Going self employed- advice needed

[Kellymare]

Hi everyone,
What's the best way to keep on top of finances/receipts and expenses plus your takings etc when it comes to having to do your tax returns?
I was thinking of the app Quickbooks, does anyone use this or another system / way of doing things?
Thanks !

 

[salonfrog]

Also have a look at freeagent and Xero too.

Xero comes with an app where you can take a photo of your receipts (not sure if fA does) and they are loaded into your book/keeping.

You can link your business bank account to either and so record all transactions.

Freeagent is easier to use but Xero has more Apps.

Both are cloud based and both are very good.

Both have a free trial option, so you can have a try and see if either feels ok for you.

 

[Trinity]

Excel spreadsheet, money in, money out, job done. Money in completed every day, tallied end of month for my wages. Money out once a week/fortnight.

 

[Tiggy77]

I use quickbooks and I find it really good and easy to use, my accountant said it’s good too x

 

[Mstango]

I’m so bad I have a bookkeeper and I do it the old fashioned way by keeping my receipts which are filed into different months which I just hand over. All my tax is then taken care of by him so I just pay him when needed.

 

[AcidPerm]

If there’s only you, keep it simple with a spreadsheet or a paper ledger and as @Trinity says, just update your records on a regular basis then it will become a routine task and it won’t feel so overwhelming.

 

[BannerPenguin]

I moved from Xero to Waveapps.com - free and simple. Can't go wrong.

 

[salonsaviour]

Ditto on the speadsheet idea a few mentioned. And definitely keep on top of your records and keep it all together in one file. Usually people get in a muddle because they have left things until the last minute re tax return or haven't put the appropriate amount away. I would also recommend putting your tax money into a separate account - that way you are not tempted to dip into it.