Over 95% of businesses experience substantial improvements with ERP solutions, enhancing business processes, collaboration and data centralisation.
As a business leader, you must know the necessity of a business management solution to drive business success. The technological tools are essential for financial tracking, operational management and business growth.
However, the true challenge lies in discovering the perfect solution tailored to your specific business needs. It is what makes the QuickBooks vs. Dynamics 365 Business Central debate so pertinent.
To clear up all your confusion over which one to pick, we are here with a comprehensive analysis of both solutions for your unconditional business growth.
Overview of QuickBooks and Dynamics 365 Business Central?
QuickBooks is an accounting software which is developed and marketed by Intuit. It has been in the market for a long time and offers both on-premises and cloud-based accounting applications capable of accepting business payments, managing bill payments and handling payroll functions.
Since its inception in 1983, QuickBooks has been primarily directed at small businesses. Intuit has woven web-based elements into QuickBooks, encompassing remote access, payroll aid, electronic payments, online banking, email functions via Microsoft Outlook and Google-driven marketing.
On the other hand, Dynamics 365 Business Central is an advanced business management solution that connects sales, finance, service and operations in a unified platform. It serves growing small and mid-sized businesses with automated supply chains, improved customer interactions and enhanced data-driven decisions for faster growth and revenue.
The cloud-based ERP solution empowers you with integrated tools to make bookkeeping easier. Going beyond financial capabilities, it can edit and analyse real-time data in Excel, manage sales in Outlook and enable collaboration through Teams.
What are the benefits of QuickBooks?
The rich historical background and strong foothold in the market stand out as two of Quickbooks’ most impressive benefits. While Quickbooks is primarily recognised for its bookkeeping software, it provides a variety of accounting and financial solutions tailored for small businesses.
- It provides access to standard financial statements such as balance sheets, profit and loss, cash flow statements and filed taxes.
- The banking integration feature of QuickBooks Online Software ensures that bank statements and transactions are automatically kept up to date.
- It simplifies invoice creation from scratch or previous estimates and offers effortless generation and viewing of reports like outstanding invoices, total client dues and invoice payment details.
- It provides numerous reports for expense analysis and aids in tracking upcoming payments, ensuring timely bill settlement when bill records are accessible.
- It efficiently monitors employee time and billable hours by employee or client and seamlessly includes them in your invoices.
- It records vendor invoices and initiates payments on time, utilising automated scheduling for recurring transactions.
- It offers various versions like QuickBooks Online Plus, Enterprise Solutions Platinum, Enterprise Solutions Gold and Silver to support payroll, advanced reporting, inventory and pricing features.
Read More: NetSuite vs. QuickBooks
What are the Benefits of Business Central?
Dynamics 365 Business Central is a cloud-based business management solution designed to aid small and mid-sized businesses in automating and optimising their business operations. Its cutting-edge financial management capabilities establish it as the next step up from entry-level accounting solutions.
- The flexible deployment, reliability and robust security of Business Central empower your business to move to the cloud faster.
- Its embedded guidance, dashboards and integration with Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Teams make faster and intelligent business decisions to enhance sales and services.
- It speeds up financial closure, enhances forecasting and provides real-time performance metrics and reporting, all while ensuring regulatory compliance.
- It integrates data across various departments, including sales, inventory, accounting and purchasing, to automate financial processes for quick and precise outcomes.
- It guarantees effective project execution and profitability through real-time resource management, planning, accounting, billing, and costing.
- It enhances supply chain management, enabling agile adaptation to evolving business needs through real-time visibility into procurement, manufacturing, inventory and warehousing.
- It facilitates diverse currency management, exchange rates, consolidation, inter-company transactions and compliance with localised tax regulations.
- The integrated reports, Excel and Microsoft Power BI aid in obtaining real-time cash-flow insights, recognising financial trends, analysing patterns and enhancing business planning.
- It assumes command over your financial data, overseeing cash flow, bank reconciliations, fixed assets, budgeting and project costing while reducing cycle time.
Learn More: Business Central for Accountants
Comparison between QuickBooks vs. Business Central
The preceding discussion provides a clear picture that both the solutions Business Central and QuickBooks cater to a wide range of businesses, offering tools for accounting, financial tracking and more. However, they differ significantly in terms of features, scalability, target audience and more.
Let’s find out the key differences that will help your business make an informed decision that aligns with your unique operational requirements and growth aspirations.
Capabilities
QuickBooks provides essential tools to streamline only your finance and accounting business operations. Whereas Business Central is an ERP solution with modules for managing finance, sales and service, projects, supply chain and operations. Therefore, beyond accounting capabilities, Business Central empowers you to connect every aspect of your business to unleash your potential.
Size of the Business
QuickBooks seamlessly suits the needs of small businesses, but as the business expands, QuickBooks face challenges to manage the processes. At the same time, Business Central is a sturdy ERP solution for small and mid-sized companies that scale in tandem with the evolving needs of growing businesses.
Security Features
While QuickBooks’ security measures are well-suited for small businesses, they prove inadequate for a growing business where many users need system access. Business Central’s built-in robust security features, enhanced with Microsoft’s regular updates, protect the database of your growing business from cyber threats and unauthorised access.
Automation Capability
In comparison to Business Central, QuickBooks falls short in terms of its ability to automate tasks for enhanced efficiency. On the contrary, Business Central has automation capability to eliminate time-consuming and error-prone manual tasks. It enables your team to focus on critical tasks for increased business productivity.
Real-Time Information
QuickBooks offers a brief overview of sales performance over a limited period. However, Business Central provides real-time visibility into business operations to identify potential bottlenecks or opportunities, adapt to changing market demands, optimise resource allocation, make informed decisions and enhance overall efficiency.
Auditing
QuickBooks has simple audit trail features that track changes to transactions and information. It can record the date, time and user information for different actions. Business Central provides a more comprehensive audit trail that can capture a broader range of actions, such as changes to financial data, user activity and system events.
Reporting
QuickBooks is suitable for basic financial reporting with limited analysis. In contrast, Business Central’s reporting tools enable deeper analysis, data visualisation and customised reports tailored to specific business needs. Its seamless collaboration with Power BI and Jet Reports allows a comprehensive view of financial and operational aspects, including inventory, sales, purchasing, etc.
Business Central vs. QuickBooks Online: Which One to Choose?
It is now evident that both QuickBooks and Business Central offer the essential capabilities necessary for managing basic accounting for a small business. Nevertheless, the distinctions between the two solutions become highly apparent when exploring functionalities beyond these capabilities.
Let’s explore a few scenarios to understand which solution suits your business best.
If your business size is very small, with ten or fewer team members, and managing business operations is not complex, then you can opt for QuickBooks based on the financial investment.
Again, suppose your accounting team consists of just one or two members, and they possess extensive expertise in QuickBooks. In fact, you are open to ongoing training for the newer QuickBooks version. In that case, continuing with this platform is better than adapting to a different one.
On the other hand, if you want to grow your business that will engage in over 1000 transactions per month and your expansion plans include multiple countries, then Business Central will be the perfect solution for you. With this solution, you don’t have to worry about managing different revenue and expenses.
Again, if ensuring the auditability and security of your information is a key concern, then it’s better to adapt to Business Central. The same applies if your business necessitates robust reporting capabilities in a solution.
Suppose you are pursuing the efficiency benefits of a completely integrated accounting solution harmonising seamlessly with Outlook and the entire Office Suite. In that case, Business Central presents itself as the perfect solution. As a Microsoft product, it offers effortless compatibility with Office 365 applications.
How Dynamics Square Can Help in Your Growth Journey
A competent technology support partner is as crucial as having the ideal business management solution for business growth. Dynamics Square emerges as Australia’s premier Microsoft Dynamics 365 support partner due to its proven expertise, industry-tailored solutions, and exceptional track record in successful implementations.
Dynamics Square can help you take your business to new heights with its 24/7 support services. The strategic IT partner follows a zero defect policy to ensure zero cost, time overrun, and a bug-free Business Central implementation process. Our core team has cross-functional expertise and provides in-person training, fostering a deep product understanding for our customers.
Conclusion
To conclude, QuickBooks tends to align better with uncomplicated or small businesses, while Dynamics 365 Business Central addresses the intricate requirements of growing small and mid-sized businesses. Notably, many businesses initiate their operations using QuickBooks and subsequently shift to Business Central as their needs evolve.
If you’re considering migrating your business from QuickBooks to Business Central or seeking to adopt Business Central for the first time, rest assured that we are here to guide you throughout the implementation process.
