Xero vs Sage: A Samera Review

5 Differentiators to Help Choose the Best Accounting Software for Your Healthcare Business

Whether you own a dental practice or run a pharmacy chain at different locations across the United Kingdom, finding an effective, organised, and user-friendly software for handling your healthcare business’s accounting and bookkeeping is essential. But before we get to that, how do you decide which software should you use? Market-leading accounting software options in the UK for the different target markets include Sage and Xero. Sage spans a wider range of business sizes, from small businesses to SMBs and medium-sized businesses, whereas Xero is mostly utilized by smaller enterprises and the self-employed.

Typically, most healthcare businesses strive to be economical and comprehend the relationship between financial outcomes and business effectiveness. Both call on business owners to pick an appropriate accounting program—a decision of make-or-break proportions. Because of this, you must ensure that your accounting software satisfies both your practice’s demands and, more crucially, fits in your budget.

In this article, we are going to be comparing Sage and Xero factor for factor, looking at their applications, costs, features, and more. With this comparative insight, you will be all set to determine which accounting program is ideal for your business.

Sage vs Xero – A Comparative Overview

Xero is a one-stop software for accounting designed specifically for new enterprises and a younger population of entrepreneurs and company owners. With over 3.5 million members worldwide, it has been a market leader for more than 15 years.

Coming to Sage, it is numbered among the top players providing integrated software for accounting, payroll services, and payment systems. With a legacy of over 3 decades, Sage operates in more than 20 nations today and has a particularly strong presence in UK’s small businesses. What’s more, it is estimated to have nearly 6 million subscribers worldwide.

5 Determinants to Simplify the “Xero or Sage” Decision

Pricing

How plans are priced for each software and understanding the way it aligns with the stage of your business is an important factor in determining which software you should employ for your business.

Xero: The ‘Starter’ plan, which is the least expensive and most basic of the three price plans offered by Xero, is among the most affordable accounting software solutions available. This allows up to 20 invoices/quotes and 5 bill payments each month and is intended for freelancers, single proprietors, and entrepreneurs. If you pay a little bit extra each month for the “Standard” plan, these restrictions are removed. Paying for the “Premium” plan will provide you access to all services, including accounting in several currencies.

Sage: Sage provides an excellent 3 months for free on all of its plans (at the time of writing), allowing you to test out its products without having to pay a monthly membership fee. After that, the prices for its plans range from £12 to £30, which is roughly equivalent to Xero, but a touch more expensive for freelancers and self-employed looking for a basic plan. However, the entry-level Sage Business Cloud Accounting Start software is designed for small enterprises that require assistance managing their cash flow. It could be a more inexpensive option than Xero’s more economical options.

Integration

A new accounting tool’s ability to integrate with your company’s bank accounts seamlessly, securely, and automatically is one of the most crucial features to look for. This entails that your financial transactions will sync up with the program without a hitch and update often so you can always keep an eye on your cash flow.

Xero: All you need to do is just connect to your bank once initially, and there are no manual uploads required because Xero’s bank feeds are safe, encrypted, and updated automatically. The data will automatically update each business day after the initial connection is made. When you begin using Xero, you would be able to import transactions for up to 12 months and set up feeds from as many different bank accounts as you like.

Sage: Transaction feeds are automatically imported once each day into Sage Accounting via a secure web connection that Sage provides. This implies that there is no need for manual entry or uploads. Multiple feeds for bank, credit card, and even PayPal accounts can be set up. There are two ways to set up bank feeds with Sage: one is to set up a direct connection with your bank, provided that it is on Sage’s list of supported banks. This excludes prior transactions and may take up to ten business days. The other, which should be a bit quicker, is to go by means of the FCA-approved third party Sage employs to connect banks to its software.

Reporting

A crucial component of any accounting software is reporting. You must be able to keep track of the financial activities within your company and compile a wealth of data into a report that is both thorough and understandable.

Xero: You may pick from 55 various reports that Xero gives. The project management features of Xero allow you to send personalized invoices to your clients, estimate and bid on work that you are attempting to land, and track the profit margins of your numerous projects all from the same central dashboard. Additionally, you may use a clever categorization option to classify all of your new transactions. To keep this confidential, all tracking is protected and encrypted and receives regular security upgrades.

Sage: Sage gives you access to more than 165 different reports. You may have access to these reports whenever you want while using Sage 50 from any device. For each project, you can keep track of all costs and income, giving you a totally customizable project accounting experience. Transactions are imported once daily into Sage, and there is no automated classification. There is no need for manual entry, like Xero. Additionally, you may set up various feeds for your company’s PayPal accounts, bank accounts, and credit card accounts.

Accessibility

Any new software you employ in your company must be simple to use. You want to have access to an accounting software that will not need you to spend a lot of time learning it. It ought to be simple, clear, and comprehensive.

Xero: Easy-to-read information on bank accounts, cash flow representation, outstanding invoices, and unpaid debts are available in Xero’s user dashboard. A straightforward menu at the top of the UI offers options for the Dashboard, Business, Accounting, Payroll, Projects, and Accounting. It is tidy, open, and simple to use.

Sage: The dashboard for Sage likewise features an open design and graphs that provide most of the data you would need to access on a regular basis. In general, business owners prefer Xero because it is intuitive. Sage tends to be a bit challenging to use for non-accounting professionals since simple requests can be challenging to perform and the user interfaces can seem complex. Since they are accustomed to accessing Sage products, accounting professionals such as accountants, CAs, and CFAs tend to be more inclined towards them.

Customer Support

You want to be sure that you can receive assistance if something goes wrong with something as important as your accounting software. Due to this, selecting an accounting software requires careful consideration of timely, high-quality client support.

Xero: When you contact Xero customer care, they instruct you to go through its database of articles for a solution to your issue. You can email the support team to raise a case if you cannot find an acceptable response. Both direct phone access and live chat help are unavailable.

Sage: Sage has a mixed track record when it comes to customer care; some customers deem it good, while others complain of the lengthy wait periods for tech assistance. For customer service inquiries, Sage provides the Sage Intacct Support system and a peer community. Support is available Monday through Friday, around the clock where only customers and partners have access to customer support phone numbers.

Conclusion

When evaluating accounting software, there are several factors to consider outside just the price. Finding the features and functionalities that will simplify your work and improve the efficiency of your business is crucial, along with finding the best deal. Although choosing among them might be challenging, this guide will provide you with enough information to take an informed call.

Both Xero and Sage are recognized for offering software for startups, small enterprises, and sole proprietors. It is also important to be definitive with your decision since it is difficult and time-consuming to update and move all of your accounting information to a different software once you have implemented an accounting software. Because it is less expensive and provides ease of access to cash flow figures, Xero is best for small firms with little accounting experience. Sage, on the other hand, is best for larger, more established organizations of all sizes. All that is left to do is consider your unique company requirements and contrast them with the many differentiators we have outlined throughout this essay. Only then will you be able to comprehend what these platforms do, how much they cost, and how to use them to your advantage.