Guide to choosing QuickBooks Simple Start
or QuickBooks Pro
 

   
QuickBooks Simple Start

Simple Start Edition is now only available online $12.95/month.  Provides a simple way for paper and spreadsheet users to get started with just the essential business software tools. This enables a small and simple business to enter the category and QuickBooks family earlier, without paying for or being overwhelmed by “more than they need”. Unlike paper and spreadsheets, Simple Start Edition automatically tracks sales and expenses, generates one-click reports and provides simple tools for effectively managing and tracking money coming in (Accounts Receivable) and going out (Accounts Payable) of your business ; it provides the end benefits of complete and accurate records at tax time, the ability to see precisely where your business stands and make sure nothing slips through the cracks. It’s incredibly easy to get started using it, thereby helping overcome inertia to switching.

The following products and services are compatible with Simple Start Edition:
• Checks and Supplies
• Credit Card (transaction download not available)
• Merchant Account Service (QBOE Merchant Account for Online Edition)
• Online Backup
• Support Network
• Billing Solutions


For the new business that:

• Simple Start now supports Payroll for an additional monthly fee.

• Has no inventory 

• Not interested in downloading bank and credit card transactions

• Is not converting from Quicken

• Does not need  a sophisticated chart of accounts

• Does not have a budgeting and budget reporting capabilities

• Has no need for further segregating financial data into revenue or cost centers

• Is happy with the QuickBooks Invoice form - is not customizable, can only add a logo

• Provides Profit & Loss reports for taxes and a few other essential reports but sophisticated data gathering is not available

• Has no bookkeeping experience and is new to business

• Does not have recurring transactions  for example
       A customer that is invoiced the same amount every month (landlord rental, school that 
          bills its students a monthly service fee, a consultant that charges the same amount 
           monthly)
       A vendor that is paid the same amount every month that would be cumbersome to
          reenter every month such as a limousine company that pays many auto loans monthly.

 What you see is what you get, with Simple Start-  Intuitive and comes with built in tutorials and 
 no choices to become confused over.  Great first time accounting software.  May want to upgrade
 to the full blown software after a year to take advantage of the time saving features that exist in QuickBooks Pro or QuickBooks  Premier.

 

   QuickBooks Online simple start is upgradeable at any time to Online plus that does included inventory, class   
   tracking, multiple locations, and budgeting.

In Summary:
Advantages of QuickBooks simple start:
Simple start is easier to set-up and learn
Available in online edition only
Low price
Features not available (however, you can upgrade to include these features):
 Inventory, Accounts payable, Multi-user capacity

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QuickBooks Pro

• Includes the features omitted in QuickBooks Simple Start
   
• QuickBooks Pro  helps you save time on bookkeeping and paperwork and get back to business.
   
• Simplifies all your accounting tasks – like paying bills, invoicing customers and tracking expenses
   
• Enables you to easily track who owes you money and what bills you need to pay
   
• Organizes all your financial information in one place so you can quickly and easily find the information you need

Tracks cash and credit sales.

Track customer payments, expenses, and liabilities.

Create purchase orders and track inventory.

QuickBooks automatically fills in information from the last time you   purchased from a supplier saving data entry time.

Write and print checks.

Save hours of typing, and reduce errors. Just type the first few letters of a vendor name in the onscreen check form-or select their name from a list-and QuickBooks fills in all the rest of the information, including their address and your account number. Edit the amount or any other information, and print your checks with one click. Or store checks and print them later in one batch.

Create invoices with one click.

Click a button to create an invoice, or select from QuickBooks' specialized invoice templates. --You can customize any QuickBooks form-including invoices, statement and e-mail forms-with your logo or company information, and save the template for repeated use.

Pay your bills and bank online.

Accept online payments.

Get paid faster! E-mail an invoice or statement and with QuickBooks Online Billing, your customer can easily pay you with a credit card or bank account transfer. No more waiting for the check in the mail!

• Instantly generates reports with the information you need, so you always know where your business stands.

QuickBooks saves you time by letting you select and save your preferred print settings on a form-by-form basis. QuickBooks "remembers" the printer, paper size, page orientation, and the number of copies. And you can manually override those settings for any printing session.

Easier budgeting - A step-by-step wizard helps you get set up easily. And you can enter and edit your figures
 
Enhanced class tracking-  you can track all income and expense items more precisely by class (company department, product line, location, industry, maintenance by piece equipment- you decide what tracking you need)  

Generate instant financial reports

QuickBooks lets you instantly run accurate reports and graphs of your financial status, organized and summarized any way you like. Then you can click on any report item to "drill down" to the details behind it. Generate a Profit & Loss report with one mouse click.  See who owes you what, and when. Create more than 100 standard reports with one click,  then customize them to show any time period, any accounts, any customers or vendors you like. -----QuickBooks instantly recalculates the data, so it's always current.
Find transactions instantly

Track sales tax easily

• Now you have the convenience of scheduling automated data backups onto more types of media, including CD-ROMs (Windows XP only)
   
• QuickBooks is simple to learn and use.

QuickBooks Pro editions also include:

• Vehicle mileage tracker.
• Loan manager to track loan payments and record interest expense.
• Undo premature bank reconciliation - an improved reconcile discrepancy report shows you changes and deletions made to previously reconciled transactions.
• Email POs,  sales receipts, credit memos, reports.
• Print packing slips and general purpose shipping labels from invoices.
• Save forms and reports in pdf format.
• Time and material invoices- now import both the item descriptions and the notes.
• Cash flow projector.
• Backup your file automatically
• Customize prices - up to 100 different prices levels by percent.
• Fixed asset tracker- asset name, serial number, date purchased and disposal date.

click for: QuickBooks Premier

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