QUICKBOOKS: to buy software or pay per month online?

[sbelectric]

Running a small electrician's business and self employed with helper from time to time. Looking for software that will keep track of expenses, invoices to clients, taxes, vendor's statements & etc. I'm on the road most of time and have very little time to do my own but can find someone to do it for me like a virtual assistant or bookkeeper? I'd love to be able to have access to my vendor's price list and invoices to my clients from my cell phone. Would love something to use my cell phone to have access to my overall activities. If I buy the program would I have that option or would I have to sign up for an online account & pay a monthly fee? What advice can you give me?

[vangogh]

I think with Quickbooks, the ability to look up your invoices and price list is part of their monthly service package. You wouldn't lose the information if you buy the software once, but the connection online where you'll be able to look up that information is part of the monthly service. If you only buy the program then you still keep all your information, but it will only be located on the computer where you install the software.

[Brian Altenhofel]

The easiest way to do what you want to do is the online version. The desktop version does not allow the access that you're wanting (as far as I know) without using something like Remote Desktop. The Enterprise Server version can, though you're likely getting into having something custom built for that (I have clients whose websites pull their product information from QBES, though most only use it for pushing data from their website).

The online version is also continuously getting new features, while with the desktop version you have to wait until the next retail release. The online version may cost a little more, but I consider it worth it.

[Tena]

For your type of business go with QuickBooks Online. I use both the desktop version, the online version and the Enterprise along with other varied type of software. Another option for you is Xero, its also online and I believe would fit your needs.

[Keepbooking]

Hi sbelectric,

I just came across your post. I think that QuickBooks Online is a great choice. It's really simple to use and you can download an app to your smart phone, giving you access to the cloud based software. Also, something cool about it is that you can send invoices out to your clients and they can pay via credit card or ACH with a button included in the emailed invoice. You can also take payments on site using a credit card swiper, if preferred.

There is a monthly fee for QuickBooks Online, there are 3 different pricing tiers. You would probably benefit from the lowest tier, I would have to learn a little more about your business to confirm that. Also, to accept credit cards you can opt-in for the no monthly fee, but you get a slightly higher transaction processing rate. So, it depends on how much revenue you'd anticipate to take in via card swipes. There is simple break-even analysis that could be done to determine the best route to take.

If you have any additional questions, feel free to ask. My services offered are that of the virtual bookkeeping/finance referenced in your post. You can check out my website for additional details or post additional details in this thread. I enjoy helping.