Move from Excel to Accounting Software

While many businesses, more specifically start-ups tend to rely on Microsoft Excel, this method of accounting can potentially become tiresome. When you are managing a growing business’s financial data you need to use accounting software that is not as time-consuming as Excel can be. What’s more is using Excel is not a long-term solution and they can often be full of mistakes. As long as you need to manually enter data and copy and paste information, mistakes will be made. Here is why you should move from Excel to accounting software.

The Benefits of Moving from Excel to Accounting Software

Spreadsheets tend to be as accurate as the individual who is entering the information. When spreadsheets become quite complex the rate of errors increases. This can ultimately mean that your end of year figures are not accurate.

Accounting software has been designed to use real-time data which means you will not have to manually enter every penny you earn. With more accurate results and offering you insights where you need them, accounting software can also restrict access to specific data if needs be.

Multiple Users

Accounting software allows for multiple users and this is where you can restrict access to specific data if you need to. What’s more is software can also provide an audit trail allowing you to understand each transaction and rectify and track any errors that have been made.

Access to your Information

The right accounting software allows you to have access to your financial information any time of the day or night. You can also access your financial information wherever you are, which is something you cannot do when you rely on Excel. Having the freedom to access your accounts whenever and wherever you are means you can get that urgent bit of work done or you can rectify any errors whenever you need to.

Getting your Data Ready

While many different types of accounting software can import Excel files, some cannot. However, even those that can import Excel files might struggle to place all the data in the correct area. For example, the name and contact details of a client may be presented as name, address and telephone number on your excel file. When using accounting software the information may have to be displayed as name, telephone number and address. What this means for you is you will have to change the order of the details in your Excel sheet. Once you have done this you may be able to import all of the data unless the programme has any other requirements. While this may seem like a lot of work when you are editing your spreadsheet data you can also clean up those errors that need dealing with.

Saving you Time

If you have ever set up a spreadsheet you will know that it can take a lot of time. You will also need to put a lot of thought into the formulas you will need to use and where specific columns should be. You may also find that you need to change or add information every now and again. When using accounting software you will not have to deal with any of these issues as they are all done for you – and thus you will be saving time íf you decide to move from Excel to accounting software.

Easy to Use

Accounting software can be very easy to use as the dashboard tends to be very easy to read and you will have all of your much-needed financial data close to hand. This means you will have all the information you need to make those important decisions and without worrying whether any data has been entered incorrectly.

Reports at your Fingertips

One of the great things about using accounting software is that it can ultimately give you all of the reports you will ever need. Excel does not provide you with any reports and printing off a spreadsheet can be quite complicated. Using accounting software, you can access all the reports you need and you can typically do this in just a few clicks. What’s more is you will also have access to budgets and real-time reports, providing you with a better insight into your business.

Your Business can Start to Grow

If you run a startup you may find that for the first few months or years that using Excel for your financial data is a simple and easy way to account for everything. However, as your business grows you will soon see that Excel may not be enough. This is why you need to move from Excel to accounting software. You will have access to financial information whenever you need it, allowing you to make those all-important financial decisions that could help your business to grow.

While moving from Excel to accounting software may seem like an arduous task, it can potentially be the best move you will ever make. With the ability to save you time, allow access to multiple users and give you reports whenever you want them, it is no wonder more and more people use accounting software. Simply ensure your data is ready to be transferred and you could find that you understand the ins and outs of your business a whole lot more.