Spend any amount of time on the Intuit website and you might start to wonder if QuickBooks Desktop is being phased out. After all, even if you’ve been looking at QuickBooks Desktop applications, the website immediately defaults to QuickBooks Online purchasing options. If you’ve made the decision to convert QuickBooks Desktop to QuickBooks Online then you must have the complete information about this process to complete and more options like QuickBooks self-employed annual tax you can use QuickBooks without registration when you don’t want to register.
The good news is that QuickBooks Desktop will not be phased out anytime soon. That hasn’t stopped Intuit from doing everything possible to persuade you to buy QuickBooks Online instead. And, contrary to what Intuit would have you believe, the desktop and online versions of QuickBooks are not the same.
Should you migrate to QuickBooks Online
If you’re a current QuickBooks Desktop user, you might be wondering if switching to QuickBooks online is a good idea. There are numerous reasons why you should consider switching to QuickBooks Online. Perhaps you’re looking for a cloud-based solution that allows you to access it from anywhere. Another reason could be the ability to integrate with other third-party apps. If you’re still not sure, we’ll give you some more information about both applications and what you’d gain (or lose) by switching.
QuickBooks Enterprise users, for example, who typically have complex product inventory and more extensive company history, may find that the desktop version is a better fit for their needs, whereas smaller businesses with less complex needs may find that a move to QuickBooks Online is beneficial in terms of cloud accessibility and ease of use.
How to convert to QuickBooks Online
If you’ve made the decision to convert your QuickBooks Desktop application to QuickBooks Online, we can guide you through the entire conversion process with these easy steps.
Back up your data file
It is critical to back up your company files before migrating to QuickBooks Online in case something goes wrong and you need to restore your QuickBooks Desktop data files. To begin the backup process, you must first switch to single-user mode. Once in single-user mode, select File from the drop-down menu. Choose the Back Up Company option, followed by the Create Local Backup option. Once you’ve selected the local backup option, you’ll need to specify a location for the QuickBooks Desktop company backup file. To ensure that the process is working properly, the system will automatically generate a test backup.
Check targets
QuickBooks Desktop targets include all line items for every recorded transaction. For example, if you have a sales order with four lines, you have four targets. Before you can migrate to QuickBooks Online, you must first determine the total number of targets in the application. To do this, press Ctrl+1 to open the information window.
Save your tax liability report
Before beginning the migration process, you must also save your current tax liability report. Because the report’s details will not be exported during the migration process, you will need to enter adjusting entries once the migration is complete.
Create a QuickBooks Online Account
If you don’t already have a QuickBooks Online account, you should set one up right away. Simply go to the QuickBooks Online page to see the available plans and sign up for the one that best meets your needs.
Start the migration process
After you’ve completed the preceding steps, you’re ready to begin the migration process. The procedure will differ depending on the version of QuickBooks Desktop you are using.
If you are using QuickBooks Desktop Pro or QuickBooks Desktop Premier, you must first log in as the administrator. Once in the system, go to the main menu and select the Company menu, then the Export Company File to QuickBooks Online option.
