Accounting software

[Feldspar]

Just looking at this same question due to the concern about the upcoming quarterly reporting, which I am told might be delayed, but will probably come in sooner or later.

Spoke to Farmplan about Gatekeeper and their accounting package. With @Boysground's comments in mind, I too thought it looked rather old school and a little bit clunky.

I did try Xero for a while, but didn't find it so good that I couldn't help but use it. Will probably look at it again as a first option. @Clive, is there farming features that it lacks? Farmplan guy said, as you would expect a competitor to say, that Farmplan's accounting software could take into account things like levies on grain sales that would confuse a more mainstream software package. Not sure to what extent that is totally rubbish.

 

[Feldspar]

Gatekeeper does farm stock control

Use a Xero adon for another business that has stock so it's all quite possible

How have you got on with auto-enrolment?

 

[Steevo]

Just looking at this same question due to the concern about the upcoming quarterly reporting, which I am told might be delayed, but will probably come in sooner or later.

Spoke to Farmplan about Gatekeeper and their accounting package. With @Boysground's comments in mind, I too thought it looked rather old school and a little bit clunky.

I did try Xero for a while, but didn't find it so good that I couldn't help but use it. Will probably look at it again as a first option. @Clive, is there farming features that it lacks? Farmplan guy said, as you would expect a competitor to say, that Farmplan's accounting software could take into account things like levies on grain sales that would confuse a more mainstream software package. Not sure to what extent that is totally rubbish.

Talk about overcomplicating it. Plenty of us on here have used Excel for years....and that can't tell the difference between levies and no levies. Not that I'd really want or need it to.

That said, looking to move to Xero shortly in order to reduce the time taken each quarter. Currently takes two people, a day each quarter to get it all done. Hoping to slash that, as well as reduce the accountancy bill meaning the move should pay for itself on that, and free me up more time.

 

[Clive]

Just looking at this same question due to the concern about the upcoming quarterly reporting, which I am told might be delayed, but will probably come in sooner or later.

Spoke to Farmplan about Gatekeeper and their accounting package. With @Boysground's comments in mind, I too thought it looked rather old school and a little bit clunky.

I did try Xero for a while, but didn't find it so good that I couldn't help but use it. Will probably look at it again as a first option. @Clive, is there farming features that it lacks? Farmplan guy said, as you would expect a competitor to say, that Farmplan's accounting software could take into account things like levies on grain sales that would confuse a more mainstream software package. Not sure to what extent that is totally rubbish.

It's total salesman rubbish ! Accounts are accounts and farm accounts are no different to any other industry - ask HMRC ? I don't see them asking farmers for different sets of accounts to anyone else ?

You just set up whatever package you use, Xero or otherwise with the correct heading codes and rates etc to suit your business

I can't believe anyone actually buys farmplan accounts anymore it's so bad imo and that's from someone who used it for over a decade !

Xero can be linked to field recording from farmflo as an add on which is not as capable as gatekeeper for a multi site large farm business yet but I think they are getting there and it improves every time I look at it

It's all a LOT cheaper than farmplan as well and no one is selling your data either !

Whatever you use make it cloud based, it's the future of all this stuff and simplifies multi site, multi business / enterprise or user sync issues and backup and information share with advisors and government etc along with links via api between various systems saving duplicate data entry

 

[Feldspar]

It's total salesman rubbish ! Accounts are accounts and farm accounts are no different to any other industry - ask HMRC ? I don't see them asking farmers for different sets of accounts to anyone else ?

You just set up whatever package you use, Xero or otherwise with the correct heading codes and rates etc to suit your business

I can't believe anyone actually buys farmplan accounts anymore it's so bad imo and that's from someone who used it for over a decade !

Xero can be linked to field recording from farmflo as an add on which is not as capable as gatekeeper for a multi site rage farm business yet but I think they are getting there and it improves every time I look at it

It's all a LOT cheaper than farmplan as well and no one is selling your data either !

Do you do your payroll through Xero?

What exactly is it that Farmflo can't do?

 

[Boysground]

Just looking at this same question due to the concern about the upcoming quarterly reporting, which I am told might be delayed, but will probably come in sooner or later.

Spoke to Farmplan about Gatekeeper and their accounting package. With @Boysground's comments in mind, I too thought it looked rather old school and a little bit clunky.

I did try Xero for a while, but didn't find it so good that I couldn't help but use it. Will probably look at it again as a first option. @Clive, is there farming features that it lacks? Farmplan guy said, as you would expect a competitor to say, that Farmplan's accounting software could take into account things like levies on grain sales that would confuse a more mainstream software package. Not sure to what extent that is totally rubbish.

I use a levies heading code for grain and milk. Just enter from the remittance like anything else. I don't think it should be done any other way.

The only thing I have found that xero doesn't do very well is Self Billing Invoices it's something I use once or twice a year. With xero you can't use the invoice template that is used for standard invoices. The self bill has to be done on xcel or something similar and then import it. There's quite a lot on the forums and help pages but xero don't seem too keen on putting a self bill in the software. It wasn't very difficult once I got my head around it but it could be easier.

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[Clive]

Do you do your payroll through Xero?

What exactly is it that Farmflo can't do?

Yes use it for payroll on 4 business - really easy, like 5mins to do with all gov filing done automatically just like the vat every month

Farmflo doesn't do the mapping / PF stuff that gatekeeper can do well, machine syncs etc or deal with contract farm businesses and multiple stock centres as well ......... yet, I know they are working hard on this though, it will kick gatekeepers arse one day I'm pretty sure !

It perfectly adequate of field recording however and stock control and they are about to add a agronomist link/ module to bring in work plans etc it also does livestock which gatekeeper doesn't

One to watch imo but not quite everything I need yet

 

[Feldspar]

I use a levies heading code for grain and milk. Just enter from the remittance like anything else. I don't think it should be done any other way.

The only thing I have found that xero doesn't do very well is Self Billing Invoices it's something I use once or twice a year. With xero you can't use the invoice template that is used for standard invoices. The self bill has to be done on xcel or something similar and then import it. There's quite a lot on the forums and help pages but xero don't seem too keen on putting a self bill in the software. It wasn't very difficult once I got my head around it but it could be easier.

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Did you start with a clean break from the old system, or did you import previous data? Given we're moving from paper, but with a digital lot of accounts with the accountants, I'm not sure how easy it will be to bring in fixed assets registers and capital accounts. Need to have a chat with the accountants to try and plan how it's going to work.

 

[Boysground]

Do you do your payroll through Xero?

What exactly is it that Farmflo can't do?

I still use farmplan for my payroll. Only because I wanted to change one thing at a time. I will probably change soon.

I have also spent quite a lot of time looking at crop software. There's a couple of threads on here. I looked at farmflo and the biggest issue for me is that (when I last looked) it did not cover nvz legislation. For my business that's enough for me not to use it.

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[Feldspar]

Yes use it for payroll on 4 business - really easy, like 5mins to do with all gov filing done automatically

Farmflo doesn't do the mapping / PF stuff that gatekeeper can do well, machine syncs etc or deal with contract farm businesses and multiple stock centres as well ......... yet, I know they are working hard on this though, it will kick gatekeepers arse one day I'm pretty sure !

It perfectly adequate of field recording however and stock control and they are about to add a agronomist link/ module to bring in work plans etc it also does livestock which gatekeeper doesn't

One to watch imo but not quite everything I need yet

So, if you were me, would you get Gatekeeper, or stay with pen and paper / Excel for a while on the crop software front?

 

[Feldspar]

I still use farmplan for my payroll. Only because I wanted to change one thing at a time. I will probably change soon.

I have also spent quite a lot of time looking at crop software. There's a couple of threads on here. I looked at farmflo and the biggest issue for me is that (when I last looked) it did not cover nvz legislation. For my business that's enough for me not to use it.

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Does payroll software make auto-enrolment much easier?

 

[Clive]

So if you were me, would you get Gatekeeper, or stay with pen and paper / Excell for a while on the crop software front?

I wouldn't spend money on gk now - lot changing in this space fast right now

Gatekeeper costs a lot to buy and then a full version of it will keep costing significantly in support subs every year on top

Unless farmplan realease a cloud version soon they are going to slowly loose out and disappear just as the accounts software has in recent years

If I were you I would go Xero for accounts and payroll, spend 12months getting that right and learning it well

By then I reckon farmflo will have developed to a level where it's a much better choice than gatekeeper, I see myself moving away from gatekeeper at that point, but not just yet !

 

[Clive]

Does payroll software make auto-enrolment much easier?

Yes

 

[Worm digger]

xero user here too , reconciling is made easy and intuitive, especially after using sage,

 

[Boysground]

Did you start with a clean break from the old system, or did you import previous data? Given we're moving from paper, but with a digital lot of accounts with the accountants, I'm not sure how easy it will be to bring in fixed assets registers and capital accounts. Need to have a chat with the accountants to try and plan how it's going to work.

I started from scratch. Did look at bringing asset records and capital data over but decided it was best to start with a blank sheet. My accountant has a standard set of heading codes he is starting people with. That is in an attempt to keep everyone roughly the same. I have used some and changed others. What i did find with the clean start was that I rationalised everything and I think it is a much simpler set up at the moment. Give it a few years and that will change.


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[Boysground]

How have you got on with auto-enrolment?

Yes

Can't be worse than farmplan. They won't create the right csv file for my pension company so I have to do it manually. It's a pain.

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[Feldspar]

I started from scratch. Did look at bringing asset records and capital data over but decided it was best to start with a blank sheet. My accountant has a standard set of heading codes he is starting people with. That is in an attempt to keep everyone roughly the same. I have used some and changed others. What i did find with the clean start was that I rationalised everything and I think it is a much simpler set up at the moment. Give it a few years and that will change.


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My understanding is a still a bit limited in this area, so I apologise if this is a a silly question, but did you then have to enter your list of assets in by hand in order to get things like property and machinery depreciation costs?

 

[Feldspar]

Can't be worse than farmplan. They won't create the right csv file for my pension company so I have to do it manually. It's a pain.

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So would it be much more difficult to set up a scheme through NEST manually and then go to Xero at a later date? Just thinking that I have to get on with things, and learning a whole new software package might be a bit much to bite off unless it made the subsequent auto-enrolment bit a lot easier.

 

[Feldspar]

xero user here too , reconciling is made easy and intuitive, especially after using sage,

Were you using Sage One, or the older versions?

 

[Clive]

So would it be much more difficult to set up a scheme through NEST manually and then go to Xero at a later date? Just thinking that I have to get on with things, and learning a whole new software package might be a bit much to bite off unless it made the subsequent auto-enrolment bit a lot easier.

It's very to learn as you go - setting it up etc is the best way to learn to use it all imo

Nest works well with Xero and there are wizards and short videos to help you learn as you go

For 20 or so £ a month just go for it - if in a couple of months it's not working for you then you really haven't lost much trying !