What Is the Difference Between QuickBooks & QuickBooks Construction?

The QuickBooks Contractor Edition includes additional tools beyond those in QuickBooks Pro Edition.

QuickBooks offers a number of editions of bookkeeping software to their customers. The different editions can confuse those who are trying to find the best alternative for their business with the least cost. QuickBooks for Construction companies is one example.

Premier vs. Contractor Edition: Just Starting

A lot of the advantage in choosing the Contractor (construction) edition of QuickBooks over the more generic Premier comes in the set up of the chart of accounts for the unique needs of a contractor. These differences include pre-set accounts for draws, direct and indirect costs and percentage of completion. So if your company is currently already set up on Premier and it is working for you, changing to the Contractor edition won't provide a big advantage.

Premier vs. Contractor Edition: Different Accounts

Unlike many other businesses, the construction business is generally paid in increments as the job they are working on progresses toward completion. This is known as "Percentage of Completion." In other words, a client may pay $50,000 for a construction project. The agreement is that the $50,000 will be paid in three payments. The total amount paid at the beginning may be the entirety of the total, of which only the first third is available for the company to deposit and use. When they do, this is called a "Draw" on this account.

Premier vs. Contractor Edition: Other Features

Many of the features available in the Contractor edition are available in the Premier edition as well. Estimates, Job Costing and Reports that are automatically activated in the Contractor edition need to be activated in the Premier version. Instructions to activate these features are available from the "Help" menu in the top menu bar.

References

• Servicemagic: QuickBooks Pro vs. Contractor
• Florida Gulf Coast University: Construction Accounting