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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    FreshBooks

    Score9.2 out of 10
    Small Businesses (1-50 employees)
    FreshBooks is an accounting service for small businesses. The solution enables users to send and manage invoices, track billable time and collect online payments. The vendor’s value proposition this that their solution provides a straightforward service that simplifies the billing process.

    $21

    per month

    Sage CRM

    Score8.9 out of 10
    Mid-Size Companies (51-1,000 employees)
    Sage CRM is an SMB-oriented CRM platform offered in both SaaS and on-premise editions. Unlike the Sage SalesLogix product, the SaaS version is a true multi-tenant offering. The platform offers excellent integration with Sage ERP and accounting products. It is also a good global solution and is available in many languages and is used by over 12,000 customers worldwide, with many customers in Europe.

    $33

    per month

    Pricing
    FreshBooksSage CRM
    Editions & Modules
    Lite
    $21
    per month
    Plus
    $38
    per month
    Premium
    $65
    per month
    Select
    Custom Pricing
    Sage CRM (cloud)
    $45
    Per User per Month
    Sage CRM (on premise)
    $0
    Lifetime License per Seat
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    FreshBooksSage CRM
    Free Trial
    YesYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    YesNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoYes
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details10% discount for annual pricing.Tiered pricing is available for multiple users.
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    FreshBooksSage CRM
    Considered Both Products
    FreshBooks
    No answer on this topic
    Sage
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    69%
    Would buy again
    9 Answers
    100%
    Would buy again
    8 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    82%
    Delivers good value for the price
    9 Answers
    86%
    Delivers good value for the price
    6 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    54%
    Happy with the feature set
    7 Answers
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    8 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    64%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    7 Answers
    100%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    8 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    62%
    Implementation went as expected
    8 Answers
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    8 Answers
    Features
    FreshBooksSage CRM
    Customization
    Comparison of Customization features of FreshBooks and Sage CRM
    Feature
    FreshBooks
    9.1
    35 Ratings
    18% above category average
    Sage CRM
    8.6
    17 Ratings
    12% above category average
    API for custom integration9.330 Ratings8.314 Ratings
    Plug-ins9.026 Ratings00 Ratings
    Custom fields00 Ratings8.517 Ratings
    Custom objects00 Ratings8.516 Ratings
    Scripting environment00 Ratings9.016 Ratings
    Security
    Comparison of Security features of FreshBooks and Sage CRM
    Feature
    FreshBooks
    10.0
    41 Ratings
    20% above category average
    Sage CRM
    8.7
    17 Ratings
    4% above category average
    Single sign-on capability10.01 Ratings8.717 Ratings
    Role-based user permissions10.041 Ratings8.813 Ratings
    Reporting & Analytics
    Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of FreshBooks and Sage CRM
    Feature
    FreshBooks
    7.5
    57 Ratings
    4% below category average
    Sage CRM
    -
    Ratings
    Dashboards9.057 Ratings00 Ratings
    Standard reports8.855 Ratings00 Ratings
    Custom reports4.82 Ratings00 Ratings
    General Ledger and Configurable Accounting
    Comparison of General Ledger and Configurable Accounting features of FreshBooks and Sage CRM
    Feature
    FreshBooks
    7.5
    56 Ratings
    2% below category average
    Sage CRM
    -
    Ratings
    Accounts payable8.041 Ratings00 Ratings
    Accounts receivable9.455 Ratings00 Ratings
    Cash management7.03 Ratings00 Ratings
    Bank reconciliation7.02 Ratings00 Ratings
    Expense management6.651 Ratings00 Ratings
    Time tracking7.642 Ratings00 Ratings
    Multi-currency support7.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Regulations compliance6.021 Ratings00 Ratings
    Self-service portal9.13 Ratings00 Ratings
    Order Management
    Comparison of Order Management features of FreshBooks and Sage CRM
    Feature
    FreshBooks
    9.5
    49 Ratings
    25% above category average
    Sage CRM
    -
    Ratings
    Pricing8.839 Ratings00 Ratings
    Order entry9.337 Ratings00 Ratings
    Credit card processing9.741 Ratings00 Ratings
    Cost of goods sold10.01 Ratings00 Ratings
    Sales Force Automation
    Comparison of Sales Force Automation features of FreshBooks and Sage CRM
    Feature
    FreshBooks
    -
    Ratings
    Sage CRM
    8.8
    17 Ratings
    12% above category average
    Customer data management / contact management00 Ratings9.017 Ratings
    Workflow management00 Ratings8.616 Ratings
    Territory management00 Ratings8.517 Ratings
    Opportunity management00 Ratings8.917 Ratings
    Integration with email client (e.g., Outlook or Gmail)00 Ratings9.016 Ratings
    Contract management00 Ratings8.614 Ratings
    Quote & order management00 Ratings9.016 Ratings
    Interaction tracking00 Ratings9.216 Ratings
    Channel / partner relationship management00 Ratings8.716 Ratings
    Customer Service & Support
    Comparison of Customer Service & Support features of FreshBooks and Sage CRM
    Feature
    FreshBooks
    -
    Ratings
    Sage CRM
    8.1
    16 Ratings
    5% above category average
    Case management00 Ratings8.016 Ratings
    Call center management00 Ratings8.215 Ratings
    Help desk management00 Ratings8.214 Ratings
    Marketing Automation
    Comparison of Marketing Automation features of FreshBooks and Sage CRM
    Feature
    FreshBooks
    -
    Ratings
    Sage CRM
    8.7
    16 Ratings
    12% above category average
    Lead management00 Ratings8.816 Ratings
    Email marketing00 Ratings8.715 Ratings
    CRM Project Management
    Comparison of CRM Project Management features of FreshBooks and Sage CRM
    Feature
    FreshBooks
    -
    Ratings
    Sage CRM
    9.0
    17 Ratings
    16% above category average
    Task management00 Ratings9.016 Ratings
    Billing and invoicing management00 Ratings9.015 Ratings
    Reporting00 Ratings9.113 Ratings
    CRM Reporting & Analytics
    Comparison of CRM Reporting & Analytics features of FreshBooks and Sage CRM
    Feature
    FreshBooks
    -
    Ratings
    Sage CRM
    8.6
    17 Ratings
    12% above category average
    Forecasting00 Ratings8.716 Ratings
    Pipeline visualization00 Ratings8.416 Ratings
    Customizable reports00 Ratings8.717 Ratings
    Social CRM
    Comparison of Social CRM features of FreshBooks and Sage CRM
    Feature
    FreshBooks
    -
    Ratings
    Sage CRM
    9.4
    13 Ratings
    22% above category average
    Social data00 Ratings9.513 Ratings
    Social engagement00 Ratings9.313 Ratings
    Integrations with 3rd-party Software
    Comparison of Integrations with 3rd-party Software features of FreshBooks and Sage CRM
    Feature
    FreshBooks
    -
    Ratings
    Sage CRM
    9.0
    14 Ratings
    18% above category average
    Marketing automation00 Ratings9.114 Ratings
    Compensation management00 Ratings8.912 Ratings
    Platform
    Comparison of Platform features of FreshBooks and Sage CRM
    Feature
    FreshBooks
    -
    Ratings
    Sage CRM
    7.8
    16 Ratings
    2% above category average
    Mobile access00 Ratings7.816 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    FreshBooksSage CRM
    Small Businesses
    QuickBooks Self-Employed (discontinued)
    Score4.1 out of 10
    Salesflare
    Score10 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    MYOB
    Score8.3 out of 10
    Kintone
    Score9.7 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Microsoft Dynamics GP
    Score5.4 out of 10
    Oracle Sales
    Score8.9 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    FreshBooksSage CRM
    Likelihood to Recommend
    7.6
    (75 ratings)
    8.9
    (28 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    7.6
    (18 ratings)
    5.1
    (11 ratings)
    Usability
    9.6
    (20 ratings)
    8.9
    (11 ratings)
    Availability
    10.0
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Performance
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    8.2
    (1 ratings)
    Support Rating
    6.0
    (11 ratings)
    7.9
    (8 ratings)
    In-Person Training
    -
    (0 ratings)
    7.0
    (1 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    CPA Rating
    7.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    FreshBooksSage CRM
    Likelihood to Recommend
    FreshBooks
    I recommend FreshBooks to anyone running a service-based business that needs invoicing, time reporting, and accounting tools. FB is adept in all three of these scenarios and isn't overly complicated like similar accounting packages I have used. I love how I can write estimates and proposals, manage the business development process from the software, and quickly convert prospects to invoiced clients.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    as it is a very flexible software that can be adapted to any business model, other functions human resource management, manufacturing and supply chain planning, all these functions are housed in a highly technological interface. I liked this system because it made automating accounts payable so much easier.the control of the basic accounting of any type of company
    Read full review
    Pros
    FreshBooks
    • Invoicing - FreshBooks basically ensures our accountants spend less time on invoices via its automated invoicing system, which sends invoices to our customers and clients alike and also send them regular reminders for them to pay up their bills.
    • Collecting business insights - FreshBooks enable our company analysts measure our business performances via data reports provided by FreshBooks' intuitive dashboard. Allowing us do a comparative analysis of key business metrics of a current month against past months and determine if the business is growing.
    • Expense tracker - We have recently embraced FreshBooks as an expense tracker for teams at our company branch. Thusfar, FreshBooks has performed very well, making our expense management a perfect operation; ensuring teams do not exceed their planned budget and also eliminating the need for tracking expenses on excel spreadsheets.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    • When in client profile, it is very intuitive, allowing you to easily transcribe notes in the clients profile.
    • Sage allows 3rd party plugins, so if you utilize a particular phone services or would like to import something as simple as google drive, its compatible.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    FreshBooks
    • I can brand invoices with my business logo, but I might like to change colours of the invoices themselves to match the rest of my business documents. That isn't a major point at all, but it's something that I'd like to see.
    • Freshbooks doesn't remember the categories that similar expenses were previously assigned to. It would be nice if Freshbooks would suggest a category for an already saved vendor, to ensure the consistency of expense reporting.
    • The home page of a Freshbooks account has a great graph display of expenses and income, but it only shows the last 6 months. This is still very useful, but I'd like to be able to see this kind of graph for different periods of time.
    Read full review
    Sage
    • Reliance on Apache Tomcat causes a lot of headaches. There are common issues trying to start up the server, resulting from Apache Tomcat misconfigurations, or Java. Some forum posts on Sage City address common issues, but digging into server logs seems to be an often occurrence.
    • Support is somewhat lacking, less user install base means error messages are sometimes hard to find quick answers for. Most of the knowledge found on the internet is in the Sage City forum.
    • Integration with Microsoft 365 causes you to have to turn off some security features. This will result in your 365 tenants running lower security standards than recommended, it may put you at risk for targeted attacks.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    FreshBooks
    At the current needs of our business, FreshBooks suits us perfectly - it allows online access by our accountant to the system for GST purposes, easy input of expenses and tracking of Profit and Loss statements. FreshBooks customer service is great as well - very understanding and accommodating.
    Read full review
    Sage
    There are really no other words to say, it is a very easy to use application that is more straightforward and has provided better results with the bulk of features that appeal to a very broad amount of users. There may be other CRM platforms out there that are more prevalent, but I have found them to be much more clunky and less intuitive than Sage CRM.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    FreshBooks
    FreshBooks is very easy to use even for novices. If you're looking for an online accounting software that is full of features, has great aesthetics and is user-friendly, then this is definitely the software for you. I've been using it for several years now and despite being tempted to switch by other vendors, I like the feel of FreshBooks and it's mobile features.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    Excellent integration with the most important social networks (LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter) to get leads. The mobile app is quite useful for speeding up the tasks at hand and not relying on the computer or being in the office to get them done.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    FreshBooks
    FreshBooks is easy to use and always works!
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    No answers on this topic
    Performance
    FreshBooks
    No answers on this topic
    Sage
    Sage works very quickly based on the network you are using it on. It is internet based so if your network is slow, it will perform slowly. Reports seem to run reasonably fast, if there is too much information it is trying to populate that could slow it down a little. When Sage CRM is integrated with a Sage ERP product it doesn't tend to slow down either system at all
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    FreshBooks
    I think the support level for FreshBooks is on par with a 6 because the folks behind this application do a fairly good job at providing support for their customer base. I still don't think they are at an elite level when it comes to supporting but are getting there although too slow in my opinion.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    Support team is really slow and they need to work on this really. Sometimes it takes days to resolve a simple query and there is no way to get it expedited. Rest the product is is amazing but the team should look into the costumer support and get it working
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    In-Person Training
    FreshBooks
    No answers on this topic
    Sage
    Most training would come after a upgrade. Otherwise we would self teach new employees. Training was with a Sage Software partner SWK technologies.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    FreshBooks
    I haven't changed my mind since my first evaluation. Freshbooks is still meeting my needs, easy to use, etc.
    Read full review
    Sage
    The implementation and upgrades were rather quick and straight forward. Attempting to link Sage CRM with Sage 100 ERP however was a nightmare and will be avoided by us in the future due to numerous issues.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    FreshBooks
    FreshBooks does very well in comparison, especially since it is free software for Barclays bank users. Sage software is much worse than FreshBooks. However, Xero and QuickBooks, the market leaders, are still ahead with usability, additional features, reporting, and connection with third-party software providers. We chose FreshBooks as it does everything we require from this type of software.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    Whilst SAGE CRM was selected around 10 years ago and we became a partner, the main contenders would have been at the time Sales Logix and MS CRM 4.0. However, we had extensive experience of the mid-market CRM's and decided on SAGE CRM since it had a clean, easy to understand interface and importantly offered both workflow automation and Self Service capability, all of which across both the Case and Sales and Marketing functionality was seamless and saved time. As it was pure browser based, access was from anywhere we wanted. In my view, SAGE CRM still stacks up well against all the other mid-market CRM systems and offers good value for money, but more importantly, it is an easy to operate and customisable solution which user like. Again, we can teach administration users very quickly to support and customise themselves since the admin. function are clear as well.
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    FreshBooks
    • In reality, we do not implement all of its use at the moment in order to determine an adequate ROI.
    • In our approach to the use of the system, it seems to us a considerable time saving by achieving the integration of the Mexican subsidiary with its parent located in the US.
    • Financial reports meet the necessary USGAAP requirements.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    • It is very affordable in pricing, compared to competitors
    • Lead management and convertion into prospects is also a very easy process
    • Lead capture from web pages should be available, and better ways to capture leads from tradeshows by uploading directly from scanned business cards
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    FreshBooks Screenshots

    Screenshot of the dashboardScreenshot of an invoice overviewScreenshot of an example of a customizable invoiceScreenshot of an invoice appearing across devicesScreenshot of expensesScreenshot of time tracking