QuickBooks vs Sage Intacct
QuickBooks
All types of businesses, from the self-employed to small and growing companies, plus accountants (QuickBooks Online Accountant)
Part of Intuit, headquartered in Mountain View, California; founding year not published
Sage Intacct
Growing organisations (typically 20+ employees) and mid-sized companies, with editions for industries including nonprofits, SaaS, construction, healthcare and professional services
San Jose, California (Intacct's base when Sage bought it in 2017); founding year not published
QuickBooks and Sage Intacct both sell cloud accounting software with financial reporting.
QuickBooks, part of Intuit, is used by 10 million businesses, from the self-employed to small and growing companies; Sage Intacct, owned by The Sage Group since 2017, is cloud financial management with multi-entity consolidation, used by 30,000+ finance teams at growing and mid-sized organisations.
QuickBooks vs Sage Intacct: side by side
“Not published” means the vendor does not state it.
| What it does | Cloud-based accounting software covering bookkeeping, invoicing, payments, payroll and reporting, with a desktop edition (QuickBooks Desktop) | Cloud financial management: core accounting, multi-entity consolidation, reporting and dashboards, with AI agents for close, AP automation and journal-entry review; HR, payroll and planning modules |
|---|---|---|
| Best for | All types of businesses, from the self-employed to small and growing companies, plus accountants (QuickBooks Online Accountant) | Growing organisations (typically 20+ employees) and mid-sized companies, with editions for industries including nonprofits, SaaS, construction, healthcare and professional services |
| Founded and HQ | Part of Intuit, headquartered in Mountain View, California; founding year not published | San Jose, California (Intacct's base when Sage bought it in 2017); founding year not published |
| Ownership and funding | Part of Intuit Inc. (INTU); Chair and CEO Sasan Goodarzi | Owned by The Sage Group plc, listed on the London Stock Exchange; Sage agreed to buy Intacct for US$850m in 2017 |
| Customers or users | 10 million businesses worldwide | 30,000+ finance teams |
| Pricing | US list prices: free plan; Simple Start US$38 a month, Essentials US$85, Plus US$140, Advanced US$340 | Not published; quoted by modules and organisation size |
| Deployment and markets | Cloud (QuickBooks Online) and desktop (QuickBooks Desktop); local sites for the US, Canada, UK, Ireland, Australia, South Africa, Singapore and 11 other countries and regions | Cloud; available in the US, Canada, the UK, Australia and South Africa |
Main differences
QuickBooks serves the self-employed and small and growing businesses; Sage Intacct is for growing organisations, typically with 20+ employees, and mid-sized companies.
Sage Intacct centres on core accounting, multi-entity consolidation and reporting, with AI agents for the close and AP; QuickBooks covers bookkeeping, invoicing, payments, payroll and reporting.
QuickBooks publishes US prices from a free plan to US$340 a month; Sage Intacct quotes by modules and organisation size.
QuickBooks has local sites for the US, Canada, the UK, Ireland, Australia and other countries; Sage Intacct is available in the US, Canada, the UK, Australia and South Africa.
QuickBooks is part of Intuit; Sage Intacct is part of The Sage Group, listed on the London Stock Exchange.
Which to choose
Choose QuickBooks if
- You are self-employed or a small business and want published prices, with payroll and payments in one product
Choose Sage Intacct if
- You run several entities and need consolidation, an industry edition or AI agents for the close
Compare further
Common questions
What is the difference between QuickBooks and Sage Intacct?+
QuickBooks is cloud accounting software covering bookkeeping, invoicing, payments, payroll and reporting, with a desktop edition. Sage Intacct is cloud financial management covering core accounting, multi-entity consolidation, reporting and dashboards, with AI agents for the close, AP automation and journal-entry review, plus HR, payroll and planning modules.
How much do QuickBooks and Sage Intacct cost?+
QuickBooks' US list prices are a free plan, then Simple Start at US$38 a month, Essentials at US$85, Plus at US$140 and Advanced at US$340. Sage Intacct does not publish prices: each plan is quoted by the modules chosen and the size of the organisation.
Who are QuickBooks and Sage Intacct for?+
QuickBooks is for all types of businesses, from the self-employed to small and growing companies, and has an edition for accountants. Sage Intacct is for growing organisations, typically with 20+ employees, and mid-sized companies, with editions for nonprofits, SaaS, construction, healthcare and professional services.
Part of Accountio’s accounting technology coverage.
