JumpUp Forums: Other "Dollars & Sense" Topics

QuickBooks Simple Start is a free version of QuickBooks that might be right for your business. If your business grows and you need advanced inventory capabilities then you would need to upgrade to QuickBooks Pro or Premier.

Genesis,

Before going too far deep into using Quicken, take a look at Quickbooks Online. Based on what you told us, Online Edition will be a better long term fit than Quicken. Not to mention, free tech support if you use Online, dual back, anytime/anywhere access.

I come across ppl using Quicken and then wanting to convert to one of the Quickbooks Editions and it isn't fun or pretty.

Just some thoughts. You can private email to me if you want.

QB SimpleStart is nothing but a checkbook register. I wouldn't even bother to use it for my personal checkbook. Quicken H&B is a great product if you have a small service-based business. However, I don't believe it tracks inventory.

My husband is starting a floor and floorcovering business, and I am in the need to purchase a software product that can help us track expenses, employee time, categorize materials purchased for work etc.

I am not sure which product to buy, Quicken Home and Business or QuickBooks Pro? I was leaning towards the later since it seems like it has more capability, but I am not sure.

Any help is appreciated

My boyfriend is a real estate agent. He does not have inventory but he has expenses for such things as marketing/advertising that he would likee to track. What do you reccomend?

We have photography studio and already have Quickbooks Pro 2006, however my husband is suggesting we buy Quicken as it will be more for home and business.

Business is prime concern (tax receipt keeping, linking checks, inventory etc) although will also need to keep personal bills separate. Is it worth going with Quicken or just another reason to spend money?

Thanks.

Great questions on Quicken/QuickBooks. QB Pro works for most people, but for the person that asked about floor covering...maybe not, and here's why: QB Pro does not provide for multiple units of measure. So if you purchase 100 yards of carpet, you bring it into inventory as 100 yards, then you sell it by the yard and all works well with QB Pro. However, if you choose to bring it in as a different unit of measure - or you sell it differently than by the yard - then you'll need to go with something like QB Premier which has multiple units of measure.

I use Quicken for home purposes because with a simple click of the mouse I can download/update our 401k information. Other than that, it's a glorified checkbook that works well to keep my personal finances correct down to the penny. I wouldn't recommend it for business - it's not as clean to work with and it's not supported by most CPAs.

Again, QB Pro works well for most (but not all) and avoid Quicken for anything but personal. ...words of advice from a QB ProAdvisor.

Good question - and I don't know the answer. You could probably call Intuit and ask them. My guess is that you can't "go backwards" by important from QuickBooks to Quicken. However, I believe that it's possible to important FROM Quicken to QuickBooks.

BOBNEG, Good question - and I don't know the answer. You could probably call Intuit and ask them. My guess is that you can't "go backward" by IMPORTING from QuickBooks to Quicken. However, I believe that it's possible to IMPORT from Quicken to QuickBooks. (sorry, I couldn't spell on the reply above)

OROURMICHAEL, Be sure that you don't mix business with personal. You can create multiple files using QB and you might call one "Orourmichael's Business" and the other one "Orourmicheal's Home". I like using Quicken because we have some investments and Quicken will automatically update our 401k and other investments with the click of a mouse...QuickBooks doesn't have that capability. For the convenience of updating our investmenets I think it's worth it to spend an additional $50-$60 on Quicken.