How to use Quickbooks without printing checks?

Question

I want to use Quickbooks for bookkeeping. I don't want to print checks with it. I like writing my own checks. How can I input checks into the program without having to enter bank account information? I want to enter my expenses and sales. I need a program that allows me to print reports for my accountant. Is there a good guide to quickbooks out there that would show me how to do this? or would another program suit my needs better?

thanks

Answer 1

You can absolutely write out checks by hand and still use Quickbooks.

What you will do is use the Write Checks feature.  You will manually enter the check number, date, who it is payable to, amount and the expense account it goes into.

If you are using the Pay Bills feature, you can choose to "Assign Check Numbers" and then manually enter the corresponding check numbers you have written.

It is VERY easy to do.  

Answer 2

You don't need to print the checks to use QuickBooks, simply un-check the box (center right) and you can enter the check number you used for reference.

But, any bookkeeping or accounting program is going to use a bank account. Your bank account is your confidence that you have actually recorded all your sales and expenses. And the program will help you to balance that bank account and produce the reports you need for your accountant.

You don't need to know debits & credits to use QB, but you need to understand that it is making 2 entries with every transaction.

For instance, when you record a check, it reduces the bank account balance and increases your expense with the one transaction.

When you record a sale, it increases your revenues and increases your bank account (cash sales) or your receivables (for unpaid invoices).

QB is the most popular selling accounting software for small businesses because it is easy to use. But it can be overwhelming because it does so much. The tutorials are very good within the program.

There is a version of QuickBooks called Simple Start that keeps things very basic for beginners that you may find useful.  It is avaialble for free at www.quickbooks.com  You can always add features on later or upgrade to standard QB Pro when you are ready to tackle more advanced accounting tasks (ie payroll, & inventory).

If you decide to use Simple Start and have already purchased QuickBooks within the last 30 days, Intuit will refund your money even if you bought it in the store (the store will probably not take it back if you have opened it.) Just call their customer support number included with your software.

For more practical help using QuickBooks, I would recommend the QuickBooks community http://www.quickbooksgroup.com/ as a free resource specific to using their software.

I hope it helps you in your decision.

Answer 3

Ya quickbooks is pro, totally.  

Answer 4

Quickbooks is really your best solution. It's the simplest but most robust software to use for end-users other than Simply Accounting.

You can manually write your checks and still enter them into the system. This would be the most recommended option as it will be easier for your accountant to track your payments. What I would do is go through the process of entering and printing checks, but print them on blank paper and keep them as a record. Copy the information from the printed paper onto the check that you will write manually. This way, you are ensuring that your accounting system is always up to date and that the check numbers are always corresponding.

This will make it easier for your accountant to reconcile your accounts, and likely be cheaper for you in the long run.

Quickbooks offers a great deal of support - both free and paid. Check out their website. Should you choose the paid option, you won't regret it, as they are very helpful. They helped me out a great deal when we first got up and running with our business.

The best advice that I can give you is to make sure all of your transactions are properly entered into any system, as it will make your life much easier when you have to trace something.

Good luck!