currency per client on invoices, estimates and proposals. Wave lets you put a foreign currency on an invoice or bill and tracks exchange gains and losses.
- Prices are from each vendor's official US pages, checked (QuickBooks list prices from Intuit's page on October 27).
How multicurrency works in QuickBooks Online (and why it's sticky)
Intuit's "Set up and use Multicurrency" article explains the model: each customer, supplier and balance-sheet account (bank, credit card, receivables) gets one currency, and you add a separate account for every currency you use. Income and expense accounts always stay in your home currency, and QuickBooks converts foreign transactions for you.
The catches are all in Intuit's own notes:
- Multicurrency isn't available on Simple Start. Intuit's subscription article says only Essentials, Plus and Advanced have it.
- Once it's on, you can't turn it off, and you can't change your plan to Simple Start.
- Your home currency is locked once multicurrency is on. Intuit's "Can I change my home currency?" article says the only way after that is deleting all your data and starting over.
- If you connect QuickBooks Commerce, multicurrency won't work.
So a business that switched it on for one overseas client is stuck on a pricier plan for good. On Intuit's pricing page on October 27, 2026, Plus was $140/mo and Advanced $340/mo. Vendors on X pitch the same problem from the other side: "Wrestling with multi-currency by hand" (@SoftLedger, an accounting vendor) and "QuickBooks is a great first car. It just isn't built to tow multi-entity, multi-currency, project-based revenue" (@3Value_, an ERP vendor). Most small businesses don't need ERP. The tools below handle foreign currencies for much less.
The alternatives
Zoho Books: multi-currency from $40/mo
- Professional, $50/mo ($40 billed annually), 5 users: the first plan on Zoho's pricing page that lists "Record multi-currency transactions". Free and Standard don't list it, and Zoho's currencies help page notes that "invoicing in multiple currencies is available only in certain plans".
- How it works: you add currencies and assign them to customers or vendors, then create transactions in their currency. Zoho Books updates exchange rates automatically through Open Exchange Rates ("Exchange Rate Feeds", on by default). You can turn the feed off and enter rates yourself, and make base currency adjustments for a period.
- Fit: the lowest-cost real multi-currency ledger here. Professional also includes inventory, purchase orders and project profitability.
Xero: multiple currencies on Established only
- Established, $97/mo: Xero's US pricing page lists "Use multiple currencies" as included on Established and excluded on Early ($27/mo) and Growing ($59/mo). New customers get 90% off for the first 6 months ($9.70/mo on Established), an offer the page says ends November 2, 2026, then the regular price auto-renews.
- What you get: Xero's multi-currency page lists invoices, quotes and purchase orders in foreign currencies, real-time currency conversions, automatic exchange-rate updates, and reporting in more than one currency.
- Fit: businesses that want an accountant-friendly ledger and also use Established's projects and analytics. If you only need multi-currency, Zoho Professional costs less at list price.
FreshBooks: foreign-currency invoices for client work
- How it works: FreshBooks' help center says currency and language are set per client, and become the default for that client's future invoices, estimates and proposals. FreshBooks' feature article says you can pick the currency of each expense and see a dashboard and reports (including Profit & Loss) per currency.
- Price: Lite $23/mo (5 billable clients), Plus $43/mo (50), Premium $70/mo (unlimited). The help article doesn't limit currencies to a particular plan.
- Fit: freelancers and agencies who bill overseas clients. It's not set up for multi-currency bank accounts and payables the way Zoho or Xero is, so check with your accountant if you hold foreign-currency bank balances.
Wave: foreign-currency invoices and bills at $0
- How it works: Wave's help center says you change the currency next to the invoice or bill total, Wave shows an estimated conversion, and it books unrealized gains or losses until you're paid. When you record the payment, you enter the rate your bank used and Wave records the realized gain or loss on your Profit & Loss.
- Catch: per Wave's help center, revaluing a foreign-currency account balance is done by asking Wave's support through its chatbot, not with a self-serve tool.
- Price: Starter $0, Pro $19/mo.
Side by side
| Question | QuickBooks Online | Zoho Books | Xero | FreshBooks | Wave |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cheapest plan with multi-currency | Essentials (Plus is $140/mo) | Professional, $50/mo ($40 annually) | Established, $97/mo | Per-client currency; plan not limited in help docs (from $23/mo) | Foreign-currency invoices and bills (Starter $0) |
| Exchange rates | Converted for you | Automatic feed, or enter manually | Automatic updates | Not covered here | Current rate shown; you enter the bank's rate on payment |
| Can you turn it off? | No, and no downgrade to Simple Start | Not covered here | Not covered here | Not applicable | Not applicable |
| Best for | Already on it and not leaving | Lowest-cost full multi-currency ledger | Xero shops that need Established anyway | Billing overseas clients | Occasional foreign invoices on a $0 budget |
Moving multi-currency books off QuickBooks
- Pick a cutover date, ideally a month or year end, so revaluation and gains or losses are settled in QuickBooks first.
- Export before you cancel. Save a trial balance, balance sheet and open receivables and payables as of the cutover date, plus your currency list and the exchange rates you used. Our QuickBooks Online export guide covers what to save and the read-only window after canceling.
- Set your base currency first in the new tool, then add the foreign currencies and assign them to customers, vendors and bank accounts.
- Enter open foreign invoices and bills in their original currency so the new tool can book the right gain or loss when they're paid.
- Match opening balances in home currency to your QuickBooks trial balance, and ask your accountant to check foreign-currency bank balances.
Step-by-step guides for each tool:
- QuickBooks Online to Zoho Books
- QuickBooks Online to Xero
- QuickBooks Online to FreshBooks
- QuickBooks Online to Wave
How to choose (our suggestions)
- You hold foreign-currency bank accounts or pay overseas suppliers? Zoho Books Professional, or Xero Established if your accountant prefers Xero.
- You only invoice a few overseas clients? FreshBooks, or Wave if budget comes first.
- Your home currency is wrong in QuickBooks? Switching is a chance to set it right, since QuickBooks won't change it once multicurrency is on.
- Not sure you need multi-currency? Don't switch it on in QuickBooks "just in case". Intuit says you can't undo it.
Compare every tool we track in QuickBooks alternatives by business type, or see the pages for freelancers, contractors and inventory and ecommerce sellers.
Sources
Prices and plan features come only from each vendor's official pages. Plans change, so confirm on the vendor's page before you buy.
- Intuit QuickBooks Help: Set up and use Multicurrency in QuickBooks Online (checked )
- Intuit QuickBooks Help: Upgrade or change your subscription (feature limits) (checked )
- Intuit QuickBooks Help: Can I change my home currency? (checked )
- QuickBooks: Job & project costing software (plans and prices) (checked )
- Zoho Books (US): Pricing (checked )
- Zoho Books Help: Currencies (checked )
- Xero (US): Pricing plans (checked )
- Xero (US): Multi-currency accounting (checked )
- FreshBooks Help: How do I change my client's currency and language? (checked )
- FreshBooks: Multi-currency accounting (feature article) (checked )
- FreshBooks: Pricing (checked )
- Wave Help: Create a foreign currency invoice or bill (checked )
- Wave Help: Record a payment on a foreign currency invoice or bill (checked )
- Wave Help: Foreign currency account balances (checked )
- Wave: Pricing (checked )
- Intuit QuickBooks Help: What happens to my QuickBooks Online data after I cancel? (checked )
Last checked: . Not tax, legal or accounting advice.
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