Quicken for Mac - Requested Features: Add a Paycheck Wizard (updated) (55 Legacy Votes)

Quicken Community

I would like to suggest adding two features ASAP to Quicken for Mac. I found these "basic" features very useful in previous windows versions:

1. Automatic Paycheck - I could setup my paycheck's with gross wage, pre-tax deductions and after tax deductions. The deductions included 401K contributions, Health Savings Account (HSA), etc. 
2. Mortgage Loans - Setup the loan and schedule payments which would automatically split the payment into principal, interest, escrow, etc.

These seem like they should be basic features that would have already been included in the updated version of Quicken for Mac.

(removed 2017 reference - Idea covers all currently offered QMac products)

smayer97

For the second request, you can now VOTE for the feature for Loan Amortization, here: https://getsatisfaction.com/quickencommunity/topics/loan-amortization-in-quicken-for-mac-2016

First, click on the link above to go there, then click VOTE at the top of THAT page, so your will vote count for THIS feature and increase its visibility to the developers.

(If you find this reply helpful, please be sure to click "Like", so others will know, thanks.)

 

smayer97

I also highly recommend that you browse through the IDEAS section of this forum and VOTE for the request of each of the missing features to be added back into Quicken for Mac....to help direct the priorities of the developers.

To do that click on this underlined link, following the instructions then VOTE to your heart's content: 
Categorized List of IDEAS of Feature Requests and Enhancements to Vote On

(If you find this reply helpful, please be sure to click "Like", so others will know, thanks.)

smayer97

For the second request, you can now VOTE for the feature for Loan Amortization, here: https://getsatisfaction.com/quickencommunity/topics/loan-amortization-in-quicken-for-mac-2016

First, click on the link above to go there, then click VOTE at the top of THAT page, so your will vote count for THIS feature and increase its visibility to the developers.

(If you find this reply helpful, please be sure to click "Like", so others will know, thanks.)

 

So what is left to vote for in this IDEA is to Add a Paycheck Wizard.

(If you find this reply helpful, please be sure to click "Like", so others will know, thanks.)

smayer97

For the second request, you can now VOTE for the feature for Loan Amortization, here: https://getsatisfaction.com/quickencommunity/topics/loan-amortization-in-quicken-for-mac-2016

First, click on the link above to go there, then click VOTE at the top of THAT page, so your will vote count for THIS feature and increase its visibility to the developers.

(If you find this reply helpful, please be sure to click "Like", so others will know, thanks.)

 

This IDEA has been added to the List of Requests for Bill Reminders (aka Scheduled Transactions) and Graph Features (aka Cash Flow Forecast or Projected Balance).
You may want to go click on the underlined link to add your vote to more related ideas.

(If you find this reply helpful, please be sure to click "Like", so others will know, thanks.)

Sandra

Today, I downloaded Quicken 2017 for iMac. I'm starting to regret my purchase. I can't believe we don't have the option to setup a paycheck. I used Quicken for windows up to 2015, so as a new iMac user this is like going back many years. I hope they add the 2 requests you're referring above as soon as possible. I voted for that as well. 

Bailey

I've discovered there is no salary/paycheck wizard for Quicken for Mac. Please put it in. Thanks you.

jacobs

I've always been a Mac user, so I'm not familiar with what the Quicken Windows paycheck wizzard does; I'd appreciate if someone could explain it.

In Quicken Mac, I have one deposit transaction for my pay and a separate one for my wife's pay, each with all the splits for each payroll deduction. When I get paid, I enter the payee "Deposit (my pay)" and the net amount and all the split amounts are automatically filled in. It takes about 3 seconds to enter each paycheck, a few more when deductions change. So I just don't understand what a paycheck wizard does that could make this simpler or faster.

Bailey

I've always been a Mac user, so I'm not familiar with what the Quicken Windows paycheck wizzard does; I'd appreciate if someone could explain it.

In Quicken Mac, I have one deposit transaction for my pay and a separate one for my wife's pay, each with all the splits for each payroll deduction. When I get paid, I enter the payee "Deposit (my pay)" and the net amount and all the split amounts are automatically filled in. It takes about 3 seconds to enter each paycheck, a few more when deductions change. So I just don't understand what a paycheck wizard does that could make this simpler or faster.

Please tell me how you set that up. That is what used to happen in my Windows version, even tho I never set up the paycheck wizard. But in the Mac version, I have to go in and enter each split amount for each deduction each time - 2x/month. What did you do to have the program fill in the split for you? Thanks.

Unknown

I've always been a Mac user, so I'm not familiar with what the Quicken Windows paycheck wizzard does; I'd appreciate if someone could explain it.

In Quicken Mac, I have one deposit transaction for my pay and a separate one for my wife's pay, each with all the splits for each payroll deduction. When I get paid, I enter the payee "Deposit (my pay)" and the net amount and all the split amounts are automatically filled in. It takes about 3 seconds to enter each paycheck, a few more when deductions change. So I just don't understand what a paycheck wizard does that could make this simpler or faster.

Fill in the splits once.  Enter the transaction.  Then create a memorized bill.

Next time, enter the memorized bill and adjust the splits.  The categories will all be there. 

Which is EXACTLY how the Paycheck Wizard in Windows worked.  Unless your paycheck was exactly the same every pay period, you STILL had to adjust the split line amounts.  But the categories remained the same. 

jacobs

I've always been a Mac user, so I'm not familiar with what the Quicken Windows paycheck wizzard does; I'd appreciate if someone could explain it.

In Quicken Mac, I have one deposit transaction for my pay and a separate one for my wife's pay, each with all the splits for each payroll deduction. When I get paid, I enter the payee "Deposit (my pay)" and the net amount and all the split amounts are automatically filled in. It takes about 3 seconds to enter each paycheck, a few more when deductions change. So I just don't understand what a paycheck wizard does that could make this simpler or faster.

In Quicken Mac, you can -- but don't need to -- make it a scheduled transaction (what @gmalis1 refers to as a memorized bill). Because every transaction in Quicken Mac will auto-fill the next time you use the same Payee, as long as you use a unique Payee name for each different paycheck, it will be "memorized" to se the next time. Mine is "Deposit (Direct) XX" where XX are my initials or my wife's. So when it's time to enter a paycheck, I simply type "Dep" and select the one I want from the pop-up list, and I'm done. (If your paycheck as amounts which sometimes change by a penny or two from check to check, then you just adjust those in the transaction splits.)

In the old Quicken 2007 for Mac, you could actually "memorize" -- lock -- any such transaction, so Quicken would always use the same exact one every time. In Quicken 2017, there is no way to lock a transaction, so be aware that if you make changes to the splits on one paycheck, that's what will come up the next time you use the same Payee. This is why you might want to use a scheduled transaction, as @gmalis suggested, so the same base paycheck comes up twice a month. This is especially important if you have an infrequent different paycheck -- say a bonus -- and you don't want to change your deposit transaction and then have to change it back to normal the next time. On the flip side, if you use a scheduled transaction and there is an ongoing change -- let's say you reached your annual limit for a state unemployment insurance deduction -- you want to make that edit to the *scheduled* transaction so all subsequent deposits use the updated splits.

Oh, and if it's not clear how to create a scheduled transaction, it's easy. Select (single click) your most recent paycheck with all the splits. In the bottom toolbar, click Schedule. From the pop-up menu, select "Schedule Selected Transaction". Your transaction now opens, and there's a pop-up Schedule screen. You can select "Every two weeks" or "Twice a month", depending how your pay schedule works. For "Twice a month, you can then enter the pay dates (e.g. 1st and 15th of every month, or first and third Friday of every month). You'll see the future dates show up in gray in your transaction register. when each date passes, a little red "!" icon will be added to the gray transaction to signal the scheduled transaction should have occurred. Simply click on the transaction, and in the bottom toolbar, to the right of Schedule, click "Deposited".

One more note: if you download transactions from your bank, your manually-entered deposit transaction will duplicate the bank's deposit transaction. Either delete the duplicate transaction from the bank, which doesn't have your splits, or you can drag your transaction over the downloaded one, and Quicken will merge them. It tries to learn this behavior so it can do it automatically in the future.

M C Crockett

I've always been a Mac user, so I'm not familiar with what the Quicken Windows paycheck wizzard does; I'd appreciate if someone could explain it.

In Quicken Mac, I have one deposit transaction for my pay and a separate one for my wife's pay, each with all the splits for each payroll deduction. When I get paid, I enter the payee "Deposit (my pay)" and the net amount and all the split amounts are automatically filled in. It takes about 3 seconds to enter each paycheck, a few more when deductions change. So I just don't understand what a paycheck wizard does that could make this simpler or faster.

@jacobs:  The Payee doesn't need to be unique in Quicken for Mac as long as the amounts are different.

I use "Social Security Deposit" as the payee for both my retirement benefit and my wife's spousal benefit.  The transaction downloaded from my financial institution has only two differences:  "FI Id" and "Amount".

I wish Quicken for Windows could match by using both the "Payee" and "Amount" fields.  I might cut down on the number of times I import my Quicken Premier data into Quicken for Mac.

jacobs

I've always been a Mac user, so I'm not familiar with what the Quicken Windows paycheck wizzard does; I'd appreciate if someone could explain it.

In Quicken Mac, I have one deposit transaction for my pay and a separate one for my wife's pay, each with all the splits for each payroll deduction. When I get paid, I enter the payee "Deposit (my pay)" and the net amount and all the split amounts are automatically filled in. It takes about 3 seconds to enter each paycheck, a few more when deductions change. So I just don't understand what a paycheck wizard does that could make this simpler or faster.

@MC Crockett: Thanks. I enter transactions manually, and in that case, having two paycheck deposits requires two unique Payees. If there were only one Payee, like "Paycheck Deposit", it would call up the amount and split of the last one entered, and if I edited it from my wife's to mine, then the next time it would come up with my data and I'd have to edit it back to hers. Instead, it's quite simple to have two Payees for our respective paychecks, so each can be re-used independently.

pheller

When this finally sees some implementation, a couple ideas:

- Allow upload of a paystub that you scan and recognize ala expensify & paper receipts or TurboTax & W2.
- Maybe just use that scan to inform the paycheck entry screen what splits should be present, and offer "My Paystub Looks Different" to re-scan a new paystub (i.e., mid year bonus paid, new earnings entry, etc.)
- Make sure transfers to other accounts (e.g., 401k, HSA, etc) remain supported
- Please please please allow for budgeting the net pay (whatever is left after all the deductions). This can be accomplished now with a separate Cash account representing the employer, a transfer of the net pay to checking, and then a budget that tracks transfers, but that is cumbersome.

Thanks - looking forward to this feature!