How to Cancel QuickBooks Self-Employed in 2026 (Export Your Tax Data First)

QuickBooks Self-Employed costs $15-25/month for basic freelancer bookkeeping. Before you cancel, you need to export your tax data — Intuit deletes your data after cancellation. Here's the safe order of operations.

⚠️ Before You Cancel: Export Everything

This is critical. After cancellation, Intuit may delete your QBSE data — including transaction categorizations, mileage logs, and receipt photos. Export first:

1. Log in at selfemployed.intuit.com
2. Go to Transactions → select date range (full year) → Export to CSV
3. Go to Mileage → export your mileage log
4. Go to Receipts → download all receipt images
5. Go to Tax Summary → screenshot or export your Schedule C summary
6. If you file taxes through TurboTax, your tax returns are safe in your TurboTax account

How to Cancel QuickBooks Self-Employed

1. Go to selfemployed.intuit.com/settings
2. Click Cancel QuickBooks Self-Employed
3. Select a reason (required)
4. Click through the retention offers — they'll try to keep you
5. Confirm cancellation

The Retention Offer Dance

Intuit is aggressive with retention. When you click cancel, expect:

• Step 1: "Are you sure?" screen listing what you'll lose
• Step 2: A discounted offer (often 50% off for 3-6 months)
• Step 3: Another "last chance" offer
• Step 4: Final confirmation

You have to click through 3-4 screens before the cancellation actually processes. Keep clicking "cancel" or "no thanks" on each screen.

Cancel via Phone (If Website Fails)

Some users report the website cancel button not working or redirecting. If that happens:

• Call 1-800-446-8848
• Hours: Monday-Friday 6am-6pm PT, Saturday 6am-3pm PT
• Say "cancel subscription" immediately to skip the menu
• Have your Intuit account email ready

What Happens to Your TurboTax Connection?

If you bundle QBSE with TurboTax Self-Employed:

• Your TurboTax account is separate — canceling QBSE doesn't affect filed tax returns
• The auto-import of QBSE data into TurboTax will stop
• If you're mid-tax-season, finish filing BEFORE canceling
• Previously filed returns remain accessible in your TurboTax account

Better Alternatives for Freelancers

QBSE is expensive for what it does ($15-25/month = $180-300/year). Modern alternatives:

• Wave (free) — full invoicing and accounting, free forever for basic bookkeeping
• FreshBooks ($17/month) — better UI, more invoicing features, similar price
• Hurdlr (free tier) — automatic expense tracking and mileage, built for freelancers
• Keeper Tax ($16/month) — AI-powered tax write-off finder for freelancers
• Google Sheets + bank CSV — free, manual, but you own your data forever

QuickBooks Self-Employed vs QuickBooks Online

Confused about which QuickBooks you have? They're different products:

• QBSE ($15-25/month) — basic freelancer tool, Schedule C only, limited features
• QuickBooks Online Simple Start ($30/month) — real accounting software, invoicing, reports, more powerful
• QBSE cancels at selfemployed.intuit.com/settings
• QBO cancels at quickbooks.intuit.com → Account Settings → Cancel

If you're growing beyond freelancing, upgrading to QBO Simple Start might make more sense than canceling entirely.

Refund Policy

• Within 60 days of purchase: Full refund available
• After 60 days: No refund, access continues until billing period ends
• Contact support for refund requests — they're generally reasonable within the window