In the US, QuickBooks is the number one software for keeping track of your books, but did you know that the online version is completely different than the desktop one? They run on completely different platforms and operate in very different ways. Almost every bookkeeper and accountant I have spoken with vastly prefer the desktop version to the online one, and I am one of them. Honestly, I kind of hate QuickBooks online. (Kind of ? I have been heard to say that I hate QuickBooks online with the intensity of 1,000 burning suns, but that may be a bit much…)
So I’d like to take a minute to vent about QuickBooks online – and possibly convince you to switch to the desktop platform (and yes, we can still do this remotely!)
First, there is less functionality with QuickBooks online (QBO). From dealing with inventory, to 1099 contractors, to invoicing forms, to tracking vendors, to providing reports, QBO just Does Less. The reporting is especially galling – I have created so many custom reports for my clients that really help me stay on top of their bookkeeping easily and quickly – and I just can’t as easily do that with QBO.
Second, I want to be able to do my work as efficiently as possible, and QBO does not let me do that. For example, in order to make sure the books are in good shape, I need to refer to multiple reports to tie everything out, and I can’t have multiple reports open easily in the online version. So it takes me longer to do my work in QBO compared to the desktop version (and that can cost clients more, especially if I am dealing with complicated task).
Third, I do not love automatic bank feeds, which are ubiquitous with QBO. My clients love them – “QuickBooks automatically assigns all of my transactions to accounts and I don’t have to do anything!” It certainly did! And quickly too! But so many of them were put in the wrong account (so quickly!), but re-assigning all the transactions to the proper accounts takes time – longer than it would have to enter them manually in the first place.
Don’t get me wrong, there is certainly a place for automatic bank feeds, but they require some Care and Feeding, and they can really wreak havoc on your books if not properly dealt with!
Pro-tip: Learn how to manually enter transactions before you start using the automatic feeds!
Finally, there’s the price. You can buy the basic desktop version, which is supported by Intuit for 3 years, for under $200 usually. But QuickBooks online is a monthly service whose most basic plan currently costs $25/month. When I pull up my trusty calculator, I can see that is $900! Many times the price of the desktop version!
Don’t get me wrong, QuickBooks online is a great tool for lots of clients. It integrates with many other tools. (oh, but how much of a mess does it make?)… and it is accessible everywhere (though did you know QuickBooks desktop can be accessed remotely?) There are even a couple of features I like better about it compared to the desktop version. But I prefer the underlying architecture and flexibility of the desktop version, as well as the ease with which it can be used.
A rant for a different day: I hate that Intuit advertisements literally say: “If you can write a check, you can use QuickBooks.” You can, but without some knowledge of bookkeeping and how the software is working, you are going to assign transactions to the wrong accounts, and your accountant will be handing back the mess when you try to give them your books at year-end. Get it right the first time and tax time will be super easy AND you will have accurate reports all year long!
Common Cents Bookkeeping provides training, for all versions of QuickBooks, for existing clients or as part of our consulting services.