Quicken Versus Money and How to Record Cash Transactions on Quicken (And You Can Win a Free Copy of Quicken Premier 2008!)

This giveaway is now closed. See my comment below for winner.

On my last post giving away a free copy of Quicken Premier 2008, I had a couple questions I thought I'd address. Here's the first one:

I've used Microsoft Money for years. Have you ever used it? How does Quicken compare? Comments from anyone requested.

I tried out Money several years ago when I got it for free with a new computer purchase. The data transfer from Quicken was a but quirky (not all the data made it through) but I used Money for about a month before switching back to Quicken. I'm not sure one of them is better than the other (most reviews I've read have them neck and neck), but I just liked Quicken better. I was used to it, knew how things worked, and so on. And I've stuck with it ever since.

Here's the second question:

Do you have a threshold for cash transactions? I used to even track $1.50 soda or coffee purchases in my cash account, but I found it tedious and it didn't really yield much usable data. Do you find that tracking <$5.00 transactions produces usable data?

Here's how I track cash expenditure (which I don't have many of):

1. Every day, I review the day mentally and think of all the cash transactions I had. If it's a "big" day, I'll have two. Usually, I have none.

2. I make an estimate of what I spent that day (I don't worry about getting exactly $1.79 recorded, $2 is close enough for this purpose), assign it to a category (food, clothing, etc.), and record it in my PDA.

3. I do this every do throughout the month, keeping a running tally of what I've spent in various categories.

4. At the end of the month, I record all my spending for the various categories in one transaction in Quicken.

My wife has a similar method, but since she has more cash transactions, she actually writes hers down as they occur. She has a little notebook in her purse for just this purpose.

Now, on to a giveaway!

I have four copies left of Quicken Premier 2008 that I'll be giving away over the next four weeks. Here's how you can have a chance to win the giveaway this week:

1. Leave a comment below -- any comment.

2. Sometime in the next week, I'll stop by the post, stop the submissions, and name the winner.

3. It will be that person's responsibility to check back to see if they are a winner and then email me their contact information.

4. I'll send the winner a link to download a free copy of Quicken Premier 2008.

A few rules for these giveaways:

1. You can not win more than one prize.

2. I will be the complete and final judge.

3. Legal disclaimer: I can not guarantee safe delivery of the items. I'll send the prizes via email and since they come from Quicken, they should be fine, but since I can't control the links I won't be held accountable if there's a mess up.

4. If you win something and do not contact me within a week of winning, I reserve the right to give your prize away to another winner. Note again: I won't track down the winners -- it's your responsibility to come back and see if you won.

5. Local laws, rules, and regulations apply.

Good luck! Post a comment below for your chance to win!

Comments

[GeekMan]

Man, I keep trying but have yet to get anything. Maybe this is my lucky day?

[Jared]

Alms for the poor?

[Chaim]

I would like a free copy of Quicken 2008

[JB]

Pick me! Pick me! :-)

[Eric Stephane]

Let me win that Quicken 2008!!!

[Jeff]

Pretty please

[Maggie]

I love MS Money, but I'd be thrilled to give Quicken a try!

[Arun]

Trying again. Thanks.

[BenC]

My wife is a Quicken fanatic and has been using it since Quicken 98. She's now using 2004 and records most, if not all of our transactions in it. We both use our debit cards extensively and rarely take out cash. If we do, she records just the debit from the account, but not what the cash was used on. Having receipts for all our purchases also helps in reconciling our accounts.

[Phil M]

Well, here's a comment to win a new version of Quicken!

[Stuart]

I currently use Quicken 2007 and love it. Perhaps 2008 will be even better?

[GLM]

One for me please!

[GLM]

One for me please!

[David]

Been using Quicken for many years. Would be a disaster if lost data so very careful to keep backups. Tried Money a few times but always come back to Quicken.

[Internyet]

I can has Quicken 2008?

[steve]

Great site, thanks for the giveaway

[buhler]

Would love to have the opportunity to upgrade.

[Daisy]

I'm in! Again!

[Andy]

Regarding tracking cash in Quicken, here's how I do it:

I created a separate cash account called "Wallet" to track my cash on hand. An ATM withdrawal takes money out of my checking account and puts it in my wallet, so in Quicken it is simply tracked as a transfer from my Checking account to my Wallet account, not an amorphous expenditure. I then track the bills that are in my wallet, with any loose change coming out in the wash (figuratively, though sometimes literally!). The key, though, is that when spending cash I try to use up the coins in my pocket first.

So if I withdraw $20 from an ATM, then I transfer $20 from Checking to Wallet. If I spend $2.50 of that, that actually leaves me with $17 in my wallet (and 50 cents in my pocket), so I stick the receipt in my wallet and later record it as a $3 expenditure from the Wallet account. If I later want to buy something for $1.50, I can cover the 50 cents with the coins in my pocket so I only have to take $1 from my wallet, thus getting recorded as a $1 expenditure from the Wallet account and accurately leaving me with $16 in the Wallet account.

I find that this:
* Gives me adequate insight into small expenditures without becoming an undue accounting burden;
* Encourages me to be slightly more efficient with cash expenditures (ever notice how something priced at $9.10 often ends up costing you $10.00, since you may not have a dime handy and the change gets misplaced?)
* Subtly provides a small disincentive to take dollars out of my wallet (since I know I'll be accountable to myself when I fire up Quicken, it becomes sort of a weird mind game to keep the dollars in there).

None of this is particularly earth-shattering, but it's the "small leaks," y'know?

-- Andy

(And I'd also appreciate the opportunity to upgrade to Quicken 2008 - thanks!)

[Fred]

Hello again, sweet lady luck!

[C. Diane Hawkins]

I have never used either products, Quicken or Money - I tried on a few occasions when one or the other was installed on a new computer purchase to check out the products, but soon became frustrated trying to tie in my financial accounts. If I didn't think it was a time waster, I would probably have to take some training to learn just what is the draw to these financial software packages.

Thanks for you column. I really enjoy them.

[BradM]

Quicken Premier 2008! I wouldn't mind having that!

[Devona]

I would love to try out Quicken to track my financial portfolio instead of relying on my online accounts. Thanks for the opportunity!

[Jim]

I've been using Money for a while now. It's now an older version, and I would love to switch to Quicken 2008.

[Edmund]

Thanks again

[Hal @ IN]

Meep.

[ryan]

throw me in the running.

[Ashok Patel]

I have been using Quicken from DOS days. Present got 2004 deluxe. Would love to win a free 2008 version. May be to day is my lucky day to win quicken 2008.

[Tim]

I've been using Money for a few years, but want to try Quicken!

[Tim]

I've been using Money for a few years, but want to try Quicken!

[CoolHappyGuy]

I have been using Quicken since Quicken '98. I upgraded a couple of years ago to Quicken 2003. I would love to upgrade (for free, of course) to 2008. I am intrigued by the "new" (for me) feature that enables the user to attach a scanned receipt to the recorded transaction.

If I didn't win, I probably wouldn't upgrade until I have to.

[Pat]

woot!

[Kevin]

I don't keep a separate "cash" account register in Quicken. Whenever I withdraw from the ATM, I usually just guess where the money will go and record it as such. Most of the time it is for food, coffee, etc so it all goes to "dining out". Of course, I rarely use cash since I get 3% rewards on my new Chase Freedom card.

Oh, by the way, enter me in for an upgrade!

[Jim D]

I love using Quicken, would love to try the Premier Version.

[BOB]

Have used Quicken for years. Upgrade about ever other year. Would like for it to be a little more retirement friendly. SS income 401 K withdrawals etc.
Would like to have the free copy.

[Rick Claspy]

The standard of success in life isn't the things. It isn't the money or the stuff. It is absolutely the amount of joy that you feel.
freemoneyfinance.com brings me much Joy. Thank you.

[Daniel]

Well I didn't win last time, but I got my question answered (and quoted!) That's pretty cool. Maybe I'll get a copy of Quicken this time.

[little rick]

try try again..this would be a great help..

[Justin]

Cents.

[Jonathan C]

Currently I keep track of my finances with a cumbersome spreadsheet. I don't know a whole lot about accounting, but pick up what I can from reading various PF blogs. I think I could learn a lot by using Quicken, and have a better integrated system for organizing life. With 3 young kids 16-months apart, I don't have a whole lot of time as it is!

Thanks,
Jonathan

[Joe]

Count me in ....again

[Anitra]

I don't worry about classifying the small cash expenditures.

My husband and I each have an "allowance" (fun money) category in Quicken, and most of our cash ends up classified that way. Occasionally, I use a cash-only produce stand, or we go out to dinner with friends and have to produce cash for the bill; in those cases, the money is usually enough to justify going in and adjusting the values in Quicken.

Our Quicken is a couple of years old, so it would be great to upgrade.

[Belandrew]

I estimate my cash transactions but I do keep track of them all. I don't have them very often so it's not hard to do. I found that trying to be exact simply wasn't worth the effort. though.

[Andy2]

I try to track everything to the penny. I carry around a notecard during the day to record whatever I spend, cash or debit. I just like knowing exactly where my money goes (and I don't have much and don't spend much, so it isn't that much trouble).

[Brad]

I'm in.

[Daniel Fischer]

Oh, this would be amazing -- I've been trying to figure out a great way to track my expenses. Im trying to get in the habbit at a young age (18) right now. This copy would definitely help my finances and set in a good pattern for life; thanks for the opportunity!

[Rich]

Hey, great blog and great posts. I've been a Money user for several years, but after getting burned on a rebate offer I'm ready to switch.

[Armel]

I could really use this...trying again, Thanks!

[widget]

I haven't had a checkbook register since my Apple Newton MessagePad 2100 days, circa 1996. While the MP2100 has gone by the wayside, I continue to keep an electronic register. The calculations are right-on, and you'll know immediately when an entry is incorrect. No separate calculator required.

Back then, I used PocketMoney and Bills To Pay as a budgeting companion. The two applications worked well together, and has always come through for me. Today, I have a Palm T|X and Money (ultrasoft.com), which synchronizes with the desktop version of MS Money. I'm using the 2005 version since I'm too lazy to upgrade. I use Money because I have several requirements. First, I need a desktop finance app that will handle personal finance well. Second, I need a Palm app that will sync with the desktop version. At first glance, Money or Quicken will fill the bill, as both desktop versions have their associated Palm versions. However, consider my third requirement. Two separate Palm apps must sync with the same desktop app so that me and my wife will always have each others transactions. This way, our finances are always in sync! To date, I don't know of any other Palm/desktop application combo that will do this reliably, and it's the reason I've stayed with MS Money. If I'm mistaken, then please let me know.

Thanks!

-R

[Gregrey]

Great website!!!!