Zoho Books vs Sage 50 Accounting
Verified ratings, feature by feature comparison and real pricing. Everything a North American business needs to pick between these two.
Sage 50 Accounting
Desktop grade accounting depth with a cloud connection bolted on
Some links here are affiliate links, so we may earn a commission at no cost to you. It never affects a rating or a ranking. How this works.
Ratings
Every score, at a glance
Verified user ratings across every dimension. Zoho Books against Sage 50 Accounting, nothing weighted.
Dimensions won
50Zoho Books 5, Sage 50 Accounting 0
Zoho Books vs Sage 50 Accounting, across 5 rating dimensions
Widest rating gap
+1.4
Zoho Books leads on ease of use
Verified reviews
512
248 for Zoho Books, 264 for Sage 50 Accounting
Zoho Books248 verified reviews
Sage 50 Accounting264 verified reviews
Ratings by dimension
- Zoho Books
- Sage 50 Accounting
Share of verified reviews
Which product reviewers actually write about.
- Zoho Books248
- Sage 50 Accounting264
Cost to get started
Cheapest paid plan, shown per month.
Zoho Books is the cheaper way in. Lower is not automatically better, so weigh it against the ratings above.
Head to head
Where each one wins
Row by row, with the stronger score highlighted. Straight from verified reviews.
| Zoho Books | Sage 50 Accounting | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall rating | 4.2 | 3.8 |
| Reviews | 248 | 264 |
| Ease of use | 4.3 | 2.9 |
| Value for money | 4.7 | 3.4 |
| Customer service | 3.7 | 3.2 |
| Functionality | 4.4 | 4.2 |
| Starting price | $20/mo | $128.67/mo |
| Free trial | Yes | Yes |
| Free version | Yes | No |
Features
Feature by feature, checked off
Everything each product ships, side by side. No marketing gloss.
| Feature | Zoho Books | Sage 50 Accounting |
|---|---|---|
| True double entry accounting | ||
| Automated bank feeds and reconciliation rules | ||
| Client portal with online payment | ||
| Recurring invoices and payment reminders | ||
| Inventory tracking on Professional and above | ||
| Multi currency with automatic exchange rates | ||
| Custom workflow automation | ||
| Project time tracking and billing | ||
| Open API on affordable tiers | ||
| Deep integration with the wider Zoho suite | ||
| True double entry general ledger | ||
| Automated bank reconciliation | ||
| Serialized inventory tracking | ||
| Advanced job costing | ||
| Multi company consolidation | ||
| Audit trails | ||
| Role based permissions | ||
| Sales tax tracking by jurisdiction | ||
| Payroll module available separately | ||
| Sage Security Shield fraud protection |
Pricing
Both price lists, side by side
Every plan from both vendors, side by side, priced in US dollars.
Zoho Books plans
Free
For businesses under 50,000 dollars of annual revenue.
Free
no card required
- 1 user plus 1 accountant
- Client portal
- Automatic payment reminders
- Up to 1,000 invoices a year
- Bank feed connections
Standard
3 users. The plan most small businesses actually start on.
$20/mo
per month
- 3 users
- Recurring invoices and expenses
- Bank reconciliation rules
- Project time tracking
- Sales tax tracking
- 15 dollars a month billed annually
Professional
5 users. Adds purchase orders, inventory and multi currency.
$50/mo
per month
- 5 users
- Purchase orders and sales orders
- Inventory tracking
- Multi currency handling
- Custom workflow rules
- Vendor portal
Premium
10 users. Custom domain, budgeting and deeper automation.
$70/mo
per month
- 10 users
- Custom domain and branding
- Budgeting
- Custom buttons and functions
- Twenty five custom modules
- Validation rules
Get current pricing
These are list prices and vendors adjust them from time to time. Check with Zoho for the figure you will actually pay.
Sage 50 Accounting plans
Pro Accounting
One user. Essential cloud accounting for a small business.
$128.67/mo
per month
- 1 user
- Invoice and bill tracking
- Purchase orders and approval
- Automated bank reconciliation
- Inventory management
- Job management
- Minimum one year commitment
Premium Accounting
1 to 5 users. Adds consolidation, advanced budgeting and audit trails.
$182.50/mo
per month
- Everything in Pro
- 1 to 5 users
- Multiple companies
- Advanced budgeting
- Serialized inventory tracking
- Advanced job costing
- Audit trails
Quantum Accounting
Up to 40 users. Role based permissions and workflow management.
$271.17/mo
per month
- Everything in Premium
- 1 to 40 users
- Role based user permissions
- Faster processing
- Order process workflow
- Workflow management
- Project management
Get current pricing
These are list prices and vendors adjust them from time to time. Check with Sage for the figure you will actually pay.