Who needs a personal finance package on their PC? Well if you pay bills, own shares, plan to make a will, write cheques, have a mortgage. in fact if you are an earning, spending consumer in the 21st century, a package like Money will make your affairs easier to manage. It should even make you a little richer. Money has quite a pedigree. Though Microsoft only entered the personal finance market a few years ago, it has quickly carved a big slice of the market. Microsoft knows we all want to get our finances in order; it also knows that, to most of us, they are a terrifying mystery. So, with yearly updates, it has honed Money so even the financially illiterate can compile a personal financial resumé in around half an hour as the software pumps you with questions. Money then swallows the details of accounts, endowments, mortgages and investments-your whole financial life in fact-and tidily regurgitates them in a tidy web browser style. [+]

Your finances, your way-fast and hassle-free. There's so much more to life than managing finances. Microsoft Money 2005 Standard makes it simple to see where your money is going by automatically consolidating all your transactions in one convenient place. It's like an always-current snapshot of your spending and budget. Money has answers to all your financial questions, so you can get on with your life. The new look of Microsoft Money 2005 makes managing your finances effortless and ensures that you get qui.

Whether you're creating a monthly budget or planning a complex investment portfolio, Microsoft's Money 2002 is a strong and dependable tool for managing your money and helping you reach your financial goals. Easy to set up, with features such as Web integration and online services providing you with access to your financial data as you shop, invest or pay bills, you'll soon have your household budget and accounts in order. Many of the new features that make Money a worthwhile financial companion revolve around better Web integration and online services. The new MoneySide bar follows you around as you surf the Web, providing you with access to your financial data. You can also synchronise your Money data with MSN Money, which allows for up-to-date investing, banking and financial planning information. Creating charts and tracking reports have been greatly improved, as well as the ability to send these reports via e-mail. Finally, a new Bill Setup and Edit feature provides users with a central storage area for all bills and billing histories to be kept and managed. One of the great things about Money 2002 is the scalability on offer to the user. For example, if you just want to see how much a holiday will affect your monthly budget, the program offers a one-time expense feature to use during that month. If, on the other hand, you'd rather create a six-month plan to purchase a new car, Money 2002 will help you set up a budget to account for this expense over time. [+]

Do you run your home finances or do they run you? If your finances are spiralling out of control you might want to try Home Finance for Dummies, a program that allows you to efficiently manage your accounts in pounds. To help get your finances back under control, you simply create an account by specifying an initial balance, then you fill in various categories of spending on the budget sheets. The software will automatically subtract or add all your expenses and receipts. You can also indicate the limit that you don't want to exceed for specific categories. So you can cap the amount you might spend each month on going out to the cinema or the total you spend on shopping. If you go over that amount, an actual alarm will sound. By using this handy program, your initial balance will increase or decrease according to the debits or credits that you enter. Overall this program will help to bring greater clarity to your spending and will let you clearly see what your spending patterns are. At the end of each month you can easily print off a monthly record of what you have spent in each of your agreed categories. You can print the figures out in a colourful pie chart which will give you a good idea of how your bank manager is likely to be feeling. [+]

Just balancing a cheque book is complicated-add a few investments and a budget, and you could start tearing your hair out. Microsoft Money 2001 Financial Suite, largely redesigned for easier navigation and customisation, is a step above its predecessors and miles beyond the old ledger and portfolio. With new features, such as user-set priorities, frequent-flier manager and Web browsing from within Money, it sets new standards for financial management software. Installation is simple and stress-free. The file transfers are transparent, and entering financial information can be done in five to 10 minutes. Keep track of all of your investments, including ready cash, stocks, retirement funds, home equity and more-all in a well-designed Web-page format that integrates smoothly with other Web-based content. The home page is a pleasure, but the easily distracted should move the cash-flow charts and investment watch elsewhere, lest they be tempted to update them every few minutes. Pulling financial information off the Internet is usually easy (depending on your choice of financial service providers, of course) and you can port your personal data to a secure Web site for remote retrieval if you like. There are a couple of minor drawbacks. For one, they have chosen to use their leverage to shill for MSN and other Microsoft-related services throughout Money. [+]

It's enough to know you can balance your chequebook and set your budget with Quicken, but with this version of this bestselling software, you can even download stock quotes into your profile. Best of all, you can get an idea of your upcoming tax bill before your taxes are due. With an interface that's truly easy to use, Quicken helps with the tedious tasks associated with managing your money. The data you enter helps analyse your spending habits and makes far-reaching plans for your financial health. The software gives you the option of paying bills directly from your online bank accounts. You can also keep track of all your assets, from money market accounts to stock portfolios, and estimate upcoming taxes or the value of your home. Financial managers can use Quicken for workplace scenarios as well-this version even includes a function called the Employee Stock Option Grant Tracker. Other everyday features abound, almost to the point of being overwhelming. But the expansive options available with Quicken are a good part of its strength, and household-or office-managers will be pleased with the punch Quicken packs. -Acton Lane.

Just balancing a chequebook is complicated-add a few investments and a budget, and you could start tearing your hair out. Microsoft Money 2001 Personal & Business, largely redesigned for easier navigation and customisation, is a step above its predecessors and miles beyond the old ledger and portfolio. With new features, such as user-set priorities, frequent-flier manager, and Web browsing from within Money, it sets new standards for financial management software. Installation is simple and stress-free. The file transfers are transparent, and entering financial information can be done in five or 10 minutes. Keep track of all of your investments, including ready cash, stocks, retirement funds, home equity and more-all in a well-designed Web-page format that integrates smoothly with other Web-based content. The home page is a pleasure, but the easily distracted should move the cash-flow charts and investment watch elsewhere, lest they be tempted to update them every few minutes. Pulling financial information off the Internet is usually easy (depending on your choice of financial service providers, of course) and you can port your personal data to a secure Web site for remote retrieval if you like. There are a couple of minor drawbacks. For one, they have chosen to use their leverage to shill for MSN and other Microsoft-related services throughout Money. [+]

Just balancing a cheque book is complicated-add a few investments and a budget, and you could start tearing your hair out. Microsoft Money 2001 Financial Suite, largely redesigned for easier navigation and customisation, is a step above its predecessors and miles beyond the old ledger and portfolio. With new features, such as user-set priorities, frequent-flier manager, and Web browsing from within Money, it sets new standards for financial management software. Installation is simple and stress-free. The file transfers are transparent, and entering financial information can be done in 5 or 10 minutes. Keep track of all of your investments, including ready cash, stocks, retirement funds, home equity, and more-all in a well-designed Web-page format that integrates smoothly with other Web-based content. The home page is a pleasure, but the easily distracted should move the cash-flow charts and investment watch elsewhere, lest they be tempted to update them every few minutes. Pulling financial information off the Internet is usually easy (depending on your choice of financial service providers, of course) and you can port your personal data to a secure Web site for remote retrieval if you like. There are a couple of minor drawbacks. For one, they have chosen to use their leverage to shill for MSN and other Microsoft-related services throughout Money. [+]

Quicken personal finance software has been around a long time in its successive versions. But why should you invest in such software at all? For newcomers to Quicken 2002 Deluxe it will do the crucial job of pulling together all your financial accounts-current accounts, mortgages, endowments, savings, credit cards, property and the rest-under one roof. You may marvel as you discover your net worth for the first time and uncover any black holes in your finances. Most importantly, seeing your accounts side by side will show you which is performing and underperforming and help you re-establish (or perhaps establish for the first time) personal finance targets. Quicken comes in three versions, so why opt for Quicken 2002 Deluxe rather than the entry-level Quicken 2002 Standard or the small business-oriented Quicken 2002 Deluxe & Business? Firstly Deluxe will give you more sophisticated tools with which to analyse the account data you painstakingly input when you first opened the program. As well as budgeting, you will be able to use data to forecast and plan your financial future. You can directly access personal finance news from the excellent Motley Fool Web site (a matter of convenience rather than a compelling selling point, after all you can go to the Web site anyway) and you can use Quicken to detail your home contents insurance. You can also generate "what if?" scenarios on your income, expenses and investments and track your share options. Once everything is entered Quicken will generate reports, see where money is going by categorising transactions and check on the performance of your investments. And you can check that your ISAs, pension funds and the rest are on course to deliver the funds you'll need in five, ten or 30 years. [+]

Quicken XG is the 2003 makeover of Intuit's industry leading personal finance package. The pricing structure is new this time round though. Quicken XG buys you the program plus 12 months use of the various online services. After this you can opt to join one of several flexible monthly payment plans to continue using the online services. Quicken XG allows you to take complete control of your finances. You can record and track all your personal and business accounts as well as investments. Data can be graphed and reported against for clear and helpful analysis. Intuit include several useful extras including a Home Inventory program, the ability to backup your data online for complete security and tools to assist with your end-of-year tax affairs. If you are new to Quicken, you'll appreciate the new Guided Setup Wizard that walks you through the setting up of all your accounts. These can be current accounts, savings, credit cards or investments. [+]