If you are coming from another system or QuickBooks Online, its important to understand the vast differences in features, check out this matrix
But, if you are a current QuickBooks Pro/Premier user, there are a few important CORE features that make QuickBooks Enterprise a much more powerful system compared to its Pro and Premier counterparts:
- QuickBooks Enterprise has a database designed for larger data files, where you can surpass 250mb of a company file and still work securely. Additionally, there is no 14,500-list limit that Pro/Premier have.
- QuickBooks Enterprise was built to work within a network (multi-user system); therefore, it works faster and is more stable than Pro and Premier, when working with multiple, simultaneous users. Additionally, QuickBooks Enterprise can have 1 to 30 users, while Pro is limited to 3 users and Premier is limited to 5.
- Enterprise gives you the ability to set up roles and specific task-based user security access. Pro and Premier have a very limited user-permission scheme.
- QuickBooks Enterprise was built with windows terminal services (remote desktop) in mind, which means that it works great with multiple users connected to the same Windows Server, either locally or remotely.
- QuickBooks Enterprise can have up to 15 custom item fields and 12 custom name fields, whereas Pro and Premier are limited to 5 and 7. Additionally, the custom fields can be set with input specifications, and even drop down menus in enterprise.
- Search items within transactions, such as Purchase Orders and Invoices.
- Ability to add Advance Inventory and Advanced Pricing Features.
- QuickBooks Enterprise gives you the ability to have two companies open at the same time.
- With Enterprise, you can Consolidate reports from multiple QuickBooks files.
- There’s US-based technical support, and you can automatically upgrade to the latest versions available, with an active Full Service Plan or Annual Subscription
Also, let review all the new features and improvements exclusive to QuickBooks Enterprise over the past 2 annual releases, since 2018
QuickBooks Enterprise 18 (2018):
- Mobile Picking with an Android Device allows the back-office team to send orders to the warehouse team with instructions of which Sales Orders to pick through a mobile device via WIFI and the warehouse can notify the back office team that a Sales Orders has been partially or fully picked and ready for shipment all via the mobile device without touching QuickBooks.
- Mobile Barcode Scanning with a special Android Device that has a built-in scanner, the warehouse team can also scan the barcodes of the product while is being picked to confirm that the right product and quantities are being picked for shipping
- Merge Vendors (Also available in QuickBooks Accountant Edition): you can merge up to 4 vendors at the time, great for cleaning up ducplicates
QuickBooks Enterprise 19 (2019):
- Enhanced Pick-Pack-Ship Workflow: using the new enhanced Sales Order Manager to track the status of an open sales order prior to shipping
- Purchase Order Manager: use the mobile android device to receive purchase orders
Lastly for QuickBooks Enterprise 20 (2020), you will get all these new features:
- Add customer PO number to subject line in emails
- Combine multiple emails for a single customer:job, vendors, or employees
- Automated customer payment reminders
- Company file search
- Horizontally collapse columns in job or class reports
- Payroll status for direct deposit (QuickBooks Enterprise Gold/Platinum users with Payroll)
- Inventory cycle count with mobile scanner or excel (QuickBooks Enterprise Platinum with Advanced Inventory Only)
- Landed cost calculation (QuickBooks Enterprise Platinum with Advanced Inventory Only)
- Alternate vendors (QuickBooks Enterprise Platinum with Advanced Inventory Only)
- Improved Express pick-pack workflow (QuickBooks Enterprise Platinum with Advanced Inventory Only)
1-hour Video on New Features of QuickBooks Desktop 2020 (skip to minute 12)