How to learn accounting software without any training
Accounting software assumes users already know foundational bookkeeping concepts like charting accounts and distinguishing between bills and expenses. Without this background, people face conflicting online advice and unhelpful customer service that make it nearly impossible to set up accounts or categorize historical purchases correctly.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Searching for conflicting methods online
- 2Using limited customer support calls
- 3Looking into training academies or asking outside bookkeepers for help
- 4searching for free online intro courses
- 5relying on software repetition and muscle memory
- 6checking knowledge bases and certifications
- 7Stop trying to connect it to existing math knowledge
- 8Treat it like a weird board game with a rulebook
- 9Drill the mechanics of the T-accounts until your hand cramps
- 10Accept the rule and move on without understanding why
- 11Watching YouTube videos like Edspita
- 12Doing practice problems first and learning the theory afterwards
In their words
Unedited, most upvoted first, each linked to the thread it came from.
“What books do you recommend to buy on Amazon to learn all about accounting? I have been trying to study and honestly these professors just create a 100 MCQ and suddenly you know the information.”source ↗
“I’m an office administrator with no formal Quickbooks training.”source ↗
“Would this be an “Expense” or a “Bill” and do I need to create “Accounts” for these?”source ↗
“Quickbooks did a call with me but it wasn’t very helpful.”source ↗
“Anyone have actual sound advice on how to tackle this? I’ve come across many conflicting methods.”source ↗
“I haven’t used quickbooks since college and it’s been like 4 years. Is it hard to pickup? I’ve been trying to find some online courses but a lot of them are a little pricey.”source ↗
“I'm a 6th year accounting student in Ireland. Picked it up in 5th and I have yet to get a single thing.”source ↗
“Accounting feels like a set of random rules born from late stage capitalism nonsense.”source ↗
“It feels like my teacher is just saying made up words that when I Google them the explanation is built from even more made up words.”source ↗
“reading definitions in the textbook would not stick in my brain, but seeing the practical application then going and learning why you account for certain things a certain way would make much more sense to me.”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
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- 5Simple offline accounting software without monthly subscriptions
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- 20Why is accounting software like QuickBooks so bad?