Accounting Start
Quoting, invoicing and banking for one user. Price includes VAT.
R240/mo
per month
- Create invoices in seconds
- Track what you are owed
- Automatic bank feeds
- Work from anywhere on the mobile app
Sage Accounting vs Sage 50cloud Pastel
Verified ratings, feature-by-feature comparison and rand pricing — everything a South African business needs to pick between these two.
Sage Accounting
Online accounting that thousands of South African small businesses run on every day
4,1(296)
Sage 50cloud Pastel
The desktop accounting standard South African firms grew up on, now with cloud connected features
4,2(274)
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Ratings
Every score, at a glance
Verified user ratings across every dimension — Sage Accounting against Sage 50cloud Pastel, nothing weighted.
Dimensions won
0 – 3
Sage Accounting vs Sage 50cloud Pastel, across 5 rating dimensions
Widest rating gap
+0,2
Sage 50cloud Pastel leads on value for money
Verified reviews
570
296 for Sage Accounting, 274 for Sage 50cloud Pastel
Sage Accounting
4,1
296 verified reviews
Sage 50cloud Pastel
4,2
274 verified reviews
Ratings by dimension
- Sage Accounting
- Sage 50cloud Pastel
Overall
4,1
4,2
Ease of use
4,1
4,1
Value for money
4,0
4,2
Customer service
4,0
4,1
Functionality
4,1
4,1
Share of verified reviews
Who South African reviewers actually write about.
- Sage Accounting (296)
- Sage 50cloud Pastel (274)
Cost to get started
Cheapest paid plan, shown per month.
Sage Accounting
R240/mo
Sage 50cloud Pastel
R1 375/mo
Sage Accounting is the cheaper way in. Lower isn't automatically better — weigh it against the ratings above.
Head to head
Where each one wins
Row by row, with the stronger score highlighted. Straight from verified reviews.
| Sage Accounting | Sage 50cloud Pastel | |
|---|---|---|
| Overall rating | 4,1 | 4,2 |
| Reviews | 296 | 274 |
| Ease of use | 4,1 | 4,1 |
| Value for money | 4,0 | 4,2 |
| Customer service | 4,0 | 4,1 |
| Functionality | 4,1 | 4,1 |
| Starting price | R240/mo | R1 375/mo |
| Free trial | Yes | No |
Features
Feature by feature, checked off
Everything each product ships, side by side. No marketing gloss.
| Feature | Sage Accounting | Sage 50cloud Pastel |
|---|---|---|
| Quotes and invoicing | ||
| Automatic bank feeds and reconciliation | ||
| VAT return preparation at the standard 15% rate | ||
| Supplier bills and purchase orders | ||
| Inventory tracking | ||
| Financial and management reports | ||
| Foreign currency invoicing (additional module) | ||
| Mobile app for iOS and Android | ||
| Accountant access | ||
| Receipt capture with AutoEntry | ||
| General ledger and cash book | ||
| Customer and supplier processing | ||
| VAT reporting at the standard 15% rate | ||
| Inventory control | ||
| Automatic bank reconciliation and bank feeds | ||
| Multiple companies on Core and Plus | ||
| Point of sale module | ||
| Serial number tracking module | ||
| Sage Intelligence reporting module | ||
| Debtors Manager module |
Pricing
Both price lists, in rand
Every plan from both vendors, priced as South African teams actually pay.
Sage Accounting plans
Try it free
Accounting Standard
Full bookkeeping with VAT returns. Two users and one company included, price includes VAT.
R435/mo
per month
- Everything in Start
- VAT return calculations for SARS eFiling
- Automatic bank reconciliation
- Up to 5 users (extra users R75 per month)
- Receipt capture with AutoEntry
Straight from the vendor
Get current pricing
These are list prices in rand and vendors adjust them from time to time. Check with Sage for the figure you'll actually pay.
Sage 50cloud Pastel plans
Start
Two users and two companies. R16,500 when billed annually.
R1 375/mo
per month
- General ledger and cash book
- Invoicing and statements
- VAT compliance at 15%
- Automatic bank reconciliation
- Inventory tracking
Core
Four users and four companies. R22,980 when billed annually.
R1 915/mo
per month
- Everything in Start
- Access to additional modules
- Option to add more users
- Separation of duties for finance teams
Plus
Five users and five companies. R32,580 when billed annually.
R2 715/mo
per month
- Everything in Core
- Built for multiple companies and branches
- Full module catalogue access
Straight from the vendor
Get current pricing
These are list prices in rand and vendors adjust them from time to time. Check with Sage for the figure you'll actually pay.
Verdict
Our verdict
Sage against Sage: cloud convenience versus desktop muscle. Sage Accounting wins on price, bank feeds, anywhere access and zero maintenance, and it is where Sage points new small businesses. Sage 50cloud Pastel wins on processing speed, deep stock, multi company work and the enormous base of bookkeepers trained on it. Simple books go cloud; established accounts departments with volume stay on Pastel until the cloud version catches up on depth.