Approvals and purchase orders
Planyard manages purchase orders, subcontracts and supplier approvals in one place. QuickBooks records only the approved cost once synced.
QuickBooks Online vs Planyard
Looking for a QuickBooks alternative for construction job costing? This page compares QuickBooks Online (QBO) and Planyard — where each fits, what they cover, and how they work together for UK construction teams.
Short answer: QuickBooks handles accounting and VAT; Planyard manages project-side budgets, approvals, valuations, and forecasting. Many contractors use both together — so only approved, fully coded costs hit QuickBooks automatically.
On this page
- Scope and fit
- Reviews at a glance
- Feature-by-feature comparison
- Approvals and job costing workflows
- Implementation time
- Who should choose what
What they do (scope at a glance)
- QuickBooks Online — Cloud accounting with Chart of Accounts, supplier bills, bank reconciliation, and financial reporting. Some basic job-cost tracking via Projects, but limited approvals or forecasting.
- Planyard — Construction job costing and project control: estimating, budgets vs actuals, purchase orders, multi-step approvals, subcontractor and client valuations, retentions, variations, and live forecasting. Syncs only approved, coded costs to QuickBooks Online with supplier, category, VAT/currency, and the invoice PDF attached.
Reviews at a glance
Public ratings from Capterra UK.
| Programme | Rating | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| QuickBooks Online | 4.3 / 5.0 |  Great for bookkeeping and small business accounting; job costing and approvals need add-ons or spreadsheets. |
| Planyard | 4.6 / 5.0 | Praised for ease of use, visibility, and clean QuickBooks/Xero/Sage sync. Reviewers highlight less manual entry and a full audit trail. |
Quotes: “Planyard integrates perfectly with QuickBooks.” · “Finally stopped updating endless cost spreadsheets.”
Quick summary
- QuickBooks. Excellent for accounting, VAT, and reporting. Basic project tracking, but limited visibility on job profitability.
- Planyard. Full commercial control with budgets, POs, valuations, and live forecasting. Designed for project managers and finance teams who want to avoid spreadsheet rebuilds.
- Together. Approval-only sync ensures QuickBooks holds clean, coded costs. No duplicates, no drafts, no re-typing.
Side-by-side comparison
| Feature | QuickBooks (alone) | Planyard (alone) | Planyard + QuickBooks |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multi-step approvals (routes, thresholds) |  Basic bill approval |
Configurable multi-step approvals |
Full routing with audit trail before posting |
| 3-way match (PO ↔ delivery ↔ invoice) | Manual |
Automated, blocks mismatches |
Full 3-way match; only approved bills sync |
| PO control (raise against budget) | Not native |
Linked to live budgets |
Prevents over-commitment before posting to QuickBooks |
| Invoice capture (email-in/OCR) | Built-in via QuickBooks Capture |
OCR + PO/valuation link |
Unified capture + approval + sync |
| Approval-only sync | Manual posting |
Automatic once approved |
Keeps ledger clean |
| Mapping to categories/accounts | Within QuickBooks |
Uses synced Chart |
Accurate mapping with every posted bill |
| Attachments (PDF, refs in accounting) | Supported |
Auto-sends with post |
All bills arrive in QuickBooks with PDFs and metadata |
| Live variance & forecasting (EAC) | Limited reporting |
Real-time CVR & forecasting |
Shared visibility across finance & site |
| CIS & reverse charge VAT | Applied in QuickBooks |
Ensures correct coding and supplier linkage |
Coding enforced project-side; rules applied in QuickBooks |
| Full audit trail | Financial approvals logged |
Full project approval history |
End-to-end transparency |
| No re-typing (site → budget → accounting) | Manual entry common |
Seamless workflow |
Fully automated, duplicate-free |
What posts to accounting
- Posts: Approved bills/credit notes with supplier, account code, VAT/currency, and invoice PDF.
- Doesn’t post: Estimates, budgets, detailed time records (only summaries).
- System of record: Accounting stays in QuickBooks; Planyard manages approvals and live job costing.
Features in detail
How they handle approvals, job costing, valuations, retentions and forecasting.
Valuations and retentions
Planyard manages subcontractor and client valuations and tracks retentions. Approved items flow to QuickBooks as coded bills for payment.
Sube el presupuesto de tu proyecto y sigue el progreso financiero en tiempo real
No se requiere tarjeta de crédito. No necesitas ventas ni soporte técnico.
Live CVR and forecasting
Planyard updates project CVR and EAC automatically as invoices and variations are approved. QuickBooks reflects the same totals in financial reports.
CIS and compliance
QuickBooks applies CIS and reverse charge VAT automatically when posted bills arrive. Planyard ensures supplier linkage and coding so the deductions apply correctly.
Implementation timelines
| System | Typical duration | Typical steps |
|---|---|---|
| Planyard + QuickBooks | 1–5 days |
|
| QuickBooks alone | Immediate |
|
Who should choose what
- Choose Planyard if you need proper job costing — budgets, POs, valuations, retentions, forecasting and approvals — without spreadsheets.
- Choose QuickBooks if you only need accounting, VAT, CIS and basic Projects tracking.
- Choose both if you want a joined-up workflow: Planyard for project control, QuickBooks for accounting and compliance.
Pricing and packages
Planyard has transparent per-user plans and a free trial. QuickBooks Online starts from around £15/month. The QuickBooks integration is included in all Planyard plans.
Estimación
€49
/ month / project manager
Estimación de costos
Esencial
€99
/ month / project manager
€40
Usualmente seleccionado para: ingenieros de obra, clientes, estimadores o auditores.
for supporting staff
Perfecto para roles de apoyo o partes interesadas: accede a funciones esenciales del proyecto y visualiza datos financieros clave sin permisos completos de la plataforma, permitiendo a los usuarios mantenerse informados y contribuir sin tareas prácticas.Usualmente seleccionado para: ingenieros de obra, clientes, estimadores o auditores.
Estimación y control de presupuesto
- Todo en Estimación
- Rastrear presupuestos y gastos reales
- Gestionar facturas de compra automáticamente
- Reutilizar datos de costos de proyectos activos para estimaciones
- Sincronizar facturas con Xero y QuickBooks
Profesional
€149
/ month / project manager
€40
Usualmente seleccionado para: ingenieros de obra, clientes, estimadores o auditores.
for supporting staff
Perfecto para roles de apoyo o partes interesadas: accede a funciones esenciales del proyecto y visualiza datos financieros clave sin permisos completos de la plataforma, permitiendo a los usuarios mantenerse informados y contribuir sin tareas prácticas.Usualmente seleccionado para: ingenieros de obra, clientes, estimadores o auditores.
Estimación, control de costos y gestión de órdenes de compra
- Todo en Esencial
- Emitir y gestionar órdenes de compra
- Rastrear costos comprometidos en el presupuesto
- Prever la rentabilidad del proyecto en tiempo real
- Crear previsiones de flujo de caja
- Gestionar contratos con clientes e informes de progreso
Ultimate
€199
/ month / project manager
€40
Usualmente seleccionado para: ingenieros de obra, clientes, estimadores o auditores.
for supporting staff
Perfecto para roles de apoyo o partes interesadas: accede a funciones esenciales del proyecto y visualiza datos financieros clave sin permisos completos de la plataforma, permitiendo a los usuarios mantenerse informados y contribuir sin tareas prácticas.Usualmente seleccionado para: ingenieros de obra, clientes, estimadores o auditores.
Funcionalidad completa
- Todo en Profesional
- Automatizar cotizaciones de subcontratistas y proveedores
- Rastrear subcontratos y progreso
- Gestionar órdenes de cambio de subcontratistas
- Recopilar aplicaciones de pago de subcontratistas
In one paragraph
QuickBooks keeps your books compliant; Planyard keeps your projects profitable. QuickBooks handles accounting, VAT and CIS, while Planyard manages budgets, purchase orders, valuations, retentions and approvals. The integration means only approved, fully coded costs reach QuickBooks — no spreadsheets, no duplicates, no re-typing.
Sources and last updated. Intuit QuickBooks UK documentation (CIS, Projects), Planyard Capterra UK listings, and customer case studies. Last reviewed 8 October 2025.