FEMIGH  Am so happy 2010 is out, and at a nominal $20 to upgrade from 2008. I had been wondering if MD would ever ask me for a license fee again - was almost ready to donate after several years of free major upgrades. Anyway, it is an improved interface, with the same FAST functionality. My focus is on checking account and credit card registers. The budget graphics are quite fine, but for me and my account maintenance, MD is the best. Downloads from credit card companies occur quickly without intervention (in my case USAA, Citi, Chase), and MD easily accepts drag-drop of OFX/QIF-downloaded files from those banks who are back in the dark ages regarding direct access (Capital One in my case). Reconciling is never a (good) dream, but MD is as close as you can get. Quicken is only a dim bad memory now. If you change from Quicken, there is a moderate learning curve to get used to the new UI, but then you never want to go back. And searching for transactions is even easier and faster (as in instantaneous), including across accounts. Unlike Quicken, an MD search produces all matches in a list, instead of one sluggish match at a time. I think it is time for Walt to review this app. He has mentioned it before as a promising personal financial accounting option.  
(Version 2010b)

ELMO151  after several lifetimes of frustration with quicken I took the plunge into Moneydance.

Import of Q transactions was easy.

Several years ago I decided to et Fidelity do the bookkeeping for my Investment accounts. Likewise, I let Mastercard on line worry about credit cars transactions. All I needed was a good checkbook that could interface with my bank and simplify reconciliation.

It took me a bit of time to move from the quicken interface to Moneyface.

Don't forget to check out and use the "extensions". They make the app really work!  
(Version 2008r4)

GEODUCK  I tried Moneydance when it first came out a few years ago. It was to slow to use and I went back to begrudgingly using Quicken for Mac.

Now that Quicken for Mac has totally degenerated, I am testing out Mac alternatives.

This latest version of Moneydance is an improvement on the original, but it has a long ways to go for serving as a usable application. I don't recommend it.

Personal finance applications should not be so difficult to design. The basic application model, Quicken, has been around for decades. Yet nobody can pull off anything functional and easy to use. Moneydance fails because its interface fails to accommodate typical working scenarios. The idea of these tools is to speed up the drudgery of maintaining all this data. Moneydance makes it harder.

A few examples, I have a few credit card accounts, a checking account, a savings account, some investment accounts--pretty typical stuff for a middle aged middle class American. Yet Moneydance cannot remember categories and predictive data for transactions from one account to another. So the user has to go through too many redundant behaviors for each account.

Even worse, making changes to a transaction item is remarkably difficult. I download checking account data, but have to manually assign categories. In Quicken I would just have to click in the category field and type in the first few letters and the predictive text completes the field. Easy and old technology.

Moneydance requires you to right click and find some obscure tech command called batch changes, and then further select the type of change you desire--category. Then a separate window pops up, but all you see are two opposing scroll arrows which you have to press and then choose the category from a long list. To do this for each transaction is nuts. Quicken solved this around 1992.

Another problem: Moneydance could not properly assign a translated data file from the bank to the proper credit card account. The choice was not in the picklist. I had to create a whole new account. That's

too much hassle.

This application is not ready for prime time.  
(Version 2008r3)

EMEL TRAW  I'm another happy switcher from iBank. iBank started great but got slower and slower over time and before long was completely unusable for editing a file on a shared drive over my wireless network. Moneydance imported all the accounts from iBank with little trouble, and is super fast with the same data.

The only downside is that the UI is not very Mac-like but the speed and reliability make up for it. Data entry is much easier than in iBank too with much less switching between mouse and keyboard needed and nice shortcuts like "t" to set the date to today.

Even if you would not usually use an app that isn't 100% "Mac" Moneydance is very worth trying out.  
(Version 2008r3)

TIM27  I, too, think this app is the best on the Mac. I tried several others, including iBank, iCash, Money and Quicken, and Moneydance was the best. Stable with all the features I need and the price is right. Great work!  
(Version 2008r3)

FEMIGH  Fast and stable, clearly mapped - the best money management software. I have tried a lot of Mac finance apps, used Quicken for years, finally (and slowly) migrating to Moneydance over this last year. No glitches whatever. The search features are brilliant and speedy, as are the graphic budget displays. Upgrades have been regular and free - I may voluntarily donate soon, thinking that it is about time that responsive Reilly Technologies be paid for the upgrades I have gotten since paying for the initial 2007 version.  
(Version 2008r3)

CREATIVE ARTS & TECHNOLOGIES  After checking a lot of Mac based options, many that don't even work on Tiger any more I came across this program written in Java (you barely notice it;-) and for this reason very much like mini$ which I used before.

I was extremely delighted that it is not just Multi-Currency capable (even a History of rates!) but fairly well translated into several languages, too.

I will test it a little further, but see no reason not to buy it.

Everybody who used mini$ should love this and find it easy to use, too. The Home page with "widgets" and a clean simple interface make them very much alike.  
(Version 2008)

BABYFETT  Tested it out for a day and bought it. Everyone knows Quicken for Mac sucks and this was the answer...for me. Doesn't have some of the features of Quicken, but it's real close. If you want an extremely simple to use program to manage your checkbook, savings accounts, investments and credit cards, this is the program for you. It allows for online banking and the switch from Quicken is pretty flawless. I love that I can download statements directly into the program as opposed to downloading a QIF or a QFX and then opening them and importing them. Also, they have extensions/plugins you can download to sync stock prices with your portfolio. I'm really liking this program and I hesitate to mention any of my quibbles because each time I think the program is lacking something, someone in the forums explains what I'm doing wrong. Finally, some people have complained that the interface isn't very "Mac." And to those people I say, "Who cares?" It's refreshing to use a program that doesn't look like iTunes. Definitely try this program out. It's worth every penny and then some.   
(Version 2008)

DAVID SCUBADIVER  Been using Quicken for decades on my p.c., and when I decided to buy a Mac I wanted a program that would let me work on both my PCs (work/laptop). So I tried Moneydance 2008 since its file will work on the PC version or the OS X version and their license covers the lesser of the number of users or the number of computers (regardless of platform). Translation - 1 fee, 2 operating systems and one set of data that works seamlessly between computers.

The other option would be to install windows on my Mac and run my quicken program through it.

But frankly, I did not wish to do that and was happy to try and break free of Quicken.

The importing was a bit of a chore, but only with respect to my investment accounts. It took me a good number of hours to figure out how to make it work (short sales created most of the problems and after editing/deleting related duplicate transactions, it works very well).

Once it was all set up, the only complaint I have is the reporting features are not as robust as with Quicken, and the capital gains report is buggy - it can't be restricted by date and always generates a report for all sales from the earliest sale in your data. It does not "subtotal" correctly, meaning each security totals to "zero" if there are multiple lots sold. I've reported bug, as have others, and hopefully it will be fixed.

What I LOVE about the program is how fast the downloads occur. Its a fairly simple interface with no "flash" but it does the job. I keep track of my Mortgage, a dozen bank accounts 3 brokerage accounts, several mutual fund accounts and 8 credit card accounts.

It'd be nice if it automatically downloaded from everybody (like yodlee.moneycenter can do!), but its not the end of the world doing one account at a time, even for someone with as any accounts as I have.  
(Version 2008)

DANIO  As a past user (and owner) of iBank I was hopeful that version 3 would be an answer to all the issues I personally had with it. Sadly, having participated in the Beta for the product it became clear that wasn't going to be the case.

I decided to look at alternatives and found Moneydance, at that point at '2007' version. Very quickly I decided Moneydance had what I wanted, despite my initial reservation with Java applications - powerful account tracking, simplicity, dependability and a no-frills approach to money management.

Since using Moneydance for the first time it hasn't stalled, crashed or lost any data, an improvement over iBank (in my experience).

Data entry is easy, especially with the new entry system deployed in version 2008; which also includes a full 'undo' feature. Allocation of funds against any number of categories to help drill down and find just exactly where all that money disappears each month.

This category information can then be accessed through the clever new expenses/income graph on the Home Screen; this for me is a killer feature, I use every day!

If you are looking for simplistic yet powerful software which allows you to control your finances day to day Moneydance is for you!  
(Version 2008)

ALANBBR  I've got a few years of data in Quicken that I'd like to have in something else. Importing a QIF to Moneydance is horrible. It treats an initial import like a partial account update that needs to be synced with potentially already entered data. This results in, for me, thousands of transactions that I would have to click Record on, and the overwhelming majority of those I'd first have to select New Transaction (No Match) to keep Moneydance from dropping the transaction. It also doesn't import the transaction category. Without a useful import, I won't even bother looking at any other features.  
(Version 2008b602)

MEMPHISBIRD  I have been using Moneydance for more than 3 years (currently with Leopard on an Intel Mac). I don't begin to use all the bells and whistles, I know that, but for my needs -- keeping track of credit card transactions, checking accounts, savings accounts, etc., and creating end of year reports for income tax purposes -- it has been almost perfect. I had a technical issue one time and I received an email response quickly that solved the problem. Before switching to Moneydance, I had been using Quicken -- buggy and expensive: $70 plus frequent upgrade pricing. I could have bought Moneydance several times over with what I paid for Quicken for upgrades. Once I made the switch, and all files imported perfectly, I have never looked back. They have had fairly regular updates and have yet to charge an upgrade fee. Maybe they are getting ready to do that with this beta, but after more than three years? I sure don't have a problem with that.   
(Version 2008b602)

ZOIDBERG  FWIW, since upgrading to Leopard (and specifically 10.5.2, which is where I'm starting with Leopard), I've encountered several kernel panics when using Moneydance. Have sent them an email about it, but thought I'd mention it here.  
(Version 2007r5)

CORNSTALKK  How many people are not going to read the past threads?!?! It DOES NOT NEED A UNIVERSAL BINARY! IT IS JAVA!! For petes sake people, stop using that as a 'minus'. Know what you are saying before speaking.  
(Version 2007r5)

REALMAC17  Odd user interface, no Universal Binary, not very Mac-like in general but seems to work rather well. The reports are probably the best feature.  
(Version 2007)

THEBIMBO  Well for over a year now (since purchase) I've been waiting for multi-currency support for credit card transactions... and no progress has been made. Since over 50% of my credit card transactions are in foreign currency and credit cards are key for me to track this means that Moneydance is rendered useless for me to track my personal finances.   
(Version 2007)

SEANREILLY  To record a transfer, set the category for a transaction to the account to/from which you would like to transfer money. A deposit in one account automatically shows up as a payment in the other.

Also, we now have an online manual available here: http://moneydance.com/userguide

Thanks!

Sean  
(Version 2007)

SIERRA LADY  I have been looking at alternatives to Quicken, and hope this can fulfill my expectations. I am still on the try-out period.

I like the graphic look of it. The auto-fill is good. The category part is easier to use than with Quicken.

So far the biggest drawback is I don't see a way to transfer money from one account to another. Since I am frequently doing this online (from one bank to another, from savings to checking), and it's easy to do in Quicken, I want to be able to do this in Moneydancer. And a transfer should not have to show up as a miscellaneous expense in one account and miscellaneous income in another.

If anyone can tell me how to do a transfer, I would raise my rating of this software.

Wish there was a bit of a manual.   
(Version 2007)

JIMORE  Okay, finally posting back. I am still using Moneydance, bought it a couple years ago. It works okay, but I still like Quicken better, EXCEPT for the crashes I had. Of course, that is about the worst thing that can happen to a program for me.  
(Version 2007)

DONKEYOTAY  I've been a user for 18 months now. I upgraded to r4 & really hate the new GUI. It's dreadful and I can't find a way to get to single lines in the account view. Please let me go back to v2005.  
(Version 2006r4)

PERLMONKEY  When it comes to financial programs for the Mac there is either too many or too few applications to actually be considered. For Americans there are lots of really good programs, but what about people with a currency different from US Dollars or a native language apart from English? Well, this is where Moneydance is the one and only application that is actually worth looking at.

Of course, there is always GnuCash that can be installed using Fink and is run under Apple's X11, but if you're looking for something easy to use that will talk to you in German, French, Spanish or another language Moneydance is your best choice Period. And should you think: My, this is a Java app, it's got to be ugly and clunky, you're wrong! That's what I thought at first, but then I realized that MD is really fu working with (well, not as much fun as working with programs conforming with the interface guidelines, but almost). Plus the price is awesome: less than 30 Euros aren't very much.

Concerning the functionality: I am very sad Moneydance doesn't support HBCI (German banking standard), so you cannot do online banking with it with a German bank. Of course, if you need it there's always MacKonto or BankX, but they aren't as simple to use and full of functionality (plus there both much more expensive).

I do my banking via Safari and enter all my transactions into Moneydance. It's really the only acceptable financial solution for use on a Mac outside the English-speaking world.  
(Version 2006r2)

TIM27  Well, I have been looking into different money tracking software. While this program has a lot of features, it is missing something EXTREMELY important. There is no Edit menu. Or at least not on my computer (Mac OS X 10.4.3). That means, no Copy, no Paste, and NO UNDO!!!! This is unheard of on the Mac platform and makes this software literally completely useless. What if you accidentally delete something? Gone forever? You would do just as well use a pen and paper. At least then you can't delete anything by accident.

Therefore ease of use gets 1 star.  
(Version 2005r3)

MARTIN  Having downloaded moneydance as a trial, I still prefer Ibank for mac. But one thing that is missing for both programs is the ability to produce a cash flow forecast up to 12 months in advance. Having switched to a Mac from being a PC user for years, the one program that beats all personal money programs is Microsoft Money and it is for this reason alone, why I still use my Toshiba laptop.  
(Version 2004r3)

TURNER  can you manage accounts of different currencies on moneydance? i.e. tracking international accounts etc.?  
(Version 2004r3)

MACOVATION  Moneydance is an extremely intuitive, unlike other programs, and is stable, not crashing on me once after months of use. I esp like the graphs and reports one can obtain. Importing from the internet and bank sites is always 'hit & miss' and I avoid it. I download the QIF or QFX files to the desktop and then import directly. Plus, Moneydance lets you examine those QIF files and decide if you need to import that data. It 'remembers' and almost inputs data on its own once it knows your categories and accounts. Don't hesitate: this is the best for Mac yet, IMHO.  
(Version 2004r3)

NICK  Since Quicken is obviously not going to fix their problems anytime soon, I decided to move onto greener pastures. After the surveying the Mac personal finance landscape, I settled in a green valley called Moneydance.

What is it?

Moneydance is a java personal finance application that features the following:

1. Maintains registers of your bank, creditcards, loans, ect.

2. Can automatically download transactions

3. Has transaction reminders

4. Can track your 401k and other investments

5. Can automatically update stock prices in your investments

6. Has a boat-load of reports.

7. Has budgeting

8. many more features...

The thing I like most about MD is that it automatically download transactions from Netbank. Quicken failed miserably at this. MD is fast, inexpensive, and easy to understand. Read the rest of my review at:

http://homepage.mac.com/ncgates/blogstudio/  
(Version 2004r2)

ANONYMOUS  Bought 2003. They want another $15 for 2004.

No No Noooo!  
(Version 2004r2)

JAY  I've tried almost all of the other Mac finance programs...and yes, Quicken, which continues to disappoint with strange new bugs (and old unfixed ones) with every new release. Some of the other programs are nice (props to Budget, which has an innovative approach and thoughtful, energetic developers) but of the ones I've tried only Moneydance really provides a comprehensive handle on your financial life. Handles stocks, mutual funds, fairly flexible automated reminder system, graphics and reports, and an extensible plug-in architecture that allows for even more customization and power. I love it, and look forward to it getting even better. My only gripes, and the things I miss from Quicken - mouse-over values for individual bars in the graphs (instead of the min/max/median it does now) and the ability to have memorized graphs on the 'home' page. Those quibbles aside, I would heartily recommend this for anyone seeking to escape Quicken.  
(Version 2004)

ANONYMOUS  After having used Quicken for Mac since 1987, and now trying to use Quicken 2003, I was ready for a stable checkbook program. Quicken crashes continuously! I'm fed up with Intuit's products because of lack of stability. I searched long and hard for a Quicken alternative, and have downloaded and tried every single checkbook program I could find (Liquid Ledger, iBank, Accounts, MyCheckBook, PigMoney, etc., you name it, I have tried it!). Some have promise, but so far, Moneydance is it for me. I have over 10 years of data in Quicken, so the ability to import QIF files was important. Moneydance imported my Quicken data with no problem. I'm still using the Demo version of Moneydance, but so far, looks like I'l be buying this one. It's more checkbook-like than Liquid Ledger, and easier to use. Most of the programs I tried would not import QIF files. I'll report back after I've used Moneydance a while longer.  
(Version 2003 r2)