2012 Review of QuickBooks Premier Nonprofit Edition

Intuit Inc. — QuickBooks Premier Nonprofit Edition
866-379-6636
www.quickbooks.com

From the Nov. 2012 Review of Nonprofit Accounting Systems.

Best Fit: QuickBooks is ideally designed for the smaller nonprofit organization that is looking for a solid accounting nonprofit solution, good reporting capability with limited expense. QuickBooks Premier Nonprofit offers small nonprofits affordable access to the power of QuickBooks along with an industry specific chart of accounts designed for nonprofit organizations.

Strengths

• Quick installation and affordability’
• Extensive list of add on products available
• Long list of e-features
• Excellent training and tutorials available for new users
• Numerous user-defined fields available

Potential Limitations

• Limited fund accounting capability
• Users may outgrow product

BASIC SYSTEM FUNCTIONS: 4.5 Stars
QuickBooks product installation continues to be problem free, and typically taking only minutes. The user interface offers navigational areas that are divided into specific categories. Users also have the option to choose a less crowded user interface by simply customizing screen display options during setup, then utilizing the drop-down menubar at the top of the screen.

Data entry screens remain consistent throughout QuickBooks, with easy navigation and all the requisite lookup fields available. QuickBooks makes it easy for new users to learn the system by providing a solid selection of product tutorials and system setup wizards.

QuickBooks is a complete financial system with all major accounting functions found in their product, including GL, AP, AR, and PR functionality. The nonprofit premier edition of QuickBooks also includes Nonprofit, Company, Customer, Vendor, Employer, Document Management, Online Banking, and the QuickBooks Report Center.

A long line of add-ons are available that will easily integrate with QuickBooks products including a full Payroll service and Credit Card processing. More scalable than in the past, QuickBooks has expanded its maximum number of users to 30 in the Enterprise edition of the product, allowing more small businesses and organization the ability to grow with the product.

CORE NFP/FUND ACCOUNTING CAPABILITIES: 4 Stars
QuickBooks users can choose to utilize the default chart of accounts or opt to use the United Way chart of accounts that is included with the nonprofit version of the product. While true fund accounting options are missing from the QuickBooks nonprofit edition, users have the option of creating separate funds by utilizing classes.

Multiple transaction types can be processed in QuickBooks and features such as the ability to process memorized transactions and process multiple invoices simultaneously cut down on data entry time tremendously. QuickBooks allows users to create a separate budget for each account.

In order to track multiple programs or grants, users will need to set up separate classes with the ability to set up a separate budget for each class. Donor details are managed in the Customer Center with users able to easily track donation and other details. Choose to add additional customer types to track various donor activities as needed.

QuickBooks does not offer a grant management function, but grant details can be entered into QuickBooks as a customer or job, with all relevant transactions tracked as needed. QuickBooks also offers excellent audit trail functionality, with management easily able to view all transactions entered into the system, or can opt to run the comprehensive audit management report.

QuickBooks also offers an excellent selection of e-features including the ability to accept and make payments electronically, email invoices and statements to vendors and donors, and users can choose to access QuickBooks remotely by using the optional QuickBooks hosting service.