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Who is Sage Accounting
Sage is a UK-based technology company started in 1981 that offers digital back office solutions that streamline administrative work for businesses across the globe. Sage Accounting is their simpler accounting solution available to small businesses.
Having been in business for over 4 decades, Sage has over 6 million clients ranging from large scale accounting firms to small scale business operations. You can get started with Sage confidently knowing that they have a proven track record of servicing the accounting needs of its clients.
Sage Accounting features
Sage offers two different accounting software: Sage 50cloud Accounting and their base Sage Accounting desktop package. The key difference is that 50cloud houses all your data online while the base package stores all data on your desktop and can only be accessed from that computer. Outside of that difference, the features are the same.
Invoicing
Sage Accounting lets you create and send invoices to clients using any of their customizable templates. Invoices allow for integrated payments via Stripe so customers can pay directly from the invoice. Stop chasing down payments using automated payment reminders. Your clients get emails at your chosen periods of time following receiving the invoice.
Accounts payable management
Add your providers and invoices to stay on top of how much you owe to who. Sage Accounting will send alerts for upcoming due dates and potential cash shortages so you can plan ahead and avoid cash flow issues.
Multi-currency accounting
Whether you currently sell or plan on selling abroad, Sage Accounting handles your multi-currency accounting. You can track expenses, send invoices, and record payments in the currency of your choice. The software uses live exchange rates so you know exactly how much the amount is and how much it’s changed over time.
Stock management
With Sage Accounting’s inventory tools, you can stay on top of stock levels and set reorder alerts. For businesses that are struggling to stay on top of multiple SKUs, this ensures you’ll never have to worry about selling something you don’t have in hand again.
Cash flow forecasting
New businesses struggle with understanding cash flow. Looking at your net profit over a period of time doesn’t tell you whether you actually had money in hand when you needed it to cover expenses and payments.
Sage Accounting turns your historical bookkeeping into cash flow forecasts. By using the report you can see how much money you are predicted to have or need at any point in the future.
Mobile app
Whether it’s snapping a photo of the receipt for your most recent purchase or sending an invoice after an onsite visit, being able to access your accounting on the go pays off. Sage Accounting has a mobile app available for both Android and iOS.
Sage Accounting review
Sage Accounting has generally positive reviews. They’re currently rated a 4.5 on Turstpilot, 4.1 on Capterra, and 4.2 on G2. Here’s a breakdown of the most common comments across reviews.
What business owners like about Sage Accounting
Sage Accounting is a good solution for businesses that have to manage stocks and sell abroad. In particular, if you’re an ecommerce business that needs to stay on top of your inventory levels and account for multiple currencies, Sage Accounting is a good option to consider.
Users also praise the dashboard. For those without an accounting background, this gives you an overview of the most essential information without having to go digging to find it.
For businesses that are frequently on the go, having all the data stored and accessible on the cloud paired with the mobile app makes staying up on your accounting much easier. With Sage Accounting, you can tackle your accounting tasks as they arise rather than have a constantly growing to-do list for when you’re back in the office.
What business owners don’t like about Sage Accounting
Sage Accounting is lacking time tracking and billable hours tools. For contractors who bill by hour or want to track the profitability of certain projects, the lack of these tools will leave you wanting.
The $10 per month pricing tier also limits you to just a single user. The moment you want to give somebody else access, you need to upgrade your subscription to $25 per month.
While users praise the default reporting, setting up custom reporting is cumbersome. There aren’t as many learning resources available as competitors like QuickBooks or Xero so if you start to struggle, the answer won’t be easy to find.
Sage Accounting alternatives
Quickbooks - Best for packaging with payroll
Price: Starts at $30 per month
Features:
- Optional payroll and HR services
- Invoicing and payment processing
- Track income and expenses
- Customizable reporting
- Mileage tracking via mobile app
- Receipt uploading
Quickbooks is one of the most common accounting software choices amongst accountants and business owners alike. There are a lot of learning resources available which makes learning the platform earlier. But ultimately, you’re still doing a lot of manual work to set up the account and do your monthly bookkeeping.
Xero - Best for a simpler package that’s easier to use
Price: Starts at $13 per month
Features:
- Invoicing and payment processing
- Uses Hubdoc to capture and document receipts
- Connect bank feeds
- Simple inventory tracking
- Bill payment
- Basic reporting
Xero is a popular Sage Accounting alternative for business owners who have simple reporting needs. While having more limitations than Sage Accounting, this makes it an easier platform to get up to speed on. The pricing tiers limit how many invoices you send so the more you send, the higher the monthly cost.
Zoho Books - Best for getting started for free
Price: Free for select business, starts at $20 per month
Features:
- Free for businesses with less than $50,000 in annual revenue
- Customized invoicing
- Basic reporting
- Mileage tracking via mobile app
- Track income and expenses
- Automatic categorization based on custom rules
As you try to figure out which accounting software works best for you, trying one out for free is a great opportunity to learn what works for you. For businesses with less than $50,000 in annual revenue, Zoho Books is completely free. However, once you start paying a monthly subscription, you can find better features for the same amount.
Bench - Best for a hands off experience
Price: Starts at $349 per month
Features:
- Completely automated bookkeeping experience
- A team of bookkeeping professionals
- Intuitive visual reporting
- Peer reviewed, tax compliant reporting done for you
- Connect bank feeds
- Optional tax advisory and planning services
For the business owner that wants bookkeeping completely off their plates, there’s Bench. We pair you with a team of bookkeepers who do the work for you. Any questions asked in the messaging feed are guaranteed to be answered in one business day or book an appointment to talk through the details.
The bottom line
Sage Accounting has pros that make it a great solution for businesses that need to track inventory, account for multiple currencies, and struggle to stay on top of their cash flow. But if you have no accounting background, the set up and navigation of the platform will take time and learning.
For a completely hands off experience, check out Bench. We team business owners up with a team of bookkeepers who do all of the work for you. Our reporting is intuitive, easy to use, and is always tax compliant.
