Software Guide: Intuit QuickBooks

Intro

Intuit launched QuickBooks Online in 2001, well ahead of its time and more as an experiment than a competitor to its desktop accounting software which dominated the US market. 

Intuit didn’t invest heavily in developing QuickBooks Online until 2011 when browser-based alternatives began emerging. Now rebadged as QuickBooks, the online accounting software represents the majority of sales and revenue. It has also spearheaded Intuit’s expansion beyond the US into the UK, Europe, Australia, South Africa and the Asia Pacific.

QuickBooks is a full featured cloud accounting program that benefits from Intuit’s associated interests in finance, small business lending, and banking integrations. It has strong bank feeds that speed up reconciliation and in the US also offers low-cost business loans within the accounting software. 

Highlights

• Strong user interface that makes it easy to ste up and use
• Very broad list of integrations with third-party apps and services
• Reliable bank feeds with many financial institutions 
• Accurate transaction matching for faster bank reconciliation  
• Browser-based interface is accessible from any computer or device
• Intuit offers low-cost, pre-approved business loans through the same interface (US users only)

Limitations

• Fewer customisation options for purchase orders and invoices compared to desktop version QuickBooks Enterprise
• Fewer custom reports compared to desktop version QuickBooks Enterprise
• The permissions module is lightweight eg. A project manager can’t see the expenses on the projects they manage
• Slow to load using Chrome browser when processing large data sets eg. high numbers of invoices. Other browsers (eg. Safari) may load faster
• Limited options for bulk editing transactions, invoices, etc.  

List of Modules

Accounting 

• Track income and expenses
• Send invoices and quotes
• Snap and store receipts
• Track kilometres
• Connect your bank
• Track GST and lodge BAS
• Insights and reports
• Cash flow planner
• Manage suppliers and bills
• Multi-currency
• Set up recurring transactions
• Track inventory
• Track projects and locations
• Manage budgets

Acquisitions

2010 - Cha-Ching - personal finance management 

2011 - Mobile Money Ventures - mobile finance 

2012 - Demandforce - marketing automation

2013 - Good April - tax planning

2013 - Level Up Analytics - data consulting

2013 - Full Slate - appointment scheduling

2014 - Invitco - bill processing

2014 - Check - bill payment

2014 - Acrede - payroll

2015 - Playbook HR - human resources

2017 - Bankstream - bank integrations

2017 - TSheets - timesheet management

2020 - Credit Karma - credit scoring 

2020 - TradeGecko - inventory management

2021 - MailChimp - marketing automation