Accounting
2019 Review of Araize FastFund Nonprofit Accounting
Apr. 16, 2019
From the 2019 reviews of nonprofit accounting systems.
FastFund Nonprofit Accounting from Araize is best suited for small to mid-sized nonprofit organizations and government entities. FastFund is cloud-based, offering anytime/anywhere access along with an affordable pricing structure. The product is currently offered in two versions; Standard and Premium, with users able to add modules to the Standard version or simply scale up to the Premium version if necessary.
FastFund offers users an easily navigated interface, with system categories such as Dashboard, Lists, Utilities, and Reports listed at the top of the screen. FastFund uses a table-driven chart of accounts with 36 characters and up to six segments available to product users, making it easy to track multiple programs, funds, funding sources, and departments. The product easily processes multiple transaction types, including cash receipts, journal entries-including recurring and reversing entries, bank reconciliation, batch processing, and disbursements. FastFund also offers an optional allocations module as well.
FastFund offers good budgeting capability, with users able to create a separate budget for any grant, program, fund, or department. Multiple year-end closings are available, making it easier to track multiple programs or grants and FastFund users are able to create custom budgets from scratch, or import existing budgets from spreadsheets if desired. Multiple budgets can be created for a single fiscal year, and budgets can be created across fiscal years if needed.
An optional Fundraising module is included in FastFund that offers complete constituent and donor management, with users able to assign individual codes that can track roles, classifications, and affiliations. The module also offers Moves Management capability along with volunteer management, and provides users with the ability to track donor gifts, in-kind donations and pledges.
Users can manage grants by assigning a unique code to each grant, and mentioned earlier, users can also create a separate budget for each grant that is managed in the system and the optional Cost Allocations module allows users to allocate direct and indirect costs using a variety of methods including percentages, revenue and expenses, or project code. Multiple funds can be managed in FastFund, with each fund providing its own financial statements, with all inter-fund transactions automatically creating a fund-balancing entry to ensure the funds remain in balance.
FastFund offers multi-level security, with the ability to set up user groups, with new users assigned to a particular group. All system activity is tracked in FastFund by both system user and IP address, and read access only can be assigned to system users if necessary.
FastFund offers a good selection of reporting option, with users able to create custom financial statements. Report sets can be created and saved for future access. The product also offers FASB compliant reports such as including Statement of Activities, Statement of Financial Position, Functional Expenses, and Fund Balance reports. Data can also be produced to complete IRS Form 990 and Form 990 EZ. All FastFund reports can be exported to Microsoft Excel, to a CSV file, or saved as an HTML file or PDF.
FastFund modules are designed to work together seamlessly. The Standard version of FastFund includes Cash Receipts, Cash Disbursements, Print Checks, Bank Reconciliation, Budgeting, Project Accounting, Recurring and Reversing Entries, Financial Statement, Customized Reports, Custom Filters, and Audit Trail functionality, with AR, AP, and Cost Allocation modules available in the Premium version of the product. Purchase Order, Fundraising, and Payroll modules are available as well.
FastFund offers a good variety of training and support options including YouTube training videos and on-demand webinars. A Getting Started option is also available that helps to guide new system users through initial product setup and navigation. Fast Fund also offers desktop training along with toll-free product support during regular business hours.
FastFund Online Nonprofit Accounting from Araize is a good fit for small nonprofit organizations. Available exclusively as an online application, the Standard version of FastFund currently runs $38.00 per month for a single user, with AR, AP, and Cost Allocations modules available for an additional $17.00 per module. The Premium version is $85.00 per month and includes the AR, AP, and Cost Allocations modules. The Fundraising module starts at $17.00 per month and Payroll starts at $60.00 per month. The monthly licensing fee includes initial sales consulting as well as unlimited customer support by telephone, email, and web. The fee also includes free weekly training webinars as well as all future updates and software upgrades.