Bill Pay lacks luster the past few years [Edited]

I've been using Quicken for >20 years. The new series on the mac for the past few years is getting better but still isn't up to what it was 5-10 years ago. [Removed -Unhelpful]. I can't get half of my payees signed up to bill pay (quick pay) even when I give a valid username and password. And I'm talking about standards like American Express and Chase. I have had bills not paid several times, and bills turned into automatic payment without my doing. Really disappointing. But the big thing is just getting normal payees registered for Quick Pay; it takes forever and usually doesnt work. I've had to resort to paying bills from my bank account and just using quicken as a register.

Answers

  • Mark1104
    Mark1104 Member ✭✭✭✭
    curious: why do Quicken users use 'Bill Pay'?  Why not use your Bank's bill pay....or are these quicken users who do not have a Bank alternative?????/ 
  • jmrydzon
    jmrydzon Member ✭✭
    edited July 2021
    Using the bank's bill pay, which I do, requires a manual entry into Quicken when tracking future cash flow. The previous bill pay was simple and worked flawlessly. Bill Pay Manager is an incomplete shadow of Bill Pay. I only use Quicken now to download bank transactions.
  • CmdrEd
    CmdrEd Member ✭✭
    Mark1104: The reason is that it used to be that you only had to take care of your bills and finances with Quicken. You wouldn't have to log in to any other website, then go back to Quicken to record it. You could check your bills and pay them, and they'd be recorded in your registers all at once. Now that works using Bill pay for only like 25% of them, and I have to log in to 10 other sites to make sure my bills get paid, and then record them in Quicken if I want to track my finances. It sort of kills the whole advantage of using Quicken for me.
  • Sherlock
    Sherlock Member ✭✭✭✭
    CmdrEd said:
    Mark1104: The reason is that it used to be that you only had to take care of your bills and finances with Quicken. You wouldn't have to log in to any other website, then go back to Quicken to record it. You could check your bills and pay them, and they'd be recorded in your registers all at once. Now that works using Bill pay for only like 25% of them, and I have to log in to 10 other sites to make sure my bills get paid, and then record them in Quicken if I want to track my finances. It sort of kills the whole advantage of using Quicken for me.
    If you would like to issue online payments from within Quicken, you may want to consider using the online bill payment service provided over the Direct Connect connection method supported by over 500 financial institutions:

    5 Star Bank
    5Point Direct Connect
    AB&T
    APCU/Center Parc
    APGFCU
    AVB Bank
    Abington Bank - New
    Academy Bank-KC
    AccessBank Texas
    Adams Community Bank
    Affinity Federal Credit Union
    AllSouth Federal Credit Union New
    Alpine Bank
    Alpine Capital Bank
    Altoona First Savings Bank
    Amegy Bank of Texas - Direct
    AmeriCU Credit Union - Q
    AmeriState Bank
    American Broadcast EFCU Q
    American Commerce BK
    American Momentum Bank
    American National Bank of TX DC
    American National Bank, FL
    American National Bank-Danville
    American National Bk-Personal
    American State Bank - TX-DL-New
    Ameris Bank
    Anderson Brothers Bank
    Andrews Federal Credit Union
    Anytown Bank-CA New
    Apex Bank
    Aquesta Bank - DC-New
    Armed Forces Bank
    Arthur State Bank
    Atlantic Union Bank Personal DC
    Axos Bank Business DC
    BB&T - Online Banking
    BBVA USA
    BNC National Bank
    BNY Mellon for former MEL - 3801
    BNY Mellon for former MEL - 3804
    BTH Bank, N.A.
    Baker Boyer Bank - NetTeller
    Baltic State Bank - New
    BancFirst
    BancorpSouth
    Bangor Savings - Direct
    Bank 34 -IB Quicken-Quickbooks DC
    Bank Independent
    Bank One
    Bank at United New
    Bank of America-All Other States
    Bank of Bird-in-Hand
    Bank of Central Florida
    Bank of Colorado Bus Premium
    Bank of Dickson
    Bank of Lake Mills
    Bank of Marin
    Bank of Southern California
    Bank of Stockton - DC
    Bank of The West
    Bank of Utah
    Bank of the Sierra
    Bank-Fund Staff FCU - DC
    Bank3
    BankFinancial
    BankFive
    BankUnited, N.A.
    Bar Harbor Bank & Trust
    Barrington Bank & Trust
    BayPort Credit Union
    Benchmark Bank - New
    Berkshire Bank Direct Connect
    Beverly Bank & Trust
    Blue Ridge Bank N.A.
    Boone Bank & Trust Co.
    BossierFCU - Direct
    Boston Private Bank
    Boulder Dam Credit Union
    Brattleboro Savings - New
    Brentwood Bank PA
    Bristol County Savings Bank
    Bryant Bank
    Bryn Mawr Trust-Consumer-SB
    Buckeye Community FCU
    Busey Bank New
    CACU Commercial Business - DC
    CASE CU
    CBI Family of Banks
    CIBC Bank USA - Direct Connect
    CNB-ErieBank-FCBank-BoB
    California Bank & Trust - Direct
    Cambridge Savings Bank
    Cambridge Trust Direct Connect
    CapStar Bank
    Capital CU WI - DirectConnect
    Cashmere Valley Bank
    Cedar Rapids Bank & Trust Retail
    Centra Credit Union Direct Connect
    Central Bank & Trust
    Central Bank - KY Consumer
    Central Bank Jeff.Co KY Consumer
    Central Bank of Kansas City
    Central Missouri Community CU
    Central National Bank-Waco-New
    Centreville Bank
    Centric Bank
    Chain Bridge Bank
    Charles River Bank
    Charter Bank-Eau Claire WI
    Chase
    CheckFree Bill Pay
    Chelsea Groton Bank
    Chevron Federal Credit Union
    ChoiceOne Bank
    Citizens Bank & Trust MO
    Citizens Bank - Mid-Atl Business
    Citizens Bank - Mid-Atl Consumer
    Citizens Bank - New Engl Business
    Citizens Bank - New Engl Consumer
    Citizens Bank and Trust
    Citizens Bank of Florida
    Citizens Bank-Mid West Business
    Citizens Bank-Mid West Consumer
    Citizens State Bank Lankin
    Citizens Tri-County Bank
    City National Bank of CA-Dir Con
    City National Bank of Florida
    City National Bank, Corsicana
    Clearview FCU
    Coastal Heritage Bank
    Comerica Bank
    Commerce Bank - MO, KS, IL
    CommerceOne Bank
    Commercial Bank
    Commonwealth Bank-Go!CB&T
    Communication FCU
    Community BT - Waterloo-Personal
    Community Bank - Joseph OR
    Community Bank NA
    Community Bank of DuPage
    Community Bank of Lexington TN
    Community Bank of Mississippi
    Community Credit Union of FL
    Community First CU - WI
    Community Savings Bank-IA
    Community State Bank IA-Retail
    Coulee Bank
    Country Club Bank
    Cross Keys Bank
    CrossFirst Bank - Consumer
    Crystal Lake Bank & Trust
    DR Bank
    Dedham Savings-Direct Connect
    Del-One Federal CU
    Desco FCU
    Desert Financial Credit Union
    Dime Bank
    Dogwood State Bank
    DuGood FCU
    EagleBank - Personal
    East Cambridge Savings-Business
    East Idaho Credit Union
    East West Bank
    Eastern Bank
    Endeavor Bank
    Equitable Bank, NE
    Essex Bank
    Essex Savings Bank
    Evansville FCU - Indiana
    Evansville Teachers FCU
    Exchange Bank - Santa Rosa
    FNB Clarksdale
    Fairfield County Bank
    Fairfield Federal Savings & Loan
    Fannin Bank
    Farmers & Merchants Bank - Direct
    Farmers & Merchants Bank - VA
    Farmers & Merchants Bank Long Bch
    Farmers and Miners Bank
    Fifth Third Bank
    Financial Resources FCU
    FineMark National Bank & Trust
    First American State Bank
    First Bank - MS
    First Bank of Alabama
    First Bank- NJ BO DC
    First Business Bank DC
    First Carolina Bank
    First Citizens Bank IA
    First Citizens Bank, Direct Conn
    First City Credit Union - Quicken
    First Colony Bank of Florida
    First Commonwealth Bank
    First County Bank - CT
    First Federal Dover
    First Federal Savings Newark
    First Flight FCU
    First Florida Integrity Bank
    First Hawaiian Bank
    First Home Bank
    First Hope Bank
    First Horizon Bank
    First Horizon-legacy Capital Bnk
    First National Bank Ames-Ankeny
    First National Bank in Hominy
    First Northern Bank-PA
    First Ntnl Bank Long Island - New
    First Republic - Digital Banking
    First Republic Bank
    First Secure Community Bank
    First Security Bank, Searcy AR
    First State Bank of Blakely
    First State Community Bank
    First US Bank
    First USA
    First Volunteer Bank-DL
    First Western Bank - AR
    First Western Trust Bank-DC
    FirstLight FCU
    Fitzsimons
    Flagstar
    Flagstar Bank
    Flint Community Bank
    Florida Business Bank-DL-NEW
    Florida State University CU - New
    Forrit Credit Union
    Fort Sill FCU - New
    Fort Worth Community CU - QK
    Fortis Private Bank
    Franklin First FCU - New
    Freedom Bank of Virginia
    Freedom Credit Union - MA - New
    Fulton Bank DirectConnect
    Geauga Savings Bank
    General Electric Credit Union-WCDC
    Generations Bank - NY
    Genesee Regional Bank
    German American Bank - Direct
    Glacier Family of Banks
    Golden Bank
    Golden Plains CU - Direct
    Grand Bank-Tulsa OK
    Grand Savings Bank
    Granite Mountain Bank-Direct
    Great Basin FCU
    Greenfield Cooperative Bank
    Grove Bank & Trust - Business Banking
    Guaranty Bank & Trust, N.A.
    Guardian Bank
    Guilford Savings Bank
    Gulfside Bank
    Guthrie County State Bank - IA
    HAR_CO Maryland FCU
    HarborOne Bank - NEW
    Hawaiian Financial FCU
    Heartland National Bank
    Heritage Bank - Olympia, WA
    Heritage First Bank
    Hills Bank and Trust
    Hinsdale Bank & Trust
    HomeStreet Bank - Direct Connect
    Hometown Bank MA
    Horizon Credit Union
    Horizon Financial Bank
    Hughes FCU DC
    Huntington National Bank
    IBERIABANK
    INTRUST Bank Personal
    InTouch Credit Union
    Independent Bank, TN
    Indiana Members Credit union
    Institution for Savings - NEW
    International Finance Bank
    Intuit Bank Quicken and QB Testing
    Investors Bank
    Inwood National Bank
    Ion Bank
    Island Federal Credit Union - New
    J.P. Morgan
    JPMorgan Chase Bank
    Jefferson Bank & Trust
    Jefferson Security Bank
    Jewett City Savings Bank
    Jim Thorpe Neighborhood Bank
    Johnson Bank
    KS StateBank
    Key
    Keystone Bank - New
    Kirtland Federal Credit Union
    Kitsap Credit Union
    L G & W Federal Credit Union
    L&N Federal Credit Union
    LCNB
    Lake Forest Bank & Trust
    Landmark Community Bank-PA
    Ledyard National Bank - New
    Liberty Financial
    Libertyville Bank & Trust
    Limestone Bank
    Lone Star Bank
    M&T Bank Direct Connect
    MVB Bank
    Magnolia Bank KY
    Magnolia State Bank MI
    MainStreet Bank - NEW
    Manufacturers Bank-IA
    MapleMark Bank
    Marblehead Bank - PFM
    Marine Bank & Trust-Cash Mngt
    Meadows Bank
    Mechanics Bank - New
    MemoryBank
    Meritrust Credit Union
    Merrill Lynch Online Payment
    Methuen Cooperative Bank - New
    Metro Bank
    Metro Credit Union MA
    Michigan Educational CU - New
    Mid Hudson Valley FCU
    Middletown Valley Bank
    Midwest Bank Centre
    Millbury National Bank
    Monroe Federal S&L
    Montecito Bank & Trust DC
    Mountain Commerce Bank - New
    MutualOne Bank
    NI Bank For Agg Modernization
    NWave, Inc.
    National Bank of Arizona - Direct
    National Bank of Indianapolis
    National Grand Bank
    National Iron Bank
    Naveo Credit Union
    Navigant Credit Union
    Needham Bank Business DC
    Needham Bank Consumer - DC
    Neighbors Credit Union
    Neighbors FCU DC
    Net Bank
    Nevada State Bank - Direct
    New Haven Bank
    New Tripoli Bank
    New Valley Bank & Trust
    Newtown Savings Bank
    NexBank
    North Country Savings Bank
    North Easton Savings Bank
    North Salem State Bank-DL-New
    North Shore Bank
    North State Bank - New
    NorthCountry FCU
    NorthStar Bank - FL-DL
    Northbrook Bank & Trust
    Northeast Bank, Maine
    Northeast Family FCU
    Northern Bank & Trust Company PFM
    Northstar Bank of Michigan-NEW
    Northwest
    Northwest Community Bank
    Northwestern Mutual Credit Union
    OE Federal Credit Union
    Oakworth Capital Bank
    Ocean State CU-DC WC
    Ohio Valley Community FCU
    Old Fort Banking Company
    Old National
    Old Plank Trail Community Bank
    Old Second National Bank - Retail
    Old Second National Bank Retail
    Ontario Shores FCU - New
    Oregon State Credit Union
    Origin Bank-PFM
    PCSB
    PNC Bank - Direct Connect
    Pacific Western Bank- PFM DC
    Pan American Bank-Direct
    Pantex Federal Credit Union - QK
    Park View FCU
    Parkside Financial Bank & Trust
    Patriot Community Bank - NEW
    Payne County Bank
    Peach State Bank
    Pegasus Bank - Internet Banking
    Pegasus Bank- Consumer
    Pendleton Community Bank
    People's Credit Union
    People's United Bank - CT
    Peoples Bank of East Tennessee
    Peoples Bank NC
    Peoples Community Bank-MO
    Peoples State Bank-NEW
    PeoplesBank - Holyoke MA
    Philadelphia Federal Credit Union
    Piedmont Advantage Credit Union
    Pilgrim Bank - TX
    Pilot Bank
    Pilot Grove Savings Bank
    Pinnacle Bank NE BusPremium
    Pinnacle Bank TX BusPremium
    Pinnacle Bank WY BusPremium
    Pinnacle Financial Partners
    Presidential Bank, FSB
    PrimeWay Federal Credit Union
    Prosperity Bank Direct
    Prosperity Bank Treasury New
    Quad City Bank & Trust Retail
    Queensborough Online Banking-DC
    RCU-DC_Quicken_QB
    Raritan Bay FCU
    Reading Cooperative Bank
    Regions Bank
    Reliance State Bank
    Reliant Community Federal CU
    Republic Bank & Trust - Bus
    Republic Bank - FRBK
    RiverWorks Credit Union - NEW
    Rock Canyon Bank Utah
    Rocky Mountain Bank-Wyoming
    Rosedale Federal S & L
    S&T Bank - Direct Connect
    SFC Bank - Business
    SFC Bank - Retail
    SSB Community Bank
    SVB Private Bank
    Salem Five Bank - Online Banking
    Salisbury Bank
    Savings Bank of Danbury - New
    Schaumburg Bank & Trust Company
    Seacoast National Bank DC
    Select Bank & Trust - New
    Service Credit Union
    Service First FCU
    ServisFirst Bank-New
    Sharonview Federal CU
    Sierra Central Credit Union-DC
    Sikorsky Credit Union
    Silver State Schools Credit Union
    Simmons Bank
    South Coast Bank and Trust
    SouthPoint FCU Direct Connect
    Southern Michigan Bank & Trst-DC
    Southern States Bank
    Spectrum Credit Union
    St Charles Bank & Trust Company
    St. Mary's Credit Union
    Stanley Bank
    State Bank & Trust - Nevada, IA
    State Bank of Southern Utah DC
    State Bank of the Lakes
    Sterling National Bank Personal
    Summit State Bank - DC
    Sun East Federal Credit Union
    SunTrust Bank
    TD Bank Online Banking - New
    Tandem Bank
    Test-2 1-17-2019
    Texas Partners Bank
    Texas Security Bank
    Texas State Bank of San Angelo
    The Bank of Elk River
    The Bank of Greene County-New
    The Berkshire Bank
    The Citizens Bank of Philadelphia
    The Dart Bank
    The Fahey Banking Company -DC
    The Farmers and Merchants Bank OH
    The First Bank of Greenwich
    The First National Bank Of Sedan
    The Peoples Federal Credit Union
    The Provident Bank MA_NH
    The Victory Bank
    The Village Bank
    Think Bank-Direct Connect
    Third Coast Bank ssb
    Thomaston Savings Bank - DC
    Thrivent Federal Credit Union
    Tidemark FCU
    Timberland Bank
    Tompkins Bank of Castile
    Tompkins Mahopac Bank
    Tompkins Trust Company - NY
    Tompkins VIST Bank
    Town Bank
    TowneBank VA Personal & Biz
    Tremont Credit Union
    TruGrocer Federal Credit Union
    Truity Credit Union
    Truliant Federal Credit Union
    Tulsa Federal Credit Union - New
    U.S. Bank - PFM Direct Connect
    UMB Bank
    Ulster Savings Bank New DC
    UniBank
    Union Bank - Quicken
    Union Bank NC
    United Bank & Trust-Marshalltown
    United Mississippi Bank
    Univest Bank & Trust Co
    Valley Central Bank
    Vectra Bank of Colorado - Direct
    VeraBank
    Veritex Community Bank
    Village Bank & Trust
    VyStar Credit Union
    WECU Direct Connect
    Wakefield Co-operative Bank
    Washington Trust Bank-DC
    Watermark Bank
    Waycross Bank & Trust
    Wells Fargo Bank
    West End Bank
    West Michigan Community Bank
    West Shore Bank
    Westamerica Bank
    Western Alliance Bank - Direct
    Westfield Bank FSB - New
    Wheaton Bank & Trust
    Wilson Bank & Trust
    Winchester Cooperative Bank New
    Winchester Savings Bank
    Winter Park National Bank
    Wintrust Bank
    Wright-Patt Credit Union
    Wyoming Community Bank New
    Zions First National Bank - Direct
    bankESB
  • BK
    BK Member ✭✭✭✭
    edited July 2021
    CmdrEd said:
    ... and I have to log in to 10 other sites to make sure my bills get paid, and then record them in Quicken if I want to track my finances.
    You should not have to go to 10 different sites to to make sure bills are paid.  Many institutions offer eBill capability which major banks also support, combined with the benefits of AutoPay which you set up once and done:
    - You setup AutoPay-A via your primary bank's bill pay system to pay CreditCard-A in your choice of full or partial
    - CreditCard-A sends an eBill to both, you (via email) and your Bank (in an eBill-specific format)
    - Your bank will immediately schedule a payment to CreditCard-A as predefined by you (i.e. 7 days before due date, in full) and subsequently send you an email of this scheduled event as an FYI.
    You won't miss anything since all transactions are downloaded to Quicken.  Happy to provide more detail if you wish.
    [Added: Optionally you setup email/mobile Alert notification with your bank and/or CC to inform you of the completion of the payment which both serve as your assurance, as well as the downloaded payment transaction into Quicken as the 3rd assurance.]

    - QWin Deluxe user since 2010, US subscription on Win11
    - I don't use Cloud Sync, Mobile & Web, Bill Pay/Mgr

  • Mark1104
    Mark1104 Member ✭✭✭✭
    @bk - what you describe is what I do....so I do not understand the benefit of Quicken Bill pay... I can either 'direct connect' to my bank from Quicken and manage the bills in Quicken....or I can manage the bills at my Bank and the transactions 'direct connect' to Quicken???????? The Bank is the cash source, so isn't the benefit to manage everything at the Bank rather than in Quicken???? Also, in this day and age, I get a variety of alerts from the Bank on my smart phone that didn't exist years ago..... 
  • CmdrEd
    CmdrEd Member ✭✭
    BK & Mark1104: Yes I can set up those auto pays externally to Quicken, but the transaction downloads have to be done days later to reflect that. When you (used to) do it all within Quicken, by entering one transaction, say in your checking account register, it simultaneously and instantly : records the transaction in the checking account and in the corresponding credit card or other account, and actually sets up the payment. You could instantly see the resulting balances in all affected accounts and the payment is made, all at the same time. Not anymore, or now only just for a few connected accounts.
  • Mark1104
    Mark1104 Member ✭✭✭✭
    @CmdrEd - thank you for the response.  My Bank (Bofa) transmits all the future payments as soon as I set them up for Bill Pay at the Bank's portal, so my Quicken is always in synch with the Bank.  

    Let me ask the community another way, if Quicken no longer offered Bill Pay via Quicken, who would care and why?  Just curious. 

    Is Quicken making any fees off this from the Quicken community? I imagine most Banks offer the service as part of their checking account program and do not charge extra for the service.  
  • CmdrEd
    CmdrEd Member ✭✭
    Quicken used to offer the service I've been talking about for $10 a month. It was called either Bill Pay or CheckFree I forget. With the transition to the new code a few years ago they dropped it. For me, it is the main reason I've used Quicken for the past 20-30 years. Because when I go to quicken every week or so to do my bills, they are payed and everything is registered in one quick entry per bill. Now its much more of a hassle, juggling through the different websites for each payee. And Direct Connect does not work with all of them, American Express as an example. CheckFree worked with everything.
  • BK
    BK Member ✭✭✭✭
    Mark1104 said:
    @bk - what you describe is what I do....so I do not understand the benefit of Quicken Bill pay... I can either 'direct connect' to my bank from Quicken and manage the bills in Quicken....or I can manage the bills at my Bank and the transactions 'direct connect' to Quicken???????? The Bank is the cash source, so isn't the benefit to manage everything at the Bank rather than in Quicken???? Also, in this day and age, I get a variety of alerts from the Bank on my smart phone that didn't exist years ago..... 
    @Mark1104 , I believe you and I are saying the exact same thing.
    This is only a personal opinion: Not only I do not see any benefit in using Quicken's bill pay offering for my particular needs, I view it as introducing multiple potential points of failure into the process since they too use 3rd party vendors and those vendors use others.  I don't use it as I rather go straight to the source - BofA - to pay/schedule them and not worry about possible failures as they have never disappointed me.  I love other features of Quicken and will be a loyal and grateful customer.

    Mark1104 said:

    Let me ask the community another way, if Quicken no longer offered Bill Pay via Quicken, who would care and why?  Just curious. 

    Is Quicken making any fees off this from the Quicken community? I imagine most Banks offer the service as part of their checking account program and do not charge extra for the service.  
    Perhaps you and I don't but I am sure many users would be furious since (a) they are using it frequently and (b) some may not be banking with banks that have robust and feature-rich bill pay systems.  As such Quicken's bill pay is providing them with additional features and benefits a few don't have access to.
    I don't know about the fees but I think Quicken has the right to do so in order to thrive and I support that.

    CmdrEd said:
    BK & Mark1104: Yes I can set up those auto pays externally to Quicken, but the transaction downloads have to be done days later to reflect that. When you (used to) do it all within Quicken, by entering one transaction, say in your checking account register, it simultaneously and instantly : records the transaction in the checking account and in the corresponding credit card or other account, and actually sets up the payment. You could instantly see the resulting balances in all affected accounts and the payment is made, all at the same time. Not anymore, or now only just for a few connected accounts.
    @CmdrEd , When we initiate bill pay thru Quicken, we are not guaranteed that the transactions will be successful for the reasons I wrote above.  Yes, the Q register reflects the debit and credit records and the updated balances "simultaneously and instantly" as you wrote, but we have to wait and have faith that the transactions have been transmitted by the 3rd parties and are successfully received and executed by the financial institutions "later".

    - QWin Deluxe user since 2010, US subscription on Win11
    - I don't use Cloud Sync, Mobile & Web, Bill Pay/Mgr

  • Mark1104
    Mark1104 Member ✭✭✭✭
    @bk - thank you for the feedback! Interesting and much appreciated! 
  • Mark1104
    Mark1104 Member ✭✭✭✭
    @CmdrEd - so your Bank doesn't offer a 'bill pay' service????? just curious. 
  • CmdrEd
    CmdrEd Member ✭✭
    yes it does; my whole issue is that I used to do everything from one place; in Quicken. I would write one transaction and that would simultaneously: issue the payment, record it in my register, and if it was to another account (like a credit card) in quicken, it would record it going there as well. One step. Now, if Quicken Bill pay doesn't work with a given payee (now 75% of the time), I have to go to my bank page or the payee page and authorize the payment, then go back to quicken to make sure everything is recorded right. Some places like American Express dont do Direct Connect so now its a mixed bag and I have to check every payment, versus previously it was a simple one step deal.
  • Sherlock
    Sherlock Member ✭✭✭✭
    CmdrEd said:
    yes it does; my whole issue is that I used to do everything from one place; in Quicken. I would write one transaction and that would simultaneously: issue the payment, record it in my register, and if it was to another account (like a credit card) in quicken, it would record it going there as well. One step. Now, if Quicken Bill pay doesn't work with a given payee (now 75% of the time), I have to go to my bank page or the payee page and authorize the payment, then go back to quicken to make sure everything is recorded right. Some places like American Express dont do Direct Connect so now its a mixed bag and I have to check every payment, versus previously it was a simple one step deal.

    Quicken Bill Pay was an online bill payment service provided by Metavante Payment Services, Inc.Metavante decided to terminate their Quicken Bill Pay service.  There are still over 500 other financial institutions providing the equivalent online bill payment service in Quicken.  The functional advantage Quicken Bill Pay had over these other online bill payment service providers was that Quicken Bill Pay could draw payment funds from any ACH account.  

    With the withdrawal of Quicken Bill Pay, Quicken promoted the use of Quick Pay and Check Pay as if they were functionally equivalent or even a better alternative to Quicken Bill Pay which they clearly are not at this time. 

    These days, most financial institutions provide their own free online bill payment services at their web portal.  So, those of us that are frugal and willing to make the extra effort required have most of our regular bills charged directly to reward/cash back credit cards or a bank account.  The extra effort required is updating the payment account numbers at the multiple vendor web site when necessary.  Those few bills that remain, we pay using the free bill payment service of our preferred financial institution. 

    Again, note:  Those of us that still want to issue online bill payments directly from within Quicken like we were able to do with Quicken Bill Pay may still do so using one of the more than 500 financial institutions that still support the online bill payment service over the Direct Connect connection method.  A few of these institutions will even provide the service for free.
  • CmdrEd
    CmdrEd Member ✭✭
    Thanks; that is true however many of the payees I need to deal with don't use Direct Connect, and the Quicken Check Pay option has proven very unreliable for me, with delivery times well over the 5 days advertised and in some cases not done at all. Quicken Bill Pay was awesome. There are other services that could do what it did if Quicken would hook up with them.
  • Mark1104
    Mark1104 Member ✭✭✭✭
    @CmdrEd - so why not just use your Bank's online bill pay capabiltiy (or move to a bank that offers it)????
  • Sherlock
    Sherlock Member ✭✭✭✭
    edited July 2021
    CmdrEd said:
    Thanks; that is true however many of the payees I need to deal with don't use Direct Connect, and the Quicken Check Pay option has proven very unreliable for me, with delivery times well over the 5 days advertised and in some cases not done at all. Quicken Bill Pay was awesome. There are other services that could do what it did if Quicken would hook up with them.
    If a business doesn't support online bill payment, the online bill payment service should automatically send them a paper check just like Quicken Bill Pay used to do.

    If your attempting to send an individual an electronic payment, you may want to consider using a peer to peer payment service.
  • BK
    BK Member ✭✭✭✭
    @CmdrEd , From what I am reading, it appears that you already established that Q's current bill pay offering no longer meets your needs, and @Sherlock provided some great background where this might not be their strongest suit.  So as @Mark1104 suggested, it may be a good idea to 'test drive' the online bill pay system of your current banks and perhaps research others.  It won't cost you anything and you can revert back at anytime.  Keep in mind that even if some of your accounts are not Direct Connect (DC), chances are they offer Express Web Connect (EWC) connection to Quicken which still automatically download to Quicken during One Step Update process, end result being the same.
    Cons: You deal with two systems where you manage your bills from your primary Bank instead of Quicken; but continue to view all the transactions in Quicken exactly as you do today.
    Pros: You don't have all your eggs in one [Q] basket and hopefully achieve the reliability you are seeking.
    - QWin Deluxe user since 2010, US subscription on Win11
    - I don't use Cloud Sync, Mobile & Web, Bill Pay/Mgr

  • CmdrEd
    CmdrEd Member ✭✭
    BK and everyone: Thanks. Yes I know about and use the online bank bill pay services as well as those from individual payees. I'm bemoaning the fact that I have to do that, where in the past 30 years I could do it all from within Quicken by writing one transaction.
  • Sherlock
    Sherlock Member ✭✭✭✭
    edited July 2021
    CmdrEd said:
    BK and everyone: Thanks. Yes I know about and use the online bank bill pay services as well as those from individual payees. I'm bemoaning the fact that I have to do that, where in the past 30 years I could do it all from within Quicken by writing one transaction.
    Again, you may not have to do that.  If you use the online bill payment services provided by one of the more than 500 financial institutions that still provide online payment to online payees, you could do it all from within Quicken by writing one transaction.
  • CmdrEd
    CmdrEd Member ✭✭
    can you name a couple of them? my bank is Chase and provides free online payments, but I can't write them from within Quicken
  • Sherlock
    Sherlock Member ✭✭✭✭
    CmdrEd said:
    can you name a couple of them? my bank is Chase and provides free online payments, but I can't write them from within Quicken
    I provided a complete list earlier in this discussion.  Chase does support online bill payments from within Quicken over the Direct Connect connection method.  You should be able to issue your payments to online payees just like you did with Quicken Bill Pay.  My understanding is the Direct Connect access to Chase is free for non-business accounts.  To complete the setup of the Direct Connect connection method with Chase, you may want to review: https://www.quicken.com/support/adding-chase-accounts-quicken  Once you've successfully switched the registers associated with Chase to use the Direct Connect connection method, you should be able to set the online bill payment to the Chase Payment Service.
  • Mark1104
    Mark1104 Member ✭✭✭✭
    @CmdrEd - I use Bank of AMerica and use their Online Bill Pay feature.  All the transactions, even the ones that are future dated download to Quicken.  It is quite easy. 
  • CmdrEd
    CmdrEd Member ✭✭
    > @Sherlock said:
    > I provided a complete list earlier in this discussion.  Chase does support online bill payments from within Quicken over the Direct Connect connection method.  You should be able to issue your payments to online payees just like you did with Quicken Bill Pay.  My understanding is the Direct Connect access to Chase is free for non-business accounts.  To complete the setup of the Direct Connect connection method with Chase, you may want to review: https://www.quicken.com/support/adding-chase-accounts-quicken  Once you've successfully switched the registers associated with Chase to use the Direct Connect connection method, you should be able to set the online bill payment to the Chase Payment Service.

    So I have my Chase account set up for payment from within Quicken. Quicken only allows "QuickPay" or "CheckPay" as a way to schedule payments within Quicken going out from the Chase account. "QuickPay" does not hook up and pay most of my payees electronically the way Quicken Bill Pay used to. That is the problem. It can only pay about 25-50% of the payees electronically as compared with what Quicken Bill Pay could do. The default is "CheckPay", which takes about 5-7 days to go out if it goes out at all. In the old Quicken you simple entered a transaction and it would go to BillPay, and if it couldn't do it electronically it would automatically switch to a check version which actually worked.
  • Mark1104
    Mark1104 Member ✭✭✭✭
    @CmdrEd - so why not reverse the process and pay everything directly from Chase....and then download the transactions from Chase to Quicken? 
  • CmdrEd
    CmdrEd Member ✭✭
    > @Mark1104 said:
    > @CmdrEd - so why not reverse the process and pay everything directly from Chase....and then download the transactions from Chase to Quicken? 

    I could do that, but for example if I'm paying my Amex card, Quicken would put it in the register for Chase but not the corresponding one for Amex. It wouldn't show in Amex until a day or two later and I'd have to remember to look then. I don't get an instantaneous view of where I'm at overall that way
  • Sherlock
    Sherlock Member ✭✭✭✭
    edited July 2021
    CmdrEd said:
    > @Sherlock said:
    > I provided a complete list earlier in this discussion.  Chase does support online bill payments from within Quicken over the Direct Connect connection method.  You should be able to issue your payments to online payees just like you did with Quicken Bill Pay.  My understanding is the Direct Connect access to Chase is free for non-business accounts.  To complete the setup of the Direct Connect connection method with Chase, you may want to review: https://www.quicken.com/support/adding-chase-accounts-quicken  Once you've successfully switched the registers associated with Chase to use the Direct Connect connection method, you should be able to set the online bill payment to the Chase Payment Service.

    So I have my Chase account set up for payment from within Quicken. Quicken only allows "QuickPay" or "CheckPay" as a way to schedule payments within Quicken going out from the Chase account. "QuickPay" does not hook up and pay most of my payees electronically the way Quicken Bill Pay used to. That is the problem. It can only pay about 25-50% of the payees electronically as compared with what Quicken Bill Pay could do. The default is "CheckPay", which takes about 5-7 days to go out if it goes out at all. In the old Quicken you simple entered a transaction and it would go to BillPay, and if it couldn't do it electronically it would automatically switch to a check version which actually worked.
    It is not true that Quicken only allows Quicken only allows "QuickPay" or "CheckPay" as a way to schedule payments within Quicken going out from the Chase account.

    Again, if y
    ou've successfully switched the registers associated with Chase to use the Direct Connect connection method, you should be able to set the online bill payment to the Chase Payment Service for a payment register.  



    Note: I lifted these images from @Ps56k2's posts as we do not have a Chase account.  

    After you have set the online payment service to use the Chase payment service, you should be able to issue payments to the online payees just like you did with Quicken Bill Pay
  • CmdrEd
    CmdrEd Member ✭✭
    Sorry, you're talking about the PC version. I'm talking about the Mac version. Totally different and inferior new code. This is what is available for my Chase account (see pic). And the Bill pay option at the bottom is "not available" when I try to activate it.
  • Sherlock
    Sherlock Member ✭✭✭✭
    edited July 2021
    CmdrEd said:
    Sorry, you're talking about the PC version. I'm talking about the Mac version. Totally different and inferior new code. This is what is available for my Chase account (see pic). And the Bill pay option at the bottom is "not available" when I try to activate it.
    Of course, we're talking about Quicken on Windows because you posted your query to a Quicken on Windows category.  Way to waste all of our time.  Thanks.

    I suggest you post your query to a Quicken for Mac category.  You should be able to enable the bank bill pay.  Perhaps you need to disable the Quick Pay option first or have not setup the Chase registers to use the Direct Connect connection method.
  • CmdrEd
    CmdrEd Member ✭✭
    OMG I'm very sorry about that, folks!
    I've seen the Windows version and it is awesome, the way the Mac version used to be. Maybe I'll start running that via Parallels, but converting the files is a real bear.
    But again sorry for wasting your time!
This discussion has been closed.