Disclaimer: Please note this article is not financial advice. The purpose of our blog is purely educational, so please consult a professional accountant or financial advisor before making any financial decision.
Ever since the internet boomed, running a business can be done through your phone or computer. Going physically to your stores just to check on inventory or cash is all pomp and circumstance these days.
Like almost every function in a business, accounting and financial reporting is available online, giving users a lot of freedom to manage their books. Many software companies offer great programs suited for this day and age.
Sage and Intuit dominate the financial software industry with their respective products, Sage Peachtree (now known as Sage 50cloud) and QuickBooks Online. But only one can triumph over the other.
Brief Background
Sage Peachtree and QuickBooks Online are well-established software that many owners and retailers appreciate.
Peachtree Accounting was first released in 1976 as part of the Altair 8800 microcomputer dealer called The Computer SystemCenter. Throughout its history, Peachtree was acquired and sold a couple of times.
By 1999, Sage Group, a British multinational software company, bought Peachtree and rebranded it to Sage 50 by 2012. So is Peachtree the same as Sage, then? Yes, Sage is Peachtree.
Peachtree used to be a desktop application software, but now, it's integrated into the Cloud. Thus, Sage 50cloud was born. How about QuickBooks?
QuickBooks was the second product of Intuit, an American financial software company, in 1983. QuickBooks was based on their first software, Quicken.
QuickBooks, back then, received poor reviews due to its lack of audit trail, security issues, and non-conformity to GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles). But today, it is widely used for small to medium-sized businesses.
QuickBooks, like Sage Peachtree, was bought in a CD-ROM that you install onto your desktop. But today, you can buy their subscription plan from their website.
Sage Peachtree and QuickBooks have come a long way. Both are now available online. However, are their features suited and secured on the web?
Web Features
We're pretty confident that you have already checked Sage Peachtree and Intuit QuickBooks Online features from their respective sites. So by now, you'd probably come up with a conclusion.
But there's more to it than what meets the eye, and we will show you their key differences.
Sage Peachtree
- Safe with Sage Drive
Their in-house Cloud, Sage Drive, takes care of all of the security measures to ensure your data and information is well protected. In addition, you wouldn't be risking data loss since it is regularly backed up in multiple servers.
- Dedicated IT Personnel
No need to hire technical support since Sage Peachtree has its own team for the Cloud. As the new Peachtree is Cloud-hosted, upgrades are easily installed as well. Fewer expenses means more money to keep.
- Collaborative Projects
With Sage's advanced inventory and payroll management, imagine the smooth updates and hit target tasks for the week. With Sage Cloud, you can share and work with your accountants and even outsourced employees seamlessly.
QuickBooks Online
- Automatically Send Invoices and Statements
You need an email address, and you're ready to send invoices and statements to your customers and partners. You can easily send supporting documents as well with QuickBooks' scanning feature.
- Ready to Print.
QuickBooks' pre-loaded documents and reports really stand out. If you're in a bind, click the template, input your data, and print. Plus, it has an electronic signature option available.
- Bank and Credit Card Transactions.
You can send and receive payments by credit card or ACH (Automated Clearing House) payments. QuickBooks automatically inputs those payments in real-time.
App Integrations
The power of the Internet is that it can connect us from one platform to another seamlessly. Every software and every app is accessible through another software or app, including Sage Peachtree and QuickBooks.
There are hundreds of apps integrated with both software, but here are the most popular ones.
Popular Apps Integrated with Sage Peachtree and QuickBooks Online
| Amazon | A worldwide online marketplace that allows you to sell anything. |
| Shopify | An Ontario-based ecommerce platform known for independent online stores and retail point-of-sale systems. |
| Salesforce | A relationship-driven app that specializes in customer relationship management. |
| Microsoft 365 Office | A collection of apps dedicated to doing series of documentation, communication relations, and more. |
| AutoEntry | An automating data entry app for data accuracy and security of your credit card statements, bills, invoices and the like. |
| Paypal | An online remittance platform for money transfers and payment in US dollars or cross-currencies. |
| Bill.com | A cloud-based software for managing your payables easily. |
| Stripe | An Irish-American based platform like Paypal but with lower transaction fees. |
Sage Peachtree and QuickBooks have partnered with plenty of companies to improve and widen their functionality. Rather than just being accounting software, they bring the term "business management" to a whole new level.
If you're comparing which has more app integrations, then it's QuickBooks. With over 650 apps available, QuickBooks has the most number of apps in the market.
Moreover, if you happen to have Sage Peachtree and you want to switch to QuickBooks, you can totally import all your data vice versa. Talk about friendly competition!
Online Subscription and Prices
Since you’ve probably checked Sage Peachtree’s and QuickBooks' websites, you most likely know their prices as well.
But we're not here to show you their subscription plan price. We're here to tell you that there are hidden charges to those prices. You may think that these add-ons are already part of the plan. But, unfortunately, they're not.
Let's start with the per-user price.
QuickBooks Online has free shared access for up to 25 users if you choose its most expensive plan. For additional users, you need to contact QuickBooks customer support for special pricing.
QuickBooks Desktop Pro, however, charges you $299 for every additional account with a maximum of three users only.
In contrast, Sage Peachtree's top-tier plan allows up to 40 users for free, which gives Sage points for its affordability. The first round goes to Peachtree.
Next are their payroll add-ons.
The Sage Payroll module costs $344 to $782 every year; the cheaper option is made for 1–10 employees, while more expensive options can allow up to 100+ employees. It's a pretty good bargain, considering Sage's payroll management system is well-received.
QuickBooks, on the other hand, has a different subscription plan for their QuickBooks Payroll, namely the Core, Premium, and Elite.
Prices range from $45 to $125 depending on the plan. For every employee you add to the payroll, there is a $4 to $10 fee. For instance, if you happen to get their Elite Payroll Plan, it will cost your business $1,500 yearly just for this add-on alone. The second round goes to Peachtree again.
Lastly are the third-party app integrations.
Since QuickBooks has hundreds of integrations. We will save you the trouble that most of them require you to pay for their services. The same goes for Sage Peachtree as well.
On the flip side, popular platforms like Shopify, Paypal, and Square are free, so at least you can have money for your sales taxes. QuickBooks wins this round.
So it is worth noting that QuickBooks may have more features than Sage Peachtree, but be prepared to shed months' worth of profit. Sage Peachtree has less functionality, but it still has advanced features that won't burn a hole into your pockets.
Conclusion: Is QuickBooks Better Than Sage for Your Online Business?
We can flat-out say yes. QuickBooks is better than Sage. Both are great software, but QuickBooks show more promise.
Sage, being the longest provider of accounting software, provides advanced accounting features but on a basic level of convenience and accessibility. Its cost is quite low compared to QuickBooks.
Sage Peachtree’s Customer Relationship Management (CRM) is entry-level. Moreover, there are fewer app integrations to choose from. Sure, it has most of the features you need, but business always demands more.
QuickBooks, especially QuickBooks Online, widely opens its doors to the web community with its Cloud accessibility and app integrations. It offers multiple functions you’d never thought you needed in the first place.
You can file, report, and document cash flows on the go as long as you have internet access. Making transactions online with QuickBooks is incredibly easy for both accountants and nonprofessionals alike.
QuickBooks doesn't get a perfect score, though. It's pricey for solopreneurs and small business owners out there if you want to enjoy its full benefits. But despite its steep prices, QuickBooks is worth investing in.
Did you learn something new from our comparison between Sage Peachtree and QuickBooks Online? Unloop provides countless articles like this one to educate you on your financial decisions. Do you need some assistance managing your business? Are you looking for tax and accounting experts?
Reach out to us, and get started with your finances with Unloop today!