QuickBooks for Mac vs Windows
From Patrick Bonnaure, founder of ProLedge Bookkeeping Services
The debate between Mac and Windows is getting almost as polarized as our beloved Congress. Until recently, the bookkeeping world had managed to remain relatively immune to this debate, but with the increased market share of the Mac in the small business space, the question of QuickBooks for Windows vs QuickBooks for Mac has started taking more prominence.
Enjoy quick access to QuickBooks straight from your desktop (or dock), with additional features designed for PC or Mac users! Use multiple windows, keyboard shortcuts and menus to speed through common tasks and workflows. Enjoy quick access to QuickBooks straight from your desktop (or dock), with additional features designed for PC or Mac users! Use multiple windows, keyboard shortcuts and menus to speed through common tasks and workflows. Compare Intuit QuickBooks Mac 2021 vs QuickBooks Mac 2020, 2019 and 2018, to learn about new features and benefits for small business accounting software for Mac.
At first glance, it should not be an issue: “If you are a Windows person, get QuickBooks for Windows. If you are a Mac person, get QuickBooks for Mac”. Unfortunately, it is more complicated than this. For the foreseeable future, selecting QuickBooks for Mac will handcuff you in several ways:
- QuickBooks for Mac has fewer features than the Windows versions
- The vast majority of CPAs and bookkeepers do not support QuickBooks for Mac
- Converting QuickBooks file back and forth between Mac and Windows doesn’t work well and can corrupt the data.
- QuickBooks for Mac doesn’t interface with as many 3rd party applications
I’ll expand a little bit on these items below, but if you own a Mac, your logical next question would be: “I am stuck then?”. Of course not. You have a number of options that will keep you in the QuickBooks world without having to switch to a PC:
- Accept the limitations of QuickBooks for Mac and stick with it. This is a very viable solution if you are a very small business, you don’t need 3rd party help and you have limited need for integration with 3rd party applications.
- Switch to QuickBooks Online, the web based version of QuickBooks
- Work with a QuickBooks hosting provider. From your Mac, you will get access to the full featured QuickBooks for Windows.
Intuit is traditionally a Windows shop. They have had Mac developers for a long time, but the Mac development group is not tasked with feature innovation. Their charter is to “keep up” with QuickBooks for Windows. I am sure that many people with Intuit would violently disagree with this, but it is the unfortunate reality. Some examples:
- QuickBooks for Mac doesn’t have Premier and Enterprise versions. It has fewer features than even the Pro version of Windows.
- Fewer reports
- Fewer payroll options
- Limited inventory capabilities
- Online banking not as well integrated
CPAs and bookkeepers need to maintain their own licenses of QuickBooks to support their clients. The whole accounting profession is pretty much standardized on the Windows platform. It would be too expensive for them to maintain a park of Mac hardware and QuickBooks for Mac licenses (across multiple years) to support Mac files.
Both the Windows and Mac versions of QuickBooks have the capability to convert the company file to the other OS. However, since the feature set is different, the converted file needs to restrict itself to the common denominator. As a result, some data doesn’t transfer from one version to the other. Also, to Intuit’s own admission, the conversion is not dependable. For instance, if you convert more than a couple of times back and forth, reconciliations of the bank accounts tend to disappear. Essentially, this conversion tool should be used only if you decide to migrate from one OS to the other for good, but it should not be used as a protocol to work with your bookkeeper or CPA on an on-going basis.
In the last 5 years, the power of QuickBooks (and its dominance) has increased dramatically thanks to the myriad of 3rd party developers who have developed applications and services that integrate with QuickBooks. Unfortunately, the vast majority of this development effort has been done exclusively for the Windows version of QuickBooks. If you are on the QuickBooks for Mac, you only have access to a small subset of these developers. 5 to 10 years from now, I wouldn’t be surprised if there wasa bit more equality, assuming of course that the desktop version of QuickBooks hasn’t been supplanted by the cloud versions by then. However, as of today, QuickBooks for Mac is more “insulated”.
In summary, QuickBooks for Mac can be a very good option for you if your needs are relatively simple and you don’t need as much integration with the outside world (professionals and applications). The good news is that QuickBooks for Mac is not a dead-end. If QuickBooks for Mac becomes too restrictive for you down the road, there are multiple options for migrating to alternative solutions.
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Follow via FacebookFollow via LinkedinFollow via TwitterMENUQuickBooks Desktop is powerful on-premises accounting software that can be installed on computers. It bundles tools for simplifying accounting for businesses by organizing data in a way that can easily be processed and analyzed. QuickBooks Desktop even offers industry-specific solutions and advanced reporting and security features depending upon the versions that clients are using. Intuit has developed QuickBooks for Mac as well as products for the PC to cater to the needs of the users of two of the most widely used operating systems. While QuickBooks for Mac shares many features with its PC counterparts, they aren’t identical.
What You Can Do on QuickBooks Desktop?
QuickBooks Desktop is much more than a simple accounting software for organizing business finances. It simplifies bookkeeping by automating many of the regular tasks like tracking cashflow and entering transactions detailing income and expenses. It also provides advanced methods to generate reports and invoices, track time, mileage, and purchase orders and reconcile bank and credit card accounts. It is features like these that make QuickBooks Desktop an ideal software for small and medium-sized business owners.
Quickbooks For Mac Desktop
QuickBooks for Mac vs QuickBooks Desktop for PC
QuickBooks offers two versions for desktop users namely QuickBooks Desktop Pro and QuickBooks Desktop Premier. QuickBooks Desktop for Mac is comparable to QuickBooks Desktop Pro but is optimized for the Mac platform. It can be integrated with software like Apple Numbers v3.5 as well as Microsoft Excel 2016 or later versions along with Mac Office 365. Additionally, it seamlessly integrates with Apple Mail and iCloud for collaborating with other MacBooks which cannot be done using the PC products.
Other differences are centered around user interfaces, presentations, and navigation structure. The layouts and widgets on QuickBooks for Mac are customized for simplifying operations on the Mac. Users on the Mojave Operating System can use the Dark Mode on QuickBooks for Mac 2020.
Drawbacks of QuickBooks for Mac
QuickBooks for Mac is still available in only one version. This is in stark contrast with the Windows product as well as QuickBooks Online which have at least 3 versions each to cater to the requirements of businesses of different sizes.
The second drawback of QuickBooks Desktop for Mac is the fact that it cannot be accessed from mobiles and tablets in its native form. This means users can only access the software from their Macs, something that is not ideal for accountants who may have to operate on the move.
The third major drawback of using QuickBooks for Mac is the versioning issue. Apple releases a new version of its OS almost every year. Similarly, Intuit also upgrades QuickBooks every year with new features. While the latest version of the Mac OS is available for download at no additional cost, the same is not true for QuickBooks Desktop for Mac. Needless to say, there are high chances of compatibility issues that could take time to resolve apart from the unavailability of the latest features.
Why Hosted QuickBooks is the Ideal Solution for Mac Users?
Quickbooks For Macbook Pro
Hosted QuickBooks gives Mac users unparalleled flexibility. It combines the mobility of QuickBooks Online with the capabilities of QuickBooks Desktop. Using hosted QuickBooks empowers companies with the option of using the more powerful versions like QuickBooks Enterprise and QuickBooks Desktop Premier. This will not only give access to the QuickBooks suite to more than 3 users that are allowed on QuickBooks Desktop for Mac but also give provides more features. QuickBooks Enterprise, for example, can track inventory much more easily with its Advanced Inventory portal. Likewise, QuickBooks Desktop Premier has more powerful reporting tools that can help businesses operate with more detailed data.
Do You Use QuickBooks on Mac? Go for Cloud Hosting
Mac users prefer to use systems made by Apple Inc. for many reasons, ranging from their robustness to their aesthetic appeal. The biggest strength of the Mac, its Operating System macOS, also turns out to be its greatest pitfall when it comes to using third-party software. While QuickBooks for Mac is a powerful software that can more than fulfilling the accounting needs of small and medium businesses, it is limited by the lack of integration options due to the nature of the operating system. Moreover, users are stuck with the single option available for the Mac and will have to continue using it until they upgrade.
Hosted QuickBooks is a better choice for Mac users. They get far greater flexibility in adapting to the changing business scenario with the ‘pay-as-you-go’ model of hosted versions. Many more compatible third-party apps can be installed and integrated with their preferred QuickBooks version on the same desktop. Versioning issues will be better handled with hosted services offering support for older QuickBooks versions as well. Most importantly, hosted QuickBooks works just like the physical desktop on all devices including Macs, phones, and tablets.
Quickbooks For Mac 20
To know more about hosted QuickBooks, feel free to contact our Apps4Rent experts now!