Sage 500

Sage 500, which is also known as Sage MAS 500, offers both on-premise and cloud-based deployment options.

Sage 500, which was previously known as MAS 500, and Sage 50 are both products in the Sage software family. The main differences between Sage 50 and Sage 500 are related to the size of businesses they serve, the complexity of their features and functionality, and their intended use cases. Here’s a detailed comparison:

1. Target Market
   • Sage 50
     • Formerly known as Peachtree, Sage 50 is designed for small businesses. It’s ideal for companies with basic accounting needs, such as managing cash flow, invoicing, payroll, and simple inventory. It’s often used by small to medium-sized businesses that do not require extensive ERP functionality.
   • Sage 500
     

     • Sage 500 is an enterprise resource planning (ERP) solution designed for medium to large businesses. In addition to accounting functionality, it also manages business processes like manufacturing, distribution, supply chain management, and advanced financial reporting.

2. Functionality
   • Sage 50
     • Sage 50 is primarily accounting software with additional features for managing customers, vendors, inventory, and employees. It provides standard accounting capabilities including accounts payable, accounts receivable, general ledger, and bank reconciliation. Some editions of Sage 50 offer slightly more advanced features like project tracking, departmental accounting, and job costing.

   • Sage 500

     • Sage 500 is a full-fledged ERP system with comprehensive functionality across multiple business areas, including manufacturing and production management, advanced inventory control, supply chain and distribution management. multi-company and multi-currency support, and business intelligence and advanced reporting. Sage 500 is a more robust system, built to handle complex and integrated operations for larger enterprises.

3. Customization and Integration
   • Sage 50
     • Sage 50 has much more limited customization options than Sage 500. It can integrate with some third-party applications but is not designed to support large-scale customizations or integrations.
   • Sage 500
     • Sage 500 is highly customizable and can be extensively integrated with other systems and applications. It’s an appealing solution for larger businesses that need solutions tailored to fit their unique processes and needs. Sage 500 supports a wide range of custom modules and configurations to fit specific operational requirements.
4. Deployment
   • Sage 50
     • Sage 50 is primarily available as on-premise software, but there are also some cloud-hosted options. Sage 50cloud allows additional cloud-based functionality like remote access, backups, and integrations with Microsoft 365.
   • Sage 500
     • Traditionally, Sage 500 is an on-premise ERP, but Sage also provides cloud-based deployment options through third-party hosting providers.
5. Pricing
   • Sage 50
     • Sage 50 offers subscription-based plans starting at a few hundred dollars per year. It is an affordable solution for small businesses with limited budgets.
   • Sage 500
     • Sage 500 is significantly more expensive than Sage 50 due to its more advanced functionality and features. It often requires substantial upfront costs, as well as ongoing costs for licensing, support, and implementation.
6. Scalability
   • Sage 50
     • Sage 50 is suitable for smaller businesses with more straightforward needs. While it offers some scalability, it’s generally not designed for high-growth or complex enterprises.
   • Sage 500
     • Sage 500 is built for larger businesses and can handle extensive growth in terms of users, transactions, and complexity. It’s much more scalable and suited for businesses that need a system capable of supporting significant operational complexity.

While Sage 50 is ideal for small businesses that need a straightforward accounting solution with basic features, Sage 500 is a perfect fit for medium to large businesses requiring a more complex and fully integrated ERP system to manage their operations.

Sage 300 (formerly MAS 500) and Sage 300 (formerly Accpac) are both enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems under the Sage family of software products. They serve slightly different markets and have key differences in functionality, deployment, and business use cases.

1. Target Market
   • Sage 300
     • Sage 300 is a perfect solution for small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) with more complex needs than basic accounting software can handle. It is widely used by companies that operate across multiple locations and need strong financial management, especially those with international operations due to its multi-currency and multi-language capabilities.
   • Sage 500
     • Sage 500 is designed for medium to large-sized businesses that require a fully integrated ERP system with extensive functionalities for managing manufacturing, distribution, supply chain, and more. It’s used by companies with more advanced operational and reporting requirements, particularly in manufacturing and distribution-heavy industries.
2. Core Functionality
   • Sage 300
     • Sage 300 primarily focuses on financial management but also offers additional modules for inventory, sales, purchasing, and project management. Its core strengths are in accounting, multi-company management, and multi-currency transactions. It is a highly flexible ERP system that is popular with businesses that operate in multiple regions or countries.
   • Sage 500
     • Sage 500 Offers more advanced manufacturing, distribution, and supply chain management capabilities in addition to its financial management functions. Its ERP capabilities include production scheduling, materials requirements planning (MRP), warehouse management, advanced reporting, and business intelligence. This makes it better suited for companies with heavy operational complexity.
3. Deployment
   • Sage 300
     • Sage 300 is available as both on-premise software and cloud-hosted through third-party providers. It’s flexible in terms of deployment, allowing businesses to choose the option that best fits their infrastructure.
   • Sage 500
     • While Sage 500 is traditionally an on-premise solution, it can be hosted on the cloud through third-party cloud providers. However, it is not designed to be a cloud-native solution, and businesses often rely on private hosting for remote access and cloud features.
4. Customization and Integration
   • Sage 300
     • Sage 300 is highly customizable with a strong set of integrations to third-party applications. It’s particularly good for businesses that require integration with CRM, payroll, and eCommerce platforms. Sage 300 also has a robust developer community and ecosystem that supports customizations.
   • Sage 500
     • Sage 500 is also highly customizable and has more extensive features for advanced operations like manufacturing and distribution. It can be integrated with third-party software but requires more specialized knowledge for deeper customization. Companies that use Sage 500 often have significant customization to meet complex operational requirements.
5. International Capabilities:
   • Sage 300
     • Sage 300 is known for its multi-currency and multi-language support, which makes it ideal for businesses that operate internationally or across multiple regions. It also has strong intercompany transaction management and can handle financial consolidations across multiple entities.
   • Sage 500
     • Sage 500 also supports multi-currency, but its international capabilities are not as robust as Sage 300’s. It’s more often used by U.S.-based companies or businesses with fewer global operations.
6. Industry Focus:
   • Sage 300
     • Sage 300 is popular across a broad range of industries, particularly in service-based sectors, financial services, non-profits, distribution, and wholesale. It is also used by companies in the hospitality and professional services sectors.
   • Sage 500
     • Sage 500 is primarily used by companies in manufacturing, distribution, and supply chain management due to its advanced ERP capabilities in these areas. It also serves companies in retail and other industries that require heavy inventory control and production management.
7. Scalability:
   • Sage 300
     • Sage 300 is well-suited for companies that need a scalable solution as they grow, especially those expanding globally. However, it is typically used by businesses with less operational complexity compared to those using Sage 500.
   • Sage 500
     • Sage 500 is built for businesses with more complex processes and higher scalability needs, especially for those that require advanced manufacturing and distribution management. It supports a higher number of users and larger transaction volumes than Sage 300.
8. Pricing:
   • Sage 300:
     • Sage 300 is available on a subscription basis with tiered pricing depending on the number of users and modules needed. It’s a cost-effective solution for small to medium-sized businesses.
   • Sage 500:
     • Sage 500 is more expensive than Sage 300 with higher upfront and ongoing costs due to its advanced ERP functionalities. It typically involves larger implementation and customization costs, making it more suitable for medium to large enterprises with the budget to support more complex ERP requirements.

Sage 300 is more suitable for small to medium-sized businesses that require strong financial management, especially in multi-location and multi-currency environments. Sage 500 is better for medium to large-sized businesses that need a robust, customizable ERP solution with advanced capabilities in manufacturing, distribution, and supply chain management.

Sage 500, which was formerly known as Mas 500, is not primarily web-based. It typically operates as an on-premises solution with client-server architecture. CertiPro also works with other Sage products like Sage 100 and Sage Intacct with more web-based options.

Sage, the parent company for all Sage products, has not announced a retirement date for Sage 500. Sage has continued to release updates and upgrades for Sage 500, and it remains a robust, comprehensive business management solution. Given Sage’s well-known stance against forced migrations, current and future Sage 500 customers can rest assured that this product will continue to streamline and support their operations long into the future. The current product release is Sage 500 ERP 2024. Customers running older and unsupported versions of Sage 500 are likely to run into compatibility issues or other problems. We’d be happy to work with any company that is currently off-plan and bring their Sage 500 up to date.