Accountancy Packages anybody recommand?

micromary

I am looking to try out and use an accountancy package for my new business. It will be mainly for payroll. I have heard re Xero & Sage. Would does anybody recommend and are using at the moment?

micromary

Forgot to add to that. My local accountant advised me that she only knows re Sage and won't touch packages like Xero or Tasbooks so I would be interested in hearing various peoples opinions.

Also I am a BoI customer. I have heard that you can't use packages like Xero with BoI. Is that correct?

capefear

I would recommend sage line 50 instant accounts. Very easy to use and only costs 156+vat to buy. Xero is good but you pay a monthly fee.

I have used xero in the past and found it to be good, but I went back to Sage mainly as I found Xero to be a waste of money for me, others will find it was a benefit to their business.

Sage is linked to one computer and if I ever need to access it from another computer I use logme in.

Sage is widely used and at the end of the year your accountant can import your information by using the accountants link.

make a list of what you want from your accounts package, when and were you intend to use it, how many people will use it, do you need stock features, muti currency etc and it will give you a better idea of what system you need.

HTH

bucks

I use Quickbooks for my accounts and Collsoft for payroll, both very user friendly and recommended by my accountant.

Your decision will likely be based on what your accountant uses.

Paddy001

I would recommend Sage commercial for a startup, if it grows you could move to Sage 50. Sage commercial would be much more user friendly than Sage 50 for you to start keeping accounts. I would also recommend Sage Micropay for running payroll, it is very good software. I am not associated with Sage, but work as an accountant, most of our clients use Sage and it is generally a very good package. Sage 50 can be frustrating at times. If you need any advice, PM me.

smeharg

I know everyone means well, but it's impossible to recommend accounts and payroll packages without knowing the nature of the business, expected level of activity, number of employees - at least. I would imagine that some of the suggestions would be overkill for a start-up.

OP if your accountant is only willing to use Sage you'd need to check which version s/he prefers. I can't believe that an accoutant these days won't entertain an online solution. That's the best option in my opinion. There are plenty to choose from and most offer a free trial.

micromary

Thanks for all your advise. I am going to visit her later on today and go through what package she is using. I will be using the package for expenses and for payroll. At the moment I have 5 part-time staff so a start up Sage package probably sounds the best option.

Herbalist

In terms of Sage packages Sage Commercial does not upgrade directly to Sage 50 i.e. there is no direct upgrade path that will bring all of your data over.

The entry level accounts package in this suite of products would be Sage Instant Accounts (it will do all the basics including invoicing, statements, VAT, bank reconciliation, income & expenditure and management reports such as Profit & Loss and Balance Sheet). Sage Instant Accounts can be upgraded easily to the Sage 50 range if you required more functionality (such as Foreign Trader or project Costing over time).

Sage Commercial, Sage Instant Accounts and Sage 50 are all accounts packages which do not contain payroll functionality (but Instant Accounts and Sage 50 can be linked to Micropay).

In terms of payroll, with Sage you would be looking at either Sage Micropay (a desktop product) or Sage One Payroll (a cloud based product). You can sign up for a free 30 day trial of either product so this could be a good idea as it will allow you to have a go and see if the software will meet your needs.

I am connected to the company.

In terms of choosing a payroll product in general I would suggest to consider:

- How many companies do you need to process payroll for? Ensure when getting quotes that you are quoted for the number of companies you need.

- How many employees (including starters, leavers and seasonal staff) do you need to process payroll for? pricing for payroll packages is often done in bands of employee numbers. Some packages may have upper limits.

- Would you prefer a desktop product that is installed on one machine where you back up your own data or would you prefer a cloud / online solution where you can access from any machine and through mobile devices?

- Do you want to pay up front or would you prefer to pay by month? Does your potential supplier offer payment options?

- What level of analysis do you need for the payroll e.g. do you need to process payroll by department or cost centre or both?

- Do you want to print or email payslips? (or both?) Ensure that the packages you consider can facilitate this.

-Have you used any packages before and how did you find them? (is this something you would like to use again or avoid)

- Is there any specific legislation that affects your company and that you therfore need to be compliant with? (for example Construction Workers Pension Scheme). Ensure any potential package is compliant with the legislation.