Probably the most dreaded time for new entrepreneurs is tax time!
I am reminded of how grateful I am for my bookkeeping background and my husband who taught college accounting. Between the two of us, we typically get the job done! But this year is a bit different!
Most years, I updated my Quickbooks program weekly: Posting all my expenses, balancing my bank and business credit card accounts. Most 
months, I had the monthly posting done by the first week of the new month. I was genuinely proud of myself for keeping up with it!
Then in September, came the fire and all its devastation!
All my hard work was gone! All my Quickbook posting burnt with my computer. And my back up, which was in my purse, was destroyed as well!!
So, with much regret, I needed to start all over again!
Having used Quickbooks for over 20 years, I never considered using any other bookkeeping systems. Interestingly, I found several options that may work for small businesses. Note: I am sure there are more options, these are just the ones that I personally checked out.:
Bookkeeping Services for Small Businesses
- Quickbook Pro was my first choice. Now, you can buy the software or the monthly online service
- Simple Planning.com very interesting desktop software with a free demo
- NCH software’s Express Payments has a discount purchase page, but and offers a free download trial
- Zoho Books also offers a free 14-day trial
- Go Daddy, of all companies, also offers a bookkeeping system
- ZipBooks offers a few features I did not find on other systems
- Freshbooks has been around for a while, so has some good features
Out of all the programs, I still prefer the Quickbooks Desktop — maybe because I am familiar with it and have used it for so many years.
If you kept good books over the last year, you are probably in better shape than I am! But if you need help with completing your taxes, the IRS Small Business and Self-Employed Tax Center is an excellent resource.
In the meantime, if you have not done so yet, make sure to get your sales tax paperwork filled out and paid before it is too late. Sales tax is a state tax program, so consult your state’s tax rules for more information!