What is the best computer personal finance program out there?
I would like to get a program so I can see more easily where my money is going… and things of the sort. I think there is a program called Money, and there may be some more. If you have any knowledge on this, I’d like to know what the pros and cons are of managing finances this way and also of the program.
Thanks!
The two main program choices you have are Intuit’s Quicken and Microsoft’s Money.
As far as functionality, I think they are pretty much the same, I don’t think you’ll go wrong chosing either program. Each has different versions of their software with basic, middle and tricked out versions of their software. If you’re thinking of starting to keep track of your finances, I would recommend you go with the middle versions as they offer more functionality than the basic versions, yet leave out all the bells and whistles you’ll probably never use anyway.
Every year a new annual version of the software comes out, but you don’t have to upgrade every year. BUT, every 3 years or so they’ll make significant changes to something in the program that will force you to upgrade to the latest and greatest. Not a bad idea to upgrade anyway, but something you should be aware of.
You’ll get as much usefullness out of a financial program as you put into it. It’s up to you on how detailed you want to track your transactions. The more detailed you get, the more unique ways you can generate reports telling you where and how you’re spending your money. This is, I think, the only con: once you start you must keep up with transactions, let it sit for a couple weeks and you won’t remember what that $9.48 charge was that the bank is showing.
The best thing about using a program to help manage funds is the online linkages you can make to your bank accounts, credit cards, loans, etc. All you do is activate the online service (usually free) and you can download all your recent transactions to match up receipts. And if you have several accounts, it’s also nice to be able to see everything in one place and run reports across accounts.
I say go for it.
I used to use Quicken and I liked it very much. My fiancee used MSN Money and we kept that as out program after the marraige.
References :
Microsoft money comes with most computers
look for free programs at downloads.com
you can use Microsoft excel to setup your budget
– mostly you want to keep your receipts for every puchase and if you go somewhere you dont get a receipt then keep a notebook and write down cash purchases
good luck
References :
The two main program choices you have are Intuit’s Quicken and Microsoft’s Money.
As far as functionality, I think they are pretty much the same, I don’t think you’ll go wrong chosing either program. Each has different versions of their software with basic, middle and tricked out versions of their software. If you’re thinking of starting to keep track of your finances, I would recommend you go with the middle versions as they offer more functionality than the basic versions, yet leave out all the bells and whistles you’ll probably never use anyway.
Every year a new annual version of the software comes out, but you don’t have to upgrade every year. BUT, every 3 years or so they’ll make significant changes to something in the program that will force you to upgrade to the latest and greatest. Not a bad idea to upgrade anyway, but something you should be aware of.
You’ll get as much usefullness out of a financial program as you put into it. It’s up to you on how detailed you want to track your transactions. The more detailed you get, the more unique ways you can generate reports telling you where and how you’re spending your money. This is, I think, the only con: once you start you must keep up with transactions, let it sit for a couple weeks and you won’t remember what that $9.48 charge was that the bank is showing.
The best thing about using a program to help manage funds is the online linkages you can make to your bank accounts, credit cards, loans, etc. All you do is activate the online service (usually free) and you can download all your recent transactions to match up receipts. And if you have several accounts, it’s also nice to be able to see everything in one place and run reports across accounts.
I say go for it.
References :
Quicken user.