Rating: 
Summary: You'll be glad you paid for it;-)
Review: I used Quicken extensively for years and loved it a lot. Few years back, when my portfolio started to melt like ice on salt, I quit using Quicken as I was scared to see my stock losses grow each day. Recently, a very good deal on Money 2003 Delux at CompUSA prompted me to get back to the habit of tracking my financial life. It's just been 2-weeks and I already like it a lot. I don't know how well it compares to Quicken 2003 but I sure am happy for getting it. The best thing about Money 2003 is the interface. I like the web look and feel. You can customize the views and display the features you want on home page. With some credit cards and banks, you can setup automatic downloads that will sync your account with the bank. Saves you from a lot of data entry. You can display your budget views on the home page. At times, I can just get all the info. I need on the home page and not worry about running reports. You can setup a passport account at MSN's Money website and you will be able to entry your expenses online when you don't have your PC with you. When you get back to the PC, your Money syncs with the new entries you made online. You can also use the Car View to track info about your cars. On the downside, there sure are few annoying bugs but they didn't bother me much as most of them have work around. This is my advise to anyone who runs into minor problems using money. Delete the transaction and re-enter it and all related problems may be solved. Finally, the microsoft support is excellent. Also, you can use the message boards at http://support.microsoft.com/newsgroups/default.aspx. Just make sure you select Desktop Applications and then Money to view the Money board.
Rating: 
Summary: OK only.
Review: This program has been useful for tracking my day to day expenses and income. However, with my skills I could write a better and easier to use program if that was all I needed. As far as what I actually bought the program for, cash flow analysis and investment and retirement tracking, it is third rate. The pre-tax deductions from my paycheck do not translate directly into the retirement contributions. Also, I have to do an individual purchase of stocks in my 401k each paycheck. In reality the contribution is by percentage into each mutual fund. Money 2003 will not allow you to select percentages and automatically purchase mutual fund shares. Also, the portfolio analysis is the usual "don't sue us" pap. In order to track my total net worth in any kind of intelligent way I had to buy the cheesy investment tracking version. This should be standard as it is below par and not worth the extra money. In addition, the cash flow analysis is primitive and not flexible enough for my purposes. Finally, I have had a total failure of the program in which I had to reinstall all the software. No data was lost, but I have more inportant ways to spend my valuable time. Quite frankly, I believe financial software is overdue for some competition.
Rating:
Summary: Online quotes just stopped working
Review: After using Money 2003 for a year the online stock quote update function just stopped working. No warnings, no message, no nothing. After searching the web and reading the fine print I discovered that it will stop working 1 year from the date of registration or first use. Typical MS tactics. I am going to pick up a copy of Quicken.
Rating: 
Summary: Fine software except for one thing.
Review: Overall I'm pleased with my purchase of Money Standard 2003. It's a very useful tool. The account register allows for categorization of all transactions, which produces interesting reports on how all your money was spent and the bills section makes sure you won't forget to pay those many bills on time. However, if you read the fine print on the bottom of the box you'll notice that it says that portfolio quotes downloading functionality and the ability to synchronize your data with MSN Money expire 1 year from first use of Microsoft Money Standard or September 1, 2004, whichever is earliest. Now what is the point of that?! It sounds like part of the software becomes useless after a year. But since I will have gotten it for free after rebates (not counting the time value of money), I suppose I can't complain too much.
Rating:
Summary: Useful software, has its downsides.
Review: After using Money for some years (previously Money 99 FS) upgraded to 2003 Deluxe. It would not read my previous money file saying it was corrupted. After countless hours with support (they did continuously keep me updated) they said the upgrade was not supported. They even looked at my 99 file and couldnt find a reason why it wouldn't read in 2003. Anyways, I did the upgrade the hard way - export/import. Currently everything seems to work good. One botheration which another reviewer pointed out is that the shares purchased should be rounded to 3 decimal places instead of six. It always messes up the sale if you have partial purchases like DRIP etc.
Rating:
Summary: Microsoft is moving backwards
Review: I am not entirely happy with this release. Microsoft seems to be moving backwards in basic functionality and instead spending their time integrating Money with their web site. I used to be able to create a budget based on my spending habits... this feature was apparently removed. I have to enter each budget item by hand. A simple matter of transfering money between accounts on paper is sometimes difficult since certain accounts don't show up where I would expect them to. Setting up a new checking account that I've had for a while was also very hard -- I could not get Money to agree with my bank without entering several (big) fudge factors and I was importing the data from my bank. There are also several minor nuances such as labeling my account history graph as a future expected spending graph (when I selected a specific time frame). My brokerage account does not list cash entering or leaving my account -- the cash balance is included in the total, but I cannot seem to find the cash in the account registy anywhere, so I have to calculate how much free cash I have from my current stock value and the total listed amount or go online to my brokerage web page. Ok, these are minor, but it shows me how little effort Microsoft spent on basic every day features I use. I'm constantly having to fight the software to do basic work. It used to be much easier. To add insult to injury, Microsoft rejected my rebate with a letter saying that they need the entire box top for the rebate -- I trimmed the box top to fit the envelope making sure that the UPC code is intact. They did not return the part of the box top I sent, so there is no way I can possibly comply with the rebate program at all now. I do like parts of Money 2003 and I'll still keep using this software, but if I could do this purchase over again, I would choose a different product. I've been using this software for about three months now.
Rating: 
Summary: A wise solution for budgetting!
Review: To be honest I spend money as I look at it, but MS Money takes care of that. A wonderful solution that provides informative tutorials on how to budget ones self more efficiently. Money has evolved over the years into an enormous resource for helping users get their financial investments together. The application is becoming more and more integrated allowing users to take care of such task as paying bills online, buying a car, house or any other type of household activity concerning how you spend money. It organises the users investments. It's also a wonderful budgetting tool, comparing itself to Quicken. But the thing about Money 2003, is the interface, it's more pleasing to look at and based on my observation more easier to use based on it's intuitive wizards. I really recommend you purchase money if you don't have it. I implore users. If you are a Quicken user, stick with it, I think Quicken is more powerful than Money regardless of the many bells and whistles it has. If you are new to the budgetting software I try Money because of the ease of use, but for long time Quicken users stick with what you use to.
Should you upgrade?
If you recently spent money buying Money 2002, don't worry to upgrade to it yet, wait six month's to a year, their is really no reason to rush but if you are still using a previous version of Money prior to version 2002 it's a worthy upgrade. For version 2002 users the reason why I don't recommend you upgrade is because of Microsoft's unpredictable upgrade cycle just as you might purchase this new version of Money, news about Money 2004 start's circulating, I don't want you to make any mistakes wasting your money, here.
Rating:
Summary: A lot of harsh reviews for a great product
Review: I've been using Microsoft Money 2002 for quite awhile and I really liked it. I decided to upgrade to Money 2003 and its even better. If you're wondering what Money can do for you, let me tell you. It can automatically download your transactions from your bank and credit cards so you can easily reconcile your accounts. When your bank (like mine, BofA) won't let Money auto-download it offers a manual download that works the same. Money can help you create budgets where you can easily track expenses. It can help you create a debt reduction plan so you know exactly how much you need to send in order to get out of debt by a certain date. You can keep track of all upcoming bills. I'm not sure I could live without it now that I've used it for so long.
Rating:
Summary: Amazing, so glad I switched from Quicken Deluxe 2002
Review: I have to admit, I was definitely reluctant to switch to MS Money. I love Quicken and have used it since it first came out. I switched to the deluxe version around 1995 and have bought the upgrade pretty much every year. I was about to buy my 2003 update when I was encouraged to try MS Money. Since I do always search for the best product, I hesistantly placed my order. I got it and can just say WOW. No regrets here on switching. I was really expecting to junk it and stick either get Quicken 2003 or stay with Quicken 2002. It does take a little getting used to MS Money. But, after a day or two, you are rockin' and rollin' as you would be on Quicken. Does this program do much that Quicken doesn't? Well, no. BUT, when you factor in the integration with MS Money Online, then you have a clear winner. Quicken.com is no where near as good as Money Buy it, try it, and you'll be a convert too. Admittedly, I haven't used Quicken Deluxe 2003, but the demo I downloaded didn't offer much more. All the reviews I've read really think both programs are about on par. Like the reviewers, I too believe the big advantage with MS Money is all the great things it does on the web. Free tax filing by H&R Block is an added bonus as is free first year of MSN online banking. Though I doubt I'll switch from my free internet bank.
Rating:
Summary: Bit of a learning curve, but ultimately great software suite
Review: I'm a regular user of Pocket Money for my Palm Vx and I've used versions of Quicken Mac in the past but never really used the more advanced features due to lack of time and lack of interest in learning the ins and outs of the Quicken suite. I had heard great things about MS Money and decided to give this a shot since my finances have gotten a little more complex lately due to a better job, etc. I bought it and installed it. Installation is simple and setting up your initial accounts is WAY more easier than in Quicken. Quicken is OK, but tends to be on the ambiguous side at times. Not so with MS Money...there are tons of movie clips and spoken advice bits when you do something for the first time. The online help is pretty good as well. Plus, I LOVE the integration of your MSN Passport with this suite...to truly get the most out of Money 2003, you'll want to have a good internet connection and an MS Passport. You'll be able to upload your data to your My Money page on www.msn.com for the ability to access your financial data when you're not at your normal PC! There is a bit of a learning curve when it comes to classing and setting up your investment data, but to its credit, MS Money does a pretty good job clarifying things and making it as simple as possible for most novice users. While I am not a novice user by any stretch, it took me a few tries to get the web services working with some of my bank accounts. Many banks are supported, but some (like Chase Manhattan credit cards for some reason) are not. Overall, MS Money 2003 Deluxe has enabled me to set up my finances in a way in which I maintain them religiously and always know what my cash flow and bills are at a glance. Investments are now automatically tracked which helps in my analysis. You may want to invest in a dedicated book on Money 2003 if you're new to this sort of stuff, but old Quicken users will feel right at home. You have nothing to lose...spend the (money)and see how much easier your financial life becomes!!
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