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June/July 2015 • www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com 17 SMALL BUSINESS ACCOUNTING SYSTEMS Reviews BEST FIT Te product is a good ft for micro- businesses and small businesses that need easy to use accounting sofware. STRENGTHS • Available at low or no cost • Solid invoicing functionality • G o o d s e le c t ion of re p or t i n g options • Good integration capability POTENTIAL LIMITATIONS • Limited industr y specifc capa- bility • No Payroll functionality SUMMARY & PRICING Sage One fs ofered for free to small entities with only one user with only fve invoices per month, while Sage One Premium, with unlimited users and invoices is currently available for an introductory rate of $5.00 per month, making it a solid solution for small businesses that process a high number of invoices. www.sageone.com BEST FIT Xero is a great option for micro- businesses and small businesses l o o k i n g t o a u t o m a t e t h e i r accounting for the frst time. STRENGTHS • Currently integrates w ith over 350 apps • S e v e r a l e d i t i o n s o f p r o d u c t available • P ro d u c t s u p p or t s u n l i m it e d users • Good data import capability POTENTIAL LIMITATIONS • Ver y diferent nav igation from traditional accounting sofware may be confusing for some SUMMARY & PRICING One of Xero's best features is the avai lab i lit y of 3 versions. The Starter version is $9 per month and has limits on the amount of transac- tions a user can process. Te Stan- dard version is $30 per month, and the Premium version is $70 per m o n t h . Pa y r o l l f o r u p t o 1 0 employees is included in pricing, with additional employees extra. W hile the nav igation of this product is very diferent from tra- ditional accounting sofware, those looking for a more modern, mobile accounting product will fnd Xero a good ft. www.xero.com Sage One Xero Online Accounting Read the full review and see expanded ratings for this product online at: www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com/12074931 Read the full review and see expanded ratings for this product online at: www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com/12074946 4.5 5 2015 OVERALL RATING 2015 OVERALL RATING Wave Apps Offer Core Accounting, Payroll and Invoicing Options L aunched in 2010, Wave Accounting initially billing itself as the first "truly free, real (double entr y) accounting system in the cloud that ofered unlimited bank downloads and unlimited invoicing. Today, Wave consists of a series of cloud-based apps that are specifcally designed for micro and small businesses with less than 9 employees. Wave apps include Wave Accounting, Invoice, Invoice Mobile, Payments, Personal, Payroll, and Receipts. Payroll and Monthly Support contracts start at $19.00 per month. Payments by Wave (Credit Card Acceptance) rates are 2.9% per invoice, as well as .30 cents per transaction. All of the other apps are free. Geting started with Wave Accounting is easy; just enter an email and password. Once this is completed, users will be prompted to enter a company name, busi- ness type, and currency type. Users that manage multiple companies under a single email address can simply choose which company to access via the drop down menu at the top lef of the screen. For those concerned with privacy, a comprehensive privacy policy is available on the Wave Apps website. Wave Accounting is designed to provide very small businesses with traditional accounting functionality including customer billing and invoicing, posting customer payments, writing checks, electronic banking transactions, and paying employees. Te core of Wave Accounting is centered on the user's bank or PayPal account. Once connected with the method used to process checks, users can download transactions into Wave Accounting, assigning them to specifc accounts set up in the system. For those concerned about placing banking information in Wave, the company clearly states that they do not store or view any bank account data or password credentials. Tey further state that the Wave connection with any fnancial institution is "read-only," so money cannot be moved in or out of any accounts. Wave Accounting uses true double-entry bookkeeping, with users able to easily track open AP and AR transactions. Wave Invoicing allows users to send fully customized, and sent directly to customers directly from the application. Users can also easily pay bills using Wave Accounting – marking each bill as 'paid' in the system in order to track unpaid AP amounts. Te Wave user interface is simplifed for user conve- nience, with a standard dashboard option providing detail about company setup, as well as links to other Wave apps. Any installed apps are easily accessed from the vertical menu bar to the lef of the user screen. Te optional Wave Payroll app provides small business owners with an easy solution to company payroll. Wave Payroll pricing is afordable, with a base fee of $15.00 monthly, plus a fee of $4.00 for the frst ten employees. Te pricing drops to $1.00 per employee for more than ten employees. Wave Payroll contains numerous features, including direct deposit, wage reports, W2 and W3 form processing, and an employee self-service portal. Wave Payroll also supports bonus pay- ments, employee bonuses, overtime and expenses, and taxable benefts. In 2014, Wave Apps added Payments by Wave – a credit card acceptance function. Te app, like all others, integrates with Wave Accounting and typically deposits payments directly in the user's bank account within two business days. Wave Accounting provides users with a small selection of reports including Balance Sheet, Income by Customer, Expense by Vendor, Aged Payables, Aged Receivables, Sales Tax Reports, and an Income Statement. Report customiza- tion is limited, although users can export all system reports to Microsof Excel or a csv fle. Reports can also be saved as a PDF fle. For those interested in Wave, be sure to visit their website at www.waveapps.com, which ofers links to product setup, as well as access to Geting Started and FAQ's. Webinars are also available to assist new users with seting up their business. Product support Accountants are not lef out of the equation. Te Wave Pro Network connects small business owners with the accountants and bookkeepers who help them run their businesses. Accountants can join the pro network at no cost, and business owners can add their accountant as a collaborator on their account, providing access to fnancial data from anywhere, without having to exchange fles. Wave Accounting also ofers easy basic support, with users posing questions via email, with a response guaran- teed within 24 hours. Tere is also an option to upgrade to Premium level support. Tere are three levels; Plus – for $9.00 a month, Advanced – for $19.00 a month, and Year-End Pack – which is a one-time fee of $49.00, and is good for three months of year-end support. For micro businesses, and small businesses with less than ten employees, Wave Accounting, and its associated Wave Apps continue to grow in popularity. Tis free product is currently being used by 2.5 million customers in over 200 countries.