Earlier this year, there was news that Intuit was going to look for a buyer for its Quicken product. Back in August, Intuit put up a note they want to sell the product in order to focus more on small business products and the cloud. The product was created about 32 years ago and hasn’t really had any good updates in a long time. It’s a desktop product that’s living in an online world. More and more products are going into the cloud to allow people for ultimate access to their financials whenever they need it. There is also speculation they could just discontinue the product if they don’t find any suitable buyers. While I’m not sure that will happen, you never know. This is why we want to provide you with some Quicken alternatives which are free!
Quicken alternatives free download - Quicken Certificate Updater, QIF Master, QIF Master, and many more programs.
Customers haven’t been happy with Quicken for some time, but it still generates revenue for Intuit, although a much smaller chunk. Intuit has stated they aren’t going to be selling Mint in this process, so hopefully they will work on beefing up the features in that program. It’s actually one we are going to recommend you move to if you want more tools.
As Quicken goes on the sale block, we wanted to suggest three alternatives to the software. The best part is they are all free and they work in the cloud. I’ve used desktop and online products and I’m a fan of the cloud. I like it much more since I can look at my information when and where I need to. I don’t have to be tied to my computer at home. Considering we don’t know what will happen with Quicken, here are three free alternatives you can switch to and start taking care of your money with ease. The best part is you can try them out before you make a full switch because they are entirely free. They cost you nothing but time to learn.
Personal Capital
I’m listing Personal Capital first as a great (and free) alternative because I use it each and every day to manage my money. Their tool is clean and easy to use. It’s a financial aggregator, which allows you to hook into all of your bank accounts, credit cards, mortgage, investment accounts, and loans. You can pull in everything you have to get a big picture of your financial situation. I use it to track my net worth and to budget my money each and every month. I also use it to watch my investments and check out their sweet retirement calculator (you can only use it if you sign up). It puts everything all in one place with simple graphs to look at.
The best part is it’s all free to use and the signup process takes about 10 minutes with setting up everything. This assumes you know your usernames and passwords for your accounts. The dashboard is simple to use and the graphs give you a simple view of how you’re doing. You can dig into more detail by clicking on categories you want to look into. The one downfall of this product (which they are working on) is their budgeting tool. They have it available for those using an iPhone, but Android users and desktop browsers don’t have this feature yet. I’m still able to do basic budgeting since it pulls in all of my data from all of my accounts, but the feature set for budgeting could be a little more robust.
If you’re a Quicken user who has investments (you should!), then Personal Capital should be on your list to check out. If you have more than $25,000 in investable assets, then you also qualify for them to manage your investments for you. This is not a requirement to use their software. You do NOT have to use their investment management service, but it is an option. Please take a moment to read a little more about the service in my Personal Capital review and see if it’s a good fit for you. I wouldn’t leave home without it and I don’t have to since they have a nice to use app!
Mint.com
Mint.com is actually owned by Intuit, but as I noted above, it’s not in the sale process of Quicken. I believe this is the case because there is a lot of upside potential to the Mint.com platform. It’s popular and in the cloud, so people have been moving over to it for many of their needs. I started tracking my money with Mint.com when I was just starting to get out of debt. It helped me work through my debt payoff plan and I paid off over $50,000 of credit card debt and $25,000 of consumer loans.
Mint.com is great for budgeting. They were one of the first services out there to aggregate your financial accounts into one location. Their interface is nice looking and they have a great app for Android and iPhone. I did take some time to put the features of Mint.com against Personal Capital and it turned out well. Here is the breakdown of Mint.com vs. Personal Capital. I think you will like the comparison between the two. Mint does have a bill pay service which is nice and they have good alerts to help you stay on track with your money. For a good Quicken alternative, Mint.com could be a good option for you. Since it’s owned by Intuit, you should have a seamless experience.
Where Mint.com falls apart in my opinion is their investing section and the number of ads. Mint.com makes money with their platform when you take one of their suggestions for products. They get a commission from the advertiser. I don’t have any problem with this as this is a model I use on this website. It doesn’t affect you in any bit, but they have a lot of ads on their site. Each section is riddled with recommendations for new credit cards, checking accounts, and savings accounts. There are offers to refinance your mortgage, get a personal loan, and much more. It can be overwhelming for those just looking for a clean money management offering.
PowerWallet
It’s been some time since I used PowerWallet, but it’s still a great option for those looking for a free Quicken alternative. PowerWallet is an online aggregator such as Personal Capital and Mint.com. Where it focuses most is around budgeting, so it could be a perfect fit for those looking to get away from Quicken before it’s sold or discontinued.
PowerWallet can pull in your data from different banking accounts just like the other services. It provides simple budgeting tools and a clean user interface. It has bank-level security on its platform as do the others. Where it differs a bit is with its interactive calendar feature where you can see your bills, their due dates, and pay them. This really helps you keep ultimate control over your bills and your money.
It provides access to investment accounts like the other services mentioned here, but there is nothing like Personal Capital in this regard. They have one of the best services when it comes to investment accounts. PowerWallet also has a partnership with Debt.com to help those looking to get out of debt and gain control of their finances. They can help you personalized help with your debt situation, no matter where you live. It’s pretty cool.
If you’re a Quicken money management user, then you should start thinking about alternatives to your budgeting solution. While the product still works now, who knows what’s going to happen over time. Intuit could find a buyer, or they might not. They could just discontinue the Quicken product all together and you will be stuck looking for something to move to. Whether you need Quicken or not, you should check out these free alternatives. They can work for you and they cost you nothing. If you want something strictly for the desktop, then maybe checkout You Need a Budget (YNAB) as it’s a desktop solution, but it’s not free. You can get a free, 34-day trial though to test it out. It’s a full-featured demo with all the bells and whistles.
Good money management is essential for anyone looking to have sound finances. I wouldn’t be where I am today without changing how I thought about money and how I managed it. I used to not care where my money was going, but that’s when I was deep in debt and had no idea what I was doing. Those times have since gone by, but luckily for you, there are a number of great products out there helping anyone manage their money better. While I’m a fan of Personal Capital and use it everyday, that doesn’t mean it’s for everyone. Try these three solutions and see what works for you.
What other free alternatives to Quicken would you recommend?
I’ve Been Cable Free for 5 Years and Still Watch TV
While in debt, I cut cable and haven’t looked back. It’s easier than you think especially with new services out on the market. One of my favorites is Sling TV, which allows you to watch live TV on the internet. It’s awesome. Check out my Sling TV review.
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