Review by Brent Butler

Most people know that Sage 50 in its various incarnations is the evolution of the old Peachtree. For a very long time, either Peachtree or QuickBooks was the choice for small business, and that’s still the case.

I’m assuming that most people already using software of this type are likely very capable of deciding on accounting software features, so I’m going to position this review as general advice for you folks who’ve been running your business out of a checkbook and a spreadsheet and not much else.

Under the latest feature packages and user licensing, QuickBooks lighter licenses are probably the choice for very small businesses. Sage 50 is great accounting software, but in the long run will cost you a lot more. You’ll get value for that expense, but you’ll want to make sure that what you’re getting are actually features, users and so forth that you really need to spend the money on.

If you haven’t been using a software package for small business accounting, you’ll need to be prepared to learn some accounting principles and put them into action. You’ll need to familiarize yourself with things like a Chart of Accounts for your General Ledger, tying all of your business transactions to these G/L Accounts, and for the most part positioning the way you do business to fit the way this accounting software will allow you to do things. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. Many small business have informal ways of handling money and tracking their records that don’t stand up well under audit. If you conform to these accounting packages’ methods and adhere to using them, you’ll do a better job of managing your money, and you’ll be prepared anytime you are required to show a proper audit trail.

In our software and consulting business, we see a LOT of different types of businesses of all sizes that use either Sage or QuickBooks and don’t have any trouble at all fitting their various product and financial eccentricities into the strictures of the software. And if the companies I’ve seen do well with it are able to do that, odds are that anyone really can. LOLnnBear in mind that there is no guarantee that just because you have accounting software of this type, you are going to be able to do stand-alone accounting. Most of the medium to large businesses I know which use software like this also use accounting consultants to help set-up and double check things, and also use CPAs for anything from monthly to yearly audits.

I’m not going to go over the features of this software in detail, because they are listed above in a well organized format. Basically once you start using software like this you’re going to be more organized about how you track your customers, your inventory, your A/R and A/P, and you’re going to have a wide range of reports to see all kinds of interesting, useful, and sometimes scary trends in what happens to your money.

It’s a plunge that every business needs to take sooner or later. Once you do, I wouldn’t make the decision on whether to use the particular package just from the information and reviews here. Talk to some other business owners with approximately your size and line of business. Ask what they use … how it works for them … what it makes easier … what it makes less convenient. Use that as the starting ground for your research. Then go to these companies web sites and carefully consider their various license levels for features and users. Make sure you match both your current needs and anything you may need to step up to in the short to mid-term. If your business is growing or rapidly evolves to meet changing market conditions, it’s a mistake to choose an accounting package based solely on today’s needs.

The important thing to remember, as I mentioned above, is that you have a lot of work ahead of you once you take this step, so make sure to allow time for that and fully commit to getting it done. Spending a lot of money on your accounting package is merely a waste if you get too busy or too intimidated to convert your routine to using it.