Most practice information management software provides excellent information about veterinary hospital revenue. However, the data paints only part of the performance picture. Looking at your PIMS, you don’t know whether your most significant expense, labor, is within budget, whether your bookkeeper paid the laboratory bill or how much you owe on the bank loan. Therefore, practice owners and managers rely on accounting software to assess their clinics’ financial health. QuickBooks is one such software used industrywide, but it’s not the only one.
QuickBooks Desktop includes the Pro, Premier and Enterprise versions, each with different features and functionality. However, as many finance enthusiasts know, software developer Intuit discontinued QuickBooks Desktop 2020 as of May 31, 2023. Support and security patches are no longer available.
Many longtime users are holding on dearly to one of the best desktop products in the accounting world, but it’s time to let go and move the work to the cloud, whether with QuickBooks Online or a competitor. Go ahead and look for a platform you’ll love.
Some users complain that QuickBooks Online isn’t as good as the desktop product. While dreamers wait for Intuit to deliver improvements, I recommend exploring other opportunities. Where to begin? For starters, what did you like best and least about QuickBooks Desktop? Write down your answers and refer to them during your search.
Here are seven of the most popular accounting software products available to veterinary clinics.
QuickBooks
QuickBooks is designed for small and medium-sized businesses. It offers invoicing, expense tracking, inventory management, timesheets and payroll processing. Pricing depends on the services and number of users. If you don’t want the online product, you can still purchase a desktop version that doesn’t require an internet connection. Check out current plans at bit.ly/3PzQTXr.
Xero
Xero is well-suited for small businesses. It delivers features such as bank reconciliation, invoicing, expense tracking, bill automation via Hubdoc and inventory management. Each plan permits unlimited users. Xero integrates with more than 1,000 business apps. Explore the plans at bit.ly/3CHvPXj.
Wave
A free accounting software option designed for small businesses and freelancers, Wave offers features such as invoicing, expense tracking and receipt scanning. Users can purchase add-ons like payroll and advisory services. For complete pricing and features, take a look at bit.ly/43ZQYb6.
FreshBooks
FreshBooks is another option for small businesses and freelancers. It offers time tracking, invoicing and expense tracking. Integrations are limited to about 100. Discover the plans at bit.ly/3ppjhkb.
Zoho Books
An accounting software option designed for small businesses, Zoho Books’ highlights include invoicing, expense tracking, project management and inventory management. Prices are based on the number of users, level of support and various features. Find out more at bit.ly/44etZc7.
Sage Intacct
Sage Intacct targets mid-sized businesses. It assists with financial management, project accounting, job costing and payroll processing. Details are at bit.ly/44zZzBp.
NetSuite
An option designed for larger businesses, NetSuite supports financial management, inventory management, order management and many more features. Your research starts at bit.ly/3NjCoUK.
GET UP TO SPEED
The most critical step after purchasing accounting software is learning to use it. If you employ a bookkeeper, make sure the person has experience with the product or was trained on it. After all, you’ll want all your data recorded promptly and accurately.
On the other hand, bookkeeping and payroll are easily outsourced business tasks. Putting the responsibilities in someone else’s hands will free up time for you to focus on your patients, clients and team members and give you the space to make more informed decisions affecting your practice.
Every dependable, knowledgeable bookkeeper should:
- Understand the basics of veterinary accounting. For example, your bookkeeper should be able to record Scratchpay and CareCredit fees monthly and pull sales data from your PIMS.
- Be familiar with the AAHA/VMG Chart of Accounts (bit.ly/3hUPIh9).
- Communicate frequently with you about unknown items.
- Understand and use automated bank feeds.
- Perform regular reconciliations.
- Be familiar with payroll integrations (no typing of payroll records).
- Be aware of integrations with your PIMS.