How To Integrate Third-Party Merchant Accounts With Quickbooks
Intuit’s QuickBooks accounting software is by far the most popular do-it-yourself bookkeeping program available for small business owners. Launched in 1994, the service has since become a household name with a market share above 80% and an entire suite of specialized business solutions. If you use QuickBooks and also accept credit cards through QuickBooks Payments, you might have discovered that your processing fees are very high. In fact, QuickBooks seems to believe that the should charge business customers a premium for the ease of use of having accounting and payments under the same roof. In fact, the QuickBooks Payments statements we’ve seen through our Merchant Account Cost Optimization Service have some of the highest fees in the industry. But it doesn’t have to be this way.
QuickBooks resisted allowing third-party payment integration for a long time. After enough pushback by customers and the threat of more open competing account software providers, QuickBooks finally opened up its platform to outside credit card processing. Not all merchant accounts support direct QuickBooks integration, and among those that do, there aren’t many competitively priced options.
Find Our Top Choices for QuickBooks Credit Card Processing Integration Below
We’ve compiled a list below of highly rated credit card processors and that also offer QuickBooks integration. The following merchant services providers offer either direct integration or indirect integration. Providers with direct integration offer solutions like payment gateways, plugins, or APIs that seamlessly transfer your transaction details and payment history from your merchant account to QuickBooks. Providers with indirect integration can still be used with QuickBooks, but they may require you to take extra steps such as manually uploading reports or signing up with a third-party service. Each description below will provide further insight.
#1 Merchant Account for QuickBooks
CDG Commerce
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Specialized services for most industries
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Simple and transparent rates
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350+ technology integrations, including Quickbooks
Various Integration Options With Expert Help
CDG Commerce takes the top position for QuickBooks payment integration as one of the best choices for seamless payments and accounting. This provider can assist businesses with various integration options such as determining the appropriate payment gateway for third-party paid and free software plug-ins as well and assist in custom software integrations via APIs and developer tools.
Serves Most Business Types
Not only does CDG Commerce make is easy to integrate with QuickBooks, but the company serves most industries and provides a broad array of services to meet the needs of both e-commerce and brick-and-mortar businesses. The company has very highly rated 24/7 costumer support and has maintained a near perfect score since we first reviewed CDG Commerce nearly 10 years ago. Business owners looking to move away from QuickBooks Payments are well-advised to consider CDG Commerce.
Additional Quickbooks Integration Options
Shopify
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Top rated all-in-one e-commerce platform
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Serves almost any need from small to enterprise
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Numerous plug-ins for almost any business need
E-Commerce Made Easy
Shopify is a great solution for e-commerce merchants who may or may not maintain physical storefronts. In addition to an endlessly customizable online store experience, Shopify offers chargeback recovery, email marketing, rewards programs, and an iPad-based point-of-sale application that merchants can use to accept payments in-person. Shopify offers month-to-month pricing plans with variable pricing and product tiers.
Shopify + QuickBooks
Integrating with QuickBooks through Shopify can only be accomplished via a third-party plugin. As a result, your experience with using QuickBooks through Shopify will vary depending on which plugin you select. Fortunately, the Shopify App Store has an entire section devoted specifically to different QuickBooks integration solutions, complete with reviews and descriptions of each plugin. Merchants can select which one is most appealing in terms of features, pricing, and user feedback, and some even include free trial periods.
Shopify Reviews
Shopify is headquartered in Ottawa, Ontario, and has been in operation since 2005. The company provides phone, email, and live chat support to all of its merchant tiers and enjoys very few online complaints despite its massive user base. The BBB gives Shopify an “A+” rating at this time, while CardPaymentOptions.com awards the company an “A.”
For more information, see the Shopify website.
Sign Up With Shopify
Website: shopify.com
eMerchant Broker
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Maintains numerous banking partners
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Can get approvals for international businesses
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Top-rated in "high-risk" industry satisfaction
Host Merchant Services
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Fast approval for most industries
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No contract or cancellation fees
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Highly rated customer support
Consistent Performers
Host Merchant Services deserves a spot on this list because it has consistently ranked as one of the most transparent, affordable merchant account providers on CardPaymentOptions.com ever since our first review of the company. Additionally, the company has received a dozen or so positive testimonials online and only a handful of public complaints in its entire history.
Host Merchant Services + QuickBooks
Host Merchant Services offers QuickBooks integration through its Verosa Gateway. Verosa’s payment terminal for Quickbooks integrates with QuickBooks Pro, Quickbooks Premier, Quickbooks Enterprise, or Quickbooks Accountant. Adding a USB card swiper allows you to take “in-person” payments and avoid higher “card not present” rates. Host Merchant Services does not specifically charge extra for QuickBooks integration, but merchants should be sure to inquire about any potential costs that are associated with adding a payment gateway or integrating other necessary features.
Host Merchant Services Reviews
Founded in 2009, Host Merchant Services is headquartered in Newark, Delaware. The company offers phone and email support. Host Merchant Services currently has an “A+” rating with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and an “A+” rating with CardPaymentOptions.com.
For more information, see the Host Merchant Services website or call (888) 727-4538
PaymentCloud
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Fast approval for numerous "high-risk" industries
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Broad product and service offering
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Highly praised customer support
High Risk Specialists
PaymentCloud is one of the most highly rated providers on CPO. They score highly in our review due to its exceptionally low amount of customer complaints in the short time the company has been in operation. PaymentCloud has been well known in the industry to cater to high risk merchants since its inception. Even if you’re not in a high risk industry, PaymentCloud rates well as an overall payment provider.
PaymentCloud + Quickbooks
This provider can integrate in to Quickbooks’ accounting software seamlessly and provides industry-specific solutions that help tailor the software to the merchant’s needs. PaymentCloud says this helps provide lower rates as well as better automation and integration for the Quickbooks platform.
PaymentCloud Reviews
Founded in 2015, PaymentCloud is based in Woodland Hills, California. The Better Business Bureau (BBB) does not provide a rating for PaymentCloud, but CardPaymentOptions.com gives the company an “A+.”
For more information, see the PaymentCloud website or call (888) 506-7859.
8 Responses
The information is really helpful, but it needs to be updated with information on EMV compliance. As far as I can tell none of these solutions are capable and there’s no way for me (or anyone) in my organization without significant funds or resources at their disposal would ever get this done within a reasonable time frame.
We use QBO to automate monthly sales receipts that charge to a credit card. Other than Intuit’s merchant services, can any other merchant / gateway integrate directly into QBO? The non-swipe transaction fees are high.
Nick,
Yes, many other merchant accounts integrate QuickBooks’ services.
-Phillip
We are looking for a merchant account that is compatible with Quickbooks Point of Sale. Only one of those listed mentions QB POS, and that is to say that it does NOT work with it. As a non-profit organization, we need a cheaper solution than going through Intuit and paying their exorbitant charges. Suggestions? Thanks.
Hi Peggy,
There is no approved way to fully integrate a third-party merchant account directly with QuickBooks Point of Sale at this time (see this FAQ page). It is possible to link a third-party payment processor to QuickBooks Point of Sale, but you will have to manually enter transaction information into QuickBooks every time you process a payment. This may be okay for your organization if you do not have a highly active sales/donation environment. However, it will require extra work for each transaction and will not function like a fully integrated system (i.e. automatically tracking the payments for you in QuickBooks).
Good info, but list should be updated with information on EMV compliance. As far as I can tell, none of these solutions are EMV capable. I found [Redacted – restricted promotional content] to have a EMV capable solution (we are using their non EMV compliant solution right now), but cost of switching is expensive. I was hoping to find a less expensive solution that integrates directly with QBPOS.
Hi Mike, all of the providers in this list either offer EMV compliant hardware or have announced that they will accept liability for any fraudulent transactions run through their non-compliant hardware (at least until they have a compliant solution). Unfortunately, as of the posting of this reply, Intuit does not allow any third-party merchant account integrations with QBPOS. As a proprietary POS system, they have restricted merchants to using Intuit Merchant Services. If you wish to switch away from Intuit Merchant Services, you’ll either be forced to find a different POS or use a standalone terminal in conjunction with the POS and manually enter the sale in QBPOS.
I hope this helps you with your question. Best of luck with your business!
The point Phillip makes is a moot one. Although Intuit may claim they’ll accept responsibility for fraudulent claims and you pay their (handsome) PCI fees, the reality is; when push comes to shove and you have an issue, Intuit tells you to work it out with the customer (they won’t intervene ). In any dispute escalated for further review they charge the merchant a $500 fee per transaction to arbitrate. Meanwhile they hold your funds in limbo for 90 days. So intuit really doesn’t have any incentive to resolve fraud or disputed issue either way (and the customer is always wrong at Intuit ). Intuit always ride the elevator… you take the shaft.