QuickBooks Desktop (2020) Discontinued

With the planned obsolescence of QuickBooks Desktop 2020 by Intuit on May 31, 2023, many businesses are confronted with crucial decisions about the future of their accounting operations. The transition away from QuickBooks Desktop (QBD) 2020 presents an opportunity to upgrade your tech stack and enhance the collaborative capacity of your business by leveraging real-time data. As a provider of outsourced accounting services, Signature Analytics can help you navigate this transition smoothly, ensuring that you continue to have access to robust, up-to-date financial information for strategic decision-making.

The main change to note is that while QBD 2020 will remain available for current users, it will no longer receive updates or support. If your business relies on add-ons such as the popular payroll service, this transition could disrupt your operations. But don’t fret – Signature Analytics is prepared to support you through this process, working alongside your team to restructure your accounting systems and maintain business continuity.

Transition to QBO or Stay on Desktop?

If you’re considering whether to move to a more recent version of QBD or switch to QuickBooks Online (QBO), Signature Analytics can provide expert guidance to help you weigh the pros and cons. With the sunsetting of QBD 2020, shifting to QBO could be a strategic move. As an outsourced accounting partner, we can help you harness the potential of QBO’s cloud-based platform, providing you with real-time data access, increased mobility, and better collaboration among your team members.

If you’re thinking about upgrading your tech stack, we can also provide insights into alternative software solutions to QuickBooks. For example, if you’re looking to replace certain features lost when transitioning from QBD to QBO, inFlow might be a viable option. It offers sales orders, inventory tracking, a range of reports, and seamless integration with QBO. Our team at Signature Analytics can guide you through this software selection process and ensure seamless integration with your existing systems.

How Hard is it to Transfer from Quickbooks Desktop to Online?

One of the key benefits of working with an outsourced accounting team like Signature Analytics is our technical expertise and ability to adapt quickly to changes in your business environment. With the discontinuation of QuickBooks Desktop 2020, we can help your business transition smoothly to a new accounting software, whether it’s an upgraded version of QuickBooks Desktop, QuickBooks Online, or another alternative. In doing so, we can help ensure that your business retains access to accurate and timely financial data, while also enabling more collaborative and mobile operations through real-time data access.

Transitioning your accounting software is an opportunity to enhance your tech stack, streamline processes, and improve collaboration within your team. With Signature Analytics on your side, you can leverage this transition to upgrade your systems, enabling your business to become more agile, data-driven, and resilient in the face of future changes.

Let’s look at a direct comparison between QuickBooks Online and QuickBooks Desktop:

• Cost: You can get QuickBooks Online for as low as $30 per month, while QuickBooks Desktop will cost you starting from $549 annually.
• Third-Party Software Compatibility: QuickBooks Online can integrate with over 650 different applications, whereas QuickBooks Desktop only accommodates just over 250.
• Accessibility: With QuickBooks Online being cloud-based, you can access it from any location with internet access and a web browser. QuickBooks Desktop, on the other hand, is installed on your local device but can be self-hosted at an additional cost for more accessibility.
• Industry-Specific Solutions: QuickBooks Desktop comes in seven versions each tailored to a specific industry. However, QuickBooks Online’s large number of integrations provides the flexibility to cater to various industries.
• Life-cycle of Software: Intuit periodically discontinues older versions of QuickBooks Desktop, as seen with the retirement of QuickBooks Desktop 2020. This results in loss of support for key add-on functions such as payroll and credit card processing. QuickBooks Online, being a cloud-based solution, does not face this issue.

Both QuickBooks Desktop and Online provide the following features:

• Robust accounting capabilities
• Integrations numbering in the hundreds
• Invoicing
• Management of contacts
• Tracking of expenses and time
• Inventory management
• Project management functionalities
• Budgeting tools
• Reporting capabilities
• Support for taxes
• Add-ons for payroll
• Mobile application support

However, only QuickBooks Online offers:

• A fully cloud-based format
• Compatibility with Mac
• 600 extra integrations
• Invoices with high-quality design
• The capacity to auto-schedule invoices
• Invoicing capabilities in multiple languages
• Optional support for live bookkeeping

While, only QuickBooks Desktop offers:

• A format that’s installed locally
• Sales orders
• An additional 50 reports
• Optional features that are industry-specific
• Optional industry-focused reporting

Consider QuickBooks Online if:

• You’re seeking software that’s user-friendly and easy to learn.
• You want the flexibility to handle your accounting remotely via mobile apps.
• You value time-saving automations and integrations.
• You wish to integrate payment processing for online invoice payments.
• You require international invoicing capabilities.

On the other hand, QuickBooks Desktop may be the right choice if:

• You prefer accounting software that’s installed locally.
• You require the industry-specific features offered by QuickBooks Premier or QuickBooks Enterprise.
• Your business processes include sales orders.
• Your accounting needs are particularly complex.

Learn More About Signature Analytics – Discover How We Can Help You

With an outsourced accounting team from Signature Analytics, you get accurate, relevant, and timely reporting and financial insights to help you make smart business decisions. 

Signature Analytics outsourced accounting and CFO business advisory services teams get you access to finance and accounting expertise and insights. By putting the right people, processes, and technology in place, we facilitate accurate, relevant, and timely data so you can make smart business decisions.

Learn more about our outsourced accounting services, here.