Christmas Light Installers on QuickBooks pay $55/month — $660/year. Over three years, that's $2,214. Nexa is $279 once. Break-even runs about 5.1 months. The median Christmas light installer earns $35,000/year, so QuickBooks's annual cost is roughly 1.9% of typical revenue — every year, forever.
That's $2,214 gone. And you don't own anything. Stop paying, lose access.
See the full history of QuickBooks price changes in the SaaS Graveyard →
You're not the only one who's had enough.
Christmas Light Installers face unique challenges: Extremely seasonal: install Sept-Nov, remove Jan-Feb, dead 6 months. Quoting rooflines accurately from ground-level photos. Light inventory management and storage between seasons. Client retention year-over-year requires CRM. On top of all that, QuickBooks charges $55/month ($660/year) — money that comes directly from your revenue. The median Christmas light installer earns $35,000/year. Software at $660/year is a meaningful percentage of that income, every year, forever. And you do not own anything.
Your Extension ladder and safety equipment is yours. You bought it once. Nexa works the same way — $279 once for invoicing, scheduling, CRM, time tracking, and full accounting. All connected. All offline-capable. You own it like you own your tools.
QuickBooks is just one piece. What else are you losing money on?
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Your exact QuickBooks cost, full stack total, and what switching saves. 10 seconds.
| Feature | QuickBooks | Nexa |
|---|---|---|
| Invoicing | ✓ | ✓ |
| Scheduling | ✗ | ✓ |
| CRM | ✗ | ✓ |
| Time Tracking | ✗ | ✓ |
| Full Accounting | ✗ | ✓ (SIMPL) |
| Task Management | ✗ | ✓ |
| Price | $55/mo forever | $279 once or 3 × $99 |
| 3-Year Cost | $2,214 | $279 |
| Stop paying? | Lose everything | Keep everything forever |
Most christmas light installers are fully switched before the weekend.
Go to Reports → export to CSV. Download clients, invoices, expenses.
15-minute setup. Import your clients and expense categories.
Run both for 1-2 weeks. Verify everything transferred.
Cancel subscription. Download final backup. You're done.
It's October 20 and you have 35 installs booked in 6 weeks. Today: 2 installs (3 hours each). First house: 150 feet of roofline, 2 trees, and a wreath above the garage. Materials: $180 in lights and clips. You charge $850. Second house is simpler — $450 for roofline only. You need to quote 5 more houses this week from photos clients texted you. In January, you'll take them all down. Your CRM is a spreadsheet of addresses.
Real christmas light installers near you who run their business on Nexa — book directly, no platform fee. Are you a christmas light installer? Post your business and get found in your area — $2.99 one-time. Or browse every christmas light installer on Nexa →
For solo operators and small teams (1-5), yes. Nexa includes invoicing, scheduling, CRM, time tracking, task management, and full accounting. QuickBooks may be better if you have a large team (10+) or need enterprise-specific features.
It's $7.75/month over 3 years. QuickBooks is $55/month — that's $2,214 over 3 years. Which is more? And if you'd rather split it, Nexa is also available as 3 payments of $99.
Yes. Nexa is $279 as a one-time payment, or 3 payments of $99 ($297 total). Either way it's a one-time purchase — no subscription, no recurring fees ever.
30-day money-back guarantee. Full refund. If Nexa doesn't save you $500 in year one, you get every penny back.
Export your data from QuickBooks as CSV, import into Nexa in about 5 minutes.
The average solo operator there spends about $3,100/year on software — and Christmas light installer face their own version of that math. California's 13.3% top marginal rate hits solopreneurs hard; no local income tax but high state burden. LA City business tax registration required. Contractors need CSLB license. Street vending permits required since 2020.
Numbers reflect typical solo operators in the Los Angeles metro. Your situation will vary.
Specific gaps Christmas Light Installers run into with QuickBooks, and what Nexa does instead.
Recent threads from Reddit and Hacker News mentioning QuickBooks. Sentiment scored automatically — click through to read the full thread.
If you want to compare notes or see how other christmas light installers are running their tools, here's where the conversation happens.
$2,214 over 3 years. Or $279 once (or 3 × $99). Own your tools.
Get Nexa — $279 Once