TrustRadius: an HG Insights company

Save this comparison

Save this comparison

Add Product

Recommended Comparisons

    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    M1

    Score7.7 out of 10
    N/AM1, from ECI Software Solutions headquartered in Ft. Worth, is an all-in-one manufacturing ERP software solution, built for small and medium-sized discrete manufacturers.N/A

    Sage 500

    Score6.2 out of 10
    N/ASage 500 ERP includes accounting and finance, distribution and supply chain, and manufacturing operations support modules. The latest Sage 500 release includes accounts payable enhancements, credit card processing, and general updates, as well as updates to the solution's modules.N/A
    Pricing
    M1Sage 500
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    M1Sage 500
    Free Trial
    NoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details——
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    M1Sage 500
    Considered Both Products
    ECI Software Solutions
    No answer on this topic
    Sage
    No answer on this topic
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    80%
    Would buy again
    24 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Delivers good value for the price
    96%
    Delivers good value for the price
    24 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Happy with the feature set
    87%
    Happy with the feature set
    26 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    62%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    13 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation went as expected
    50%
    Implementation went as expected
    13 Answers
    No answers on this topic
    Features
    M1Sage 500
    Payroll Management
    Comparison of Payroll Management features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    6.3
    8 Ratings
    17% below category average
    Sage 500 ERP
    7.0
    2 Ratings
    7% below category average
    Pay calculation6.58 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Benefit plan administration4.83 Ratings6.01 Ratings
    Direct deposit files7.55 Ratings7.02 Ratings
    Customization
    Comparison of Customization features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    7.3
    18 Ratings
    3% below category average
    Sage 500 ERP
    8.5
    3 Ratings
    12% above category average
    API for custom integration7.415 Ratings9.03 Ratings
    Plug-ins7.111 Ratings8.03 Ratings
    Security
    Comparison of Security features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    8.1
    27 Ratings
    4% below category average
    Sage 500 ERP
    8.5
    3 Ratings
    1% above category average
    Single sign-on capability8.615 Ratings7.03 Ratings
    Role-based user permissions7.727 Ratings10.03 Ratings
    Reporting & Analytics
    Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    7.2
    28 Ratings
    4% below category average
    Sage 500 ERP
    8.0
    3 Ratings
    6% above category average
    Dashboards7.326 Ratings6.03 Ratings
    Standard reports7.228 Ratings8.03 Ratings
    Custom reports7.127 Ratings10.03 Ratings
    General Ledger and Configurable Accounting
    Comparison of General Ledger and Configurable Accounting features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    7.5
    26 Ratings
    3% below category average
    Sage 500 ERP
    8.0
    3 Ratings
    4% above category average
    Accounts payable7.825 Ratings10.03 Ratings
    Accounts receivable7.526 Ratings10.03 Ratings
    Global Financial Support7.59 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Primary and Secondary Ledgers7.716 Ratings8.01 Ratings
    Journals and Reconciliations6.821 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Configurable Accounting7.618 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Standardized Processes7.719 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Inventory Management
    Comparison of Inventory Management features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    8.2
    26 Ratings
    3% above category average
    Sage 500 ERP
    8.0
    3 Ratings
    0% above category average
    Inventory tracking8.326 Ratings6.03 Ratings
    Automatic reordering8.715 Ratings10.03 Ratings
    Location management7.521 Ratings10.03 Ratings
    Order Management
    Comparison of Order Management features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    7.8
    26 Ratings
    2% below category average
    Sage 500 ERP
    8.8
    2 Ratings
    11% above category average
    Pricing7.726 Ratings8.02 Ratings
    Order entry8.326 Ratings9.02 Ratings
    Credit card processing7.310 Ratings9.02 Ratings
    Cost of goods sold7.917 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Order Orchestration7.913 Ratings8.01 Ratings
    Subledger and Financial Process
    Comparison of Subledger and Financial Process features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    7.4
    21 Ratings
    2% below category average
    Sage 500 ERP
    5.9
    2 Ratings
    25% below category average
    Billing Management8.420 Ratings10.02 Ratings
    Cash and Asset Management8.217 Ratings8.02 Ratings
    Travel & Expense Management5.09 Ratings8.01 Ratings
    Budgetary Control & Encumbrance Accounting7.213 Ratings2.01 Ratings
    Period Close7.921 Ratings8.02 Ratings
    Project Execution Management
    Comparison of Project Execution Management features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    6.3
    16 Ratings
    11% below category average
    Sage 500 ERP
    4.5
    1 Ratings
    44% below category average
    Project Planning and Scheduling7.916 Ratings00 Ratings
    Task Insight for Project Managers7.810 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    Project Mobile Functionality4.67 Ratings5.01 Ratings
    Definable Resource Pools4.89 Ratings00 Ratings
    Grants Management
    Comparison of Grants Management features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    2.7
    2 Ratings
    93% below category average
    Sage 500 ERP
    7.5
    1 Ratings
    1% above category average
    Award Lifecycle Management2.72 Ratings6.01 Ratings
    Procurement
    Comparison of Procurement features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    7.1
    18 Ratings
    0% below category average
    Sage 500 ERP
    6.0
    1 Ratings
    17% below category average
    Bids Analyzed and Compared6.27 Ratings00 Ratings
    Contract Authoring7.64 Ratings8.01 Ratings
    Contract Repository6.46 Ratings10.01 Ratings
    Requisitions-to-Purchase Orders Integrated7.710 Ratings8.01 Ratings
    Supplier Management7.518 Ratings4.01 Ratings
    Risk Management
    Comparison of Risk Management features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    5.2
    4 Ratings
    26% below category average
    Sage 500 ERP
    4.3
    1 Ratings
    44% below category average
    Risk Repository6.52 Ratings3.01 Ratings
    Control Management6.14 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    Control Efficiency Assessments4.94 Ratings4.01 Ratings
    Issue Detection4.13 Ratings00 Ratings
    Remediation and Certification4.33 Ratings3.01 Ratings
    Logistics
    Comparison of Logistics features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    4.0
    10 Ratings
    54% below category average
    Sage 500 ERP
    -
    Ratings
    Transportation Planning and Optimization2.24 Ratings00 Ratings
    Transportation Execution Management2.54 Ratings00 Ratings
    Trade and Customs Management4.73 Ratings00 Ratings
    Fulfillment Management4.98 Ratings00 Ratings
    Warehouse Workforce Management5.58 Ratings00 Ratings
    Manufacturing
    Comparison of Manufacturing features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    7.1
    27 Ratings
    5% below category average
    Sage 500 ERP
    -
    Ratings
    Production Process Design5.519 Ratings00 Ratings
    Production Management7.422 Ratings00 Ratings
    Configuration Management7.119 Ratings00 Ratings
    Work Execution7.720 Ratings00 Ratings
    Manufacturing Costs7.626 Ratings00 Ratings
    Supply Chain
    Comparison of Supply Chain features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    8.1
    20 Ratings
    10% above category average
    Sage 500 ERP
    1.3
    1 Ratings
    140% below category average
    Forecasting7.814 Ratings1.01 Ratings
    Inventory Planning7.720 Ratings2.01 Ratings
    Performance Monitoring8.715 Ratings1.01 Ratings
    Product Lifecycle Management
    Comparison of Product Lifecycle Management features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    5.9
    9 Ratings
    22% below category average
    Sage 500 ERP
    5.3
    1 Ratings
    33% below category average
    Proposal Management4.96 Ratings7.01 Ratings
    Product Master Data Management7.09 Ratings4.01 Ratings
    Project Financial Management
    Comparison of Project Financial Management features of M1 and Sage 500 ERP
    Feature
    M1
    -
    Ratings
    Sage 500 ERP
    6.9
    1 Ratings
    9% below category average
    Budgeting and Forecasting00 Ratings1.01 Ratings
    Project Costing00 Ratings3.01 Ratings
    Cost Capture00 Ratings8.01 Ratings
    Capital Project Management00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Customer Contract Compliance00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Project Revenue Recognition00 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    M1Sage 500
    Small Businesses
    Zoho One
    Score9.1 out of 10
    Zoho One
    Score9.1 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Zoho One
    Score9.1 out of 10
    Zoho One
    Score9.1 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Microsoft Dynamics AX (discontinued)
    Score4.8 out of 10
    Microsoft Dynamics AX (discontinued)
    Score4.8 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    M1Sage 500
    Likelihood to Recommend
    7.7
    (30 ratings)
    10.0
    (5 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    6.3
    (2 ratings)
    Usability
    6.0
    (30 ratings)
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    Support Rating
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Online Training
    -
    (0 ratings)
    6.0
    (1 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    -
    (0 ratings)
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    M1Sage 500
    Likelihood to Recommend
    ECI Software Solutions
    The M1 ERP is tailored for small to medium organizations, offering good features at least in the components utilized by my organization such as customizable workflows, user-friendly dashboards, ability to process orders, and track the entire orders lifecycle. It also has good customer interaction features in the CRM part. It provides robust data security, and offers scalable modules to grow with your business. Implementation is not challenging if you don't have so many customizations in the software.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    Sage 500 ERP is great for companies with core accounting needs, distributors, and discrete manufacturers. Some areas, such as process manufacturing, would require a companion product from an ISV for the software to be truly functional. Some areas, such as construction or retail apparel, may simply not be well-served.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    ECI Software Solutions
    • Allows for component parts to be scheduled independently through the plant
    • Once parts are built, it is easy to duplicate/reuse parts across they quoting and ordering modules and customers
    • If used properly and consistently, M1 will provide accurate job cost analysis to determine estimating, training, efficiency and other issues.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    • Sage is the one-stop-shop for all of our needs. We're able to control contracts, subcontracts, and field reports from the program.
    • Another strength is the ability to database all the information and export it to excel. This makes data-based investigations a breeze.
    • The ability for Timberscan to be imported to Sage is a huge help with invoice management. Prior to this it all had to be done manually and slowed the process to an essential halt as there are thousands of invoices per month.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    ECI Software Solutions
    • Some of the functions are pretty detailed - and so they take a while to generate screens and pages in reports.
    • We actually use it for 2 companies we own - and it would be nice if the inter company communication was a little smoother. It's hard to share some data, and not everything is possible to be shared.
    • Customized reports need to backed up before any updates to M1 or they're lost. It seems M1 overwrites the report folders everytime you run an update - so you have to keep track of what you've changed in Crystal Reports and restore it.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    • The biggest concern/complaint of Sage 500 users is speed. Some of the screen take a while to load.
    • The user interface needs some refreshing. Screens need to be updated to take advantage of shortcuts and to be more intuitive.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    ECI Software Solutions
    No answers on this topic
    Sage
    It's too pricey for our size of company.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    ECI Software Solutions
    Because it would be helpful if ECI would provide better documentation, communication and workflows to understand how each field interacts within the system and how each of those touch other areas within M1. It would also be useful if ECI would provide prescheduled training for how to customize things with M1 through Design Studio
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    I have been using Intacct for almost 10 years in 2 different companies and I just simply love it. I tried SAP (GUI) and Netsuite and they dont come close to what Ive seen.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    ECI Software Solutions
    Support has been great and timely
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    No answers on this topic
    Online Training
    ECI Software Solutions
    No answers on this topic
    Sage
    The online training courses are not up to date. We experienced technical issues with two of the classes.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    ECI Software Solutions
    No answers on this topic
    Sage
    Keep your database and application in different servers.
    Install Microsoft Office on your application server so you can use some of the data analysis tools in Sage.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    ECI Software Solutions
    M1 is light years ahead in overall cost and proficiency. It allows so much more control and flexibility as compared to its competitors. When choosing M1 we went through many demos and M1 was the only ERP that met our needs and still does. We also control our own data which is a big plus for us.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    500 seems much smoother at handling some of the basic accounting tasks, for example both issuing and later reconciling checks in Dynamics AX seems a little tedious.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    ECI Software Solutions
    • Time savings having to only enter certain information once and have it follow through the entire order process from quote to cash
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    • Positive: The program allows for a lot of data entry and splitting of information. It has the capability of replacing multiple programs and therefore saving cost.
    • Negative: The modules are cumbersome and not user friendly at all. As a result not many user are comfortable using it. This means that the program is not being used to its capacity.
    • Negative: Although the program has the capacity to be great, the user interface destroys that potential. Sage needs to seriously work on their program to simplify it. It's as if it still uses Command-line entries from 1995. Needs to be updated ASAP.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    M1 Screenshots

    Product screenshotProduct screenshot