QuickBooks Online vs Sage
Accounting pricing comparison · 2026
QuickBooks Online has a free plan, then $20–$275/mo, while Sage is quote-based.
QuickBooks Online
As of August 2026, QuickBooks Online costs $38/month for Simple Start, $75/month for Essen
verified 10w ago
$900
$1.3K
Sage
Sage offers multiple pricing tiers for small business accounting.
verified today
$900
$1.3K
Recorded annual contract medians
QuickBooks
median is
$402
less than
Sage
· different customer contracts; not a quote
Cheapest
$900
Spread
31%
Estimated license cost
at 25 seats
List price × seats. Click a tier below to lock it.
Simple Start
$456/yr
year 1 license · flat plan price
Pricing model unknown
Pricing model unknown
no public list price found
What buyers actually pay
median, annual
Vendr deal-flow data. The real benchmark, not list price.
↓ Lowest median
Median annual
$900/yr
Vendr · n=309
Median annual
$1.3K/yr
Vendr · n=4 · limited data
REF · 01
Sources & confidence
Every dollar amount and contract clause below traces back to a sourced fact. We don't manufacture composite scores.
Where this data comes from
Vendr · TrustRadius · Reddit · BBB · official docs
Sources
7 sourced facts
4 hidden-cost · 1 contract · Vendr median · 1 review platform
Last verified
2mo ago
Confidence
High confidence
Sources
20 sourced facts
13 hidden-cost · 4 contract · Vendr median · 2 review platforms
Last verified
today
Confidence
Medium confidence
REF · 02
Plans at a glance
Every tier per product. Lock one to drive the cost row above and reveal a tier-specific outbound CTA.
Tier ladder
Click a tier to lock the cost row to it. Locking surfaces a tier-specific Visit CTA.
REF · 04
Contract terms
The fine print, surfaced. Green = buyer-friendly. Each clause backed by a quoted source.
QuickBooks
Sage
Auto-renewal
Yes
Yes
Cancellation
✓
Cancel anytime; charges for current billing month are non-refundable
Must call billing team by phone; not available online or via chat. Average hold time reported at 45+ minutes.
Commitment
✓
Monthly commitment only — no annual option available
Annual (based on user reports of continued billing after cancellation attempts)
Price escalation
Annual increases of ~11-17% each summer. No grandfathering — all existing subscriptions move to new pricing.
Users report 20–50% annual price increases with minimal notice. One user documented a near-50% increase in a single year (£74.40/mo to £108/mo). Front-line agents reportedly offer at most 10% concessions; escalating to billing or threatening to leave yields larger reductions.
Can downgrade
✓
Yes
No
REF · 05
What users say
Aggregated, with sample sizes. We use whichever review platform has data.
User reviews
TrustRadius · Trustpilot · G2
Decide
Get a quote from each vendor
Each link opens the vendor's pricing page in a new tab.
License cost is computed from publicly listed plans (real math, list price × seats).
Median annual cost is from Vendr's deal flow when available — see source badges.
Hidden costs and contract terms each cite their own sources. We do not invent composite scores.
VS
Plan-by-Plan Pricing
| Plan | QuickBooks Online | Sage |
|---|---|---|
| Free | Free /month | Custom |
| Solopreneur | $20 /month | — |
| Simple Start | $38 /month | — |
| Essentials | $75 /month | — |
| Plus | $115 /month | — |
| Advanced | $275 /month | — |
Cost at Scale
Total cost of ownership — licenses, implementation, and hidden costs included.
QuickBooks Online
4 scenarios$38/month
Freelancer / Solo Consultant
for Simple Start ($456/year)
$175
Small Service Business with 3 Employees
$205/month
$115/month
Product Business with Inventory (5 users)
for Plus ($1,380/year)
Sage
2 scenarios$1,202
US Small Business — Sage 50 Annual Renewal
$1,302/year (base after removing unwanted add-ons); initial renewal quotes may reach $1,650–$1,695 with bundled extras
£70–£108/month (£840–£1,296/year), with reported starting prices of £20/month that have escalated over 6 years
UK One-Person Limited Company — Cloud Payroll & Accounting
Market Intelligence
QuickBooks Online
- Median annual cost
- $900
- Based on
- 309 deals
Sage
- Median annual cost
- $1,302
- Based on
- 4 deals
Contract Terms
| Term | QuickBooks Online | Sage |
|---|---|---|
| Auto-renewal | Yes | Yes |
| Cancellation | Cancel anytime; charges for current billing month are non-refundable | Must call billing team by phone; not available online or via chat. Average hold time reported at 45+ minutes. |
| Minimum commitment | Monthly commitment only — no annual option available | Annual (based on user reports of continued billing after cancellation attempts) |
| Price escalation | Annual increases of ~11-17% each summer. No grandfathering — all existing subscriptions move to new pricing. | Users report 20–50% annual price increases with minimal notice. One user documented a near-50% increase in a single year (£74.40/mo to £108/mo). Front-line agents reportedly offer at most 10% concessions; escalating to billing or threatening to leave yields larger reductions. |
| Can downgrade | Yes | No |