This product assessment is based on a synthesis of 10 recent reviews covering overall satisfaction, areas for improvement, and return on investment for Sage Accounting. Sage Accounting is primarily deployed for accounting and bookkeeping tasks, as indicated by 7 out of 10 reviewers. It also supports payroll processing, according to 3 reviewers. The software is used both internally by businesses and recommended to clients by some accounting firms. Reviewers highlight time savings as a key benefit, with 3 reviewers specifically noting the ease of use and real-time financial updates. Process automation, such as streamlined invoice and quotation management, is also cited as a positive impact by 2 reviewers. However, some users find the user interface difficult to navigate, especially those without accounting expertise, and improvements to bank feed automation are desired. The cost of adding users, due to licenses being sold in packs, is mentioned as a potential drawback by 2 reviewers.

Pros

Provides time savings through ease of use and real-time financial updates (3 of 10 reviews)
Automates processes such as invoice chasing and quotation-to-invoice conversion (2 of 10 reviews)
Suitable for both internal accounting and bookkeeping and for accounting firms recommending to clients

Cons

User interface can be difficult to navigate, especially for users without accounting knowledge (2 of 10 reviews)
Bank feed functionality requires improvements in automation and matching capabilities (2 of 10 reviews)
Cost of adding users can be high due to licenses being sold in packs (2 of 10 reviews)

What positive or negative impact (i.e. Return on Investment or ROI) has Sage Accounting had on your overall business objectives?

From 10 reviews

Summary

This report analyzes 10 recent reviews to assess the perceived return on investment (ROI) of Sage Accounting. A significant portion of reviewers highlight time-saving benefits (3 of 10 reviews). These time savings are attributed to ease of use and keeping financial up to date. Another benefit mentioned by reviewers is the automation of processes (2 of 10 reviews), with specific examples including a reduction in invoice chasing and streamlined quotation-to-invoice conversion. However, some reviewers mention the cost of adding users as a potential drawback (2 of 10 reviews), noting that licenses are sold in packs, which can become expensive when scaling.

Reviews

92 Reviews

Happy Customer

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

April 26, 2025

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Sage Evoloution for all our production and sales and find the interface with Xyperdyte easy to use and all the works well together. Being in the manufacturing business we need to ensure that what the system says our stock should be is 99% correct so that our sales team runs smothly. Having a system that works in our enviroment is imperative and Sage Accounting is able to do that from the payroll to the selling of our products

Pros

Inventory control
interfaces with Xyperdyte
Financial reports are easy to understand
Supplier and Customer controls are easy to use

Cons

converting quotes to sales orders can be abit more seperated as one can convert a quote easly by mistake
when processing invoices or credit notes it can give you an option to confirm if you want to process

Likelihood to Recommend

It is easy to understand and user friendly, even the least tech friendly person is able to use they sytem. It is easy to teach others and the fact that you can see more than 24 months transcations help when wanting to go back on past expenses or sales to customers

Verified User

Account Manager in Finance and Accounting (51-200 employees)

Vetted Review

20 years of experience

Sage Accounting Review

Rating: 3 out of 10

Incentivized

April 26, 2025

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

It was used for basic accounting of receipts and payments

Pros

recording of receipts and payments
passing of journal

Cons

to make bank feed automated
to allow attachment to journals
to have more tacking category to track income and expenses for any particular project

Likelihood to Recommend

for basic accounting it is good if you want bank feed on regular basis , track income and expenses for particular project than it is difficult. one main difficulty was unable to attach documents to journals - manual journals . Asset reports were outdated and difficult to get information linking with other software like payroll , time and attendance , reporting software was difficult

Verified User

Manager in Finance and Accounting (51-200 employees)

Vetted Review

2 years of experience

Sage Accounting

Rating: 10 out of 10

Incentivized

April 17, 2025

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I use Sage Accounting as my company's prime bookkeeping record. It has helped me to make credit control much easier and reduce the impact of bad debts. I have also found that Sage Accounting has enabled me to simplify my bookkeeping and to retain everything related to accounting in one location. Overall, Sage Accounting has enabled me to file my VAT returns on time and also to ensure that my annual accounts are promptly completed and submitted.

Pros

Retaining purchase and expense invoices
Reconciling all bank accounts
Linking with Sage payroll software
Linking with the Final Accounts and CT600 tax return templates
Sending out customer statements
It makes it very easy to complete and submit VAT returns
As it is cloud based I can use Sage Accounting anywhere

Cons

Reconciling VAT
Eliminating an inherent lag
When producing a report for a current period, to retain the same period end date rather than reverting to a custom date

Likelihood to Recommend

Sage Accounting has the best functionality to produce management and statutory accounts.

Dominic De Lord

Director in Professional Services at Crick Heitman Ltd (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

Reseller

6 years of experience

View profile

Sage Accounting

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

January 28, 2025

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We are a firm of accountants/auditors and we use Sage software internally for our own bookkeeping and payroll processing as well as recommending it to our clients for the same purpose. In a world driven by data, Sage provide fit for purpose software that we have been using now for 20 plus years.

As time moves on Sage continually strive to keep the software relevant to the modern world with cloud connectivity etc, and we value their investment in that side of their business with the strides they are making to keep on top of AI advancements.

Pros

Keep their software uptodate.
Easy to use and navigate.
Sensible pricing.

Cons

Matching within bank feeds still needs improving
Automated reports would be beneficial

Likelihood to Recommend

For us it does everything we need it to but there is always room for improvement. Bank feeds were problematic but have improved, but the matching within the feeds is still requiring improvement.

Verified User

Partner in Finance and Accounting (11-50 employees)

Vetted Review

30 years of experience

Sage 50 Payroll

Rating: 10 out of 10

January 9, 2025

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Sage 50 Cloud payroll and find it extremely useful as a Payroll Bureau in handling all clients and online documents.

Pros

Online Payslips
Easy to adjust
Handle large numbers

Cons

P45's online having a publish date
not logging in to online stuff all the time
improved recipe functionality

Likelihood to Recommend

For processing payroll with payroll knowledge and payrolls with more intricacies to them

Nicola Rowlands

Payroll in Finance and Accounting at Williams Denton (51-200 employees)

Vetted Review

8 years of experience

View profile

Long-time user

Rating: 10 out of 10

Incentivized

December 9, 2024

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I have used Sage Accounting since it's inception when it started as SageOne Online. When COVID hit us, I encouraged my boss to move over from the desktop version to the cloud version in order for me to continue to work without having to leave home. This has now become me only means of working as it is convenient for both me and my boss. He processes the invoices from the shop and I do the rest of the bookkeeping needs from my home.

In addition, I encourage others to use the software for their businesses for the same reason.

Pros

remote working
importing the banking statements
mapping of entries in order for us not to have to repeat the same entries every time.
allocating of payments
following up on unpaid invoices and delinquent customers

Cons

Accounts such as Fixed Assets and Non Current Assets do not automatically become assets on the register
Linking of VAT Payments from the bank entries isn't seemless

Likelihood to Recommend

For a small company is it very well suited and that it can be used by anyone who wishes to use the software.

Beverley Benjamin

Bookkeeper in Finance and Accounting at BR Benjamin - Bookkeeper (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

Reseller

30 years of experience

View profile

Sage Accounting for Charities

Rating: 8 out of 10

Incentivized

November 19, 2024

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

As a small charity we are short on time as we focus on Charitable Activities. We use Sage Accounting and Payroll to reduce the amount of time it takes to keep our finances and HR up to date. Importing the bank account and setting up rules means we don't have to trawl through all the bank transactions to categorise them. This saves a lot of time especially at year end. Sales invoices give a professional look to our interactions with customers which gives them a positive view of how we handle our finances. Sage Payroll takes the hard work out of taking on our first employee and helps keep us right of what we need to do as a good employer. Overall we are really happy with our decision to go with Sage Accounting.

Pros

Import bank transactions
Professional Sales Invoices
Production of reports for Financial Reporting

Cons

Ability to copy customers to suppliers and vice versa
Easier custom report writing (use of AI?)

Likelihood to Recommend

Formalising your accounts starting with importing your bank statements and applying rules to categorising them all the way to standard reports and cash flow. Taking the worry out of taking on employees by guiding you through what you need to do and ensuring you remain compliant and provides a better experience for your emplyee.

Stephen Sutton

Trustee in Information Technology at Bailliefields Community Hub (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

1 year of experience

Love Sage Accounting

Rating: 10 out of 10

Incentivized

November 4, 2024

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I work with a number of small and large clients. For some of my clients, I have to track all revenue and expenses based on the source contract. The projects option works best for this. However, would be good to have a Project income statement that would compare all projects against each other and will have a column with unallocated values as well.

Pros

payroll
project tracking
expenses allocation by hours/amounts/precents

Cons

projects income statemens

Likelihood to Recommend

Sage Accounting works great for both small and large companies

Verified User

General Manager in Finance and Accounting (1-10 employees)

Vetted Review

8 years of experience

Sage Accounting - Great for Charities or Non-Profits

Rating: 10 out of 10

October 31, 2024

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Sage Accounting allows our staff and volunteers to work anywhere and provides all the critical functions of charity financial management. It has revolutionized our ability to work with our accountants, submit our tax returns, and provide clear, legible accounts to funders, stakeholders, and trustees. Moving to Sage was easy; two years later, we wouldn't move back!

Pros

The system is accessible to all at different permission levels.
The system is user friendly and allows for quick changes on the fly
The cloud accounting allows for the product to be used on the move, with access granted to those who need it.

Cons

Links for charity accounting and support
Easier to access bank connection information.
SSO with other accounts in central portal to bridge, accounting, payroll and HR.
Being able to place card transaction fees with customers.

Likelihood to Recommend

Sage Accounting has allowed our organization to work fluidly with our accountants and auditors. Linking our online card payment with Stripe has allowed us to take payments quickly. Being able to send invoices and quotes centrally has allowed our teams to work more collaboratively to solve customer issues and improve cash flow.

Steven Badger

Trustee Director in Information Technology at Broomley Grange (11-50 employees)

Vetted Review

2 years of experience

Verified on LinkedIn

The system is extremely safe and makes use of most of the security tools used in banking and other high security software. It links quickly to bank account ledgers, enabling real-time updates on cash and capital flow.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Incentivized

October 26, 2024

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

I would say that my experience with Pastel was bitter/sweet. If I wasn't under so much pressure to perform at the time maybe I could've been good at it eventually. Pastel's team is extremely responsive. Our clients jumped on Pastel immediately when we sent them the tool. No downloads, no installations. Other tools confused our clients with trying to download and install the program. You just jump on Pastel and start clicking - and it starts working. Saves our team probably hundreds of hours of work per month! Pros:I spent weeks looking for the easiest tool that my clients can use to get feedback. Our clients are often in their 50s and 60s, and not super tech savvy. Plus, our clients our business owners, so they have limited time. Ease of use was top priority. After looking at over 10 other options, Pastel was clearly the most simple and easy to use. It is a widespread software in South Africa, it is sold in almost all consumer electronics stores nationwide and it is the most preferred method when it comes to Human Resources, on that front it stands out from most of its competitors. Cons:The features are pretty limited, but this can be a good thing because we don't want our clients to get overwhelmed. I think a couple extra features such as marking tasks "In Progress" as well as allowing our clients to see that edits are "In Progress" would be a huge benefit. Clients get confused on which tasks were done and which are still being worked on, so that leads to a lot of confusion right now.

Pros

Ease of use was top priority. Pastel was clearly the most simple and easy to use.
Pastel is a great tool, it well designed, and has a beautiful minimal UI.

Cons

I hated the user interface! I was freestyling my way through the software, and that wasn't very conducive.
The Pastel package is difficult to use for the users without accounting knowledge.

Likelihood to Recommend

Pastel also helps users to save time when it comes to bank and supplier reconciliations. Capturing into pastel is also easy. The merit of pastel is that it is very efficient and simplifies most of the financial accounting and human resource management tasks. I have discovered that some long batches (more than 2000), if posted during peak hours, tend to fail during posting and resume later, but at this point, doubling, trebling, or even quadrupling transactions.

Antoinette Swanepoel

Payroll Manager in Human Resources at TSS (1001-5000 employees)

Vetted Review

2 years of experience

View profile

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The system is extremely safe and makes use of most of the security tools used in banking and other high security software. It links quickly to bank account ledgers, enabling real-time updates on cash and capital flow.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Incentivized

October 26, 2024

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Pros

Ease of use was top priority. Pastel was clearly the most simple and easy to use.
Pastel is a great tool, it well designed, and has a beautiful minimal UI.

Cons

I hated the user interface! I was freestyling my way through the software, and that wasn't very conducive.
The Pastel package is difficult to use for the users without accounting knowledge.

Likelihood to Recommend

Antoinette Swanepoel

Payroll Manager in Human Resources at TSS (1001-5000 employees)

Vetted Review

2 years of experience

View profile