QuickBooks Online for Construction Management

October 20, 2022

As one of the most popular software for accounting purposes, QuickBooks secures its position in the market for its industry-specific features. It comes in editions suitable for industries like manufacturing, retail, wholesale and distribution, construction, non-profits, and professional services. This article will focus on the efficiency of QuickBooks Online for the construction industry.

Integrates with Tools Specific to the Construction Industry

Some of the construction project management software that integrates with QuickBooks Online include Buildertrend, Knowify, RedTeam, Jobber, Contractor Foreman, and many others. The functions of these integrations are outlined below:

• Knowify – for advanced job costing, AIA billing, and project finance management.
• Corecon – Ensures project visibility and tracking of clients, subcontractors, and AIA invoices.
• Greenback – automates the entry and synchronization of your receipts.
• Housecall Pro – for scheduling, CRM marketing, and invoice payments.

Please note these apps are illustrative of some of the plug-and-play solutions available within the QuickBooks Online marketplace allowing construction businesses to simplify their business and accounting processes. There are further integrations that work natively with QuickBooks Online giving more options to manage the various functions or departments within the company.

QuickBooks Version for Construction Management

QuickBooks Online Advanced is a preferred choice by the construction industry. Many construction customers move from Sage 300 CRE to QuickBooks as Sage 300 may have some limitations and due to ease-of-use, convenience and various apps that form part of an integrated tech stack. QuickBooks Online Advanced can accommodate access from more than five construction project managers. Consequently, you can track and manage multiple construction projects on one QuickBooks Online account.

Benefits of Having QBO in the Construction Space

Construction Job Costing in QuickBooks Online

With built-in features like job costing, estimates, progressive invoicing and similar, QuickBooks Online helps you ensure that you run a proper job costing of your project before submitting your quotes to clients.

QuickBooks Online allows you to estimate your construction project job costing for optimal profitability. This feature ensures you have an accurate projection of what the entire project would cost and how long it should take. It makes for a must-have accounting tool for construction project managers and supervisors.

Cloud-based Bookkeeping Feature for the Construction Space

To successfully run a construction project, you must track how much you spend against your proposed budget. QuickBooks Online Advanced ensures that the complexities involved in construction bookkeeping are eliminated during your project.

Since this solution is cloud-based, you can easily access its features on the go.

Automation of Accounting Tasks

In addition to running your construction bookkeeping on the go, QuickBooks Online Advanced also affords you flexibility by automating your accounting tasks. For example, by integrating with billing and invoicing software like Knowify, QuickBooks Online allows construction managers to process recurring invoices with their subcontractors.

This task automation also spares construction managers the grave financial consequences of erroneous accounting. As a result, you’d always know the exact percentage of project completion at every point in time. This precision, in turn, boosts the reputation of a construction manager as clients can rely on their completion estimates.

Contractor Management

By integrating with GPS-enabled construction project management solutions like ClockShark, QuickBooks Online also ensures that you monitor your contractors in real-time. As a result, you pay them only for work done, and you also ensure that the different project tasks are completed as and when due.

This software also ensures that you remain compliant by completing your 1099s in time. You can also request your subcontractors’ tax ID details on the platform.

How to move to QuickBooks Online for Construction Management?

Due to the nature of the construction industry, various compliances, regulatory needs and project-based businesses, there may be numerous customizations and software that is added to the business. This data is critical to the business and can cause hesitation in the decision to move from existing software to a modern solution like QuickBooks Online or QuickBooks Online Advanced. 

SaaS Direct with its 25+ years of experience in data migration has the deep capabilities to move data from Sage 300 CRE or more than 88 software including historical and custom data.