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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    QuickBooks Desktop Pro

    Score7.8 out of 10
    N/AQuickbooks Desktop Pro is accounting software from Intuit, Inc. It includes core accounting features, plus analytics and exportable reports. It is offered in on-premise and SaaS forms.N/A

    Sage 50

    Score7.7 out of 10
    Small Businesses (1-50 employees)
    Sage 50cloud Accounting (formerly Sage 50 Accounting) is accounting software designed for small businesses. Sage 50cloud Accounting (formerly Sage 50, and formerly Peachtree) lets businesses invoice customers, pay bills, manage inventory, control costs, and pay employees. The solution includes high-level dashboards and in-depth reports.

    $61.92

    per month per user

    Pricing
    QuickBooks Desktop ProSage 50
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    Sage 50 Pro Accounting
    $61.92
    per month
    Sage 50 Premium Accounting
    $103.92
    per month per user
    Sage 50 Quantum Accounting 3 User
    $177.17
    per month per user
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    QuickBooks Desktop ProSage 50
    Free Trial
    NoYes
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoYes
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional DetailsAnnual billing plans also available for all products.
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    QuickBooks Desktop ProSage 50
    Considered Both Products
    Intuit
    Chose QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    QuickBooks is much more user friendly than Peachtree. Our Peachtree database was always corrupting and after having to re-enter several months worth of data because the backups were corrupt also, we switched to QuickBooks. We have not had any issues since we switched.
    Incentivized
    Chose QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    Peachtree is not as user-friendly. The interface of QuickBooks Pro is comfortable and more personal - from the overall design to the error messages and tips.
    Incentivized
    Chose QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    None recently - Peachtree several years ago and QuickBooks is the hands down favorite.
    Incentivized
    Chose QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    good
    Incentivized
    Chose QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    We have used Sage and Peachtree as alternatives to QuickBooks Pro and have found for the money and ease of use for any employee QuickBooks is a better option for our firm. Sage and Peachtree require more training to use and some reporting is harder to locate in the program than …
    Incentivized
    Sage
    Chose Sage 50
    Sage 50 has a more professional operation to it, and transactions have to be reversed rather than just erased in QuickBooks. This leads to more confidence in the system when you are using it. I believe that you can do something like this in QuickBooks, but I have had trouble …
    Incentivized
    Chose Sage 50
    While QuickBooks is a great program, we found Sage to be a better fit for our company. QuickBooks does, however, offer more integration with other software applications and some even require QuickBooks to run.
    Incentivized
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    88%
    Would buy again
    29 Answers
    100%
    Would buy again
    15 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    93%
    Delivers good value for the price
    28 Answers
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    10 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    97%
    Happy with the feature set
    32 Answers
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    15 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    83%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    20 Answers
    100%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    10 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    96%
    Implementation went as expected
    25 Answers
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    10 Answers
    Features
    QuickBooks Desktop ProSage 50
    Payroll Management
    Comparison of Payroll Management features of QuickBooks Desktop Pro and Sage 50
    Feature
    QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    6.6
    69 Ratings
    14% below category average
    Sage 50
    8.5
    19 Ratings
    12% above category average
    Pay calculation6.364 Ratings8.318 Ratings
    Benefit plan administration6.338 Ratings8.013 Ratings
    Direct deposit files6.656 Ratings10.014 Ratings
    Salary revision and increment management6.352 Ratings8.014 Ratings
    Reimbursement management7.754 Ratings8.014 Ratings
    Customization
    Comparison of Customization features of QuickBooks Desktop Pro and Sage 50
    Feature
    QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    5.7
    43 Ratings
    28% below category average
    Sage 50
    6.8
    14 Ratings
    11% below category average
    API for custom integration6.535 Ratings7.311 Ratings
    Plug-ins5.039 Ratings6.313 Ratings
    Security
    Comparison of Security features of QuickBooks Desktop Pro and Sage 50
    Feature
    QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    8.5
    101 Ratings
    4% above category average
    Sage 50
    7.8
    29 Ratings
    5% below category average
    Single sign-on capability8.482 Ratings6.924 Ratings
    Role-based user permissions8.695 Ratings8.626 Ratings
    Reporting & Analytics
    Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of QuickBooks Desktop Pro and Sage 50
    Feature
    QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    8.5
    117 Ratings
    8% above category average
    Sage 50
    8.2
    32 Ratings
    5% above category average
    Dashboards8.4100 Ratings8.430 Ratings
    Standard reports8.9117 Ratings8.932 Ratings
    Custom reports8.1114 Ratings7.231 Ratings
    General Ledger and Configurable Accounting
    Comparison of General Ledger and Configurable Accounting features of QuickBooks Desktop Pro and Sage 50
    Feature
    QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    7.5
    124 Ratings
    2% below category average
    Sage 50
    7.3
    35 Ratings
    4% below category average
    Accounts payable9.3119 Ratings8.934 Ratings
    Accounts receivable9.2121 Ratings8.633 Ratings
    Cash management9.2107 Ratings7.933 Ratings
    Bank reconciliation9.7119 Ratings8.433 Ratings
    Expense management9.4108 Ratings8.531 Ratings
    Time tracking7.451 Ratings7.115 Ratings
    Fixed asset management5.669 Ratings7.122 Ratings
    Multi-currency support6.931 Ratings4.012 Ratings
    Multi-division support8.958 Ratings5.816 Ratings
    Regulations compliance8.342 Ratings6.215 Ratings
    Electronic tax filing8.355 Ratings8.218 Ratings
    Self-service portal5.941 Ratings5.513 Ratings
    Global Financial Support4.217 Ratings5.76 Ratings
    Primary and Secondary Ledgers7.140 Ratings6.89 Ratings
    Intercompany Accounting7.943 Ratings7.610 Ratings
    Localizations4.219 Ratings7.58 Ratings
    Journals and Reconciliations8.876 Ratings8.822 Ratings
    Enterprise Accounting6.838 Ratings7.69 Ratings
    Configurable Accounting7.647 Ratings8.111 Ratings
    Centralized Rules Framework5.427 Ratings6.67 Ratings
    Standardized Processes8.555 Ratings7.916 Ratings
    Inventory Management
    Comparison of Inventory Management features of QuickBooks Desktop Pro and Sage 50
    Feature
    QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    5.8
    59 Ratings
    23% below category average
    Sage 50
    8.4
    21 Ratings
    14% above category average
    Inventory tracking6.056 Ratings8.121 Ratings
    Automatic reordering6.035 Ratings7.912 Ratings
    Location management6.032 Ratings8.010 Ratings
    Manufacturing module5.218 Ratings9.09 Ratings
    Order Management
    Comparison of Order Management features of QuickBooks Desktop Pro and Sage 50
    Feature
    QuickBooks Desktop Pro
    6.8
    77 Ratings
    8% below category average
    Sage 50
    7.5
    25 Ratings
    2% above category average
    Pricing7.555 Ratings8.420 Ratings
    Order entry8.555 Ratings8.422 Ratings
    Credit card processing7.251 Ratings7.014 Ratings
    Cost of goods sold8.063 Ratings7.421 Ratings
    Order Orchestration5.220 Ratings7.58 Ratings
    End-to-end order visibility6.123 Ratings6.69 Ratings
    Order exception Resolution5.218 Ratings7.28 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    QuickBooks Desktop ProSage 50
    Small Businesses
    QuickBooks Self-Employed (discontinued)
    Score4.3 out of 10
    QuickBooks Self-Employed (discontinued)
    Score4.3 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    MYOB
    Score8.3 out of 10
    MYOB
    Score8.3 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Microsoft Dynamics GP
    Score5.5 out of 10
    Microsoft Dynamics GP
    Score5.5 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    QuickBooks Desktop ProSage 50
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.5
    (135 ratings)
    8.4
    (45 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    8.0
    (19 ratings)
    9.1
    (14 ratings)
    Usability
    9.1
    (42 ratings)
    8.6
    (15 ratings)
    Availability
    8.3
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Support Rating
    1.2
    (29 ratings)
    10.0
    (7 ratings)
    In-Person Training
    10.0
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    9.0
    (6 ratings)
    9.1
    (5 ratings)
    CPA Rating
    8.5
    (22 ratings)
    8.2
    (4 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    8.0
    (1 ratings)
    9.1
    (1 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    QuickBooks Desktop ProSage 50
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Intuit
    For a small business, QuickBooks Desktop Pro is great! For a larger, more complex business, another system may be more beneficial. We actually run multiple businesses on QuickBooks Desktop Pro, but all are very small. The help feature is sometimes so beneficial, and sometimes it seems like you just can't get the right answer and need to find a workaround - but this is usually for more complex issues.
    Read full review
    Sage
    Sage 50 Accounts is well-suited for small to medium-sized enterprises, where there is a moderate number of expenses and invoices that need processing, typically by a company with a smaller finance team. Sage 50 is probably less suitable for a large organisation that needs to handle a higher volume of transactions and manage significant stock levels.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Intuit
    • It is easy to manage and adjust inventory on hand.
    • It is easy to make reports and customize them to your needs.
    • We also use it to pay our employees directly.
    • It is easy to make year-to-year comparisons to see where we can make improvements and the current financial situation.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    • We can build "templates" for recurrent charges/invoices. This saves some time and also ensures that we always use the right accounting rubric.
    • A lot of additional information can be filled out such as client information (name, address, ...) which makes the software a little more complete.
    • If you don't need an updated version every year (my case) then the software is not too expensive. The pro version that I'm using was just a little over $300.
    • I really like the banking statement consolidation which allows you to ensure you got the right information registered.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Intuit
    • QuickBooks Desktop Pro has been around for a few years and after an update[,] they force you to look at the changes/updates before you can use [them] after updating.
    • QuickBooks Desktop Pro does not have 2FA.
    • QuickBooks Desktop Pro should offer a way to store backups to a personal cloud without having to map a local network drive.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    • Sage 50 could use some improvement in the Invoicing Module to allow for more flexibility in the design of the Invoice fields. The report customization tools could use some upgrading for easier use.
    • Fixed assets management module needs to be included with unlimited number of fixed assets.
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Intuit
    I'd love to keep using it, and do intend to - though we've not been pleased with price increases over the past several years. In fact, we used to subscribe to the payroll service, but QuickBooks priced themselves out of reach for us, so we discontinued that. Currently, pricing would be the primary reason for NOT renewing, if we didn't.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    I use this rating simply because I have a thriving Sage 50 consulting practice and will continue to keep my expertise in the product. I have consulted on both Sage 50 and QuickBooks for over 25 years so I have to maintain expertise in the solution as well as accounting and verticals.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    Intuit
    The set up was quite easy. I took some online training causes, and figured our the rest pretty quickly. The only issue I had during the implementation process was it was very hard to change some of the GL Account name to reflect the needs of a non-profit organization, such as Net Assets. At the end I had to scratch what I did, and used the existing formats that the third-party bookkeeping firm shared. Everything else is simple and easy to manage and implement.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    I think Sage 50 is a trusted product and is reliable from a product delivery and support perspective. They have deep domain expertise in the non-profit space and should be a consideration for new non-profit startups or existing non-profits looking to migrate from other platforms. Overall, I believe that Sage 50 does many things well with few limitations.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    Intuit
    I haven't experienced a time when QuickBooks Pro was unavailable when I needed it in the entire 20 years of using the software
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    No answers on this topic
    Support Rating
    Intuit
    They are awful. Intuit doesn't spend real money on support. They appear to have typically said, first-level script readers who are sending messages to the senior people for anything even a little bit difficult. Many of them don't speak particularly good English. Considering that they recently doubled (or, if you are paying annually, tripled) their pricing, and touted as one of the benefits that it includes [..] support, it's a real ripoff. However, we have to use the product because it is ubiquitous. I look forward to the day a competitor comes up with something good enough, which has excellent support, that matches all the features QuickBooks Desktop Pro currently has [...] or at least gives us a way to have all the functionality we currently have without excessive sacrifice [...] so that we can switch. I was very satisfied with QuickBooks for many years. This latest [rise] in price, and their sheer gall at touting the benefit of the 100 to 200% increase as being [the] inclusion of support, is what turned me so far against them.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    They were very knowledgeable of the product, understood my timeline was limited for a software issue and allowed me to get back to my day to day work. The dial into your computer is great so you can monitor what they are doing and learn some tricks yourself
    Read full review
    In-Person Training
    Intuit
    Best thing I ever did was to attend a two day training seminar on QuickBooks, I learned an immense amount in a short time with hands on training by experts. I strongly recommend such training for anyone using any part of the software. It will pay for itself in the first month.
    Read full review
    Sage
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation Rating
    Intuit
    We implemented the software ourselves. The training we received on the software was done by taking a community course teaching us how to use QuickBooks. It allowed me to get started with some basics of how to use the program and have not needed much assistance since completing the course work.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    We implemented Sage 50 Premium Accounting in house, not using any third party or professional service. It was a relatively trouble free process, but can be tricky. Just read all instructions carefully, especially if you need to load the program on a network with more than one user
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Alternatives Considered
    Intuit
    We tried switching from QuickBooks Desktop Pro to QuickBooks Online, but there were a lot of issues and bugs so we ultimately decided to stay with Desktop Pro. Unfortunately, we are losing a lot of Online Banking capabilities on 5/31 as we have an older version of QB, but we plan to stick with Desktop Pro. In terms of invoicing, SaaSOptics beats QuickBooks in almost all aspects as it's all automated and takes seconds to create and send invoices. However, SaaSOptics is not really a full ERP program so it wouldn't serve us as a main bookkeeping software like QB.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    As we did the conversion almost 10 years ago it is hard to answer this question. At the time it was the ease of being able to produce both cash and accrual financial statements and reporting that led us to pick Sage
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Scalability
    Intuit
    No answers on this topic
    Sage
    I define scalable from two perspectives; 1) the scalability to handle more bookkeepers/accountants using the product, and 2) the scalability to handle increasing customer/vendor/employee and transactional data. Sage 50 does a good job on both fronts. From the single users operating a micro-business accounting for customer invoices and bill payments only, to the multi-staff, multi-location, multi-departmental complex transactional operation. Although Sage 50 is quite expensive for that smallest user, it is quite inexpensive for the larger business entity. So, for the new enterprise expecting rapid growth, Sage 50 is the application of choice.
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    Intuit
    • Training time is low compared to other accounting packages
    • It was difficult to adapt to DCAA requirements, [which] required [the] hiring of [a] special consultant for that
    • QuickBooks Desktop Pro is a standard for small companies and makes it easy to hire bookkeepers
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Sage
    • Sage definitely needs to do a better job with customer service. I have had to use them only a handful of times and it was not a great experience but not the worse I've seen. They didn't make us a priority and I felt that they didn't have a sense of urgency. They did address my lack of satisfaction and I can see that they are at least aware of the issues and they are trying to correct them.
    • Sage is exactly what we need in my current organization and I wouldn't change it for another system. I have used quite a few in my lifetime and I would say that it fits our needs.
    Read full review
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