Sage and QuickBooks are two of the oldest competitors in the accounting software market, having been in existence since the early 1980s. Both started selling desktop software and later moved to the cloud to compete with purely cloud-based accounting software companies like FreshBooks or Xero. Sage Business Cloud Accounting (formerly Sage One) is less expensive than QuickBooks Online. However, it doesn’t offer as many advanced features.
When to Use Sage Business Cloud
Sage Business Cloud Accounting is a cloud-based alternative to QuickBooks designed specifically with small businesses and freelancers in mind because it is an affordable and effective accounting solution that offers solid features. It is best for businesses that are looking for software that is easy to use and set up and that also gives access to a comprehensive overview of their business at all times. However, Sage Business Cloud doesn’t offer as many advanced features as QuickBooks Online, such as the ability to track project profitability and generate 1099s.
Sage Business Cloud is currently offered at two subscription levels: Accounting Start and Accounting. If you’re selling products or services, you’ll likely want to use the full-featured accounting plan, which also gives you the ability to pay bills and access to real-time reporting tools. Both plans are a good option for those looking to save money and who don’t have to calculate and file sales tax returns. Also, Sage Accounting allows for unlimited users, so this is an ideal solution for growing businesses.
When to Use QuickBooks Online
QuickBooks is regarded as the top accounting software for small businesses, and that reputation is well-earned. With its affordable pricing, intuitive user interface, and customizable features, it makes staying on top of your finances much less daunting. It is also well-suited to a wide range of business types and sizes and scalable so that it can grow with your business.
The features available for QuickBooks Online vary from plan to plan, but all versions offer the ability to track income and expenses, manage receipts, invoice and accept payments, track sales tax, and run reports. QuickBooks Online is a terrific option for those who have more sophisticated tracking requirements, such as tracking by class or location, billing employee time and expenses to customers, and tracking project profitability. Also, QuickBooks has its own integrated payroll, called QuickBooks Payroll, which is great if you have employees. Also, QuickBooks is the preferred software of accountants, so working with an external accountant is easy.
Sage Business Cloud vs QuickBooks at a Glance
Sage Business Cloud | QuickBooks Online | |
|---|---|---|
Who It’s Best For | Self-employed individuals, very small businesses and freelancers with basic bookkeeping needs looking for affordable and easy-to-use software | Small businesses with extensive time tracking requirements, payroll, or working with an external accountant |
Pricing Plans | $10 for one user to $25 per month for unlimited users | $15 for one user to $150 per month for 25 users |
Maximum Users | 1 to unlimited | 1 to 25 |
Send Estimates | ✔ | ✔ |
Send Invoices & Track Collections | ✔ | ✔ |
Connect Bank & Credit Card Accounts | ✔ | ✔ |
Track Sales Tax Collections & Payments | ✔ | ✔ |
File Sales Tax Returns | ✔ | |
Calculate Sales Tax Rate | ✔ | |
Manage Unpaid Bills | ✔ | ✔ |
Track Inventory | ✔ | ✔ |
Mobile App | ✔ | ✔ |
Assign Time & Costs to Projects | ✔ | |
Capture & Organize Receipts | ✔ | ✔ |
Integrated Payroll | ✔ | |
Track 1099 Payments | ✔ | |
Print 1099s | ✔ | |
Multiple Currencies | ✔ | ✔ |
Track Activity by Class & Location | ✔ | |
Track Hours Billed to Customers | ✔ | |
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Sage Business Cloud vs QuickBooks: Pricing
While Sage Business Cloud offers a choice of two subscription plans, QuickBooks has five different subscription plans from which to choose. Sage plans are priced from $10 to $25 per month, and prices for QuickBooks plans range from $15 to $150 per month.
Sage Business Cloud Pricing
Sage Business Cloud currently offers two pricing plans: Accounting Start and Accounting. While Accounting Start is quite limited in its features, the larger plan is competitively priced. The plan is billed monthly, and you can cancel your subscription at any time. If you’d like to try the software first, you can sign up for a free 30-day trial with no credit card required.
- Accounting Start: $10 per month for one user
- Accounting: $25 per month for unlimited users
QuickBooks Pricing
QuickBooks Online is available in five subscription plans that range in price from $15 to $150 per month. At $70 per month, Plus is its most popular plan for small businesses. For an additional fee, you can add integrated payroll. A free 30-day trial is also available. Here are the pricing details:
- Self-Employed: $15 per month for one user
- Simple Start: $25 per month for one user
- Essentials: $50 per month for up to three users
- Plus: $80 per month for up to five users
- Advanced: $180 per month for up to 25 users
Takeaway: If you’re looking for software that is customizable to the needs of your business, then QuickBooks Online is likely the better choice. However, Sage Business Cloud offers two affordable subscription plans, especially considering that the Accounting plan can accommodate unlimited users.
Sage Business Cloud vs QuickBooks: Features
Sage Business Cloud Features Table
Accounting Start | Accounting | |
|---|---|---|
Users Included | 1 | Unlimited |
Connect & Reconcile Bank Accounts | ✔ | ✔ |
Scan & Upload Expense Receipts | ✔ | ✔ |
Invoice Customers | ✔ | ✔ |
Accounts Payable (A/P) | ✔ | |
Contact Management | ✔ | ✔ |
Accrual Accounting Available | ✔ | |
Manage Sales Tax | ✔ | |
Track Unpaid Bills | ✔ | ✔ |
Contact Management | ✔ | ✔ |
Manage Inventory | ✔ | |
Send Quotes & Estimates | ✔ | |
Account Support via Online Support & Live Chat | ✔ | ✔ |
Real-time Reports | ✔ | |
Multicurrency support | ✔ |
QuickBooks Features Table
Self-Employed | Simple Start | Essentials | Plus | Advanced | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Users Included | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 25 |
Connect & Reconcile Bank Accounts | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Scan & Upload Expense Receipts | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | v |
Create Invoices, Track Payments & Send Automatic Reminders | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Manage & File Sales Tax Returns | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
Integrated Payroll (Fee) | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
Prepare 1099s for Contractors | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
Track Unpaid Bills | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ||
Assign Time & Expenses to Jobs | ✔ | ✔ | |||
Manage Inventory & Track Costs Using First-in, First-out (FIFO) Accounting | ✔ | ✔ | |||
Create Purchase Orders & Convert to Bills | ✔ | ✔ | |||
Track Profitability by Class & Location | ✔ | ✔ | |||
Attach Custom Tags to Transactions | ✔ | ✔ | |||
Account Support via Phone, Online Support & Live Chat | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | |
Advanced Reports | ✔ | ✔ |
Takeaway: While Sage Business Cloud gives QuickBooks a run for its money when it comes to features like inventory and invoice customization, there are still a few areas where the software could improve. Small businesses that require time tracking, project management, and integrated payroll won’t find these features with Sage Business Cloud. However, if you’re looking for user-friendly software with inventory and unlimited users at an affordable price, then you may want to consider Sage Business Cloud.
Sage Business Cloud vs QuickBooks: Ease of Use
Both Sage Business Cloud and QuickBooks Online have an excellent user interface, and initiating new transactions is seamless. While QuickBooks has many more features that are accessible within the program, they can often be difficult to find. Meanwhile, Sage Business Cloud has all of its features within easy reach and is more user-friendly, especially for an accounting novice.
Sage Business Cloud Ease of Use
The user interface for Sage Business Cloud features a “Summary” instead of a dashboard. It is both well-organized and simple to use, with an intuitive approach to navigation. There is a navigation bar at the top that allows you to navigate to various sections. Each summary features charts and graphs so that you can view the important information about your business easily. The software takes very little time to learn, and there are several built-in resources, such as a thorough getting started guide, that you can turn to for assistance:
View of the Sage Business Cloud user interface.
- Top menu bar: Click here to navigate to various sections, including Summary, Sales, Cashbook, Contacts, Banking, and Reports.
- Cash flow: This section shows the money flowing in and out of your business as well as a balance summary.
- Invoices: This gives a summary of invoices that are outstanding and overdue.
- Banking: View your bank balances here, which are broken down by type of accounts.
- Help resources: All users have easy access to help from any screen in the application. By clicking on this link, you will be taken to a page that gives you access to an extensive online community, with frequently asked questions (FAQs) and an overview guide.
To initiate a new transaction, click on the red box with a plus in it, which is located at the top-right corner of the screen. After clicking, a box will appear that gives you the option to perform a variety of transactions like create an invoice, deposit cash, or record a transfer. Here’s an example:
Creating a new transaction in Sage Business Cloud.
QuickBooks Ease of Use
The first thing you will see when logging into QuickBooks Online is your dashboard, which gives an overview of your account balances, income, and expense totals and charts. There is also a vertical pane on the left, with tabs that navigate to each section: Dashboard, Transactions, Expenses, Sales, Cash Flows, Projects, Payroll, Reports, Taxes, Mileage, Accounting, My Accountant, Capital, Apps, and Live Bookkeeping. Payroll and Live Bookkeeping are add-on services for an extra fee.
View of QuickBooks Online dashboard
- Left menu bar: Use this section to invoice customers, create reports, and track mileage.
- Cash flow: Shown in graph form, this report can be customized by time period and gives you a quick glimpse at your income, cost of goods sold (COGS), and expenses.
- Income: View paid invoices and follow up on those that are awaiting payment as well as view your accounts receivable report.
- Expenses: View your top three categories of expenses in this chart.
- Profit & loss: Generate your income statement, which is also fully customizable.
- Sales: View a graph of your sales over a specific time period. This report defaults to a monthly basis, but it can be customized easily.
- Bank accounts: View your available bank balances in real-time right on your dashboard. Once you connect QuickBooks to your online accounts, you’ll be able to access both the bank and QuickBooks balances.
While there are a couple of ways to initiate a new transaction, the quickest way is to click on the New button above the left menu bar, as shown here:
Creating a new transaction in QuickBooks Online.
Takeaway: Both user interfaces for Sage Business Cloud and QuickBooks Online are intuitive and easy to navigate. With Sage’s Accounting Start or Accounting plan, you’ll be able to complete your core accounting tasks without feeling overwhelmed by features you don’t need. QuickBooks Online is a bit more complex to navigate, with some features that are hidden in settings.
Sage Business Cloud vs QuickBooks: Integrations
While there are many more integrations available for QuickBooks, Sage Business Cloud does offer an extensive list as well. In both cases, these applications will enhance your company’s efficiency and productivity.
Sage Business Cloud Integrations
Perhaps one of the largest benefits to using Sage Business Cloud is the access to other Sage applications as well as access to the robust Sage Marketplace, which includes more than 100 apps in a variety of categories designed to increase the functionality of your core application. Here are a few available integrations for Sage Business Cloud:
- Customer management: SalesSeek and HarmonyPSA
- Time tracking: BigTime Software
- Manage expenses: Itemize, Expensify, ExpensePoint, and ExpenseIn
- Payment management: Entryless and Stripe
QuickBooks Integrations
QuickBooks Online has more than 450 apps available, which includes both in-app integrations and also third-party apps that will integrate with the software. Whether it’s point-of-sale, e-commerce, or inventory management, you can sync other business apps with QuickBooks. Here are a few available integrations for QuickBooks Online:
- Customer management: HubSpot, Insightly CRM, Aero Workflow, and Capsule CRM
- Time tracking: QuickBooks Time (in-app), Time Tracker by eBillity, and Hour Timesheet
- Manage expenses: Expensify, Transaction Pro, Veryfi, and Dext Prepare
- Process payroll: QuickBooks Payroll (in-app), RUN powered by ADP, and Gusto
- Payment management: QuickBooks Payments (in-app), Freedom Merchants, Melio, Veem, and Chaser
Takeaway: QuickBooks has more integrations available than Sage Business Cloud, which gives you many more options for business productivity.
Sage Business Cloud vs QuickBooks: Mobile App
Sage Business Cloud Mobile App
Sage Business Cloud is extremely smartphone-friendly, with mobile apps available for both Android and iOS devices. The app was formerly called Sage One Accounting, and it is now Sage Accounting. You can use the app to create and send invoices, record expenses, and view graphs of your company’s performance. There is also the ability to search for customers and contact them straight from your device as well as use the map links within the app if you need assistance with directions to your clients’ businesses.
QuickBooks Mobile App
The QuickBooks mobile app is available for both Android and iOS devices and included with your QuickBooks Online account. It gives you an overview of your business activity and allows you to accomplish multiple accounting tasks no matter where you are. You can view dashboard data, create and send invoices, accept payments, capture receipts and attach them to expenses, reconcile transactions, view customer information, and message customers from the app.
Takeaway: Both Sage Business Cloud and QuickBooks Online provide you with the ability to manage your core accounting tasks via their mobile apps.
Sage Business Cloud vs QuickBooks: Assisted Bookkeeping Options
Assisted bookkeeping is an option for small business owners who want help with account setup and ensuring that transactions are categorized properly as well as reviewing reports and preparing your books for month-end close. While Sage Business Cloud lacks in this department, QuickBooks offers its QuickBooks Live service, which for a fee will match you with a dedicated virtual bookkeeper.
Sage Business Cloud Assisted Bookkeeping
Sage Business Cloud doesn’t have its own online bookkeeping service that supports the software like QuickBooks does. You can likely find a local bookkeeper to assist you, but it won’t be as easy as with QuickBooks Online. It is important to search for a bookkeeper who has experience with Sage products to ensure that they are a good fit for your business. You may also be able to find someone to work with virtually. In either case, it is recommended that you request references to verify their credibility and competency.
QuickBooks Live
QuickBooks Live allows small business owners to outsource their bookkeeping tasks, which can include categorizing transactions, reconciling bank accounts, reviewing your financials, and closing your books. When you sign up, you’ll be matched with your own dedicated bookkeeper backed by a support team. You’ll be able to schedule live video chats in which you can go over financial reports, troubleshoot issues, and request guidance on how to perform certain tasks. You’ll also be able to review your bookkeeper’s progress in real-time. Prices range from $200 to $600 per month, which depends on your company’s volume of expenses. It’s also easy to find an independent bookkeeper to help you with QuickBooks Online, but QuickBooks Live lets you simplify your bookkeeping experience.
Takeaway: When it comes to assisted bookkeeping services, QuickBooks is the clear winner. With QuickBooks Live, you can rely on the support of an experienced and knowledgeable finance professional who will assist you with staying on top of your finances.
Sage Business Cloud vs QuickBooks: Customer Support
If you’re a small business owner who wants to leverage the power of your accounting software to help you manage your business, the availability of customer support options should be a major consideration in the solution you choose.
Sage Business Cloud Customer Support.
Sage Business Cloud no longer offers phone or email support, so customers are limited to live chat during regular business hours or filing a new support case. The company’s website hosts a knowledge base, a blog, how-to videos, and training courses through Sage University as well.
QuickBooks Customer Support
QuickBooks offers a variety of customer support options depending on your level of urgency. It offers in-software help via live artificial intelligence (AI) chat, videos, a blog, help center, and resource center. Although you cannot call them directly, you can make a request from within QuickBooks for them to call you back. If all else fails, you can search for and hire a QuickBooks ProAdvisor who will walk you through the program. The only feature not available is email support.
Takeaway: While neither Sage Business Cloud nor QuickBooks offers email support, they both offer a variety of options, including a large knowledge base that can be accessed within the software.
Bottom Line
While both Sage Business Cloud and QuickBooks Online are solid options, the right solution for you will be the one that fulfills your company’s specific needs. With two simple and low-cost options, Sage Business Cloud is perhaps best for businesses that want basic bookkeeping functionality and don’t require advanced tools or features. QuickBooks Online is best suited for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) that can afford to pay a higher monthly fee to receive the extended functionality that it offers.
