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QuickBooks vs Sage 50

QuickBooks logo

QuickBooks

Software

Smart, simple online accounting software for small business

From
$30/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Sage 50 logo

Sage 50

Software

Powerful desktop accounting for small businesses

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: QuickBooks chart of Accounts is capped on every QuickBooks Online tier except Advanced; Simple Start, Essentials and Plus all have a limited entry count; Sage 50 sage 50 tiers as captured in 2022: Pro Accounting $595/year for 1 user, Premium Accounting $970/year for 1-5 users with multi-company support, Quantum Accounting $1,610/year for larger teams
  • They diverge on capability: QuickBooks covers Income & expense tracking, Sage 50 covers General ledger.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which QuickBooks and Sage 50 actually diverge.

Attributes where QuickBooks and Sage 50 differ
AttributeQuickBooksSage 50
Starting price$30/month$29/month
PlatformsWeb, Ios, Android, ApiWindows
Founded19831981

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Unknown).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in QuickBooks

  • Income & expense tracking
  • Payment processing
  • Financial reporting
  • Tax preparation
  • Bank reconciliation
  • Bill management
  • Mobile apps
  • PayPal

Only in Sage 50

  • General ledger
  • Inventory management
  • Job costing
  • Budgeting
  • Microsoft 365
  • Salesforce
  • Local encryption
  • Backup

Both cover

  • Invoicing

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

QuickBooks

  • Bookkeepingnot Sage 50
  • Invoicingnot Sage 50
  • Expense trackingnot Sage 50
  • Financial reportingnot Sage 50
  • Tax preparationnot Sage 50

Sage 50

  • Desktop accountingnot QuickBooks
  • Job costingnot QuickBooks
  • Inventory trackingnot QuickBooks

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

QuickBooks

  • Chart of Accounts is capped on every QuickBooks Online tier except Advanced; Simple Start, Essentials and Plus all have a limited entry count
  • Even the top Advanced tier caps bulk invoice uploads at 1,000 transaction lines per batch
  • Payroll is a separate paid add-on billed per employee per month (USD 6 to 10 depending on plan) on top of the base subscription

Sage 50

  • Sage 50 tiers as captured in 2022: Pro Accounting $595/year for 1 user, Premium Accounting $970/year for 1-5 users with multi-company support, Quantum Accounting $1,610/year for larger teams

Pricing, plan by plan

QuickBooks

$30/month
  • Simple Start$30/month
    • Income & expense tracking
    • Invoice & payments
    • Tax deductions
  • Essentials$60/month
    • Everything in Simple Start
    • Bill management
    • Time tracking
  • Plus$90/month
    • Everything in Essentials
    • Inventory tracking
    • Project profitability
  • Advanced$200/month
    • Everything in Plus
    • Dedicated account team
    • 25 users

Sage 50

$29/month
  • Pro Accounting$50/month
    • Core accounting
    • 1 user
    • Basic reports
  • Premium Accounting$85/month
    • 5 users
    • Job costing
    • Inventory

Which should you pick?

Choose QuickBooks if

  • You need income & expense tracking.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
  • You also want payment processing.
QuickBooks review

Choose Sage 50 if

  • You need general ledger.
  • You work on Windows.
  • You also want inventory management.
Sage 50 review

Questions people ask

Is QuickBooks or Sage 50 better?
Neither clearly leads. QuickBooks starts at $30/month and Sage 50 at $29/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, QuickBooks or Sage 50?
QuickBooks starts at $30/month and Sage 50 at $29/month.
Does QuickBooks or Sage 50 run on more platforms?
QuickBooks runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api. Sage 50 runs on Windows.
What is QuickBooks best used for?
QuickBooks is most often used for bookkeeping, invoicing, expense tracking, financial reporting. Of those, bookkeeping and invoicing are not what Sage 50 is typically brought in for.
What can QuickBooks do that Sage 50 cannot?
QuickBooks covers Income & expense tracking, Payment processing, Financial reporting, Tax preparation. Sage 50 covers General ledger, Inventory management, Job costing, Budgeting. Both handle Invoicing.
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