I have opened (very)small business (but working full time as well) i have an outside company completing payroll for now until i have time to research state/federal tax laws for the 1 employee. I am looking at completed AP/AR however since I have some background. What is best software to utilize ? I looked at quick books for contractors (painting co) and it looks good for my purposes but do I buy software or do I use the online version with monthly fee? any advice? Thanks much!
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Thank you all- because it is a Really small business start up, and a firm is handling the payroll/taxes end, my hope is that I can manage this work (unpaid for now) until it gets more revenue or I get to retire from my full time position (budget person). I really just wanted to see pros/cons on whether the newer online acct software (monthly fees) was more cost effective over next couple years versus purchasing software for download but having to upgrade every couple of years. This definitely helps my decision making. Thank you all for your great advice, tips and experience!
Thank you for taking the time to respond. We really appreciate it and it provides good analysis!
My wife and I had a small business for 11 years and used QuickBooks. We used it to run the entire business (accounting, taxes, payroll) and it worked well. Only issue is that about every two years they force you to upgrade (your payroll will stop working if you get too far out of date). Thus, you need to figure those upgrades into your costs - and the relative hassle of the upgrade (the upgrades always broke the system for a day or so). With the cloud version you do not have to worry about that.
Which direction you head depends upon your support infrastructure and how consistent your internet connection is. If you will have a server and/or sufficient support mechanisms (backups, etc)... then buying the software might be the right choice (plus if you internet connection is slow or not consistent having it onsite is the right move). If, on the other hand, you do not wish to maintain the infrastructure and have good connections the online version would be the right one.
Also - a few tips: 1) customize your invoices with your logo. It is simple and provides a nice professional look to your company 2) try to take a class on the software. There is much it can do although enough training up front will save you much time later on.
Good luck.
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