Switching from ProSeries Professional to Lacerte

[Marchman Accounting]

Hey guys (and gals), 

I've got a question for which I'm hoping to gain multiple answers from the community. Hope you all are doing well (that tax season was a doozie, congrats to you for pulling through, you're the real MVP). 

I'm a seasoned tax preparer, wouldn't quite call myself experienced, I've been doing tax preparation and accounting as a sel-employed professional (and business/firm owner) for seven years, and I'm thinking of switching software. I currently am using ProSeries Professional, and I also sprung for the cloud hosted environment Intuit sells. 

While I've 100% enjoyed just about every return I've done on ProSeries this year, and I think it really is a quite excellent software, I want to continue trying different software packages (from Intuit, the competition besides drake and Xero haven't quite impressed me). I did more than several returns before I used proseries on their online component, ProConnect, and really loved the intuitive feel and layout of its dashboard, the flow of preparing tax returns and the frame work it exists within along with its excellent ease of integration and correlation w/ Link. ProSeries leaves a lot to be desired in those regards, though just about everything else about ProSeries I think kick a**. 

This year, while preparing for next tax season, I'm reflecting upon the contacts I've made and the contacts they plan to throw my way of their corporate cohorts, and I truly think Lacerte is going to be the best option for my firm for the 2021 season. It integrates complicated, complex and intercompany types of returns better than either of its Intuit counterparts, and I feel again that the "flow" with which I can breeze through a tax return is much better than ProSeries, but I haven't used it (Lacerte) since early 2019.

So, what I'm asking, is of anybody who has made this same switch, especially firm owners, or anybody who has used Lacerte to a decent extent, please give me the good, the bad and the ugly, and your general experience with it to help me make my decision. The principal concers with which I'm gauging my decision are

• Price
• Ease of Use
• Speed of Accurate Return Preparation

Please help!

TIA

[IRonMaN]

If you used the online version, you kinda used Lacerte since they are similar products in regards to data entry.  The biggest problem going from ProSeries to Lacerte is the learning curve since ProSeries is form based for data entry.  But if you used the online version you already have a taste for that.  Lacerte handles more complex situations than ProSeries, but the pricing is also indicative of the increased horsepower.  It's kinda like someone owning a Chevy Spark looking at upgrading to a Chevy Corvette ------------- the sticker prices indicate there is a difference of what is under the hood.

But then again, I'm a ProSeries user and not planning on taking the jump from ProSeries to Lacerte anytime soon.  If you are happy with ProSeries but have a few returns that are a little more complex, you should consider using Lacerte on a pay per return basis on those more complicated returns. 

[PATAX]

@IRonMaN @Marchman Accounting I agree with Iron Man... I have prepared different kinds of returns for different types of entities and overall I would say ProSeries does a pretty good job... Yes there were issues this year since there was a tax law change in the middle of March that was made retroactive to 2020... But I would imagine all tax software entities had the same issues... You know what they say about the grass greener on the other side... Just my opinion... good luck my friend...

[George4Tacks]

If you negotiated ProConnect Tax (Online) then you will love the Lacerte interface. Similar in approach, but much easier to find input, easier to read input, more of everything. Not at all similar to ProSeries, but it can be approached from the forms view.  

https://proconnect.intuit.com/community/form-1040/help/comparing-lacerte-and-proseries-and-proconnec... may help

[Accountant-Man]

Don't forget: in Lacerta, -1 means zero.

Also, 999999 means Various.

[Marchman Accounting]

Hey Guys - let me be clear - and thanks for your input - I am not talking about ProConnect. When I Say "Network Hosted" version I'm still just talking about ProSeries, I just pay for the Right Networks Cloud Hosting so I can have my same returns no matter what computer I'm using or where I'm logging in from. I've used ProConnect in prior seasons and it was a great solution, expecially for getting through a lot of individual returns fast as heck and knowing confidently nothing got missed - it's like, the best at that. 

For 2020's tax year I've used exclusively ProSeries, and a lot of my returns are owners of partnerships and S-Corps, and other complicated tax shelters that are I think well represented in ProSeries but I can't shake the feeling I'm missing somehting. I'm thinking (like was said up top by first commenter) that Lacerte is going to have the increased horsepower I need for the more complex business returns, though I love how ProSeries has seamless integration of K-1s from my business returns into their owners' 1040s - that part is awesome and I imagine goes even smoother in Lacerte. 

Has anybody in a similar situation as myself (similar level of, I guess, seasoned-ness) who's just leveling up into more business returns and complex calculations done the switch that I'm thinking of making?

I'm appreciative of the support and answers you guys have provided, just want to clarify that I am not talking about ProConnect.