CYMA accounting software for Windows is one of the best accounting software options available. However, you have to purchase numerous modules to cover basic accounting needs. The modules offered include, accounts payable, accounts receivable, after-the-fact payroll, bank reconciliation, client billing, general ledger, inventory control, job costing, payroll, purchase order, sales order and system manager. They also offer a not-for-profit version that includes grant tracking. The additional tools that can be purchased are state payroll forms, MICR checks, a disaster recovery program and managed backup.
All modules are sold separately and all training materials, classes and user manuals are also sold individually or require that you sign up with a support package. The cost to implement this system can add up quickly and may not be a good option for small operations on a small budget, but larger companies with large inventories and complex accounting needs may find it powerful enough to handle what they need to run their business.
The accounting modules are exceptionally complex and customizable, which may be a challenge for some to figure out. For a price, they do offer extensive training and consulting, which is a good idea to invest in if you have a large company that needs to implement a new accounting software program. It may not be worth it for small companies, sole proprietors, consultants or freelancers to buy training on how to use the already costly new software. However, if you are familiar with accounting software such as Mass90 or Peachtree Quantum you may find CYMA fairly simple to figure out and worth the time and monetary investment.
This software comes with searchable embedded support. To access online support you have to be a current license holder. For updates you must sign up with for their software maintenance plan and technical support is charged per incident. A single incident can be purchased for $125 and may include multiple phone calls over a period of time till that one issue is resolved. Unlimited telephone support can be purchased for $395 per year if you use 4 modules or less, other pricing schedules apply for more than one user and more modules.
We found it unusual that they charge for product manuals, usually they come with the software. However, they sell their product manuals in bundles, so to receive the system manager, general ledger, accounts receivable, accounts payable and payroll guides you have to order them at $220 per bundle. They also offer online training ranging from free to about $160 per session.
This accounting software can handle just about everything, from numerous payments types to recurring invoices to partial payments and lines of credit. It can also email statements, update prices globally and generate invoices automatically. The only things we could not find in this module were the ability to print out shipping labels or track shipments.
The accounts payable section of this accounting software can do just about everything and it can be fully integrated with other modules. The accounts payable module of this software can handle an unlimited number of vendors and contacts. It can also email invoices in HTML, RTF or PDF format and it supports full 1099 processing. With CYMA you can attach images, documents, locations or any file types to vendor files. It also supports electronic funds transfers (EFT) and can print checks.
The Accounting Payroll Section is excellent. Within this section you can manage all payroll needs; you can write checks, make direct deposits, and make adjustments. You can also print 941’s, W-2’s and 1099’s. This software can manage taxes, deductions, an unlimited number of benefits and employees and more. You can also attach images and files to employee records, encrypt Social Security numbers and process multiple pay frequencies.
This program offers a great inventory module, which can support everything from images and web links to real-time tracking and user-defined reorder levels. The inventory control abilities are powerful enough for medium sized companies that manage a high volume of inventory. However, it may be a bit much for small start-ups with limited product or a limited variety of product. For larger operations, this software can handle multiple warehouses, bill-of-materials, physical account variances, LIFO/FIFO costing and much more.
This software can support unlimited bank accounts, records and contacts. It can also manage over 100 custom data fields and clear transactions by five different criterions. The bank reconciliation module works with all other related CYMA modules for smooth communication between them. For custom reports, you can use the Crystal Reports module to create custom reports that can be saved and added as sections to the report menu.
CYMA does not offer a time billing module; however, in the job costing section you can track time spent on jobs and you can post time recorded in the payroll module to the job costing module for tracking time spent on a specific job. You can also perform this procedure vice versa, so from the job or project cost module to the payroll module to keep track of time actually spent on a project and the labor costs associated.
This provides extensive job costing tools that can manage labor costs, invoicing, applied overhead, user defined costs and even files and documents attached to job files. It can invoice jobs using over 25 billing methods and can budget jobs by detail, summary, cost type or user defined cost code. It is also fully integrated with the payroll module for paying employees and contractors.
The general ledger can track all accounting transactions and offers entry listing, ledger, income statement, balance sheet and ratio analysis reports and custom reporting using Crystal Reports. The general ledger can provide a detailed audit trail and can import budgets from CSV files. It can also handle user defined 24 digit account numbers, 10 user defined segments and 13 budgets per account.
Fixed Asset tracking is not available within CYMA for Windows. Fixed asset tools are designed to help companies keep track of things like office equipment, company cell phones or computers. Many programs will also calculate depreciation value for tax purposes, so it is an important money saving tool for companies. We were surprised to not see this ability in the inventory control module since otherwise CYMA is extremely capable.
This application can import from CSV type files to the general ledger, accounts payable, accounts receivable and payroll. CSV files are compatible with nearly all spreadsheet or database management systems, so you can import data from many other applications, including Excel. Those that sign up for the software maintenance plan can receive product updates, upgrades, service packs and payroll updates for one year from the date of enrollment.
The accounting modules provide extensive reporting capabilities, including numerous pre-configured accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll and general ledger reports. This software also has a Crystal Report Writer, Microsoft Query ability and it can export data as a CSV file into other programs. With CYMA you can also create and save your own custom reports.
This software for windows is comprehensive and powerful. However, having to purchase numerous modules and learn complicated accounting procedures may be too much for small businesses or sole proprietors. Though we think larger companies who need the ability to manage large inventories, to process multiple types of billings and to process complex payroll scenarios and credit options, may find that CYMA can do everything that they need and more.
