I have Quicken Deluxe, what can I use to help my granddaughter?

Stephen C Doyle

My granddaughter's finances are a mess. To sort it out, I have started a separate quicken file for her on my computer. She lives in another state and sends me screen shots of her phone and I have painfully entered it to get it started. Eventually she will enter stuff and manage it. I'm thinking Simpilfi or Web for her with me having access. I am open to suggestions. Can I get some sort of family plan?

Quicken Kristina

Thank you for the reply,

As @jacobs mentioned, if you want to have a separate email associated with your Quicken Simplifi subscription, you would want to make sure to use that separate email when you subscribe. Otherwise, both subscriptions will be tied to the same email address.

Unlike Quicken Classic, Quicken Simplifi does not require you to share your Quicken ID & password with your granddaughter in order for her to have access. You can use the Space Sharing feature to share the data with her. When she receives the invite, she'll be prompted to set up her own user ID and password. For more information, see the article below:

https://help.simplifimoney.com/en/articles/6443103-how-to-share-your-quicken-simplifi-data

Thank you!

jacobs

Many people may not want to share their password with someone else, like their accountant. I can think of a number of reasons, perhaps the biggest being that if you share your password, the other user could change the password and lock you out. So they built the sharing feature to allow you to grant — and revoke — access to your Simplifi data.

In your case, you can be happy sharing one Quicken ID with your granddaughter, at least for the time being, so there's nothing to "stumble through."

Should you later decide she should create her own Quicken ID and use that to log into the Simplifi account, then you can use the share space feature.

Rocket J Squirrel

Get her login credentials for her financial institutions and download her info into the new Q data file you created.

Stephen C Doyle

Hey Rocky!

Ok, that sounds good. That's the direction I'm going now. Lets call this the "Training Wheels" phase. Eventually I can get all the credentials and auto download.

Longer term, she needs to learn to ride the bike without the training wheels. I want her to take responsibility for her budget and learn to manage money. Frankly, since she doesn't have parents that can help, and I'm the grandparent, maybe I'm clueless and there are better ways parents are dealing with this.

I will buy her a Quicken on the web subscription. I would prefer on the web, since I would be able to log in to assist. I was kind of hoping for some kind of family plan or upgrade from Deluxe. But I don't see it.

Rocket J Squirrel

Quicken on the web is not a standalone thing. It is an accessory to Quicken on your PC. There is no family plan. You might want to look at a true online product, which Quicken is not.

Stephen C Doyle

I'm not understanding how that works. Specifically Quicken on the Web requires access to your PC? It's some sort of remote access into my PC?

retird

@Stephen C Doyle It might be beneficial to find out first which financial software (such as quicken) her financial institutions support.

jacobs

Quicken Classic is desktop-based software. Its data files are not easily shared between computers, but it can be done if done correctly. Quicken on the Web, and the Quicken mobile app, are online companions which sync with your desktop-based Quicken file. The data is saved in Quicken's cloud servers, but doesn't contain everything in the desktop data file, and doesn't have all the reporting features of the desktop program. The mobile/web apps are fine for data entry or quick lookup, but are not a good choice as a stand-alone approach.

Quicken Simplifi was built a few years ago as a web-only product not tied to any desktop data file or software. So it's perfect for someone who wants their data in the cloud and the ability to access it from any device. That also makes it easy for two people to share the same login. (Whether your granddaughter will be happy with you having complete access to her finances over the long term is a question you may also want to think about.)

Simplifi is not just an online version of the Quicken desktop product; it was created from the ground up, and is not compatible with Quicken Classic; you cannot move an existing Quicken Classic data file into Simplifi, so you'd need to start from scratch. On the other hand, I think Simplifi was designed to appeal to younger users, who are used to doing banking/finances on their phones and not being tied to their desktop/laptop.

Stephen C Doyle

Ok, thanks jacobs and others. The scenario sounds like both my granddaughter and me would install an app. In her case a phone and in my case on a computer. I'll need to purchase/subscribe to a Simplifi thing and just use Deluxe for myself. Presumably the Simplifi apps cost nothing, it's just the cloud service I'm paying for.

I'll ignore the worry if the subscription runs out and Simplifi holds her data. 50 bucks plus 70 bucks a year seems manageable.

Rocket J Squirrel

Quicken Classic and Simplifi do not talk to each other or exchange data. And Simplifi is not free.

https://www.quicken.com/products/simplifi/

Quicken Kristina

Hello @Stephen C Doyle,

If you have questions about Quicken Simplifi or need help with it, I'd recommend posting on the Quicken Simplifi Community. Here's the link:

https://community.simplifimoney.com/

I'd recommend reviewing this article for answers to common questions about Quicken Simplifi subscriptions:

https://help.simplifimoney.com/en/articles/3363727-quicken-simplifi-subscription-questions

If you do decide to let the subscription run out, you can preserve the transaction data by exporting it to .CSV before the subscription period ends. This article gives more information about exporting from Quicken Simplifi:

https://help.simplifimoney.com/en/articles/3404263-how-to-export-transactions

I hope this helps!

Stephen C Doyle

Yeah, ok. I kind of figured that there must be some way to get the info out if I'm forced to. But again, that's worst case and CSV is fine. I'll probably subscribe for 2 or 3 years or until granddaughter becomes flight worthy.

I know the subscription is not free. I'm just wondering if I have to pay for additional Simplifi clients. Seems like the answer is no. At this point my time is worth the 50 bucks to escape the Intuit Marketing Maze and endless You Tubes and just try Simplifi.

Thanks

jacobs

I'm just wondering if I have to pay for additional Simplifi clients. Seems like the answer is no.

The answer is no, but it's because there is no Simplifi client. It's web-based software, so as long as you're sharing the same Quicken ID for the subscription, that's all there is to it. (Well, there is an optional mobile app which is probably easier than a browser if you're using it on a phone.)

I suggest you use a separate email address, if you can, for your Simplifi subscription; it may avoid possible future confusion if you have two separate Quicken IDs with he two separate email addresses.

P.S. Intuit isn't marketing to you. Both Quicken Classic desktop and Quicken Simplifi are developed and sold by Quicken, Inc., which has been an independent company separate from Intuit for the past 8+ years.

Quicken Kristina

Thank you for the reply,

As @jacobs mentioned, if you want to have a separate email associated with your Quicken Simplifi subscription, you would want to make sure to use that separate email when you subscribe. Otherwise, both subscriptions will be tied to the same email address.

Unlike Quicken Classic, Quicken Simplifi does not require you to share your Quicken ID & password with your granddaughter in order for her to have access. You can use the Space Sharing feature to share the data with her. When she receives the invite, she'll be prompted to set up her own user ID and password. For more information, see the article below:

https://help.simplifimoney.com/en/articles/6443103-how-to-share-your-quicken-simplifi-data

Thank you!

Stephen C Doyle

Ok got it. I see it's just a web page login. A quick first glance at it and it seems like it will suffice. And yes good suggestion to use a separate email. I have it isolated from my Deluxe credentials. Simplifi does have my cell, so we'll see how that works out if she takes it over. Thank you for the Share Space info, that’s very helpful.

The screens could be simpler, but it's ok. Let's just say she will not be needing any help with investments, and won't have much patience with setting up elaborate tracking or screens.

The only manual entries might be debts to friends or similar. Automating transactions download is where I always appreciated Quicken so I’m not expecting unusual trouble. If one or two accounts balk I’m sure I can figure a work around. She just needs a quick screen to show her how much kim chee she's in. I think it will work.

Cheers :)

Stephen C Doyle

Well, this is turning into a bit of a pain. Still seems kind of wonky to add access for my granddaughter. Sounds like the phone interface want's it's own account. In other words I started an account, but it's not clear if she can only share it with web access.

It might be that I have to cancel the first try account and have her start the whole thing, something I was trying to avoid. I don't know if I can count on her to navigate it and get it set up properly.

jacobs

@Stephen C Doyle First, you should probably post any Simplifi inquiries in the separate Simplifi community forum. Almost all of us here in this Quicken forum have either never used Simplifi or have just dabbled with it.

Second, I'm a little confused by your terminology about separate accounts. Originally, I was thinking that you'd create a new Quicken ID (separate email address from your existing one), and both you and your granddaughter would use that Quicken ID to log in to Simplifi. In that way, it wouldn't know you're two different people; and there would be no one to 'add'. I still think that approach could work for you. But Quicken Kristina above provided information about the sharing feature built into Simplifi, and that should work for you, too (assuming it works as described). She'll need to create her own Quicken ID (or you can create it for her). The webpage about Shared Spaces describes that you must set up the sharing via the web interface, not the phone app, to send the invitation you your granddaughter's Quicken ID; once it's accepted, she should be able to log in to the Simplifi "space" you created and have full access.

Stephen C Doyle

I'll follow your good advice and try this in the Simplifi forum. But, uh, exactly where is that? What is Quicken Mobile?

To your questions, yes, I did use a separate email to create the Simplifi. That way we are just both logging on as the same.

Maybe I'm just getting confused about the sharing feature. I admit I am confused to what the difference is between a "Quicken ID" and simply an email and password. 😕 Seems like the same thing except a "Quicken ID" will pull up all quickens under that email.

jacobs

@Stephen C Doyle Yes, I think you’re overcomplicating it! 😀 A Quicken ID is simply login credentials, the same as you create for a bank account, a cell phone provider, a travel website, etc. For Quicken, your username is your email address; you create your password. That’s it.

You use your Quicken ID to log into Simplifi, as well as to your subscription account on Quicken.com.

If you and your granddaughter are logging in using the same Quicken ID, then there is no need to use the sharing feature of Simplifi. The “space sharing“ feature is used if you want to allow someone else – a family member, an accountant – to access your Simplifi data without giving them your personal password. but it sounds like you don’t need this.

Stephen C Doyle

Ok, well looks like I got "splained" into trying the sharing feature over in Simplifi help land.

I'm not really sure materially what the difference is. Nor do I understand the difference between if she shares me or if I share her. Seems like just another "feature" of little use. No doubt Quicken is uncomfortable with simply saying "share the password".

But little matter, I will stumble thru it.

jacobs

Many people may not want to share their password with someone else, like their accountant. I can think of a number of reasons, perhaps the biggest being that if you share your password, the other user could change the password and lock you out. So they built the sharing feature to allow you to grant — and revoke — access to your Simplifi data.

In your case, you can be happy sharing one Quicken ID with your granddaughter, at least for the time being, so there's nothing to "stumble through."

Should you later decide she should create her own Quicken ID and use that to log into the Simplifi account, then you can use the share space feature.

Stephen C Doyle

ah, ok. Makes sense. thanks!