QuickBooks is a line of business accounting software developed and marketed by Intuit.

History

Intuit was founded in 1983 by Scott Cook and Tom Proulx in Mountain View, California, USA. After the success of Quicken for individual financial management, the company looked to provide a similar solution to small business owners giving them a system that required little or no accounting experience, yet helping provide financial structure and compliance.

Initial release

The software was popular among small business owners who had no formal accounting training. As such, the software soon claimed up to 80 percent of the small business accounting software market. It continues to command the vast majority of this market. Professional accountants, however, were not satisfied with early versions of the system, citing poor security controls such as no audit trail, as well as non-conformity with traditional accounting standards. (Such accountants often provide small businesses with monthly and year-end services that require data from the software used for day-to-day operations by the business.)

Subsequent releases

Intuit sought to bridge the gap with these accounting professionals, eventually providing full audit trail capabilities, double-entry accounting functions and increased functions. By 2000, Intuit had developed Basic and Pro versions of the software and, in 2003, started offering industry-specific versions, with workflow processes and reports designed for each of these business types along with terminology associated with the trades.

Options now include versions for manufacturers, wholesalers, professional service firms, contractors, non-profit entities and retailers, in addition to one specifically designed for professional accounting firms who service multiple small business clients. In May 2002 Intuit launched QuickBooks Enterprise Solutions for medium-sized businesses.

A September 5, 2005 Business Week article said that QuickBooks had 74% of the market. A June 19, 2008 Intuit Press Release said that as of March 2008, QuickBooks' share of retail units in the business accounting category reached 94.2 percent, according to NPD Group. It also says that more than 50,000 accountants, CPAs and independent business consultants are members of the QuickBooks ProAdvisor program. By then Brad Smith was the new CEO, though Bennett had nearly tripled Intuit revenue and quadrupled earnings in eight years.

International versions

Versions of this product are available in many different markets. Intuit's Canadian and U.K. divisions offer versions of QuickBooks that support the unique needs of each region, such as Canada's GST or PST sales tax and the U.K.'s Value Added Tax (VAT). Reckon Ltd (Australian Securities Exchange (ASX):RKN) under licence from Intuit, publishes versions for the Australian, New Zealand and Singapore markets. Version 2008 has enhanced support for Irish VAT reporting. The Mac version is only available in the US.