We need to split transactions all the time. This is a deal breaker if it can't be added quickly. Mint.com has splits and you should too :) Examples given above should be sufficient. For example, we will withdraw cash to pay the baby sitter but also end up going out to dinner. That transaction needs to be split.
Thanks again for the real life examples. Until Quicken Online has a fully fledged split transactions feature, I just wanted to make sure you had seen the new cash tracking feature. It can take the place of some of what you want from splits.
If you go to the Accounts list and click My Wallet, you'll see the page where you can enter transactions to represent where you spend your cash.
Here is an example, I withdrew cash in the amount of $500. $250 was used to make a cash payment at another bank for a car loan, and the other $250 went to pay my sister back for a loan. Sure I could have withdrew the amount of $250 twice, but that doesn't make sense. I know MSN Money has this feature.
Yes, splitting transaction is a vital function of any money management system, whether your primary focus is 'budgeting' or 'tracking' (and I am in agreement that the two are merely slightly different angles of the same scenery...)
I think the biggest areas where splitting transactions is a vital functional need include the following:
Paychecks (splitting out taxes, child support payments, healthcare, medicare, 401k, reimbursement for expenses, etc.)
Rent payments - it is not uncommon for people to not only have to combine rent and utilities with a single check, but as is a frequent situation, one person might pay another person (a roommate) a check each month to cover a portion of several bills. The person paying each of the bills can track them separately, but the person just writing a single check needs to be able to split that transaction for tracking and budgeting reasons.
And, yes, the Amazon, Best Buy, Costco, Target, Walmart, etc. purchases often spill into multiple categories, and some require reimbursement, which needs to be tracked separately.
This cannot be a surprise, though I am surprised to see this functionality lacking. I am a longtime Quicken user, going back to the very first version of the desktop software, and splitting transactions seems to have always been a feature.
I have switched to the Online version of Quicken because I am a very mobile user, and I enjoy many of the features of the Online version, but the lack of ability to split transactions is something for which I am eagerly awaiting a resolution.
Otherwise, there are some great features in the online version and it pleases me to see that features appear to be updated and improved regularly - another advantage to the "hosted" application. Thank you!
Example of splitting a transaction: I got to Walgreens sometimes for last minute personal items, along with household items and medicine. However, realistically I need to be able to split the prescription medicine away from the other items.
Same with shopping at Target or Walmart.... I may be purchasing household items mainly, but I am tracking a clothing budget. My option is to split my shopping cart up into these categories and pay separately (hassle!) or just dump all into one category.
I would also like to be able to split transactions as I was able to do in the main Quicken software.
I like being able to readily share our financial dashboard with my wife in a format that is easy to understand. Quicken Online works very well for us in this regard.
Hi - We don't have the ability to split a transaction into multiple categories now. I was talking with some of the engineers the other day about this, and we were wanting some examples of the types of transactions you would most like to split. So, can you reply with some examples? I have my own ideas, but I want to hear yours. Thanks very much,
Kate W
Quicken Online Writer/Editor
I.E. Splitting the categories for credit card payments that includes transactions for restaurants, lodging, gasoline, and medical payments.
I'm so glad you mentioned that. In today's product, you can already handle the situation you mentioned.
If you add your credit card account to Quicken Online, you can track each expense in its proper category (for restaurants, lodging, gasoline, etc.).
Then, when you make the credit card payment from your checking account, you should categorize that expense as Transfer Out. (That will prevent the amount from being double-counted in Trends and Goals).
I am about to flee from Microsoft Money (since they are preparing to flee from me).
I was able to split the source of any deposit. For example, I might have one check that represented dividends, another that represented tax-free interest, another that represented the funds from the sale of a security.
Similarly, when I paid a credit card bill, I was able to show the portion of that payment that represented food, dining, automobile, vacation, petcare, etc.
Welcome to Quicken! You're in the forum for Quicken Online now, which is a simpler product than the desktop products. So, for example, Quicken Online doesn't have a splits capability yet.
But you can definitely use Quicken for Windows to split transactions the ways you mention. If you go to the Quicken for Windows Community, and look in the "Converting from MS Money" folder, you can ask more questions.
So is there an ETA on when the splitting functionality will emerge into Quicken Online? This thread is 8-9 months old now, and with everyone asking, it seems like it should be a relatively high priority.
I'm just converting from Quicken For Mac, and that was the first thing I noticed was missing.
I'm piling on. MUST have splits. ATM withdrawal can't just go to cash. That gives you no clue as to how it was spent. How come the people that practically invented this stuff not make it work online? Drop everything else and fix this one, fundamental issue.
Quicken Online doesn't include a splits feature yet. We hope to have it very soon.
In the meantime, you CAN "split up" your ATM withdrawals into other categories besides Cash. If you click the My Wallet link on the Accounts list, you'll reach a page where you can add cash transactions into any category. Then these cash expenses automatically reduce the amount assigned to the Cash category. This FAQ shows it in more detail.
I get reimbursed my company for training that I purchase. Since training costs are quite high, this makes a significant impact on my budgeting.
For example, I paid 1000 for a training class, and I was reimbursed a month later. However, the reimbursement was lumped into the same deposit as my paycheck. Since I can't split it, then I can't offset the cost that I paid for training.
For reimbursed purchases in general, I usually assign the same category to the purchase and to the reimbursement. So if I buy $100 of Clothing and return a $40 item, I'd categorize both the $100 expense and the $40 deposit as Clothing. That way, my total spent for Clothing is accurate ($60).
In your example of a mixed deposit, you can't do the same thing until we add the splits feature.
But you could think of it this way: You get income that covers your training, and training is an expense that you expect and can budget for. So, you'd have a budget goal for Training and a pie slice on the Trends page for Training. Your income includes amounts to cover training, so you're living within your means in that respect. Does that make sense?
The other thing you could do if you don't want to see the Training category on the Trends page at all is to category those expenses as Transfer Out, but this will show your income as artificially high, at least until we add the splits feature.
I hope this was helpful,
Kate W
Quicken Online Writer
I just really can't believe that they need examples...especially since users have posted that it is a feature in other versions. Why would they think that online users don't want the same basic features?
As you said, until the split feature becomes available, we'll have to live within the workarounds that you suggested.
With regards to reimbursement of split transactions, the hard part about the workaround is that it messes up your expenses trend if you're trying to establish a pattern. I would have to manually remove the transaction from both income and expenses to get a good picture.
All in all though, still a great product considering it's being offered to us for free.
Does your development team plan on adding the split feature to the product or is this one of those things they'll hold out on to entice us to buy the desktop version?
I agree, any transaction could use a split option. Groceries could be split into gas as I shop at the same location.
Income deposits can come from multible sources that day.
On and on, etc.
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