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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    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

    Wave Accounting

    Score7.3 out of 10
    N/AWave Accounting is a free, cloud-based accounting platform exclusively for small businesses. It supports double-entry bookkeeping and permits unlimited user access, invoicing, and expense management. Wave Accounting integrates with Wave's invoicing, receipt scanning, payment processing and payroll apps.

    $16

    per month

    Pricing
    Sage 50Wave Accounting
    Editions & Modules
    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
    Starter
    $0
    Pro
    $16
    per month
    Pro - billed annually
    $170
    per year
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Sage 50Wave Accounting
    Free Trial
    YesNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    NoYes
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    YesNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional DetailsAnnual billing plans also available for all products.
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    Sage 50Wave Accounting
    Considered Both Products
    Sage
    No answer on this topic
    Wave
    Chose Wave Accounting
    Wave accounting does not have as many features as Quickbooks or Sage 50 but it holds it's own with the market it serves. I use Wave primarily for the payroll functionality and i have recommended that clients who use Sage 50 or Quickbooks use Wave for it's payroll. The importing …
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    100%
    Would buy again
    15 Answers
    53%
    Would buy again
    8 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    100%
    Delivers good value for the price
    10 Answers
    67%
    Delivers good value for the price
    10 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    100%
    Happy with the feature set
    15 Answers
    67%
    Happy with the feature set
    10 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    100%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    10 Answers
    54%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    7 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    100%
    Implementation went as expected
    10 Answers
    73%
    Implementation went as expected
    11 Answers
    Features
    Sage 50Wave Accounting
    Payroll Management
    Comparison of Payroll Management features of Sage 50 and Wave Accounting
    Feature
    Sage 50
    8.5
    19 Ratings
    12% above category average
    Wave Accounting
    6.2
    24 Ratings
    20% below category average
    Pay calculation8.318 Ratings7.123 Ratings
    Benefit plan administration8.013 Ratings7.54 Ratings
    Direct deposit files10.014 Ratings1.220 Ratings
    Salary revision and increment management8.014 Ratings7.712 Ratings
    Reimbursement management8.014 Ratings7.48 Ratings
    Customization
    Comparison of Customization features of Sage 50 and Wave Accounting
    Feature
    Sage 50
    6.8
    14 Ratings
    11% below category average
    Wave Accounting
    8.5
    13 Ratings
    12% above category average
    API for custom integration7.311 Ratings9.99 Ratings
    Plug-ins6.313 Ratings7.011 Ratings
    Security
    Comparison of Security features of Sage 50 and Wave Accounting
    Feature
    Sage 50
    7.8
    29 Ratings
    5% below category average
    Wave Accounting
    6.4
    45 Ratings
    24% below category average
    Single sign-on capability6.924 Ratings6.432 Ratings
    Role-based user permissions8.626 Ratings6.436 Ratings
    Reporting & Analytics
    Comparison of Reporting & Analytics features of Sage 50 and Wave Accounting
    Feature
    Sage 50
    8.2
    32 Ratings
    5% above category average
    Wave Accounting
    9.5
    73 Ratings
    19% above category average
    Dashboards8.430 Ratings9.471 Ratings
    Standard reports8.932 Ratings9.770 Ratings
    Custom reports7.231 Ratings9.337 Ratings
    General Ledger and Configurable Accounting
    Comparison of General Ledger and Configurable Accounting features of Sage 50 and Wave Accounting
    Feature
    Sage 50
    7.3
    35 Ratings
    4% below category average
    Wave Accounting
    7.4
    76 Ratings
    3% below category average
    Accounts payable8.934 Ratings9.659 Ratings
    Accounts receivable8.633 Ratings9.670 Ratings
    Cash management7.933 Ratings9.862 Ratings
    Bank reconciliation8.433 Ratings8.565 Ratings
    Expense management8.531 Ratings9.664 Ratings
    Time tracking7.115 Ratings9.811 Ratings
    Fixed asset management7.122 Ratings9.812 Ratings
    Multi-currency support4.012 Ratings10.019 Ratings
    Multi-division support5.816 Ratings7.19 Ratings
    Regulations compliance6.215 Ratings5.016 Ratings
    Electronic tax filing8.218 Ratings5.914 Ratings
    Self-service portal5.513 Ratings8.040 Ratings
    Global Financial Support5.76 Ratings9.02 Ratings
    Primary and Secondary Ledgers6.89 Ratings9.05 Ratings
    Intercompany Accounting7.610 Ratings4.05 Ratings
    Localizations7.58 Ratings5.23 Ratings
    Journals and Reconciliations8.822 Ratings8.530 Ratings
    Enterprise Accounting7.69 Ratings4.07 Ratings
    Configurable Accounting8.111 Ratings5.017 Ratings
    Centralized Rules Framework6.67 Ratings1.03 Ratings
    Standardized Processes7.916 Ratings7.019 Ratings
    Inventory Management
    Comparison of Inventory Management features of Sage 50 and Wave Accounting
    Feature
    Sage 50
    8.4
    21 Ratings
    14% above category average
    Wave Accounting
    8.1
    11 Ratings
    11% above category average
    Inventory tracking8.121 Ratings5.68 Ratings
    Automatic reordering7.912 Ratings9.95 Ratings
    Location management8.010 Ratings8.12 Ratings
    Manufacturing module9.09 Ratings9.01 Ratings
    Order Management
    Comparison of Order Management features of Sage 50 and Wave Accounting
    Feature
    Sage 50
    7.5
    25 Ratings
    1% above category average
    Wave Accounting
    7.6
    53 Ratings
    3% above category average
    Pricing8.420 Ratings9.926 Ratings
    Order entry8.422 Ratings10.018 Ratings
    Credit card processing7.014 Ratings2.345 Ratings
    Cost of goods sold7.421 Ratings10.034 Ratings
    Order Orchestration7.58 Ratings5.85 Ratings
    End-to-end order visibility6.69 Ratings8.24 Ratings
    Order exception Resolution7.28 Ratings7.02 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    Sage 50Wave Accounting
    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
    Sage 50Wave Accounting
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.4
    (45 ratings)
    9.4
    (82 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    9.1
    (14 ratings)
    7.8
    (3 ratings)
    Usability
    8.6
    (15 ratings)
    9.7
    (17 ratings)
    Availability
    -
    (0 ratings)
    6.7
    (4 ratings)
    Performance
    -
    (0 ratings)
    2.9
    (2 ratings)
    Support Rating
    10.0
    (7 ratings)
    2.1
    (12 ratings)
    Online Training
    -
    (0 ratings)
    4.7
    (3 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    9.1
    (5 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    CPA Rating
    8.2
    (4 ratings)
    8.0
    (8 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    9.1
    (1 ratings)
    3.0
    (2 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Sage 50Wave Accounting
    Likelihood to Recommend
    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
    Wave
    Wave Accounting was used for a small practice without a lot of the accounting considerations a large company would have. For the price, you really can't beat what Wave offers out of the box. All of the basic tools for things like invoicing and expenses are all easy to use. End of year accounting is easy with exports of data.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    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
    Wave
    • Reconciliation is very difficult with multiple Wave transactions that need to be deleted or merged before it can be matched to a bank transaction.
    • Payroll worked fine for us but took several days to get it set up. We have switched to another bookkeeping system and another payroll system. Canceling with Wave took several days and they charge $6 for something even though the month was paid for in advance.
    • Credit card processing is nice and worked fine for us.
    Read full review
    Cons
    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
    Wave
    • I know that credit card processing is a way for Wave to make money, but I really wish they offered ACH payment on Invoices.
    • I do cash-based accounting, which means I have to make little journal entries at the start and end of each year to get my books to balance because Wave wants to do everything differently. This should just be a setting to flip, whether you want cash-based or accrual-based.
    • They use Yodlee for bank connection, which doesn't play nice with 2FA. Pretty much every time I log in I have to re-enter credentials, get a code sent to me, reauthenticate, and know that I'm going to have to do it again next week. Not really on Wave, but wish they could get it together nonetheless.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    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
    Wave
    Easy to use for clients with no accounting background and the price is right.
    Read full review
    Usability
    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
    Wave
    I am a professional bookkeeper and I have no problems using Wave and all of it's features. I can see that certain individuals who have no accounting knowledge might struggle with a few different features and entries, but that is why Wave has an emphasis in connecting users to Wave Pro's who will walk them through things
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    Sage
    No answers on this topic
    Wave
    WAVE is always available when we need it ! Peter
    Read full review
    Performance
    Sage
    No answers on this topic
    Wave
    Wave does tend to slow down when filtering your transactions screen especially by date. This is more of an issue when trying to trouble shoot certain transactions or clean-up a set of books.
    Read full review
    Support Rating
    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
    Wave
    I never had to call Wave Support as we barely experienced any support-related problems on our side. However, I do know a few people that complained about Wave support. It would be nice as well, though if they could have more in your face tutorials for new users or how-to videos should we struggle to do something
    Read full review
    Online Training
    Sage
    No answers on this topic
    Wave
    easy to use and east to train on ! Our WAVE clients enjoy the ease of use
    Read full review
    Implementation Rating
    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
    Wave
    No answers on this topic
    Alternatives Considered
    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
    Wave
    Wave is FREE for most functions. Payment processing costs no matter where you go (as does payroll or taxes). Wave rises above tools like QuickBooks Online because they know that for our small firm, being nimble is the name of the game. We don't need exhaustive reporting and management like QB offers and we certainly don't want to pay for it
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Scalability
    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
    Wave
    Once they out grow what is ability to move up to a more robust system?
    Read full review
    Return on Investment
    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
    Wave
    • Wave has been ROI positive for our company. With not having to pay for the service we can use our money for growing our business.
    • The fees on credit card transactions for invoices are reasonable especially as we don't pay a monthly subscription.
    • The invoicing feature has made our lives easier for us and our customers. The invoicing piece and AR tracking has been ROI positive as well.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
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