Quicken 2012

Following on from previous successful Quicken software, the Quicken 2012 suite of products (*Est. $30 and up) continue to receive praise from reviewers for the longevity of the products and for the completeness of their features. Note: Quicken's policy is to support the online features of yearly versions of its products for two years prior to the current version. Therefore, Quicken 2010 users will be able to use its online features (downloading transactions, online bill pay) only until April 30, 2013.

There are several features new to the Quicken 2012 personal finance line of software. The budget feature has been redesigned to automatically create a budget for your top five spending categories, and you can also create a customized debt repayment plan. Investors will appreciate the automatic downloading of transactions into their investment accounts, and people dealing in multiple currencies can now download the latest currency exchange rates, instead of having to enter them manually. The addition of large-size fonts and more account bars is designed to help the ease of use of Quicken programs.

Quicken 2012, like its predecessors, comes in four PC versions as well as one for Mac computer users -- Quicken Essentials (*Est. $60). The PC versions include Quicken Starter (*Est. $30), which has basic tools for tracking accounts, bills, debt and investments, documenting tax deductions, and paying bills online; and Quicken Deluxe (*Est. $35), which adds the ability to download and track your 401(k), IRA and investment account information, along with more advanced portfolio management, savings and tax-planning tools. For most users, Quicken Premier (*Est. $50) offers more features than they'll ever need, with great home page displays of cash flow and other financials, document scanning, the ability to attach documents electronically to transactions, superior management and planning tools, stronger reports and excellent portfolio tracking. 

Quicken is widely reviewed. The software receives accolades from TopTenReviews.com, About.com and others. However, users as a group at Amazon.com are not overly pleased with their Quicken personal software.