Sage Accounting

Avantages

It is relatively intuitive for people with only a basic knowledge of business accounting. It allows easy manipulation of accounting data and you are able to provide periodical reports which means you always know the state of your companies finances. It can be accessed from anywhere and at any time and allows you to restrict certain users to particular areas. You are able to give your accountant a direct log in to your accounts which makes annual tax accounting very quick and simple.
Sage One can be tied to your bank accounts so that all items that pass through your accounts can be automatically uploaded into sage saving lots of time on entering data.
VAT filing and reports can be done instantly and sent directly to HMRC.
Can also be used directly with Sage Payroll meaning all information from payroll is automatically added to Sage One accounts.

Inconvénients

If you're internet connection is weak this can slow things down a bit though on the whole it is a very stable and trustworthy platform.
The only thing I find a little bit weak is the inability to create direct backups of your accounts either your computer desktop or external drives. The only method of backing up the information is to print reports of all ledgers, invoices, receipts and audit trail. This means you will always have the information but in the event of a catastrophic failure it would be highly time consuming to re-input all the details. There would be no obvious method of doing this.

Avantages

The fact that Sage One is cloud based, is probably the best feature. No more endless backups and annoying updates to perform. Everything is taken care of and the support team are amazing. It's also simple to grant access to your Accountant, who can then do whatever that need to when it's your year end etc.

A very clear interface provides an overview of your current situation and makes it easy for you to do your everyday tasks like entering and raising invoices, or checking who owes you money. You can easily produces account statements and everything can be emailed straight to your customers, so far less physical paperwork.

Inconvénients

The Invoicing template choices are limited, but with a bit of creativity, you can definitely make something you can work with. The thing that needs the most attention is the method by which invoices and statements are emailed out. they appear to be from the email address you give the system, but are sent by Sage. Consequently, some clients weren't receiving their emails. We just turn any invoices into PDF's and email them ourselves. No big deal as we are still paperless, but it would be nice if we didn't have to. hopefully something that will be addressed on a future update.

Avantages

The fact that this is online and can be accessed from any device is a real pleasure. It means as a sole trader that I can enter receipts while I'm on the go or at home when I have a spare few minutes. I know sage was late to the party for online accounting systems but they have managed to make a simple system and one that starts cheaper than the competitors.

The second main feature for me was the ability to automatically connect to my bank accounts and match my transactions as this saves no end of time and is all included in the monthly price.

They also have a feature which allows you download your transaction in a CSV file as well, if you wanted to move them to another system.

Inconvénients

It's not as customisable as the desktop version was but once you get over that hurdle and change your way of thinking and acting then you realise they had a reason for making it so simple.

Avantages

User-friendly interface. Good dashboard view.
Collaboration with external agencies - HMRC, our accountant & book-keeper.
Functionality has increased alongside our needs as a growing business.
Cost-effective
Excellent customer support

Inconvénients

No trace-ability of emails sent - only a Yes or No view of whether emails (invoices) have been sent.
Cannot export XL data to our Pension portal (Big booooo for the Sageone!)
No auto-generation of a reference number for purchases like there is sales?! This causes us issues!!
Only 1 user allowed to access Payroll platform for our subscription

Avantages

I have been using Peachtree Complete Accounting for over 16 years. It has taken many years to learn because I was never trained on the software.

Inconvénients

My only issue with Peachtree Complete Accounting with Sage is the customer support. You have to wait hours to speak with someone if there is an issue especially if you call you have to just leave your name and number. During tax season it is impossible to reach someone. I once waited over 4-6 hours to get a response.