Simple plans, in Canadian dollars

Do I need a credit card to start?

No. The Free plan is genuinely free, with no card and no trial clock. It is for trying HQ on your own business: one store, one payment processor, one bank connection and the last 30 days of history. It has no time limit, and you can export CSV files on it; the QuickBooks and Xero files, the year-end pack and the reporting pack need a paid plan. Upgrade to bring in your full history, finish your books and hand them to your accountant.

Solo, Pro and Business start with 14 days free and every feature of the plan. A card is needed to start the trial, and nothing is charged if you cancel before it ends.

I'm not on Shopify, can I still use it?

Yes. HQ connects to Shopify, Stripe, Square and PayPal today, with WooCommerce in testing. No store at all? Trades and service businesses use it too, with quotes, invoices, job costing and crew hours built in. Selling on Amazon, Etsy or somewhere else? Tell us where you sell and we'll let you know the moment yours is ready.

What's a "book"?

One book is one complete set of books for one business: its own chart of accounts, tax settings and reports. An account holds one; the Partner plan adds one for each client.

Can my bookkeeper or accountant get in?

Yes. Invite them to review, categorize and export, without touching your inbox. Bookkeepers running several clients live on the Partner plan, where each client gets their own isolated account and you switch between them from one login.

Is my financial data safe?

Every account's data is encrypted with its own key and isolated at the database level, not by hoping the app code is perfect. The details are on our security page.

What does the "AI budget" mean?

The AI drafting, extraction and Q&A run on real models that cost money per use. Each paid plan includes a monthly AI budget that covers normal use.

What happens if I use up the AI budget?

Nothing breaks and nothing is charged without you saying so. You see your usage against the budget as you go, and if you reach it we ask whether you want to carry on pay-as-you-go or wait for the next cycle.

Does HQ file my GST/HST return?

No. HQ produces the figures and the filing-period worksheet, tracks your input tax credits, and keeps a record of what you filed. You or your accountant submit the return. Same for the year-end: we produce the reporting pack and the working papers, and the judgment calls stay with your accountant.

Are these prices before tax?

Yes. Prices are in Canadian dollars and GST or HST is added at checkout according to your province.

What happens to my data if I cancel?

If you paid and the payment was kept, your account becomes read-only for 12 months. You can view and export everything, and subscribing again within the 12 months restores it. After that it is deleted, and you can delete it yourself at any time. A refunded, comped or invite-code plan moves to the Free plan with its data kept.

Do I still need an accountant?

For most businesses, yes, and HQ is built on that assumption. It does the bookkeeping so that what reaches your accountant is a clean set of books rather than a shoebox, which usually means their time goes on advice instead of data entry. If you are an accountant or bookkeeper yourself, the Partner plan is built for running your whole client roster.