Sage Pastel PartnerAccounting
Established businesses with an accountant who already works in Pastel
The assessment
What Sage Pastel Partner is, honestly
Sage Pastel Partner is the desktop accounting package that shaped how a generation of South African bookkeepers thinks about a ledger. It is still capable software. Multi currency, inventory, job costing and a properly structured general ledger are all there, and the annual tax update arrives on time every year.
What you are really buying is the labour market around it. Almost any bookkeeper in the country can sit down at a Pastel file and work without training, and almost any practice can open your backup. That lowers the cost of monthly processing and of changing accountants, and it is the honest reason the product persists in a market that has otherwise moved to the browser.
The cost is modernity. Remote working needs hosting or a terminal server, the interface is dated, and there is no checkout page. You buy through a reseller and the real number appears in a quote.
The balance
Where it is strong, and where it is not
What works well
- An enormous pool of South African bookkeepers who already know the product
- Deep multi currency, inventory and job costing without moving up to an ERP
- Data stays on your own machine or server if that matters to your board
What to consider
- You buy through a partner, so the real cost only appears after a quote
- The interface shows its age next to browser based rivals
- Remote and multi site working needs hosting or a terminal server on top
Capability
What it does better than most
A properly structured ledger with the account and sub account depth a reviewing accountant expects, rather than the flattened chart that cloud products often impose.
Stock across multiple locations with cost tracking, which is the main reason trading businesses stay on Pastel rather than moving to a cloud ledger.
Costs and revenue tracked against a job, useful for contractors and workshops that need to know which work actually made money.
Foreign supplier invoices with realised and unrealised gain handling, which matters to importers and is often thin in cheaper products.
VAT reporting laid out to match the submission rather than requiring a spreadsheet in the middle, maintained through the annual update.
Setup and support
Getting it running, and getting help
What implementation actually involves
A desktop installation, which means a server or a hosted environment, backups and a restore plan that somebody has actually tested. Migration from another package is usually done by a partner. Multi site or remote working needs terminal services or hosting on top, and that decision belongs at the start of the project rather than six months in.
What happens when something breaks
The first year of telephone and email support is usually bundled with a new licence, and after that it follows your annual renewal. The practical support network is the enormous pool of Pastel literate bookkeepers, which is faster than a ticket for most everyday questions. Confirm what your renewal includes.
What it costs
How the money actually works
There is no published rate card. Pastel is sold through Sage business partners and the price arrives as a quote covering the licence, the number of users, any modules and the annual renewal. Three questions decide whether the quote is good. What does the annual renewal cost in year two, is the yearly tax update included or billed separately, and what does an additional user cost. Ask all three in writing, because the answers vary between partners.
Local view
What changes in South Africa
Pastel is the closest thing this market has to a default. Almost every accounting practice in the country can open a Pastel backup without asking questions, which quietly lowers the cost of monthly work and of changing accountants. Confirm the annual licence renewal, the cost of extra users and whether your partner charges separately for the yearly tax update before you commit.
How we scored it
Where the number comes from
Capable but dated, and remote working needs hosting on top.
Inventory, job costing and multi currency beyond what cloud ledgers offer.
No public price, and the annual renewal is the number that catches people.
Almost every bookkeeper in the country can already use it.
VAT201 reporting and an annual tax update that arrives on time.
The headline score is the mean of these five. Each number is a judgement, not a measurement, and the reason for it is written beside it so you can disagree with it.
Against the category
How it compares with its peers
The bar is Sage Pastel Partner. The vertical line is the average of the 9 products we have reviewed in accounting and finance. The figure on the right is the difference.
Monthly cost across accounting and finance
- XeroR45041%
- QuickBooks OnlineR32229%
- Sage AccountingR24022%
- Zoho BooksR999%
Cost over time
What it really costs over three years
Head to head
Against its closest rival
| Dimension | Sage Pastel Partner | Sage Accounting |
|---|---|---|
| Overall | 8.3 | 8.3 |
| Everyday use | 7.0 | 8.6 |
| Depth of features | 8.6 | 7.4 |
| Value for money | 7.4 | 7.8 |
| Support and skills | 9.4 | 8.8 |
| South African fit | 9.1 | 9.0 |
| Entry price | On request | R240 |
Sage Accounting is the closest scoring product to Sage Pastel Partner in accounting and finance. Prices are compared as published, and a quoted product cannot be scored on price.
Alternatives
What to look at instead
- 1
CaseWare Working Papers
Accounting practices producing annual financial statements at volume
8.7On request - 2
Xero
Growing service businesses working closely with an accountant
8.4R450 - 3
Sage Accounting
Established small businesses that value familiar local support
8.3R240 - 4
Zoho Books
Cost conscious teams using other Zoho products
8.3R99
Common questions
What buyers always ask
01How much does Sage Pastel Partner cost in South Africa?
On request quoted by a Sage business partner. Annual licence plus optional modules; no public rate card.
02Does Sage Pastel Partner offer a free trial?
No free trial is advertised. A demonstration is the usual route.
03Can you book a demonstration of Sage Pastel Partner?
Yes. The vendor offers a demonstration on request, which is the normal route for a quoted product.
04Is Sage Pastel Partner a good fit for a South African business?
Pastel is the closest thing this market has to a default. Almost every accounting practice in the country can open a Pastel backup without asking questions, which quietly lowers the cost of monthly work and of changing accountants. Confirm the annual licence renewal, the cost of extra users and whether your partner charges separately for the yearly tax update before you commit.
05Who is Sage Pastel Partner best suited to?
Established businesses with an accountant who already works in Pastel. Still a rational choice for an established business whose accountant works in Pastel and whose stock or job costing needs defeat a cloud ledger. If you are starting fresh with no Pastel history, the cloud products will serve you better.
Answered from this product record, so these can never drift from the figures above.
Still deciding? Ask us directly
Final view
Should it make the shortlist?
Still a rational choice for an established business whose accountant works in Pastel and whose stock or job costing needs defeat a cloud ledger. If you are starting fresh with no Pastel history, the cloud products will serve you better.
