QuickBooks Online Advanced introduced a built-in fixed assets module in 2023, giving NZ businesses and their advisors a native option for managing depreciation inside QBO.
For simple use cases, it covers the basics well. However, for New Zealand businesses with IRD tax depreciation requirements, NZ IFRS compliance needs, or lease accounting obligations, the built-in module has gaps that matter.
In fact, for many NZ clients, these gaps are significant enough to require a separate solution.
This guide compares QuickBooks Online Advanced fixed assets and AssetAccountant across the areas most relevant to NZ businesses — including IRD tax depreciation, NZ IFRS 16 lease accounting, revaluations, and scalability. By the end, you will have a clear picture of which solution fits your situation.
One important note before we start
The fixed assets module in QuickBooks Online is only available on the Advanced plan — the highest-priced QBO subscription tier. In other words, clients on Simple Start, Essentials, or Plus do not have access to it. Instead, they rely on manual journal entries or third-party tools to manage fixed assets. Everything in this comparison, therefore, assumes the Advanced plan. With that in mind, let us look at what the module actually covers.
Where QuickBooks Online Advanced fixed assets works well
For businesses with straightforward requirements, QBO Advanced’s built-in module covers the essentials well. Specifically, it supports:
- Automatic monthly depreciation posting to the GL
- A basic asset register with cost, depreciation method, useful life, and accumulated depreciation
- Bulk asset import via spreadsheet template
- Asset disposals
- The ability to pull asset data from the QBO chart of accounts
In addition, if a client reports under NZ IFRS using the cost model only, runs a small and simple asset register, and has no lease accounting needs, the built-in module may be enough. For these clients, therefore, staying within QBO makes good sense.
Where QuickBooks Online fixed assets breaks down for NZ clients
However, the limitations appear quickly once NZ-specific compliance requirements apply.
No IRD tax depreciation book
QBO Advanced fixed assets delivers accounting depreciation only. Furthermore, it provides no separate IRD tax book The module provides no separate IRD tax book, no pre-loaded IR265 rates, and no automation for rules such as Investment Boost or the 0% non-residential building rule. As a result, users enter depreciation rates manually for each asset. For any client with IRD tax depreciation needs — which covers most NZ businesses with assets to depreciate — this is therefore a significant gap that creates extra manual work every year.
No revaluations or impairments
In particular, New Zealand entities that report under NZ IFRS follow rules that are very similar to full IFRS. Under NZ IAS 16, the revaluation model is allowed, and NZ IAS 36 requires impairment testing. However, QBO Advanced fixed assets supports only the cost model — it offers no revaluation or impairment tools. Therefore, entities using the revaluation model or requiring impairment testing cannot rely on QBO Advanced as their only fixed asset solution.
No native lease accounting
QBO offers no native NZ IFRS 16 lease accounting module. As a result, clients who need to show right-of-use assets and lease liabilities on the balance sheet must use a separate third-party application that connects back to QBO’s GL. This consequently adds both cost and complexity to the workflow, and creates another integration point to manage.
Positioned at SMB scale
QBO Advanced fixed assets targets the SMB market. There is no published asset limit, and there is also no evidence of large-register support. For businesses managing large or growing asset registers, this is therefore a practical risk worth considering early.
IRD tax depreciation: what AssetAccountant covers
In contrast, AssetAccountant maintains full, annually updated IRD content for NZ clients. For example, it includes:
- Diminishing value (DV) and straight line (SL) methods at IRD-prescribed rates (IR265, updated every year), with a built-in rate lookup tool
- Low value asset threshold — businesses can write off assets costing $1,000 or less right away
- Investment Boost — a 20% immediate deduction on the cost of new assets (from 22 May 2025), with standard depreciation applied to the remaining 80%, handled automatically
- Non-residential buildings — the 0% depreciation rate that applies from the 2024/25 income year is pre-loaded, and the system applies it automatically for the relevant asset type
- Provisional and special depreciation rate applications — supported for assets that have no standard IRD rate
In addition, AssetAccountant keeps the IRD tax book separate from the accounting book. Importantly, this means tax depreciation does not post to the QBO GL — only accounting depreciation does, which is the correct treatment.
NZ IFRS 16 lease accounting
Additionally, QuickBooks Online provides no native lease accounting module. As a result, NZ IFRS 16 compliance requires a separate third-party application, which adds another integration and another cost to manage.
How AssetAccountant handles leases and hire purchase
AssetAccountant includes NZ IFRS 16 lease accounting as a separately priced add-on within the same platform as fixed assets. Asset finance loans and hire purchase are also handled natively. Because of this, fixed assets, leases, and asset finance loans all share GL account mapping and journal to QuickBooks Online from a single platform — rather than requiring separate tools for each.
Side-by-side capability comparison
Notably, AssetAccountant and QBO Advanced fixed assets cover some of the same ground. However, they differ significantly across key areas. The table below sets out a full comparison.
Intuit documentation, QBO community forums, and Intuit product announcements inform all capabilities listed for QBO Advanced fixed assets. Similarly, AssetAccountant’s functional specification defines all AssetAccountant capabilities listed here. In both cases, this comparison assumes or infers no capabilities.
| Capability | QBO Advanced Fixed Assets | AssetAccountant | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|
| IFRS & Accounting Standards | |||
| Revaluations (NZ IAS 16) | Not supported — cost model only | Supported, including bulk revaluations. Revaluation reserve journaled automatically | ✓ AA Leads |
| Impairments (NZ IAS 36) | Not supported | Supported, including bulk impairments | ✓ AA Leads |
| GAAP vs IFRS book option | Single accounting book only | Explicit GAAP or IFRS option on accounting books | ✓ AA Leads |
| Partial disposals | Not supported | Supported — partial disposal of assets and partial write-offs | ✓ AA Leads |
| Prior period adjustments | Not supported — QBO cannot backdate depreciation entries | Supported — depreciation rollback/rerun capability | ✓ AA Leads |
| IRD Tax Depreciation | |||
| Tax depreciation book | Not supported — accounting depreciation only | Full IRD tax book, separate from accounting book | ✓ AA Leads |
| IRD depreciation rates (IR265) | Not supported — users must manually enter rates | Full IRD effective life content pre-loaded and maintained annually. Built-in rate lookup | ✓ AA Leads |
| Low value asset threshold ($1,000) | Can be expensed manually via journal entry. No automation | Can be written off via disposal or journal entry. Not automated | ~ Comparable |
| Investment Boost (20%, from May 2025) | Not supported | Automated — 20% deduction applied, standard depreciation on remaining 80% | ✓ AA Leads |
| Non-residential buildings (0% from 2024/25) | Not supported — must be set manually | Pre-loaded rule applied automatically for the relevant asset type | ✓ AA Leads |
| Asset Management | |||
| Asset register / schedule | Basic asset list with cost, depreciation method, useful life, accumulated depreciation | Full asset register with book values, additions, depreciation, disposals, movements by period | ~ Comparable |
| Bulk asset import | Supported via spreadsheet template | Supported via template | ~ Comparable |
| Asset disposals | Supported within QBO Advanced FA | Full disposal accounting including gain/loss journals | ~ Comparable |
| Auto-draft from GL | Partial — assets can be pulled from QBO chart of accounts. Manual setup per asset | AssetAccountant detects assets added to QBO clearing accounts | ~ Comparable |
| Register size / asset limit | No published limit, but positioned at SMB. No evidence of large-register support | No asset limit — clients with up to 50,000 assets | ✓ AA Leads |
| Custom fields per asset | Standard fields only — no user-defined fields | Unlimited custom fields per asset (serial number, invoice number, license plate, etc.) | ✓ AA Leads |
| Multiple classifications | QBO Classes and Locations function as classifications — fixed structure | Unlimited classifications (location, department, project, cost centre) — more flexible | ✓ AA Leads |
| Document attachments | Not confirmed as supported in QBO Advanced FA | Multiple attachments per asset — invoices, photos, warranties | ✓ AA Leads |
| Units-of-use depreciation | Not supported | Supported — depreciation proportional to usage units in a period | ✓ AA Leads |
| Non-monthly depreciation periods | Monthly only — depreciation posted on the 1st of each month | Supported: 5-4-4, 4-5-4, 4-4-5, and 13×4 period patterns | ✓ AA Leads |
| Reporting & Integration | |||
| Fixed asset reports | Basic schedule view within QBO Advanced FA | Purpose-built reports: register, depreciation schedule, movements, forecasting | ✓ AA Leads |
| Portfolio depreciation forecasting | Not supported | Supported — portfolio-level forecasting across future periods | ✓ AA Leads |
| GL integration | Native QBO integration — depreciation entries post directly to QBO GL each month | Direct QBO integration — accounting depreciation posts to GL. Tax depreciation does not post (correct treatment) | ~ Comparable |
| Audit trail | Standard QBO transaction history | Full asset-level audit trail — all changes logged with user and timestamp | ✓ AA Leads |
| NZ IFRS 16 Lease Accounting | |||
| Lease accounting module | No native lease module — IFRS 16 compliance requires a separate third-party application | NZ IFRS 16 lease accounting included as a separately priced add-on within the same platform as fixed assets | ✓ AA Leads |
| Asset finance loans (hire purchase) | Not supported natively | Supported — hire purchase and conditional sale loans treated natively alongside fixed assets | ✓ AA Leads |
How the scorecard breaks down
- AssetAccountant leads: 20 capability areas (77%)
- Broadly comparable: 6 capability areas (23%)
- QBO Advanced FA leads: 0 capability areas (0%)
Overall, AssetAccountant leads across all major NZ compliance areas — including IRD tax depreciation, lease accounting, revaluations, and reporting. By contrast, the two solutions are broadly comparable only on basic tasks such as bulk import, disposals, and GL integration.
What this looks like in practice
Overall, for a NZ business with a simple asset register, no lease accounting needs, and no IRD tax depreciation automation requirements, QBO Advanced fixed assets is a workable option. This is especially true if the business already runs entirely within QBO and, as a result, wants to keep everything in one place.
However, for businesses with IRD tax depreciation requirements, NZ IFRS 16 lease needs, revaluations, impairments, partial disposals, or a larger register, QBO Advanced fixed assets requires workarounds, manual steps, or extra tools. In those cases, therefore, AssetAccountant is the more complete and better suited solution.
When to use each
QBO Advanced fixed assets is likely sufficient if the client:
- Operates entirely within QBO and has simple accounting depreciation needs
- Reports under NZ IFRS using the cost model only
- Has no NZ IFRS 16 lease accounting obligations
- Runs a small, straightforward asset register
- Is comfortable entering IRD depreciation rates manually
AssetAccountant is the better fit if the client:
- Needs IRD-compliant tax depreciation with pre-loaded IR265 rates
- Requires Investment Boost automation
- Has NZ IFRS 16 lease accounting obligations and wants these in the same platform as fixed assets
- Needs revaluations or impairments under NZ IAS 16 / NZ IAS 36
- Manages a large or complex asset register
- Needs partial disposals, units-of-use depreciation, or dual-book registers
- Wants portfolio-level depreciation forecasting
Try AssetAccountant free for 30 days
To summarise, AssetAccountant is a purpose-built fixed asset management and lease accounting platform. It serves organisations across New Zealand, Australia, the UK, the United States, and South Africa, and connects directly with QuickBooks Online, Xero, and Sage Intacct.
For NZ clients, it covers NZ IAS 16, NZ IAS 36, and NZ IFRS 16 — with IRD tax content including IR265 rates and Investment Boost kept up to date every year.
If you want to see how AssetAccountant handles your fixed assets and lease accounting needs, start a free 30-day trial or contact your AssetAccountant representative to arrange a demonstration.
