Switching from Quicken Premier Windows to Quicken for mac

jjrichards

I am considering buying an Apple Mac air . Currently running a windows based laptop and running 2020 Quicken Premier. I have read Quicken 2021 for Mac is inferior to Quicken 2020 or 2021 for Windows.

Has anyone switched to Quicken for Mac and was using Quicken for Windows looking for feedback . Thank you
Jeff

jacobs

There are hundreds of posts on this site from former Quicken Windows users who have switched to Quicken Mac. Some is highly positive, but more is critical -- which is natural because a site like this generally attracts people having problems, not contented users singing praise. Hopefully some of those Windows converts will pop in here; I'm just noting you can read what people have said over time if you want do some searching on this site.

That said, I want to offer a few cautions and suggestions…

(1) Many thousands of Quicken users have switched to Quicken Mac. I don't know the hard numbers because Quicken doesn't disclose them, but there's plenty of anecdotal evidence that any users have made the leap and lived.

(2) Quicken Mac has changed quite a bit since it was introduced 6+ years ago. The first iteration, Quicken 2015, was pretty underpowered, but a lot has been added and improved over the years. So I would advise largely ignoring comments from people who tested the same waters and found Quicken Mac inadequate from more than a year or two ago.

(3) People who have switched to Quicken Mac from Quicken Windows and the legacy Quicken Mac 2007 (I'm in the latter group) have often had a negative initial reaction because things look different and work differently. It's a knee-jerk thing; very few people embrace change. But interestingly, many people who use Quicken Mac for awhile and get used to its look and flow sing a different tune over time. Here's a quick example: when I first started testing Quicken Mac, I was among many who wanted them to bring back the 2-line register I was used to for the prior 2+ decades. Now, I find Quicken Mac's registers fast, smooth, intuitive, and adaptable and preferable to what I used to love; from time to time I still fire up my old Quicken 2007 and am shocked to find how much I dislike the old registers versus modern Quicken Mac. I'm not saying everyone agrees on that issue -- or many others; I'm just saying that what people say on first usage doesn't always end up being their long-term opinion.

(4) Some people who have switched from a Windows machine to a Mac have decided that some feature(s) in Quicken don't exist or measure up in Quicken Mac, and therefore run a Windows virtual machine in order to continue to run Quicken Windows. It's not ideal, but it gives you additional options. (Note that if you'll be getting an M1-powered Mac, be aware that all virtual machine software options for the M1 are still in public beta testing; people report it's very usable today, but will probably get better in the months ahead.)

(5) One thing I've learned hanging out in this forum over the years is how differently we Quicken users utilize the program. What's an important feature to one user is unimportant to another, and visa versa. What's a showstopper issue for one user is a "who cares?" or "never used it" for another. For this reason, I'd take with a very large grain of salt reading many comments about what doesn't work/is missing/stinks about Quicken Mac. The only one who can judge how well Quicken Mac suits the things you do in Quicken is you. For that reason, I strongly encourage you to try it and judge for yourself rather than relying on what other people have said. With your current subscription, you can download and run Quicken Mac, including trying to import your data to play around with, at no cost. I realize you don't have a Mac yet; is there anyone you know who has a Mac who might let you try it out? (It's easy to delete your data and not leave anything behind.)

(6) If there are specific features you're concerned about or have questions about, by all means ask "can I do this on quicken Mac?" and people on this forum will be happy to try to answer.

Best wishes!

jacobs

There are hundreds of posts on this site from former Quicken Windows users who have switched to Quicken Mac. Some is highly positive, but more is critical -- which is natural because a site like this generally attracts people having problems, not contented users singing praise. Hopefully some of those Windows converts will pop in here; I'm just noting you can read what people have said over time if you want do some searching on this site.

That said, I want to offer a few cautions and suggestions…

(1) Many thousands of Quicken users have switched to Quicken Mac. I don't know the hard numbers because Quicken doesn't disclose them, but there's plenty of anecdotal evidence that any users have made the leap and lived.

(2) Quicken Mac has changed quite a bit since it was introduced 6+ years ago. The first iteration, Quicken 2015, was pretty underpowered, but a lot has been added and improved over the years. So I would advise largely ignoring comments from people who tested the same waters and found Quicken Mac inadequate from more than a year or two ago.

(3) People who have switched to Quicken Mac from Quicken Windows and the legacy Quicken Mac 2007 (I'm in the latter group) have often had a negative initial reaction because things look different and work differently. It's a knee-jerk thing; very few people embrace change. But interestingly, many people who use Quicken Mac for awhile and get used to its look and flow sing a different tune over time. Here's a quick example: when I first started testing Quicken Mac, I was among many who wanted them to bring back the 2-line register I was used to for the prior 2+ decades. Now, I find Quicken Mac's registers fast, smooth, intuitive, and adaptable and preferable to what I used to love; from time to time I still fire up my old Quicken 2007 and am shocked to find how much I dislike the old registers versus modern Quicken Mac. I'm not saying everyone agrees on that issue -- or many others; I'm just saying that what people say on first usage doesn't always end up being their long-term opinion.

(4) Some people who have switched from a Windows machine to a Mac have decided that some feature(s) in Quicken don't exist or measure up in Quicken Mac, and therefore run a Windows virtual machine in order to continue to run Quicken Windows. It's not ideal, but it gives you additional options. (Note that if you'll be getting an M1-powered Mac, be aware that all virtual machine software options for the M1 are still in public beta testing; people report it's very usable today, but will probably get better in the months ahead.)

(5) One thing I've learned hanging out in this forum over the years is how differently we Quicken users utilize the program. What's an important feature to one user is unimportant to another, and visa versa. What's a showstopper issue for one user is a "who cares?" or "never used it" for another. For this reason, I'd take with a very large grain of salt reading many comments about what doesn't work/is missing/stinks about Quicken Mac. The only one who can judge how well Quicken Mac suits the things you do in Quicken is you. For that reason, I strongly encourage you to try it and judge for yourself rather than relying on what other people have said. With your current subscription, you can download and run Quicken Mac, including trying to import your data to play around with, at no cost. I realize you don't have a Mac yet; is there anyone you know who has a Mac who might let you try it out? (It's easy to delete your data and not leave anything behind.)

(6) If there are specific features you're concerned about or have questions about, by all means ask "can I do this on quicken Mac?" and people on this forum will be happy to try to answer.

Best wishes!

jjrichards

Jacobs thank you for the detailed analysis between Quicken Mac and Quicken for Windows.
Jeff