Nobody wants to spend tax time under a mountain of receipts and invoices. Put the calculator away and close your Excel spreadsheet – QuickBooks Online makes running a business easy.
What Is QuickBooks?
QuickBooks is a software designed to make running a small to medium business more efficient and convenient. It can be used to accomplish many tasks that businesses need to do each day, such as sending an invoice to a customer, paying your own business bills and even generate reports so you can check how you’re performing.
Yet, the overarching function of QuickBooks is to help businesses prepare for tax time and make lodging a return easier. QuickBooks is recognised and approved by HMRC and used by the best UK accountancy firms because it is so effective.
A Full List of QuickBooks’ Features
QuickBooks has a reputation for being a saviour when it comes to tax time (more on this soon!) but there is a range of things it can do for your business:
- Monitor invoices
- Create customer invoices
- Track your business expenses
- Mileage tracking
- Generate reports (this is especially useful right now during COVID-19 as it can help businesses plan for financial instability and make the right decisions)
- Produce profit/loss reports
- Track Inventory
- Execute payroll tasks
How to Use QuickBooks
If you want to use QuickBooks, the first decision you have to make is between the desktop version or the online version. The latter is downloaded to your computer for a one-off fee while QuickBooks online is a monthly paid-for service that is based in the cloud.
Most small businesses use QuickBooks to create invoices and keep up to date with general financial affairs by generating reports and balance sheets. All of these QuickBooks’s features are easy to use with just a few clicks of a button. Simple guides and explanations are available for users, but most people pick it up very quickly.
The technology can be integrated with your business bank account and will categorise payments automatically based on previous behaviours. If you have physical receipts, you can use the QuickBooks app to scan them and upload more information to your account. You can manually add (cash) transactions as well if needed.
How Much Is QuickBooks Online?
QuickBooks Online can be purchased in one of three different packages, namely the Simple Start Package, Essential Package or the Plus Package. These packages include different features and extras. The one best for you will depend on specific circumstances, such as if you receive money in foreign currencies (not supported in the Simple Start Package) or how many users need to access the account (the Plus Package can have up to five users).
At the time of writing, there is a 60% discount on QuickBooks UK and such discounts do keep reappearing. The usual prices for the packages are £12, £20 or £30. Each is a subscription based on a six-month period. Payroll services usually need to be purchased as an extra to any package, costing £4 or £8 per month depending on your needs.
The Benefits of Using QuickBooks
Small and medium-sized businesses across the UK are choosing to use QuickBooks. They are doing so because:
- It saves time and business efficiency
- Refocuses energy into pressing non-accounting matters
- Offers analysis of business performance in seconds
- Helps businesses make the right decisions
- It reduces stress and worry when you need to file taxes
Additional Benefits if You Use an Accountant
QuickBooks is arguably the most impressive accounting technology created for small businesses. It is meticulous, accurate, and most importantly, it is useful. But does QuickBooks put your accountant out of a job? No – and here’s why.
Anyone can use QuickBooks. It makes preparing your tax affairs effortless. What it does not offer is expertise on UK tax laws and how to apply your financial data into a return. It may be able to replace a bookkeeper – but it will not replace the need for a qualified accountant.
Some of the best UK accountants are proficient in QuickBooks and use it frequently. You can even give your own accountant access to your QuickBooks account to file your tax return. This makes tax time easier for all parties.
Yorkshire Accountancy is a QuickBooks partner and ready to help sole traders and small businesses.
Contact our team for more information or to get in touch with one of our Quickbooks Accountants!
