Trying to decide.. QB Pro or...?

[OfflineGal]

Hello all,

Great to find such a helpful community!

I'm deciding between QuickBooks, Quickbooks Pro and PeachTree.

My situation:

Just getting started with going legit on my self run side business which is: freelance graphic design and gift sales. Which leads to my concern over choosing the right software.

My background includes 2 classes worth of accounting at the university level in which we had to keep a fictitious business' books by hand. I am also quite familiar with computer processes.

What I will need to do:

-I will be producing my own t-shirts for my store soon but they will be done on demand so my inventory will largely consist of "blanks", ink, paper, some equipment.

-I will be occasionally traveling to conventions to sell shirts about 4 times a year.

-I will be providing t-shirts wholesale.

-I will be taking on graphic design projects.

Any help is appreciated! I am just going legit with my business/es and want to start off on the right foot.

[hartford]

Hi OfflineGal

1. Well I think you need to keep things simple on the accounting side initially and devote most of your energies to customers.
2. Keep away from Peachtree we are biased here!
3. If the price difference between QB & QB Pro does not bother you go for Pro because as you get bigger you may want some of the Pro features.
4. Don't overlook or dismiss handwritten books or on say Excel. Actually forget that they are a pain!
5. You'll find QB quite time consuming in set up and initially but its like anything new and as you get bigger you'll appreciate its features.
6. You can set up stock control and link it to invoicing and when you get the hang of it its great as is QB in keeping track of your accounts receivable & bank balance & profit.
7. There's lots of other bits to master so you'll often feel left footed.
8. The other Forum QB Pro is good if you really get stuck but look out for other users in your area who always seem willing to help out.
Good luck

[plg]

You didn't mention a budget. If it's tight you can get OneWrite Plus for under $ 100. Do everything QB will, plus they don't force you to buy tax updates, etc.

Also consider Quicken Hame & Business and MS Money Deluxe & Business. Quite a few crafters use these two with no problems.

If you think you will every be assembling items, taking 2 or more pieces and putting together for a single sales item, get MYOB, it handles the raw materials / work in process / finished goods routine, which QB doesn't.

Forget Peachtree. Biggest need for QB Pro is if you're doing estimates. I'd love to have the (probably hundreds) of thousands of Dollars wasted by folks buying Pro who have never used anything they would not have gotten with plain QB.

[OfflineGal]

Thank you both for the responses!

I ended up biting the bullet and getting QuickBooks Pro, it seems to be the unanimous answer to what people are using in a trade discussion group I frequent, also I found a price a little bit cheaper than what I had thought I'd have to pay so it didn't seem too bad.

As for the slow start, I hope to get a handle on it without asking too many questions here and then maybe one day I'll be able to answer other poster's questions :)

[Amey]

I also have been doing some research into what software program would work best since I am planning on starting a small bookkeeping service. It sounds like your accounting training was along the same lines as mine. (One qtr at a community college) At any rate, I thought that since it has been several months since your initial inquiry that you would have acquired a little experience by now with both the software that you chose and your business.

Can you pass on a little helpful advice about both?

Thanks in advance.