Set up your Intuit account (QuickBooks access)
Personal setupTools · about 10 min · Treasurers, bookkeepers, and volunteers who need access to the charity’s books
The charity’s books live in QuickBooks Online, in a company file the charity owns (set up in the organizational guide, via TechSoup).
You get access the same way as GitHub and Cloudflare: with your own Intuit login, secured with MFA, invited into the charity’s company. You don’t buy anything, and you don’t create a company file of your own.
Your login is yours — the books belong to the charity
One personal Intuit account per person, invited into the charity’s QuickBooks company with the least access needed. Never share a login, and never start a new company file when what you mean to do is join the charity’s — the books must live in exactly one place.
- 1
Create your Intuit account
Go to accounts.intuit.com and create a free Intuit account with your email (charity email if you have one, otherwise the email tied to your phone). Use your password manager to generate and save the password.
If QuickBooks offers to start a company or a free trial — skip it. Your account is just a login; the company file comes from the charity’s invitation.
- 2
Turn on two-factor authentication
In your Intuit account, open Sign in & security and turn on two-step verification with an authenticator app. This login can reach financial data, so MFA is not optional.
Open one of your authenticator apps — FFC has you install both Google Authenticator and Microsoft Authenticator (see the Multi-Factor Authentication guide). Use the one that matches the account where you can; for sites that aren’t Google or Microsoft, either app works.
When the site shows a QR code, open your authenticator app, tap + / Add, and scan the QR code. The app starts showing a 6-digit code that changes every 30 seconds. Type the current code back into the website to confirm.
Always save the backup / recovery codes the site gives you right after setup — store them in your password manager. They are how you get back in if you lose your phone.
- 3
Get invited to the charity’s QuickBooks
Tell the charity’s QuickBooks admin (or your FFC contact) the email on your Intuit account. They invite you from Settings → Manage users with the role you need — accept the emailed invitation and you’ll see the charity’s company on your account.
Least access wins: reports-only if you just read, standard user if you enter transactions. Full admin should stay with the charity owner or treasurer.
Common questions
Do I need to buy QuickBooks?
No. The charity gets QuickBooks Online at the nonprofit rate through TechSoup (see the organizational guide). Your Intuit account is free — it’s just your personal login that the charity’s company invites in.
I already use QuickBooks for another organization or my own business — new account?
No. One Intuit login can be a user on many QuickBooks companies. Use your existing account, make sure two-step verification is on, and have the charity invite that email.
Next setup guides
Stuck on any step? Text Clarke Moyer at (520) 222-8104 — every step is meant to be simple, so if something doesn't match what you see, ask.