Quicken 2015 Review

Writen by 
Cool Software Team

Quicken 2014/2015 mobile app ( Image: Intuit)

We decided to do a review of Quicken 2015 because it is one of the most talked personal finance tools. This Quicken 2015 review will help you decide is this tool worth the money, how can it help you and what is new when compared to previous versions.

First of all we would explain in brief what does Quicken 2015 represents. Quicken is a tool for personal finance produced by Intuit produced in for more than 20 years. It can be run on both Windows and Mac (There are many different packages for Windows) and since 2008 every version has the release year next to the product name. Logically, Quicken 2015 is intended for this year and it is successor of Quicken 2014.

Another important thing we should emphasize is that the Quicken 2015 is specialized for United States and Canada because most of the software is sold in this particular countries.

Intuit Quiken for Mac ( Image: Intuit)

Quicken lets you keep track of unlimited bank accounts, investments, credit cards or any other asset you have. In Quicken 2015 this is all included but there are several features that are added when compared to its predecessor. However, many users of the Quicken argue that the new features and updates are too little and that they didn’t bring any added value when compared to the other new similar software solutions. 

However, Quicken is still the leader in the industry, but it is important to say that the competition is seriously catching up.

If you used the older version of Quicken you will convert it to the new one in a glance. Especially, the conversion from Quicken 2014 to 2015 is a relatively easy process that you will complete very fast and without any problems at all. 

New Features and Upgrades

So, what are the new features of Quicken 2015? Which features will bring you benefit and which features you can use to improve your investments?

Credit Score  ( Image: Intuit)

First lets talk about one of the most important features – the Portfolio X-Ray. It is a feature available in Quicken Premier or higher. This represents a new functionality in the investment section, something that the guys from Intuit didn’t change or improve in the last few years. It will give you insights for your investment portfolio and you can also get insights from Morningstar. It will help you to get insights about asset, world regions, stock sectors, stock and Bond Style meaning how much is invested in value, core and growth and finally fees & expenses. 

The Free Credit Score is another neat feature that can be really useful. However, there are limitations because you can get credit score from only one agency. 

Another thing Quicken improved in the newest version is the syncing of the software on mobile devices. Everything runs faster and smoother on mobile now. Also, the options trades are largely improved. 

Quicken 2015 comes with less improvements and upgrades when compared to Quicken 2014. The previous version of Quicken came with more than 6 improvements when compared to Quicken 2013. This is one of the biggest reasons why the users are constantly criticizing Intuit – the little and small upgrades.

Technical requirements needed to run Quicken 2015

Because Quicken is an “old” software used by many even from the time of MS Dos, please note that Quicken 2015 doesn’t support Windows XP. You can run it on any desktop computer with Windows Vista or higher. If your computer is not more than 4 years old, you should be able to run Quicken 2015, because the needed specs are similar to the 3 previous versions. However, here are the technical requirements that you need to have in order to run Quicken on your computer:

•  CPU: 1 GHz
•  Operating System: Windows Vista SP1, Windows 7/8/8.1 (32 and 64-bit)
•  RAM Memory: 1 GB or more (2GB is recommended while 4GB being ideal)
•  Hard Disk Space: Up to 450 MB free space; up to 1.5 GB if .NET not installed
•  Display: 1024×768 or higher resolution, 1280×1024 for large fonts
•  CD/DVD Drive: Recommended
•  Internet: 56 Kbps (broadband recommended for online services)
•  Sound: Sound Card and Speakers Recommended
•  Printer: Any printer supported by Windows Vista/7/8/8.1
•  Additional Software (included in Quicken installer): Microsoft .NET 4.0 or later

Because the Quicken 2015 version for Mac lacks in features many users had find ways to run Windows version in Mac environment. This is possible through VMware Fusion 7 and if you want to find out more just Google “How to Run Quicken for Windows on a Mac”, you will definitely find easy solutions.

Final Conclusion and Comparison with other similar services

As few of our writers are longtime users of Quicken they argue that Intuit needs to stop with the small changes that they are forcing to the users. For example in the latest version it forces the users to put their data on the cloud even if you don’t want to.   

Besides that, while doing this Quicken 2015 review we determined that the only real added value in the newest version of Quicken is the Portfolio X-Ray. If you are an investor you will really appreciate this feature. It will get you great in-depth information and it will analyze your portfolio in an easy manner.

The other added features are good, but not great, because you can easily find them in other similar services like for example Mint, service that is also created by Intuit. 

Comparison ( Image: Amazon)

Many users of Quicken 2015 argue that Intuit should do more upgrades and add more features in the next version, even though this version is probably the best version of this amazing financial tool. 

Even though many other services are attacking and taking the market share of Quicken, it is still by far the best app for personal finance for desktop computers and for the cloud. 

Quicken 2015 is stills the best when it comes to complex finances and complex situations. Other software solutions like Mint and Personal Capital are good, but not as good as Quicken. Quicken remains the best software solution for managing your personal finance.


References:

Intuit Official Site
Quicken 2015 Official Guide
Quicken 2015 Reviews on Amazon

(Disclosure: If you click links on this article or  this website and make a purchase, we will get commission from third party product vendors. This  article is an independent review by our team.)