Features

• Financial management system for businesses
• Import data from popular office software
• Easily manage accounts payable and receivable
• Create business plans using existing data
• Advanced accounting, inventory and asset tools

Amazon.com Review

For most small business owners, keeping up with the accounting is the worst part of the job. A small investment of effort--installing QuickBooks Pro 2002 or a similar accounting package--will almost always save time and hassle in the long run.

QuickBooks is best for those with fairly simple needs--while it's comparatively inexpensive and easy to install, its breadth of features and technical support don't quite stack up against Peachtree or MYOB. That said, there are still plenty of businesses that can make good use of QuickBooks; consultants and others with little or no inventory, for example.

The 2002 version doesn't bring a brand-new paradigm, but does offer some new and helpful features: improved form customization, better report functions, and customer tracking, to name a few. Easy integration with Microsoft Office, Act!, and other key software packages makes QuickBooks attractive to many users; data transfer is especially straightforward. Invoicing, cutting checks, projecting next year's revenue, and just keeping the books in order is much easier with a computer doing the drudge work.

QuickBooks Pro 2002 is the best bet for budget-minded sole proprietors and microbusiness owners. --Rob Lightner ... Read more

Reviews (25)

Don't waste your money
There are reasons to buy Quickbooks. For instance it's a lot cheaper than accounting software for professionals. But why not buy it on Ebay for a fraction of the price from one of the many dissatisfied users trying to get rid of it ?

I recently upgraded my business from Quicken home & business 98 to Quickbooks. I've always hated Quicken for it's array of annoying idiosyncrasies but I'm now locked in with years of transactions. I've spent several days worth of time on Quickbooks, so I'm no expert. However I've run into problem after problem trying to get my accounting practices set up. For instance it simply won't let me enter transactions directly into my foreign account register, despite the help file telling me that I can. And my invoices come out with missing lines and text.

The real problem though, is that these bugs aren't Intuit's problem. They're Intuit's profit. Tech support is not available without paying. Strangely, searching the online help gave me no hits for my problems.

I cannot compare this product with Microsoft Money since I haven't tried that one. Perhaps Quickbooks Pro is still your best bet, but don't pay full price !

I purchased A Product From Inuit Software and Scanning
I purchased the software at Stapples (Hamilton Ontario) the software with the cashbox and scanning software for barcodes came to $4,000.00 now I did not know that the suport was for 30 days and that after that I would have to pay over $130.00 per moth (yes I did get a credit for $800.00 not in cheque) but for technical support and after those $800.00 are over my staff told me that we have to pay for it (I was amazed) that a product that cost over $4,000.00 does not even have more extended technical support, correct me if I am wrong but when you purchase a computer and some computers are dirt cheap lets say $1,500.00 you would get technical support for a year or sometimes more. I am not impressed at all with there so called "customer service" I am in the process of opening more stores and I will go look at other providers for software and scanning bar code mechanism.

Probably very powerful but needs some simplifying
This may be the best small business accounting software available, but it could still use some streamlining. I started a small corporation on a limited investment. I am not an accountant, so I didn't expect to ace the software on the first day. That said, this version of QuickBooks probably only has about 18 features that I have any use for out of hundreds of available features. The screen is not laid out in a way that is self-explanatory, so finding those features is not automatic. Even those who have used Quicken (Intuit's home finance software) in the past are unlikely to find the interface self-evident. Efficiency is also a concern. QuickBooks opens too many internal "windows" without closing the source window, thus the software eats up memory very quickly. It would be as if every last time you click on a hyperlink while surfing the internet, a new browser window opens automatically. Not good.

How much does QB intimidate? Well, it is April 14th, and I've been putting off doing my taxes because I don't want to have to find and decipher all of QuickBooks' tax related features, side notes, suggestions, and other fringe information.

All of this said, it is fairly powerful software, and I am probably remiss for purchasing one of the more advanced versions of QuickBooks for such a small business. If you have tens of thousands of dollars in extra cash and can afford to automate your accounting processes (such as payroll) through QB's add-on-for-an-additional-investment options, this is probably the software to buy. It is established, it is advanced in its abilities, and it is the industry standard. However, if you're small potatoes, (even if it's hard to admit it), then you might want to consider something a little less involved, like a "dumbed down" version of QuickBooks or maybe MYOB.

Horible Support, Even Worse product
Do not buy this software unless you have deep pockets and don't mind spending lots of money on support. I don't want to sound paranoid but this software has bugs built into it to force you to call support. (did I mention the software come with 0 support) not 60 days not 30 days not even 1 day of support is included with the purchase.
And all the great services that the product tells you about cost additional with monthly fees.

If you like fustration you'll love this
Quickbooks 2002 is a halfway decent accounting program for small business. Unfortunetly Intuits ridiculus company policy of releasing buggy software and then charging you for them to fix it is most fustrating. Then there are the yearly upgrades that you have to pay for. No , you don't HAVE to pay for a new version each year... it's just that your old version stops working if you have to reinstall it. It will then ask to for a special activation key that you can only get if you ring them up and then fill in a 10 page document( and get it signed by a j.p!!!).
When you vent your fustration and anger, the ever so helpful phone support person will suggest that it would just be easier to upgrade to the latest version for a large sum of money. Yeah, thanks... ... Read more

Reviews (13)

needs a little help
I've been using MS Money for my personal accounts for years. I like it, and now after starting my own business, I especially like the price of Money Small Business compared to alternatives.

The user from Western North Carolina (mmj...) pointed out correctly that the except for printing, the Invoices are not very professionally looking. He's absolutely correct unless you have the FREE PrimoPDF (from download.com) utility installed.

This extremly handy utility (did I mention it is free!) allows you to save your invoice as a PDF file, that looks just the way you layed it out!

Just select PrimoPDF as your printer, select the name and location of your desired output file, screen or file quality option and you're ready to rock and roll!

This just made my day!!!

MS Money Small Business 2004 -
Was I excited that "MONEY" was finally going to make the transition to the Small Business Community?

Absolutely! I have been too busy to want to learn a REAL Accounting program. And I have been using "Money" since the early 90's to balance my checkbook and surely one of the first to use online banking; so the idea that I could integrate invoicing was icing on my cake.

Now for the disappointing reality. While you can make and email invoices and they will be tracked in a receivables account, you will need to create a cash account to receive the money into and then transfer that amount into the account that you download your banking transactions into if you deposit more than one check at a time. Otherwise, you will have double entries in your account. This makes for many extra steps, shuffeling payments here and there.

I would have appreciated this information prior to purchasing yet another version of Money, I could have done this without the Small Business edition. (I think this puts me in the position of Beta testor, and I had to pay for the job.)

Also, I was very disappointed not to find ANY information in either the help files or online. That search in itself was exhaustive.

The help from Microsoft was indeed good. But, I was required to sign up for a "PassPort Account" to communicate with them (not opting for the toll call).

They indicated that it was indeed a problem, and they are working hard to fix it. My wish is that the repair is not a "version upgrade" as this is a definite flaw to a Business package.

Effectively, the only thing that was added to the previous version of Money (I was using Deluxe) was an invoice template, and the ability to change your fiscal year end. (This is something I complained about in Money in the 2002 version.)

I will, of course, continue to use it and I am quite sure that eventually it will be a great ENTIRE solution for a small business, since it already integrates with Excell and TaxCut.

It just needs to do it sooner...

"Report" functionality sucks
The reporting feature does not always reflect accurate information. Say, I selected ALL categories to be reported on my Monthly Income and Expense Report, the report came out missing including several categories, and so the total on the report were all screwed-up. If I were not paying attention to that details, I would have been sued by clients for inaccurate billing.

Get Quicken Home & Business 2002 or 2003 instead
I tried this software for the first time after getting tired of Quicken's quirks. But after four months of infuriation, frustration, and wasted time, Quicken seems like heaven to me. If this is common for Money, I'll never use it again.
As other reviews have stated, there is no customization at all. If it isn't a selection, you don't get it. Just trying to set up a simple home budget is infuriating enough. You cannot select your catagories if they do not appear in their selection. Instead of being able to make layers of catagories like in Quicken (for detailed budget breakdowns), you are stuck with only one. As for downloading account information, it decides what account and where the download should go and refuses to let you change it--even though it is very wrong. You have to search out where it went and remove every single incorrect transaction one at a time. In sum, I hate this software and it has cost me more lost time than it was ever worth.

Business functionality lacking
I run a small consulting company from my home. (Small meaning, just me.) I purchased the Small Business version of this software to help with my business as well as manage my personal finances.

My business is consulting, I sell my time to customers. Although the software supports creating time items for customers, there is no reporting for time items other than create an invoice to print out the current uninvoiced time activity for a customer. This is unacceptable to me. I need to provide detailed time reporting to my customers, as well as a summarized invoice for payment. I'll have to continue to track my time in a spreadsheet.

Regarding invoices, although the software offers "emailing invoices" as a feature, what it emails is a text invoice, and there is no way to print the invoice to a file or word document to email something a bit more professional. Being in the computer consulting business, text invoices would appear a bit tacky.

So, for me, the two main things I do, track my time on consulting projects and invoice my customers via email, are not possible in this software. I have to continue to use spreadsheets to track my time, and word processing to create the invoices to email to my customers.

The personal finances functionality seems to be the same as previous versions of this software, but be very wary about paying the extra $ for the small business feature set. It seems quite lacking to me. ... Read more

Features

• Improves every step of even the most complex billing cycle
• Create alerts to keep from overlooking important information
• Easily design professional-looking bill templates
• Customizable control panel; 2-way integration with Microsoft Outlook
• User-friendly interface; ideal for anyone who bills for their services

Features

• Accurately value donations in compliance with IRS guidelines
• Values based on extensive research of resale outlets and market data
• Powerful search tool provides value based on condition and style
• Instantly transfer into TurboTax; auto-fills donation tax form
• Easily access IRS publications; prints reports and receipts

Features

• Robust, automated accounting features for small businesses
• In-depth inventory; over 140 reports; customizable forms
• Serialized inventory and departmentalized reporting
• For up to five users; easy setup wizard; multiple help options
• Crystal Reports for Peachtree included

Features

• Tax software guides users through state tax returns
• Interview-based wizard system
• Up-to-date with latest state tax law
• Checks math and audit flags
• Contains all the forms users will need

Reviews (14)

If you TurboTax for Federal, you have to try this!
If you use TurboTax to assist you with your Federal income tax return and haven't yet tried the State version, you have to try it. It is definitely worth it!

The State version will automatically read in everything you've already done for the Federal version - which cuts down your time immensely! You have to answer a few State-specific questions, like your county of residence - but you'll be done with the whole thing in about 5 to 10 minutes. Well worth the price to save me that much time and hassle!

A word of caution, however: Although it is labeled "multistate" you actually only get to use it for one state for the license fee; if you want more than one state you will need to call Intuit, pay another fee, and they'll give you a code for the next state.

TURBO TAX STATE FOR VIRGINIA ROCKS!
You're a fool if you don't use Turbo Tax State in Virginia. This is my second year using TT and it was even easier the second time around. The new addition imports everything you punched in the year before and therefore takes less time to complete. Since you can't do state without having loaded TT Deluxe, the video on the CD walks you through the process and sends you to the answer if you type in a search. I had absolutely no trouble using TTS in Virginia and had my state and federal refunds within a week of e-filing. Yeah, within a week. (...)

Additionally, by going through the step by step questionnaire TTS reminded me to include charity work and charitable contributions, which increased my refunds. You don't even need to buy the physical product. Once you've loaded TTD or the federal variation, you can download states off the internet.

This product is better than last year. I highly recommend it. You won't be sorry.

My only criticism of TT products is you can only e-file one time per purchase. (...)The secret to fast returns is e-filing.

Piece of cake!
Flawless and no problems. I have switched to Intuit because prior programs (Tax Cut and Tax Act) would not allow me to e-file my state return (Arizona), because they did not contain a form I needed for a state credit. Turbo Tax solved that issue last year and this year as well. State program installs with a blink of the eye, and complements Turbo Tax Deluxe beautifully. This was only my second year with Intuit, but plan to 3-peat next year.

correcting information in state tax form not possible
I did my federal tax with turbotax delux and my state tax also with turbotax.
I made some errors entering information. The federal form allowed me to make corrections after I was done.
However, the state interview denies me access. Maybe I need to start all over or do it by hand.
The State program is grap. I send an email to the company but did not get any reply.

New York Commuter / New Jersey Resident Still Wrong
ATTENTION INTUIT: A BAD free state download is worse than no state download.

Unfortunately, this year's version still does not know how to back out taxes paid to NY State (where I work) and apply them to New Jersey (where I live).

Will you guys just fix this already?!?!?!!!!! ... Read more

Reviews (20)

Worst Version of Quicken ...........EVER!!!!!!!
I have used Quicken since the DOS versions, this one is the worst! You cannot change any colors, period, end of discussion! You cannot remove unused, useless toolbars/frames, period, end of discussion! You will have to call tech support! You will have to endure repeated uninstalls/reinstalls! Download a trial version before you upgrade, if you can't configure it the way you want, delete it and move on!

Displeased with discontinuation of support
I have a very minor problem with Quicken 2000. It is very functional for all my needs and I am quite perturbed that to get technical support, I am forced to update. I don't need an update. I do need a very minor fix to my present system. Quite simply, the system somehow changed the opening screen and I can find no way of putting it back where it is when you first start using Quicken. I reloaded with the old disc and got the screen I want, but I have to the accounts list under the old load to find prior transactions. As for help, even the 900 number has been changed, so I can't even pay to get this rectified. What a rip-off.

What a Piece of Garbage
I have been using Quicken since "Quicken 4" on my Mac. It WAS a great program. This version is okay except for the investment portfolio. It is full of bugs, and is not at all intuitive (ironic, eh?). Further, you cannot simply "fudge" and enter your historical transactions ... so my cash balance is wrong, and impossible to correct. After researching online, it is clearly a bug that Inuit will not even acknowledge.

Hopefully they will get their act together for 2005, otherwise, I'm out of there!!

Patch this
I am done with Intuit. Every time I upgrade to a newer version it is full of bugs. Then, when I call Intuit customer support to discuss THEIR bugs, they want a credit card number before giving out any information. HOW ABOUT ENSURING THE PRODUCT WORKS CORRECTLY BEFORE SELLING IT TO THE PUBLIC. I don't care if they EVENTUALLY offer a patch that can be downloaded. I have more important things to do with my time.

I was a loyal Quicken user for more than 8 years; BUT NO LONGER ... their idea of customer service is PATHETIC. I am going to give Microsodt Money a try

Stick with Quicken 2002 (maybe from Ebay?)
I was warned!! Instead I thought I could put up with all the small inconveniences of 2004. Every one of the negative reviews is correct and then some. I've been using (and promoting) Quicken since 1996 and updating every other year. 2004 regularly crashes on Windows XP. The investment register is useless for record reviews. The help topics are not useful. I was excited the first time it took me directly to Intuit's knowledge base, until I found nothing in the knowledge base that applied. Their Indian customer service can barely speak English. Not that it matters much since they haven't a clue how solve problems other than uninstall and re-install. The final straw however came today when, during an online update, Quicken corrupted my data files. The only fix for this is to uninstall the program. My fix is to reinstall Quicken 2002 and wait until I see some positive reviews on a new version before buying another Intuit product, even though I'm in for a couple days re-entering data that won't transfer from version 2004.

Laughably, a couple years ago Intuit was used in marketing case studies as a better way to treat customers than Microsoft. Where did those managers go? They now make Microsoft look positively brilliant. Since I have loved Quicken for so long, I really hope Intuit is monitoring these site reviews and will Quickly correct these myriad problems. I'm just glad I didn't post a high recommendation on this product and have to eat those words now. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

QuickBooks Premier 2003 features the most comprehensive set of tools for small business financial management. In addition to the benefits and features of QuickBooks Pro, QuickBooks Premier provides you with tools to help your business achieve better results.

Discover innovative tools to create a customized business plan. Instantly analyze your historical QuickBooks data and answer simple, step-by-step questions to automatically create a three-year projected balance sheet, profit and loss, and statement of cash flow. A new forecasting feature helps compare your forecast to your actual income and expenses.

Greater customization helps you meet the unique needs of your business. With QuickBooks Premier 2003 you have the ability to create sales orders and track back orders to manage inventory more accurately. And, now you can create a finished good as its own inventory item by specifying which pieces of your current inventory you need to produce to increase your inventory-tracking accuracy.

Discover anywhere, anytime flexibility with QuickBooks Remote Access in QuickBooks Premier 2003. Now you can work on your QuickBooks files from home or the road.

Be sure to visit our QuickBooks Software Add-Ons Store fo\ r software products that have been developed by members of the Intuit Developer Network. QuickBooks software add-ons are \ applications that integrate with this and other packages of QuickBooks financial software to save you time and increase you\ r productivity.

Reviews (4)

Best Accounting Software for Business
I am a professional accountant who worked with all kinds of accounting software. Quickbooks Accountant Edition 2003 has all the functions that both small and medium size business can use. It even has contractor functions, not much different from Timberline that is 100 times more expensive. With basic understanding of accounting, almost anyone can use the software. All other drawbacks such as necessity to purchase additional software to process payroll is negligible compared to the cost of more expensive accounting software. The quality of this software is excellent. Never pay the software producer for consulting, because Quickbooks is very simple to use and almost self-explanatory.

Quick! QuickBooks Premier Contractor Edition 2003
An interesting introduction to Accounting software. I had been using quicken and the jump in user knowledge needed was tremendous. Intuit is decidedly unsupportive when it comes to product instructions and support and I will be looking elsewhere for my next software package. It is possible that I will use continue to use QB but I would reccomend that new QB users start out with a less expensive version. The "more accurate estimating" is all user inputed and while better than anything you find in quicken I believe QB Premier advertisement overstates its usefulness.

I cannot emphasize enough that Intuit charges you for support with regaurds to its product which is costly to begin with. That came as a particularly nasty surprize.

QB premier contractor series contributed in many positve ways to how my business runs and the job costing procedures are excellent, helpful, and informative.

A great program if you need all of its features
I've been using Quickbooks in its various forms since version 1.0 (for DOS!). So by now I consider it indispensable. But Quickbooks 2003 Premier Contractor's Edition is quite pricey, even with the rebates. I would only recommend it for larger companies with at least a few employees. Many smaller contracting companies (such as mine) would manage very well with just Quickbooks Pro 2003. Also, if you haven't used previous versions of Quickbooks before, (when it had less features) it might be best to start out with the simpler versions. Its help systems are very extensive but if you need any assistance from Intuit be warned that they charge for it either per request or by a yearly subscription, which I feel is a bit of a slap in the face considering the cost! The extra features such as the Change Orders and Contractor specific Job analysis and reports could be helpful but for me at least that remains to be seen.

PERFECT for ALL Accounting Functions
This package is perfect for the Accountant, the Bookkeeper or the Owner of a Small to Medium Size Business that likes to use most Accounting functions/reporting etc.

As the "QuickBooks Guru", I use this particular version for all my clients no matter if they have Pro, Basic, Contractor or Premier Version. The reporting functions are built in, so there is very little modifying if at all.

Between the new templates, add on features, invoice functionality (much better)---and naturally the remote access feature that makes a great training feature between my clients and myself !

The people that are disgruntled either have had poor set up,or are not understanding the ease of the program. I customize every client specifically to their business, and I have had NO complaints when they get their Income Statements, updated books, Bank Reconciliations...cash flow reports, Job Costs, Time tracking etc.

If you KNOW QuickBooks, this is the program to BUY! ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

QuickBooks Pro Edition 5.0 for Mac provides advanced tools to manage your business finances. Enjoy the convenience of having all your financial information organized in one place. It's fast and easy to create reports and invoices, track expenses, and more.

QuickBooks is now designed and built to run on Mac OS X. QuickBooks windows and controls, including a revised icon bar, are also designed to be consistent with the Aqua user interface. QuickBooks also works with Mac OS 9.2.2.

Now it's even easier to customize the appearance of QuickBooks forms, such as invoices, cash sales receipts, estimates, and purchase orders. Change fonts, add a company logo, or modify the layout of your forms to suit your needs. Customize reports by modifying the content based on report filters you choose. The new Report Finder helps you quickly select the report or graph you need, with sample onscreen reports. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Getting Better
I currently use Quickbooks Pro for Windows at my day job, at home I use Quickbook Pro 5.0 for Mac for my home based business. The mac version doesn't have all the features that the windows version does, but I believe that they will continue to upgrade (in fact the 6.0 version is just coming out with the ability to convert data back and forth between windows and mac) I have tried Myob for mac, it is ok, but I still believe Quickbooks to be the most intuitive and easy program with very strong features for tracking everything assosiated with running a business. I am on Quickbooks for Windows more than 12 hours a day, so I know very well what features need improving, yet I still prefer to use the mac for my home business. And I will continue to provide them with my feedback for future upgrades. At this point the biggest would be online banking. I can't imagine they would leave that out for much longer. The 6.0 version already has the Windows to Mac and Mac to Windows data conversion which is what everyone in these reviews have been screaming about.

Disappointing, very, very disappointing
I am a small business owner, happy using Macs and a long time Intuit user. I was delighted Intuit was again "supporting" the Mac platform and was one of the pre-purchasers of QB Pro 5 for the Mac. I assumed, perhaps naively, that since it was the hot new thing, it would have all the old features I associated with Quicken and all the QuickBooks options for which my accountant had been begging so he could play with my files on-line. Instead, I find that this product just doesn't do these things. No, you cannot export data in PC format. No, the accountant cannot enter the program to organize data his way. No, on-line banking is not supported. This is 2003. What small business wants to be without access to on-line banking?

Huge Omission Makes QB for Mac Virtually Useless!
I was thrilled when I heard that Intuit was once again planning on reentering the Mac market with a new version of QuickBooks Pro. It's here, but the thrill is gone.
I was looking forward to getting rid of the Windows PC that's taking up valuable space on my desk; it's sole reason for existence is to run QuickBooks. Everything else in the office is done on Macs.
Software arrived, installation went well. I went to my PC and exported my QuickBooks file to a Zip disk, popped the disk into the Zip drive on my Mac and then tried to tell QB on the Mac to import the file so I could get down to business on the Mac. But what's this... a message that says that QuickBooks for Mac cannot read QuickBooks files created on a PC!
As far as I can see, there is no reason for this application to exist. My accountant has a PC and we email my QuickBooks file back and forth on a regular basis. Therein lies the problem.
If Microsoft, Adobe, even Quark files can go back and forth, then why not QuickBooks files? Until true multi-platform accessibility is writtin into QuickBooks, I'd recommend holding off on the purchase of this otherwise solid product.

Using OS 9.2.2
Constantly crashes in OS 9.2.2. Will stick with Quickbooks Pro 4...

Mac users ...
Any mac user who can afford accounting software [such] as Quickbooks is probably a professional who uses their Mac for their business. Most professional business use accountants. Most accountants use Windows.

QUICKBOOKS 5.0 FOR MAC CAN NOT CONVERT DATA FROM THE WINDOWS VERSION. Thus rendering it useless for anyone on a mac who uses an accountant and needs to transfer data back and forth.

... ... Read more

Reviews (18)

The best in Class, but not perfect
In comparison to the competition, MS Money 2004 is really a superior product. I had been a Quicken user for years, and the change was easy and refreshing. I am not a financial mogul, nor am I an extremely diversified individual, but the features in Money go far beyond my needs. I'll be perfectly honest, I bought the program to have an updated checkbook register, and I have come to find the other features almost as useful.

I'll summarize my favorite items:
1. The budgeting feature that allows you to customize and categorize your weekly, monthly and annual expenditures. This is really a handy feature for trying to stay within a budget, and the program clearly ties the outcome of the budget to savings goals.

2. The reporting features. At first, the sheer volume of report types that you can generate is a bit intimidating, but after a few times of working through what was available, it became clear the select few that I liked. Another handy feature is the fact that Money will save the settings of each report independently. I find that the best report is the monthly report, as it tracks your top expenditure categories, how you are doing on your savings, and how your net worth and investments are changing over time. Really a pretty useful thing to look at once a month.

3. The debt reduction feature. If you have a lot of loan, credit card or mortgage debt, this feature will be a great tool. You can select debt accounts that you want included in the calculation, tell Money how much you want to spend each month, and it will calculate the most effective way to make monthly payments for each of the loans to get you out of debt ASAP. Really a nice feature, and the best part is that you can run several scenarios very easily so that you will get a quick feeling for how much money you will save in the long run if you pay 500 a month vs. 250.

4. The feature that ties it all together for me is the monthly bill pay feature. While it is possible to use Money to get your account balances and pay your bills on-line (if your bank will let you), this feature will simply let you create a list of all of your monthly bills, paydays, and other recurring expenses/credits. Then, you can see what bills to pay in between what paychecks, and maximize the use of your money for a given period of time. Of course, the debt reduction feature is integrated into the bill summary, and the bill summary outputs to the monthly budget! Really a nicely done and tidy little package.

Before software like this existed, I used to do all of the same tasks, but keep them all on a MS Excel spreadsheet, which required a lot of extra work on my part, and really didn't look as good at the end of the month. Suffice it to say that MS Money 2004 really gives you more data, and more options, than you will want, but doesn't clutter up the program by making you wade through them. The interface and data entry methods are all very clear and straightforward.

That being said, often times people have a certain way that they like to do their finances. You may like to transfer money between accounts, or you may have odd types of accounts. In some cases, the program doesn't easily recognize what you are doing. For instance, I would make weekly savings deposits, but the program kept telling me that I should start making savings deposits or else I wouldn't meet my savings goals! I tried everything but eventually just learned to live with it (and then for some reason it started working). I think that the documentation for the program (all in the form of a help file) is good, but misses a lot in how to completely customize the program to capture the nuances of your financial plan. Despite that, I wholeheartedly recommend this program to both the financial fanatic and the average person with a checking account.

What a deal!
2004 Standard Moneys for under 20 bucks! booya!

-Gnome

The worst software I ever saw...
Microsoft Money has encountered a problem and needs to close. We are sorry for the inconvenience...

Please tell Microsoft about this problem...

I just received the product this afternoon. I install it and even restart my PC many times. It still cannot ever start... Really disappointed. DO NO BUY THIS PRODUCT!

M$ Sucks
I just bought this product. After installation, I can not even start it. It really sucks.

A good tool with flaws
I find this software is a good tool to help me track spending and investments, though it does have some annoying flaws. The first is the forecasting that it does on accounts is worthless, it takes an asset account that receives a nominal increase monthly and projects a two month increase far in excess of what the historical trends, and common sense, would suggest. It does this as well with credit accounts, for instance I had a credit account with $700 with a 6 month no interest period, over a 5 month period, with monthy payments and no interest, it was paid down to $35, the forecast tool took this information and predicted in two months the account would be at - $5,000. Other annoying things, the prompt on the home page that I should enter the monthly interest on my AMEX card, the advertisements and notices that my money would do better in accounts held by advertisers, the difficulty enterering the actual price paid on fractional share purchases, and the difficulty in handling the mortgage payment transactions when part of the monthly payment goes to a escrow account to pay taxes and home insurance.

That said, the product is a good tool for househiold budgeting and financial record keeping. ... Read more

Features

• Powerful accounting management tools to help you run your business
• Email financial and management reports, invoices, quotes, and orders
• Send reports to Microsoft Excel; create ready-made letters with links to Word
• Track your profit and loss and other financials with a click of the mouse
• Accept credit cards and offer your employees direct deposit

Reviews (3)

Quickbooks Converters be cognizant...
I ordered this product knowing that it had a freely available Quickbooks converter. The Quickbooks converter, while simple, did not do what I had hoped:

1) For any bank accounts, it carried over the balance accurately but it did not carry the register.
2) Transactions carry over as "historical transactions." You will not be able to see the specific details of these transactions (apart from the balance) in MYOB.
3) Along with that, if you run a statement on any preconversion purchases, all it will say is "Preconversion Sale" which is confusing to a customer who has no idea you "converted." I have not found a way to edit this.
4) It didn't pull my customer data well. The data is all there but it put the customer name in the address field as well as the name field so my invoices come out with the name twice and then the address.
5) Also know that you have to pick a conversion date and it must be the first of a month. It will not accept any transactions dated prior to that conversion date.

The software in and of itself is decent. I have some minor issues with the fact that I can't use my scrolling mouse and that the form customization interface doesn't have tool tips but otherwise the interface is not too difficult to navigate and I haven't come across any major problems that weren't directly related to the conversion.

Not good for a beginner
Although it has many features useful for a small business, it is very difficult to work with. There is better accounting software, so please look around.

Nice Piece of Software
I've been pleasantly surprised by MYOB after being referred to it by a friend. I had never heard of it prior. It was simple set-up and it does everything I'd ever need (actually a lot more). ... Read more

Reviews (24)

Perfect for home based consulting business
I have a simple home-based consulting business with 2 employees and a small number of customers. Quicken Home & Business is the perfect accounting system for me. I was a financial officer for several companies and have used several high end systems. This is the easiest and most efficient accounting system ever made - an excellent product. If it covers your needs, you should consider yourself lucky.

Here are some highlights and pointers:

1. Data entry is extremely fast. As soon as you start typing, Quicken guesses what you are going to enter and fills it in for you. Check book entries are effortless. This is the most important feature of any accounting system because sole proprietors should not waste time with data entry.
2. Credit card transactions are automatic. Get yourself a separate credit card for business transactions and download directly into Quicken. I have used 4 different cards and the best integration is the with Quicken Master Card. It also earns you about 1% in airline awards or gift certificates. Just click on "one step update" and you have all new transactions ready to review.
3. Bank reconciliation is completely done for you. You never need to go through a bank statement again, matching up transactions. Quicken "one step update" downloads new transactions and finds the corresponding entry in your check register. You just confirm or add if it is a new transaction. When the monthly statement comes, you enter the ending balance and Quicken figures out which transactions cleared. You rarely need to even look at the bank statement.
4. Reporting is simple. Just choose from dozens of pre-designed reports and make small adjustments if needed. You can also export any report to modify it in Excel or Word if you prefer.
5. Invoicing is simple and quick. Just create descriptions for each service you offer and invoicing is a snap. Quicken tracks which invoices have been printed and tracks receivables effortlessly.
6. Tax reporting is easy. You can instantly produce a Schedule C and if you also purchase TurboTax (which I highly recommend), you can import data directly into your tax forms.
7. Manage cash between multiple bank accounts. If you choose a bank that is supported by Quicken, you can easily move funds between checking and savings.

A few pointers for using the product.
1. Don't confuse this product with other Quicken products such as Quicken Deluxe or Quicken Premier.
2. Intuit also produces QuickBooks, which is not a product I recommend. If you need the power of QuickBooks, there are other applications available that may be better.
3. Don't combine your personal and business financial data in one file. Quicken recommends you do this but you definitely should not. Instead, set up your personal Quicken file first. Then from the main menu, select File/New/New Quicken File. It is very easy to switch between your personal file and your business file and you will not have any problems with reports, tax forms etc. if you keep them totally separate. You do not need to purchase additional software licenses to have multiple files. I have 3 businesses and one personal file on my copy of Quicken Home & Business.
4. Create a liability account called "owners draw". Quicken does not explain this well, but this will become your owners equity account on your balance sheet. When you draw funds from the business (unless you do it through payroll), you assign the check or transfer to "owners draw" and this will accumulate on your balance sheet to show the true net worth or your business.

I wish that I read the reviews first
I tried to install this program a couple of days ago and was prompted to uninstall the previous version (Quicken 2002 Deluxe). I chose to do so. At the end of the installation process, I got the error message "Your program files may have been damaged. You will need to reinstall Quicken." I uninstalled using Add/Remove Programs and reinstalled with exactly the same result.

At that stage, having looked in vain for help on the Intuit site -- the solution to this error message did not work for me -- I went elsewhere and found dozens of negative reviews. Intuit seem to have hit rock bottom with this product.

So I decided to go back to using Quicken 2002, but of course it had been uninstalled and I can't find my original CD. So I chose to use the Windows XP System Restore function to roll back the clock. But although Quicken 2002 reappeared, my Quicken file no longer seems to work properly. The screen freezes and flashes when I switch from one account to another.

I called Intuit this morning and described my scenario. They offered to replace my Quicken 2002 at a total cost of $20 plus. It would take them two days to get it out of the warehouse and a further 7-10 days for shipping. Shouldn't they provide a free downgrade when their buggy software doesn't work?

I have been very impressed with this software.
This is first time I have used Quicken, and I am impressed with the sophistication of the software. It is very cool. Balancing my check book is easier then I thought, as well as, updating my investment portfilio. I did have to upgrade to a preffered online bank account to get automatic updates though. That cost about $3/month, but worth it. For my bank, online bill pay is another $3 more for 10 bills per month. Some investment accounts will not download to your quicken but the quotes will. Also, you definetly need to read Quicken 2004 for Dummies. It can take about 20 some hours to learn the majority of the programs with the book. I wouldn't even try without it. Once you learn it, if you have the time, it is worth it. At least so far for me. I just put in about 20 plus hours with it so far, and I haven't done too much on the business side, such as payroll. Good luck.

Intuit Stumbles on Quicken 2004
A major player in the personal finance software arena for years, Intuit and Quicken has helped thousands keep track of their personal finances. I have been a Quicken user since the early days (Quicken 1 and 2), have upgraded to new releases over the years and have always been very satisfied with the Quicken product.

Quicken 2004 Premier changed all that.

The release of Quicken 2004 was advertised as allowing you to get instant answers to questions like "Are my investments outperforming the market?" and "What is my return for the past 1,3 and 5 years?" Unfortunately, after upgrading from Quicken 2003 to Quicken 2004 Premier, the question I was asking most was "What happened to my data?"

Quicken 2004 has corrupted my personal finance information on four separate occasions (I know, "fool me once shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me" ... I don't want to even think about "fool me four times...").

My financial books include four checking accounts, several credit card accounts, some loans, several investment accounts, and a smattering of other accounts. No account type is immune to corruption.

In my checking accounts, one major problem is that Quicken 2004 insists on making up numbers (really, really, BIG numbers, like as big as your computer can handle), creating transactions with random dates to go along with the made-up numbers, and then inserting these transactions in the register. At one time my calculated net worth was too large to display (I wish ...); another time I owed more than the United States GDP. On another occasion Quicken 2004 erased all of the transactions from one checking account, strangely keeping a balance that looked to be about right. In another account, I have been overdrawn once due to a Quicken 2004 error.

In the investment accounts Quicken 2004 decided to change the ticker symbols of some stocks in the investment accounts to unknown symbols on more than one occasion. It's not clear when this happened; it may have been during the updating process when prices are downloaded into Quicken. This caused trouble not only in evaluating the portfolio, but the reconciliations of the accounts were very challenging, because I was never sure if the difference was due to my error, or if Quicken had changed a symbol in one of the dividend re-investment transactions (which it did on two occasions).

A few of the shortcut keys that Quicken power users have grown accustomed to, no longer work in Quicken 2004 (hitting the space bar to select a check during reconciliation, for example). These are known errors and "will be fixed in the next release". At least that's what I was told when I discovered the issue in Release 1. It has not been fixed as of Release 5.

I was given the above information on one of my several attempts to get help by calling customer service. I was helped by "Jennifer", although I suspect her name was really Neeraja, or Srividya or something similar. Customer service appears to consist of very bored people, who are very far away, reading answers in OK English off of scripts to solve problems you did not call with. I was told once to reload Windows (I did not). Most of the time, I was told to run the File/File Operation/Validate option within Quicken 2004 (I did several times). I don't remember ever having to run that option on earlier versions of Quicken; I'm not sure it even was an option with Quicken 2003. On another occasion, I was questioned quite closely about the type of printer I had. Apparently, printers have become notorious corruptors of data in Quicken 2004. So, who knew? (I'm joking -- they're not). In no case, did the call to customer support solve my immediate problem.

Sending in questions via email was better in the sense that I did not receive any wrong or useless information. In fact, I received no information at all. All emails went unanswered. Bug reports are never acknowledged, but they never have been.

Running Quicken 2004 requires some serious horsepower. Intuit will tell you Quicken 2004 can run on a Pentium 200 or higher machine with 32 MB RAM and 75MB hard drive space. I originally installed Quicken 2004 on a spare Pentium 233 MHZ machine with 100MB hard drive. Big mistake. When I fired up the software, the lights in the house didn't exactly dim, but I bet they wanted to. Quicken 2004 is unbearably slow on machines below the recommended 300MHZ limit, and I wouldn't put it on anything less than 700Mhz. Quicken 2004 seems to be doing a lot of disk I/O and window rendering and all of that thrashing around costs performance points. My copy of Quicken is now installed on a Dell Dimension 4600, 2.79GHz, 512RAM, 111GB free hard drive, Windows XP Professional. As you might expect, speed is no problem.

On the plus side, Quicken has done a nice job with the charts and reports. So, even if the numbers are wrong, they look marvelous. The screen gets real busy, though, what with the Menu Bar, the icon bar, the Quicken Home side window, the main register window, the transaction window and the maddening Inuit advertisements ('Try Turbo Tax - the #1 tax solution year after year") at the bottom, all showing up at once. Intuit will tell you that Quicken 2004 works with a Super VGA (800 x 600). It will, but the recommended 1024 x 768 with 16 bit color monitors will make your life more pleasant. Again, the numbers might be wrong, but at least you'll have a shot at seeing them.

So, what's a body to do? Well, I'm digging through my files looking for my copy of Quicken 2003. I'll revert back to that. It worked fine, no funny stuff, had almost all of the features of Quicken 2004 and it was stable. In the meantime, I'll keep watching Intuit to see if they fix the new version, and begin to understand what customer service is all about.

Works fine for me
With all the complaints, I was a bit reluctant to purchase the 2004 version of Quicken. However, since I was still on 2001, I decided to bite the bullet. While the interface is disappointing and there really isn't anything new or improved, the product works well. Next time I purchase an upgrade, though, I probably won't need the business portion and, seen as how Intuit never really adds any features of importance, I'll settle for Quicken basic. There's really no point is paying for stuff you can get elsewhere for free - like investment analysis. ... Read more

Features

• Tax preparation software with step-by-step guidance and free electronic filing
• Imports data from Quicken, QuickBooks, and Microsoft Money software
• Puts answers on IRS-approved forms; double checks return for accuracy
• Includes latest tax law changes; download and import W-2 and 1099 forms online
• Assists calculating optimum withholding situation for personal needs

Features

• Automated accounting for small businesses
• Easy invoicing; convenient check writing; 35+ customizable reports
• Provides fast start-up; 20+ instructional demos; multiple help options
• Peachtree Today for an instant snapshot of business financials
• Includes 30 days of free support for first-time customers

Reviews (4)

Accounting background recommended
I don't want to rate the product as such (3 means neutral) but I would advise anyone thinking of using Peachtree to either have an understanding of accounting or an accountant nearby. It is a very good program but it does demand some accounting kowledge or technical skill.

Very complex for Small Business
This software could be good if you are an experienced accountant. However I think it is very complex and hard to work with if you want it to be simple and fun to work with. Good luck in your selection.

Would not buy again
I got this product (Accounting 2004) to run my small business. I would not recommend this product to anyone.

I tried running the included tutorial to learn to navigate around this product, but the tutorial was meaningless to someone who is new to accounting principles - the tutorial is simply a imaginary company with imaginary data. It just shows you in which "bin" each of the imaginary data goes, but doesn't help you to correlate your information to the imaginary data and then into the "bins."

This is particular true for me since the tutorial provides for a typical products based company (i.e. lots of invoices from vendors and some invoices from your company), while my business is a service business - much like the audience for this Peachtree product. I couldn't fully service business information on top of their product based company tutorial.

The final straw that made me junk this product before fully implementing it is that this product does not (or at least I cannot find) understand setting up multiple checking accounts and/or setting up a trust account.

In my line of work I handle trust money and must account for each client's trust money in a pooled trust account. I don't believe this product gives me that ability and upon a call to Peachtree customer service, they would not answer this basic question without requiring me to pay for a service plan. The help file and online help community was likewise unhelpful. Yes, they offer 30 days of free customer service, but my issue cropped up after the 30 days time period.

In short I am out a bunch of money for a product that I will uninstall. I don't even think I can sell it at a substantial discount legally. I would recommend Quickbooks instead of this thing.

Too Much
This product is too complex for a small or home-based business. Try Peachtree First Accounting for something that won't take up all your time.

Also, beware if you use a high-end version of Windows - they claim "Product will not operate in a Windows Terminal Server Environment using Windows Terminal Services". Well, ignore the "using" part of their statement. It won't work if terminal services simply _exists_ on your machine, whether you're currently using it or not! I guess they are concerned with piracy, but this is over the top, and I doubt even applicable to this product considering its intended audience and use. It's not like everyone in a small business is going to be running this software via terminal services to access a single installed PC. The business owner is just going to run it as needed. In any event, this would not be an issue had one of their developers spent 5 minutes extra and put the _proper_ check in - don't check for the existence of terminal services, but rather check to see if the user is logged into the console, and if so, let it run, else don't. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Discipline made easy
I got Quicken and I thought it would be horrendous trying to keep up with all the data entry. I thought, boy would it be easier if I could sync with my palm pilot (which goes with me everywhere, to every store, and to every cash register). When I looked, sure enough, some genius had thought of the same thing before I did. The software incorporates a similar format to the PC version, so entries require as few stylus strokes as possible.

I am a dentist, and there is a principle in dentistry that applies here: the easier something is to use, the more it will get used and the more effective it will be. This software makes Quicken practical because you can enter it at the point of sale and be DONE with it. No harboring receipts, no pile ups of entries to be made. All you gotta do is make it a point to enter it at the cashier, and that can usually be done while the receipt is being printed out.

If you are checking this out, you already know you could use it. I'm here to tell you that it will pay for itself, so take the plunge. Don't let your finances go out of whack because you aren't using your Quicken. ... Read more

Features

• Manage your finances more efficiently -Schedule your bill payments, collect recurring payments or service fees, or create a check draft for immediate deposit
• Track all accounts, check payments and receipts online from one location
• Import records from financial software or print filled out checks directly through QuickPass
• Send checks by email, or create new drafts by phone and fax
• Draw from 300 hand-crafted images to add to your checks, with Check Designer PRO

Features

• Easy-to-use contact and customer-manager software
• Access, organize, and manage contact details
• Stay on top of schedule 24/7; share customer info securely
• Enhanced group scheduling; link to Palm OS and Pocket PC handhelds
• Includes Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Standard Edition