QuickBooks Online vs Sage Business Cloud: Full Comparison (2026)
Quick Answer
QBO dominates US small business accounting. Sage is stronger for mid-market (Sage Intacct) and has better UK/EU presence. QBO for SMBs that want ecosystem and ease. Sage for businesses outgrowing QBO or needing multi-entity consolidation via Sage Intacct.
QuickBooks Online vs Sage Business Cloud at a Glance
| Dimension | QuickBooks Online | Sage Business Cloud | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ease Of Use | 7.5/10 | 6.5/10 | QuickBooks Online |
| Features | 8.5/10 | 8.0/10 | QuickBooks Online |
| Overall | 7.5/10 | 7.0/10 | QuickBooks Online |
| Pricing | 6.5/10 | 6.0/10 | QuickBooks Online |
Pricing Comparison
| Plan | QuickBooks Online | Sage Business Cloud |
|---|---|---|
| Simple Start / Sage Intacct | $30/monthly | $Custom/quote |
| Essentials / Accounting Start | $60/monthly | $15/monthly |
| Plus / Sage 50 (Accounting) | $90/monthly | $49/monthly |
| Advanced | $200/monthly |
Feature Comparison
| Feature | QuickBooks Online | Sage Business Cloud |
|---|---|---|
| Receipt scanning | Yes | No |
| Audit trail | Yes | Yes |
| Tax preparation | Yes | Yes |
| Accountant access | Yes | Yes |
| Bank reconciliation | Yes | Yes |
| Bill pay | Yes | Yes |
| Double-entry accounting | Yes | Yes |
| Expense tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Inventory tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Invoicing | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile app | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-currency | Yes | Yes |
| Multi-entity | Yes | Yes |
| Role-based permissions | Yes | Yes |
| Time tracking | Yes | No |
| API access | Yes | Yes |
| Bank feeds | Yes | Yes |
| Payroll integration | Yes | Yes |
| Budgeting | Yes | Yes |
| Custom reports | Yes | Yes |
| Financial reports (P&L, Balance Sheet, Cash Flow) | Yes | Yes |
| Project profitability | Yes | Yes |
Ease Of Use: QuickBooks Online vs Sage Business Cloud
QBO's UI is more modern. Sage's cloud products are improving but still feel a generation behind. Sage 50 (desktop) shows its age.
Features: QuickBooks Online vs Sage Business Cloud
QBO has a deeper SMB feature set and integration ecosystem. Sage Intacct crushes QBO on mid-market features — multi-entity, consolidations, dimensional reporting, revenue recognition. Different markets.
Overall: QuickBooks Online vs Sage Business Cloud
QBO wins for SMBs. Sage wins for mid-market. It's a market segmentation question more than a product quality question.
Pricing: QuickBooks Online vs Sage Business Cloud
QBO Simple Start ($30/mo) vs Sage Accounting Start ($15/mo) — Sage is cheaper. But Sage Intacct (quote-based, typically $15K-$50K/yr) is enterprise pricing. Apples-to-apples on the SMB products, Sage is cheaper.
Our Recommendation
QuickBooks Online for US small businesses under $10M revenue. Sage for mid-market businesses that need multi-entity, consolidations, and advanced financial reporting via Sage Intacct. The cloud version of Sage Accounting ($15/mo) is competitive with QBO but has a smaller ecosystem.