Quicken was traditionally known as one of the best personal finance software options for desktop users. However, the Mac version had traditionally lacked the features found in the PC version, and that was disappointing to many users.
Over the years, Quicken has tried to close the gap between its two software versions. And that was again the case with its latest iteration -- Quicken For Mac 2021.
So is the Mac version finally on equal footing with the PC software? Unfortunately, no. Quicken for Mac still lags the Quicken for Windows experience. But it's still a power piece of software that may perfectly meet all your needs. In this article, we’ll look at the latest features in Quicken for Mac and compare it against the current Quicken for Windows.
Quick Summary
- Incremental improvements over 2020 version
- A great mobile app with seemless sync across platforms
- Price is still a concern, but if you can find a great deal, go for it
Quicken For Mac 2021 Details | |
|---|---|
Product Name | Quicken For Mac 2021 |
Price | $35.99 - $74.99 per year |
Platform | Mac, iPhone |
Promotions | 10% Off Of All Versions |
Who Is Quicken?
Quicken is a personal finance software company. It used to be part of Intuit. Quicken was spun off from Intuit in 2016 and was purchased by H.I.G. Capital. The CEO of Quicken is Eric Dunn. He joined Intuit as employee #4 when Quicken was still under the Intuit umbrella.
What Do They Offer?
Quicken offers a personal finance software product by the same name. It is available for Windows and Mac. In this article, we’ll focus on the Mac version.
Anyone who has used Quicken for Windows and then tried Quicken for Mac probably came away from the experience disappointed. Spoiler alert — that experience hasn’t really changed much in the latest Quicken for Mac. Quicken for Mac still trails Quicken for Windows in ease of use, interface (i.e., navigation), intuitiveness, versatility, and features. For many people, Quicken for Mac particularly falls short when it comes to investment features. Especially the lack of automatic cost basis calculations.
Another area that people have complaints about is the interface. For example, the home screen makes it a bit difficult to find things. There aren't any widgets or ways to customize the home screen. Additionally, if you are coming from Quicken for Windows, there isn't a one-to-one transition where everything's the same in Quicken for Mac. Some things will be familiar, while others will not and require some searching around to find.
Still No Home & Business
The Quicken Home & Business subscription allows you to run your personal and business transactions within the same software. However, Quicken H&B is not as nearly business feature-rich as Quickbooks.
Quicken for Mac is still missing the H&B option. You can only get it in Quicken for Windows.
What’s New In Quicken For Mac 2021?
Each version of Quicken gets faster and more robust. That hasn’t changed with the latest version. Being a subscription, you’ll automatically get the latest updates.
Specifically for Mac users, expect the following in the latest version of Quicken:
- Up to twice as fast on start-up
- Charts and graphs also load twice as fast
- Backup is four times faster than prior versions
- Access to 11,000+ online billers, bill PDF downloads*
- New enhanced Portfolio View
- Refreshed overall look & feel of Bills & Income
- 5 GB of secure online backup for your Quicken files with Dropbox
- Free Quicken Bill Pay and priority access to Quicken phone support (Premier and above)
- Manage your money anywhere with Quicken on the Web
Both the Windows and Mac version get the following enhancements:
- Over 500 customer-requested improvements and fixes plus significantly improved reliability
- The most powerful connectivity to banks and brokerages of any personal finance software; more than 14,500 financial institutions and 11,000 online billers
Quicken On The Web
Quicken on the Web is a recent development for Quicken. While most other financial apps are completely web-based, Quicken on the Web is only a companion. This means it is a scaled down version of Quicken. If Quicken can continue developing Quicken on the Web into a full-blown financial app, it will eliminate the inferior Mac user experience.
With Quicken on the Web, you can do all of the following:
- View balances, budgets, accounts, and transactions
- See spending trends by category, payee, and more
- Monitor investment performance with up-to-the-minute portfolio value
- Search and see details of past expenses
- Keep your finances continually up to date: your accounts sync across desktop, web, and mobile
- Enjoy a fresh, streamlined Quicken experience
What Does It Cost?
Quicken moved to a subscription-based pricing model in 2017. Unlike many other subscription services, Quicken's software is not purely cloud-based. It is desktop, mobile, and cloud-lite. Desktop software still needs to be installed to use all of Quicken's features.
While some may balk at no longer having one-time charge licensed software, the subscription model does make better sense in the end. It means more cash flow for Quicken. And hopefully, with more cash, incremental improvement will keep coming, making the software better each year. Here are the current prices:
Starter | Deluxe | Premier | |
|---|---|---|---|
Best For: | Basic budgeting, no investments | Users with investments and loan tracking | Users who want BillPay or Premium Support |
Price: | $35.99/yr | $51.99/yr | $74.99/yr |
The Mac prices do mirror the Windows prices. Also, Quicken does come with a 30-day money-back risk-free trial.
How Do I Buy It?
Visit https://www.quicken.com to purchase and download Quicken.
Is My Money Safe?
Yes - like many other financial apps, Quicken uses encryption and secure connections to financial institutions.
Is It Worth It?
If you want to use Quicken on the Mac without installing a Windows emulator, Quicken for Mac is the only way to go. Despite it being less efficient and a bit more frustrating than Quicken for Windows, there isn’t much of a learning curve and one can fairly quickly overcome any inefficiencies.
Quicken For Mac 2021
- Product Cost - 60
- Ease Of Use - 83
- Tools And Features - 90
- Customer Serivce - 85
Overall
Summary
Quicken For Mac 2021 has continued to improve on what’s been working and has an even better mobile app experience.
Pros
- Up to 2x faster startup
- Enhance Portfolio View
- Full refresh of Bills & Income
- 5 GB of cloud backup with Dropbox
Cons
- Somewhat clunky navigation
- Lacking key investment features
- Limited business transaction tracking
Robert Farrington is America’s Millennial Money Expert® and America’s Student Loan Debt Expert™, and the founder of The College Investor, a personal finance site dedicated to helping millennials escape student loan debt to start investing and building wealth for the future. You can learn more about him on the About Page, or on his personal site RobertFarrington.com.
He regularly writes about investing, student loan debt, and general personal finance topics geared towards anyone wanting to earn more, get out of debt, and start building wealth for the future.
He has been quoted in major publications including the New York Times, Washington Post, Fox, ABC, NBC, and more. He is also a regular contributor to Forbes.