Personal finance software

Discussion in 'other software & services' started by lucas1985, Jan 6, 2007.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. lucas1985

    lucas1985 Retired Moderator

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2006
    Posts:
    4,047
    Location:
    France, May 1968
    I´m testing Money Manager Ex.
    So far, so good.
    Does anyone know other software of this kind? My preferences are: free, open-source, cross-platform. But I have not problems paying for good software.
    Thanks.
     
    Last edited: Jan 6, 2007
  2. InfinityAz

    InfinityAz Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jul 23, 2005
    Posts:
    828
    Location:
    Arizona
    I prefer MS Money. One of the most important advantages of the pay versions is they connect to and automatically download all your transactions (i.e., bank, credit cards, 401k, etc.). This saves me so much time that I think they are worth the money.

    One negative with both Money and Quicken is they force you to upgrade every 2-2.5 years (if you don't, they stop downloading your transactions). However, if you shop wisely, you can get Money or Quicken for close to free with rebates--especially, at this time of year (i.e., you can usually get them for free if you buy tax software).
     
  3. lucas1985

    lucas1985 Retired Moderator

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2006
    Posts:
    4,047
    Location:
    France, May 1968
    Interesting. I would have to compare both in terms of features. MS Money seems more powerful, maybe is too much for my needs.
    Thanks for the answer.
     
  4. wilbertnl

    wilbertnl Registered Member

    Joined:
    Dec 29, 2004
    Posts:
    1,850
    Location:
    Tulsa, Oklahoma
    Well, they stop the service through MSN. But you are still able to download and automatically import transactions yourself.
    I use the outdated Money 2004 and I don't have any problems with importing online bank statements.

    What I like about the paid Money/Quicken is cashflow forecast. I can watch how my financial behaviour is effecting the balance in the future.
     
  5. lucas1985

    lucas1985 Retired Moderator

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2006
    Posts:
    4,047
    Location:
    France, May 1968
    After a couple of tests, I´ve chosen Money Manager. It has all the necessary features and its open source and cross-platform nature has bought my heart :D
    My little summary:
    Pros
    -Open source, cross platform.
    -It´s a portable app.
    -Speedy and lightweight.
    -SQLite-based, so no proprietary format.
    -Has almost all features you ever want.
    -Import from CSV -Excel- and QIF -MS Money and Quicken- file formats.
    -Export to CSV files.
    -Very good, simple, no-nonsense tree interface.
    Cons
    -Lacks Spanish language support at the moment. Not very important for me, though.
    -Does not support dynamic stock price updates at this moment.
    -Could lack important features present in MS Money or Quicken.

    It gets a 9/10 :thumb:
     
    Last edited: Jan 20, 2007
  6. HAN

    HAN Registered Member

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2005
    Posts:
    2,098
    Location:
    USA
    I'm thinking about migrating to MM Ex too! All I'm really looking for is a way to better track where the $$$ goes. MS Money and Quicken are way more than I need for this.

    One cool thing about MM Ex, it can also run as a standalone program. The program and the data base can be on a flash drive and run from there.

    The only "Con" for me is that based on initial tests, it would not properly import my MS Money database. Not really sure why... But it's no big deal. I'll just start from where I left off.
     
  7. lucas1985

    lucas1985 Retired Moderator

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2006
    Posts:
    4,047
    Location:
    France, May 1968
    Agreed :) They are excellent software, but they have tons of features that you may not need.
    Damn, I forgot that. It´s really cool to put the app and the databse into a TrueCrypt container and save them on a flash drive.
    Well, that could be a bug or a feature not supported currently. Report it to the developers.
     
  8. wilbertnl

    wilbertnl Registered Member

    Joined:
    Dec 29, 2004
    Posts:
    1,850
    Location:
    Tulsa, Oklahoma
    Does Money Manager Ex offer a function similar to cashflow forcast?
     
  9. lucas1985

    lucas1985 Retired Moderator

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2006
    Posts:
    4,047
    Location:
    France, May 1968
    I´m not sure how cashflow forecast works, but see the features offered in the categories:
    "Account Summary Views and Navigation" and "Reporting"
    Is that what you need?
     
  10. wilbertnl

    wilbertnl Registered Member

    Joined:
    Dec 29, 2004
    Posts:
    1,850
    Location:
    Tulsa, Oklahoma
    Cashflow forecast takes the most recent income transaction and substract all the known (future) expenses, where future expenses are based on the budget.
    I use it to calculate how much money is left right before the next paycheck. That amount is used to make extra debt payments.
     
  11. lucas1985

    lucas1985 Retired Moderator

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2006
    Posts:
    4,047
    Location:
    France, May 1968
    Nice feature :)
    I will request it to developers.
     
  12. Rodehard

    Rodehard Registered Member

    Joined:
    Feb 20, 2004
    Posts:
    91
    Im probably missing the obvious, it is early and Im not fully awake yet, but I see no reference to online bill payment capability in its list of features. Does it?
     
  13. lucas1985

    lucas1985 Retired Moderator

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2006
    Posts:
    4,047
    Location:
    France, May 1968
    A gift for you :D
    Version History of Money Manager Ex:
    Test this new build :thumb:
    If I am not mistaken, that feature is scheduled for future releases.
     
  14. wilbertnl

    wilbertnl Registered Member

    Joined:
    Dec 29, 2004
    Posts:
    1,850
    Location:
    Tulsa, Oklahoma
  15. HAN

    HAN Registered Member

    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2005
    Posts:
    2,098
    Location:
    USA
    Wow! That is exactly how I am going to use mine. Much stronger security than I ever had before.

    And another new version today. MM Ex is shaping up quite nicely!
     
  16. Rasheed187

    Rasheed187 Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jul 10, 2004
    Posts:
    17,546
    Location:
    The Netherlands
  17. Pedro

    Pedro Registered Member

    Joined:
    Nov 2, 2006
    Posts:
    3,502
    Update on this, maybe you guys can test them:

    GnuCash
    An article about it.

    CheckBook Tracker, - GNU/Linux only.
    with more info about the latter here
    I know, most of you run Windows, as i. But having VM, you can check them out, if you find the time. I'm not used to these programs, but i will use them at some point. It would be nice if you can say what's missing.

    Some discussions on alternatives in "Linux":
    http://www.linux.com/comments.pl?sid=35968&op=&threshold=0&commentsort=0&mode=thread&tid=13&pid=0

    http://software.newsforge.com/software/04/03/17/2313253.shtml

    And much more:p
     
  18. Pedro

    Pedro Registered Member

    Joined:
    Nov 2, 2006
    Posts:
    3,502
    Another, this one runs on Windows too:
    moneydance
    edit: paid only
     
  19. crash79`

    crash79` Registered Member

    Joined:
    Jul 9, 2004
    Posts:
    114
    Location:
    Isle of Bute Scotland
    I have used Intuit Quick Books for years.
     
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.