Accounting software for clubs/partnerships

[flyingcheesehead]

Hi all,

I've managed a 30-member, 3-airplane club using QuickBooks Pro (desktop) in the past. I *was* using QuickBooks Self-Employed (online) for a two-person partnership, but finally got fed up with its limitations.

I was going to upgrade to a higher version of QuickBooks online, but... There is no direct upgrade path! I would have to completely start over! (Really, Intuit? That's pathetic!!!)

So, I'm wondering if anyone uses any of the alternatives. Xero, Zoho, etc? Any thoughts?

Specifically, I would like:

* Recurring invoices
* A/R, A/P, etc
* Online/mobile access for multiple users
* Easy to use, but not so much so as to be missing capability
* Ability to track things like depreciation, gallons of fuel purchased, etc.

Thanks in advance for any advice!

 

[AggieMike88]

Double check the documentation, but I think QB online will read any of the other QB backup files.

Maybe not direct, but a step to the right (and put your hands on your hips) will get you Time Warped into the new system.

 

[SkyDog58]

I would think a well designed Excel spreadsheet would be sufficient for the job.

 

[airdale]

For many years I was treasurer for a flying club a bit more than twice the size of yours. I happily used QB pro (Excel? Ack! NO!) in the club office and with a VPN & VNC remote desktop from my home. I also synched my club files to my home computer with DropBox. Statements were sent by email and payment was mostly by ACH.

I never considered the cloud version because (a) there was a completely unnecessary recurring cost and (b) I am not interested in trusting someone else with my data files, especially Intuit (which I consider to be a fairly slimy company).

Your requirements list includes multiple online users. Really? To me that would be a security/integrity issue. Read-only access would be ok, but the ability to mess with my books, no. I am curious about why you want that.

 

[flyingcheesehead]

Your requirements list includes multiple online users. Really? To me that would be a security/integrity issue. Read-only access would be ok, but the ability to mess with my books, no. I am curious about why you want that.

Two equal partners.

I do agree with Intuit being a slimy company. I've had a very long love-hate relationship with them. OK, mostly hate, but QuickBooks is still the de facto standard and they got there by being easier to use than the alternatives at the time they were on the rise.

Double check the documentation, but I think QB online will read any of the other QB backup files.

No "files" - I'm using the cheapest version of Online ("self-employed") and to upgrade from QB Online Self-Employed to QB Online Essentials can't be done the way you'd think. They said I'd need to export CSV files of individual transactions, cancel my subscription, open a new account with the version I want, and import the CSV files. Pretty ridiculous, IMO.

For now, based on online searching, I'm going to give Manager a try. The offline version (desktop app) is free, and I can just click a "Backup" button to make a copy of the file in our DropBox folder that my partner can open on his machine.

http://manager.io/

 

[Ravioli]

I'm the treasurer for a 2 plane, 14 member equity club. So.. 14 equal partners.

QB works for us. I am the only user and I publish financials each month. The CPA signs it off each year. (and if I have questions I ask how to record stuff)

It wasn't the question asked, but what's up with your partnership? minimal trust indicated. That aside, QB online and sharing the credentials could work.

[Note: for the online banking... multiple authorized users, NEVER share credentials]

 

[flyingcheesehead]

It wasn't the question asked, but what's up with your partnership? minimal trust indicated. That aside, QB online and sharing the credentials could work.

Not minimal trust, just maximum transparency.

Hopefully Manager works out. I hate giving Intuit money. It makes me feel dirty.