Accountancy Software for Non-Accountants?

TommyK

Hello,

I hope this is the right place to post this . . .

Can anyone recommend a good (pref. low-cost) general accounting software
package for non-accountants (i.e. people like me who barely scrapped a pass in
accountancy in school! )

Thanks,
Tommy.

esentziak

I have been using QuickBooks for nearly three years and am happy with it.

Although I have a good knowledge of accountancy, QuickBooks is specifically designed for people who have no such knowledge.

You need to learn how to use it properly; I have found newsgroups invaluable for tips and help.

Sage is another option, but I think more expensive.

Do you have an accountant? does he/she have other clients who use either of these accounting packages? this might be a good source of ad vice,

Esentziak

Specky

Kind of depends on what you're willing to spend.

I know a few people who use Quickbooks but who have outgrown it.

Sage Line 50 is scaleable, so at least if you start to outgrow the low end stuff you can upgrade. It isn't cheap but then few things are. They do have a good support system, good training (again, not cheap but effective I think) and you can buy stationary to work with their software from other people (Viking direct do all Sage compatible forms at a fraction of the cost).

TAS Books used to be marketed as the accounting software for non-accountants and it is very user friendly, but they've been bought by Sage some time ago and the upgrade path for their system now just says "use Sage" which is a shame.

There are a couple of smaller Irish companies making accounts software the names of which escape me right now (although google should find them) but you have to think future proof with whatever you buy. Make sure it generates Irish tax information, make sure the upgrades for new tax laws are going to be available when/if you need them and make sure that if you start to expand you're going to be able to migrate without serious grief.

neokenzo

I have used various accounting packages in the past years. IMHO, Tas books is the easiest to use for non-accountants, Quickbooks ranks somewhere in the middle while Sage would probably be the hardest. At the end of the day it depends what you want the software for.

Specky

Actually Sage Line 50 is a lot easier to use than I expected.

I used Sage's old accounts system (can't remember what it was called) and it was an absolute nightmare. I vowed never ever to buy anything that even smelled like it had been near Sage. Before I bought Line 50 I intended to get TAS Books Financial Controller 'cos we needed all the multi-currency and stock control functions not available in the basic TAS Books, but I was then told that TAS had been bought by Sage and that their Financial Controller package was no longer available. This, for me, sounded like the end of the world and I went looking elsewhere to find a different package. It was only that another family member had just got Sage Line 50 and showed me the demo that I changed my mind. They obviously took note of the fact that EVERYBODY considered their software difficult to use.

I've used TAS, I've used Quickbooks a little bit and to be honest now I can't really see much difference between either of them and Sage on a useability issue.

I don't work for Sage by the way and I'm not getting commission but I just wanted to point out that Sage is worth looking at, it may not be ideal for everyone but it isn't as bad as it used to be by a long way. Maybe the original poster should have a look at a few PC magazine sites and read some reviews. I've seen comparative reviews between the various packages published before and they might be helpful.

De Rebel

It depends on what you need.

Sage Instant Acounting is a cut down version of Line 50 and has all the basics. Its easy enough to use. Any you can easily upgrade to Line 50 at a later date if you need more features. Sage software is expensive, and sage support is also expensive.

The Big Red Book is an Irish developed Book-keeping package that is very easy to use and very good at what it does. Its not a full suite of accounting software, but does the sales/purchases journals and cashbook.

You should have a chat with your accountant/auditor and see if he has any views.

TommyK

Thanks everybody!

I've checked things out and I think QuickBooks might be the best option for me right now.

Thanks again for all the suggestions!

Regards,
Tommy.

emagine

Just as follow up to this thread....

A friend is running his own small graphic design business and started using Sage Instant Accounting. He can't get his head around the accounting aspect of things with this package and he asked me to recommend an alternative.

I reckon Quickbooks mght be a good option, but how about Big Red Book or the one from Thesaurus?

Any advice would be great....

GerardKeating

Originally posted by TommyK
Can anyone recommend a good (pref. low-cost) general accounting software
package for non-accountants (i.e. people like me who barely scrapped a pass in
accountancy in school! )

If you are running any kind of business, you will need an accountant for some things. If you already have one, ask them. It always good to use something they are familar with.