For many businesses, QuickBooks Online or Desktop is the go-to accounting solution. It’s familiar, easy to use, and has served small to mid-sized companies well for years. As your business grows, though, especially if you manage multiple entities, you will find that QuickBooks starts to feel like it’s bursting at the seams. If you’re juggling more than a couple of companies, it might be time to ask: How many instances of QuickBooks is too many?
The Problem with Managing Multiple QuickBooks Instances
At first, QuickBooks Online or Desktop seem perfectly suited for a growing business. It’s affordable and relatively simple to set up, making it a popular choice. However, as your business expands, particularly when you’re dealing with multiple companies or entities, the challenges start to pile up. Here are some common issues we see in the businesses we work with:
- Data Silos and Lack of Visibility
When you’re managing several entities/instances/companies with QuickBooks, each one is entirely separate, with its own chart of accounts, products, vendors, and customers. This creates silos, making it difficult to get a comprehensive view of your business’s overall financial health. Consolidating data across multiple entities is time-consuming, prone to errors, and requires exporting data to spreadsheets — an inefficient and risky process. For example, if your five entities share some of the same vendors, you’d need to print five reports and add them up to see what you owe.
- Manual Processes and Increased Risk of Errors
With multiple QuickBooks instances, you’re likely dealing with a lot of manual data entry. Whether it’s re-entering the same information across different companies or trying to reconcile intercompany transactions, manual processes slow you down and increase the risk of errors. These errors can have significant financial implications, leading to incorrect and untimely reporting, compliance issues, and even potential fines or penalties.
- Complex Reporting
As your business grows, your reporting needs expand. QuickBooks Online does not provide the robust, multi-dimensional reporting that multi-entity companies require. Generating consolidated financial statements, creating custom reports, or even just keeping track of intercompany eliminations can become a headache. Often, businesses end up relying on external tools or complicated spreadsheets to fill in the gaps, further complicating the process.
- Limited Scalability
QuickBooks was designed with smaller businesses in mind. While it’s great for a single company or maybe even two, it wasn’t built to handle the complexity of managing multiple entities. As your company adds more entities, the limitations of QuickBooks become increasingly apparent. The software slows down, data integrity issues arise, and you’ll find yourself constantly bumping up against the limits of what QuickBooks can do.
- Security Concerns
With multiple instances of QuickBooks, establishing consistent security across all your financial data becomes challenging. Each instance must be managed separately, increasing the risk of inconsistent security practices, which could expose your business to potential breaches or data loss. QuickBooks also lacks advanced user roles and permissions, making it difficult to control who has access to what information across different entities.
When Is it Time to Move to a Better Solution?
So, how many instances of QuickBooks are too many? While there’s no one-size-fits-all answer, many businesses find that when they’re managing more than three to five entities, the challenges of QuickBooks outweigh the benefits. At this point, moving to a more robust, multi-entity financial management solution like Sage Intacct is worth considering.
The Benefits of Sage Intacct for Multi-Entity Businesses
Sage Intacct is designed specifically for growing businesses that need to manage multiple entities with ease. Here’s why it’s the perfect next step when QuickBooks is no longer enough:
- True Multi-Entity Management
Sage Intacct allows you to manage all your entities within a single instance, providing a real-time, consolidated view of your financial data. You can easily manage intercompany transactions, automate eliminations, and generate consolidated financial statements with just a few clicks—no more spreadsheets or manual data entry.
- Advanced Reporting and Dashboards
With Sage Intacct, you get access to powerful reporting and dashboard tools that provide deep insights into your business. You can create custom reports, track key metrics, and even drill down into the details without leaving the platform. This level of visibility is essential for making informed, strategic decisions across your entire organization.
- Scalability and Flexibility
Unlike QuickBooks Online, Sage Intacct is built to scale with your business. Whether you’re managing five entities or fifty, Sage Intacct can handle it. The flexible platform allows you to add new entities, customize workflows, and integrate with other systems as your business grows.
- Enhanced Security
Sage Intacct offers advanced security features, including detailed user roles and permissions, audit trails, and compliance tools, that your financial data is secure and that you’re always in control of who has access to what.
Have You Reached the Limit?
QuickBooks is a fantastic tool for small businesses, but when you’re managing multiple entities, it can start to show its limitations. If you’re dealing with more than a few companies, it’s likely time to consider moving to Sage Intacct. The transition will save you time, reduce errors, and give you the insights you need to continue confidently growing your business.
BT Partners specializes in helping businesses like yours make the switch to Sage Intacct. Our business management solutions team is here to support you every step of the way, guiding a smooth transition so you can focus on what you do best — growing your business. If you’re ready to take your financial management to the next level, let’s talk about how Sage Intacct can help.
