No More Microsoft Money After June 30
By Jeremy on Jun 10, 2009 with Comments 35
I suppose it probably doesn’t come as much of a surprise, but Microsoft is discontinuing their money management software at the end of the month. They had a good run, but it’s pretty hard to keep up with so many free money management platforms and the long-standing top finance package that Quicken offers.
The writing was on the wall since last fall Microsoft announced they were going to stop selling Money in retail stores and offering annual updates. I know that buying software in the store as a whole might be slowly becoming a thing of the past, but you usually don’t see major titles stop offering their products in stores unless there are plans to discontinue it entirely at some point.
Microsoft did post an official announcement on their site today. It isn’t long, but the important part states (emphasis mine):
Microsoft Money Plus will not be available for purchase after June 30, 2009. All purchased Money Plus products must be activated prior to Jan. 31, 2011. With banks, brokerage firms and Web sites now providing a range of options for managing personal finances, the consumer need for Microsoft Money Plus has changed. After suspending annual updates of Money Plus in 2008, Microsoft is announcing today that we will no longer offer Microsoft Money Plus for purchase after June 30, 2009.
Some things have certainly changed as you have companies like Mint providing a unique personal finance package for free. But I’m not sure what banks and brokerage firms are offering that compete with what Mint, Money, or Quicken have to offer. Sure, they may provide some added features that can help consumers with their money, but nothing nearly as comprehensive as their software.
I think the main issue is that people know that they can get virtually the same level of service without paying by using Mint or Quicken Online. Sure, if you have more complicated finances or need more granular levels of reporting you might still opt for a more robust package. But most people are just looking for something simple, and Microsoft has been lagging in that department for years.
Are You a Money User?
So, I’m curious if there are any MS Money users out there. I’ve used it occasionally over the past few years for testing purposes, but I always fall back on Quicken. It’s not that Money is bad software, but I got my start on Quicken. Like the saying goes, you can’t teach an old dog new tricks. It’s hard to get out of a rhythm. But if you are using MS Money, how did you like it, and is the cancelation of it going to force you to look for an alternative?
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We have been using MSMoney since 1993. Our finances are a little complex, having grown over the years. I work in IT as an IT Manager for a government entity in AU too. I tried a migration to Quicken (as I would with need to with my employer) and had some issues. When I pressed quicken about some of the issues that needed resolution, they became very awkward tro say the least. Especially given requests like the ones I was making were legitemate issues and would be actively resolved by other vendors. The event left me to conclude that they were less than helpful when support was needed. As my Wife has only just let me know that Money is discontinued, and we are still using 2002.AU version, I am not sure what the best alternative is. Even this late after Microsoft anounced it (mid 2009), there doesnt seem to be a practical alternative.
Shoot I use MONEY 2007 because I operate in 2 currencies. I can download from any bank in the world. I used Quicken for 10 years but they didnot offer any multi currency bank facility. For a while I had USA Books on one computer & the foreign currency on another computer, but consolidating reports was bad. If Quicken has changed let me know. I had many long battles with Quicken in getting them to allow foreign downloads. So much so they wouldn’t answer my calls anymore. AT the time you could not load the USA version & a Canadian version on the same machine.
Gimmmmee back updated MONEY
Regards
Ed
My bank now has online budgeting capabilities so I can understand why the need for this has diminished. I was always a Quicken user, but I do think the banks offer a lot of services now that they never have before.
I used Quicken for a few years and got tired of all the bugs. I have been using MS Money for at least 6 years now. I wish someone would buy the right to sell Money from Microsoft and continue the product. All we need are the online updates. I don’t care about new features.
I was actually wondering what happened to money management, seeing as I was using it. Quite a handy tool if I may say so.
Cheers
Eric
I too have been a MS Money user for 13+ years. When I got the news of the discontinuation, I looked to Quicken for an alternative. Having used Quicken 2009 for 4 months now, I have to say that it pales in comparison to MS Money. It is nowhere as easy to use, bug and problem ridden (just check their community boards). The most disappointing thing about it, is the fact that my investments will only update prices daily instead of the real-time (less 20 minute delay) way MS Money did. Another caveate is the fact that some of us use multiple financial institutions, so where one may offer new money management options online for their institution, that does not help for the others. So we are stuck it seems at an impasse, and the option is buggy Quicken or no-name fly-by-nights like Mint or Moneydance.
Microsoft you had a good thing going, why leave us hanging…..
Wow! I’m really bummed! I’ve used M$ Money for about ten years over three releases and though it had it’s issues it worked really well for me (currently using Money 2007). I’m going to really miss the 20 minute stock updates and the generally easiness and look of everything.
I’m tempted to purchase Quicken 2010 for the so called import function, but I really wish they had a trial version…I don’t want to pay $50 for something that doesn’t fit the bill. I know Intuit has a money back guarantee, but I’m sure we know how fun that probably is. I’ve heard Quicken is really buggy, man that sounds like fun. I used it about 10 years ago and didn’t like it at all, I had all kinds of problems (I know it’s a world apart since then, but still leaves a bad taste, right?)
Oh well, all good things must come to an end I suppose. I just really wished M$ would have sold this product to someone like Google.
Hi, I thought I would update our dealings with moving from MS Money to Quicken Home & Business 2009/2010.
I have been using the product since September 09, and find it ok as my small business financial package. It is a bit buggy, but we havent had a problem that has resulted in data being lost YET!!
Becasue I was starting fresh, I didnt have to convert our MS Money data, however this will have to be done for our home finances at some stage. Some early playing around suggests we are in for some disappointment with this task too.
I have had to call Quicken support once. This wasnt a pleasant experience at all. The issue revolved around Invoicing and my Customer database. It stopped being added to an Invoice when a customer name was chosen, a small problem, but a niusance. When I called Quicken, their response was that it couldnt be resolved and my Customer Address info etc, would have to be re-keyed in. Alternatively it was suggested I revert to the last backup. In the discussions that followed it was clear that if I wanted this feature I’d have to pay to have it fixed !!!!!
Overall the software has some nice features (reporting, Invoicing, Quotations) but the asset register is basically useless. For aussies the myriad of investment types it supports is impressive, but lacks the most basic types used by my 3 super funds. Doh!!!
Will keep you posted
Just a few notes on possible replacements that I’ve tried :
Gnucash : only allows one bank account – although it allowed me to import about 6 before save and exiting, when I tried to re-open the application it popped up an error complaining of too many accounts !
Money Manager EX (MMEX):
its quite happy with multiple accounts – but can’t handle share type investments properly – the investments screen allows you to enter number of shares/price paid/commission and current price – They have crucially overlooked the fact you may want to sell all or part of a holding ! Doh !
So anyone got any other suggestions for a free offline money manager handling multiple accounts and investments ?
cheers
Nick