Comments on: Battle of the Money Management Tools: Comparing YNAB Pro and Quicken

By: Mel

Mel — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 21:39:01 +0000

I’ve been hunting for good software for a few months. Initially I bought quicken but soon after installing it on my computer I added a hard drive – which ruined my license key because it thinks it’s a different computer if you modify any of the hardware specs. This drove me crazy – and as the help line charges you a ridiculous amount of money to reactivate your license key to your “new” computer, I gave up. I wasn’t going to go through this every time I did something to my computer. I then found YNAB a few days ago and am on the 7 day trial and loving it. Seems easier to use quicken too. I’m just still a little infuriated that I wasted money on quicken.

By: Greg

Greg — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 22:30:52 +0000

I don’t usually gush about a software program, but YNAB is an exception.
I used to use Quicken, but it wasn’t a very effective tool for keeping me and my wife on budget. I ran across YNAB recently and L-O-V-E it. Using YNAB, I finally have control over our spending habits. YNAB also enables me to balance my checkbook and credit card account easily.
One more thing…the training resources and customer support at YNAB are excellent. They have a very helpful video library that quickly shows you how to do any operation you may have a question about. When I e-mailed YNAB’s customer support desk about a particular question, I received an answer within 24 hours. How great is that?!
I strongly recommend that anyone who is trying to live within a budget take a look at YNAB. You won’t be disappointed.

By: Kelly

Kelly — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 15:39:23 +0000

I have used Quicken at work (law office), MS Money and YNAB (at home). I do not like Quicken at all. I finally got my boss to change. I do like MS Money better than Quicken at work BUT at home you CANNOT beat YNAB Pro. I absolutely love it. YNAB 3 is getting ready to come out and I will be the first to purchase it. It is so worth the money. We love the way we stopped living paycheck to paycheck and now have a savings and see every month how we budget for different catergories. It is the easiest program I have used to date and actually fun.

By: Save Money Hound

Save Money Hound — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 23:56:04 +0000

From your synopsis above, i would agree that Quicken is a comprehensive tool for managing your finances. YNAB would be a good tool if your focus is on budgeting and identifying areas where you can save money.

By: skye

skye — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 22:29:59 +0000

YNAB rules. I used quicken and quickbooks for years and years, both at work and at home. My husband and I switched to YNAB a couple years ago and it is SOOOOO much better for managing home finances. Simpler, more effective, better at making you conscious of how you spend money and making conscious decisions about how to spend your money in the future (instead of just seeing how you spent it in the past). Highly recommend it.

By: TStrump

TStrump — Sun, 03 May 2009 00:36:53 +0000

I used to use Quicken but switched to Microsoft Money because it was much cheaper.
Actually, it was bundled with the laptop I bought – Quicken started raising their prices, too, which got me annoyed.
Money isn’t as feature-rich as Quicken but I find it still works really well.

By: Ryan

Ryan — Fri, 01 May 2009 13:34:44 +0000

ChrsitianPF: The difference is how much capability Quicken has for tracking investments, real estate and other property, taxes, business income/expenses, etc. You can even pay your bills through Quicken.

Quicken Online and Mint don’t have the same capability as Quicken’s desktop version.

Mint, Quicken Online, and YNAB are all better for tracking income/expenses, but not the other aspects of personal finance.

I think they are all good options; it just depends what you are looking for.

By: ChristianPF

ChristianPF — Fri, 01 May 2009 13:29:38 +0000

I just can’t get too excited about footing the bill for Quicken when you can get the online version for free or Mint.com which many people consider to be better anyway… It is nice that there are so many free options these days…