Intuit, Sage and Microsoft Lead the SMB Accounting and ERP Markets

Yankee: Intuit, Sage and Microsoft have reconfirmed their dominance in the small and medium business (SMB) and mid-market accounting and ERP software markets. During 2005, several significant events occurred in the accounting and ERP business application segments that changed some of the market dynamics, including Microsoft’s entrance in the low-end accounting applications arena and significant product launches from Intuit and Sage. Integrated business application suites from NetSuite and SAP also gained increased presence and penetration.

The market opportunity for vendors in the accounting/ERP business applications segments is growing. Many SMBs still maintain and manage their financial data on Excel spreadsheets, which provides vendors with opportunities to seize greater market share. Additionally, pressures to comply with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and other regulatory requirements, along with the increasing need to electronically exchange information with larger customers and partners, add to the demands to improve operational efficiency—which makes it more likely for companies to deploy real accounting solutions.

Inuit’s QuickBooks and QuickBooks Online products dominate the 2-to-99-employee market, followed by Sage Software. Microsoft leads the 100-to-999-employee mid-market, followed by Oracle and Sage. Medium business (SMB) and mid-market accounting and ERP software

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