Quicken Deluxe 2016

[steelyman]

Whatever solution one chooses to use on the software side for tracking (in particular) their investments, discussions like in this thread point to the benefit of retaining (in paper form and/or digital) copies of the year-end statements that detail transactions.

Just in case you have to re-enter everything from scratch. Zombie apocalypse and that sort of thing.

 

[ejman]

I started using Quicken in 1991 - 28 years ago (wow)!

I did a few upgrades, but then stayed on the 2001 version until 2016! I switched for the investment uploads.

I am really not liking the annual subscription option, yet haven't seen great reviews for other products to switch to. I use TurboTax, but never transfer from Quicken.

I'll likely attempt the manual updates for awhile before deciding on the subscription (haven't gotten my notice yet, so still happily downloading).

Open to other suggestions as well if there are reasonable alternatives to Quicken.

When I was going thru the process of converting from Windows to Linux I explored a variety of native Linux alternatives to Quicken and finally settled on gnucash for the trial. I paralleled transactions in both for a few months (manual entry to both) and found gnucash works just fine once one gets used to its quirks but I found the reporting in Quicken (particularly the ability to customize reports) much easier in Quicken.


Although gnucash will import Quicken data, the massive file I have (all data from 1992 to present) in multiple accounts that I opened and closed over the years ( I had over 50 mutual funds at one point before I retired - I know crazy) resulted in so much cleaning up effort that I gave up.


What I ended up doing was starting gnucash with the balances and investment data as of a given date with only the accounts active at that start up date. From a practical stand point it worked fine but this also meant that I had to keep a copy of Quicken for historical reference since I find it quite valuable to be able to query the Quicken database. Questions like where did we stay when we went to that town @ the coast in 2012? are easy to answer with the Q database - Just query vacation expenses 2012 go down the list and there is the name of the hotel etc.

 

[PatrickA5]

Went ahead and upgraded to the subscription service for 2 years of Premier for $89. Not thrilled about doing that, but have been using Quicken for decades and am too old to learn a new one.

I had to call Quicken about a question on the upload (due to my stupidity). I'll give them high marks for promptness and ability to answer my question. Their customer service has improved since the last time I called (back when Intuit owned it). Overall, I think Quicken has improved since the sale.

 

[steelyman]

Went ahead and upgraded to the subscription service for 2 years of Premier for $89. Not thrilled about doing that, but have been using Quicken for decades and am too old to learn a new one.

That’s a better deal than I got, nothing stupid about that!

I’ll make a note to check if I’m on some auto-renewal and, if so, cancel (I’m in till mid-2020).

My mama told me you better shop around.

 

[BeanCounter62]

From a practical stand point it worked fine but this also meant that I had to keep a copy of Quicken for historical reference since I find it quite valuable to be able to query the Quicken database. Questions like where did we stay when we went to that town @ the coast in 2012? are easy to answer with the Q database - Just query vacation expenses 2012 go down the list and there is the name of the hotel etc.

I have done searches in Quicken for information like that was as well. I can see keeping a copy accessible for the history.

I probably don't really need the level of detail that I keep. But I'm a number cruncher and like having it. (And enjoy the process of keeping it. So maybe the annual subscription is just the price of my "hobby" of playing with the numbers)

 

[steelyman]

I keep learning new things in Quicken that I suppose are also possible with other personal finance software solutions.

A goal of mine for 2019 is to better use the tagging capability to track online purchases. The reason is to get a handle on “use tax” which is levied in both my present and former states, both of which provide tables/percentages based on income.

I’m not a super-frequent online purchaser (almost all are Amazon), so I’ll be curious to see/compare results come tax prep time in 2020. My Amazon purchases are automatically tagged as “online” already but my entries don’t split out sales taxes (if collected) from the price of the goods purchased.

 

[camfused]

I am going to stick with Quicken 2016, at least for now, but I did spend sometime looking at the YouTube tutorials for GnuCash, and I am somewhat impressed. If I were to switch, that would be at the front of my list to consider.

 

[steelyman]

I’ll make a note to check if I’m on some auto-renewal and, if so, cancel (I’m in till mid-2020).

Thread bennie: I WAS on an auto-renew plan, at a significantly higher (almost 30%) rate than I’m currently paying. How do you like them apples?

But now off auto-renew for me and we’ll see what price is dangled as expiration approaches.

 

[Hermit]

Went ahead and upgraded to the subscription service for 2 years of Premier for $89. Not thrilled about doing that, but have been using Quicken for decades and am too old to learn a new one.

I had to call Quicken about a question on the upload (due to my stupidity). I'll give them high marks for promptness and ability to answer my question. Their customer service has improved since the last time I called (back when Intuit owned it). Overall, I think Quicken has improved since the sale.

I'm tempted. It would be a great excuse to contribute to the "Blow That Dough" thread.

 

[Ozstache]

Quicken 2004 user here. While Windows 10 won't let me reopen the same Quicken data file in the same session (need to reboot), it otherwise works fine so I will keep using it until it doesn't.

 

[RockyMNHiker]

If some people here are having compatibility problems running very old versions of Quicken, why not try using Windows compatibility mode as follows:

Right-click on the Quicken launch icon>Properties>Compatibility>Checkbox for Compatibility Mode>{Pick one, such as XP}.

Good Luck. I'm running Q2011 with no issues and no sign of auto-termination from mother Intuit.

 

[Ozstache]

Right-click on the Quicken launch icon>Properties>Compatibility>Checkbox for Compatibility Mode>{Pick one, such as XP}.

I've tried them all and it makes no difference. At least my workaround to reboot between access of the same quicken file in the same session (which is pretty rare for me to do anyway) is an easy and reliable workaround.

 

[Philliefan33]

I just bought a two-year subscription to Quicken. I like the download functionality, it makes it very quick to reconcile my accounts. The time saved is well worth the price of the subscription for me.

 

[homestead]

We were running Quicken 2015 on mac last year and it glitched and we lost some data. Didn't want to trust it anymore or upgrade to the new subscription model so we switched to Moneyspire.
It imported all our old data and is working fine so far. They appear to come out
with an upgrade once a year for about $20 but so far we haven't upgraded.

 

[SumDay]

I resisted subscribing to Quicken, but I've used it for so long that I just can't justify starting over. I really do like it. I hate subscriptions, but will make an exception for this old friend.

Now, someone please tell me about Morningstar X-Ray within Quicken? I didn't even know I had that, and in looking around, I'm wondering if it's no longer available. I'm using the 2019 version. I Googled how to use it, and it says to go to Investing, then click on the Portfolio X-Ray tab. I don't have one.

Never mind, figured it out. I have Deluxe. I have to fork over more $$ and get Premier to access Morningstar X-Ray. Boo.

 

[steelyman]

Never mind, figured it out. I have Deluxe. I have to fork over more $$ and get Premier to access Morningstar X-Ray. Boo.

Unfortunately, that’s true. I don’t use it frequently but when I do it provides interesting information and break downs. One in particular is “stock intersection”, which gives you a summary of the actual stocks recently held in your funds.

You can also slice and dice by selecting a subset of your accounts (taxable vs retirement, for example, or only Vanguard).

I discovered I also have access to the Morningstar X-Ray tool through a 457 account I have at T. Rowe Price and it has more exhaustive capabilities than what I find in Quicken. But TRP doesn’t “know” all my investments like Quicken does so it would require creating a portfolio manually.

[ADDED] I checked recently and the single largest holding across all my retirement accounts is... Microsoft! Definitely was not before. Who’da guessed?

 

[sdfire]

We were running Quicken 2015 on mac last year and it glitched and we lost some data. Didn't want to trust it anymore or upgrade to the new subscription model so we switched to Moneyspire.
It imported all our old data and is working fine so far. They appear to come out
with an upgrade once a year for about $20 but so far we haven't upgraded.

How does Moneyspire do in tracking investment basis and trades. As I said above, I only use Quicken 3-4 times per year to quarterly download my transactions and to periodically check basis information to determine which lots to donate to charity or to sell. If it can do that reliably, then I will switch. I took a look at the reviews and they are mixed. But, I think the negative reviews all deal with banking and that is not my intended use. I think that I will try the free month and see if it works. I certainly like paying $30 once and then deciding in the future if I want to upgrade. So much better than Quicken’s new and old model.

By the way, a few days ago I decided to give in and buy a Quicken subscription because they were having a “sale.” But, when I got to the fine details I saw that the subscription would start immediately meaning that I throw away 2.5 months of use for my existing software. Sneaky guys. I really hope Moneyspire works!

 

[homestead]

How does Moneyspire do in tracking investment basis and trades. As I said above, I only use Quicken 3-4 times per year to quarterly download my transactions and to periodically check basis information to determine which lots to donate to charity or to sell. If it can do that reliably, then I will switch. I took a look at the reviews and they are mixed. But, I think the negative reviews all deal with banking and that is not my intended use. I think that I will try the free month and see if it works. I certainly like paying $30 once and then deciding in the future if I want to upgrade. So much better than Quicken’s new and old model.

By the way, a few days ago I decided to give in and buy a Quicken subscription because they were having a “sale.” But, when I got to the fine details I saw that the subscription would start immediately meaning that I throw away 2.5 months of use for my existing software. Sneaky guys. I really hope Moneyspire works!

Not sure, we only use Moneyspire for checking account but they advertise these type of accounts types: Bank, Credit card, Cash, Investment, Other asset, Other liability.
They have free download to try and youtube videos.

 

[sdfire]

Not sure, we only use Moneyspire for checking account but they advertise these type of accounts types: Bank, Credit card, Cash, Investment, Other asset, Other liability.
They have free download to try and youtube videos.

Well, I REALLY wanted Moneyspire to work. But, after spending a few hours trying to make it work, I couldn’t. I followed the manual (read the whole thing—see I told you I wanted this to work) and watched videos. But, when I export and import my Quicken files there are huge errors. I even tried to figure out the errors (some were based on any transaction over 1,000 shares being treated as 1.0 shares). The bottom line is that my primary interest is in tracking the basis of my investments. The program simply could not do that. I tried to reach someone at Moneyspire but couldn’t find a telephone number. I sent them an email asking for help. Crickets. So, I’m sad to say that my experiment is over. I’m not spending any more time on this. I still wish there were an alternative to Quicken!

 

[bobandsherry]

Well, I REALLY wanted Moneyspire to work. But, after spending a few hours trying to make it work, I couldn’t. I followed the manual (read the whole thing—see I told you I wanted this to work) and watched videos. But, when I export and import my Quicken files there are huge errors. I even tried to figure out the errors (some were based on any transaction over 1,000 shares being treated as 1.0 shares). The bottom line is that my primary interest is in tracking the basis of my investments. The program simply could not do that. I tried to reach someone at Moneyspire but couldn’t find a telephone number. I sent them an email asking for help. Crickets. So, I’m sad to say that my experiment is over. I’m not spending any more time on this. I still wish there were an alternative to Quicken!

You found some issue I did with converting from Quicken (did so several years ago as I looked for an alternative). I'm sure some people will just tell you to start fresh with Moneyspire. But for me it still left a void. You also found out there's something to be said for paying for Quicken, you do get support. Imagine if Moneyspire just quit working for whatever reason and you are left with a data file that you really can't do anything with. For $30 or so a year I'm willing to pay. As they say, penny wise and pound foolish.

 

[sdfire]

You found some issue I did with converting from Quicken (did so several years ago as I looked for an alternative). I'm sure some people will just tell you to start fresh with Moneyspire. But for me it still left a void. You also found out there's something to be said for paying for Quicken, you do get support. Imagine if Moneyspire just quit working for whatever reason and you are left with a data file that you really can't do anything with. For $30 or so a year I'm willing to pay. As they say, penny wise and pound foolish.

All true. But, it stinks that Quicken's product is so bad that it doesn't easily transfer files to other products like Moneyspire and the product you tried. Quicken is forcing me to continue using their product because I can't transfer the data from their product to another product. Kind of reminds me of the fact that they want to short me 2.5 months when I buy a new subscription.

 

[ejman]

How does Moneyspire do in tracking investment basis and trades. As I said above, I only use Quicken 3-4 times per year to quarterly download my transactions and to periodically check basis information to determine which lots to donate to charity or to sell. If it can do that reliably, then I will switch. I took a look at the reviews and they are mixed. But, I think the negative reviews all deal with banking and that is not my intended use. I think that I will try the free month and see if it works. I certainly like paying $30 once and then deciding in the future if I want to upgrade. So much better than Quicken’s new and old model.

By the way, a few days ago I decided to give in and buy a Quicken subscription because they were having a “sale.” But, when I got to the fine details I saw that the subscription would start immediately meaning that I throw away 2.5 months of use for my existing software. Sneaky guys. I really hope Moneyspire works!

How many transactions do you have in that 3-4 month period? If you are an active trader with hundreds - thousands? of trades in that period then sure an active Quicken subscription is the way to go, or maybe professional trading software would be an even better choice. If on the other hand, we are talking about a dozen or two transactions during that period... well, manual entry is really not so hard, even in this era of almost free electrons.

 

[bobandsherry]

All true. But, it stinks that Quicken's product is so bad that it doesn't easily transfer files to other products like Moneyspire and the product you tried.

Quicken has their format, you honestly can't be faulting Quicken for creating their own format, can you? It's up to others to handle conversion. Appears that Moneyspire falls short on that and support.

 

[sdfire]

How many transactions do you have in that 3-4 month period? If you are an active trader with hundreds - thousands? of trades in that period then sure an active Quicken subscription is the way to go, or maybe professional trading software would be an even better choice. If on the other hand, we are talking about a dozen or two transactions during that period... well, manual entry is really not so hard, even in this era of almost free electrons.

I don't have hundreds or thousands. Most of my transactions are monthly/ quarterly dividend reinvestment or similar. But, I have enough transactions that it would be a pain to enter them manually. Plus, I think I would find the lack of up to date valuations to be confusing.

 

[sdfire]

Quicken has their format, you honestly can't be faulting Quicken for creating their own format, can you? It's up to others to handle conversion. Appears that Moneyspire falls short on that and support.

Actually, I don't think it is asking too much to ask Quicken to make it possible to export a data file that works. Why do they have that function if it can't be used for anything. So, yes, I honestly expect them to provide something that works. Is there any other investment tracking product out there where I can import a Quicken file? If not, then they are effectively forcing people to stay.