Bookkeeping and accounting, the difference
Bookkeeping is recording every sale, cost and payment as it happens. Accounting is what you do with those records: VAT returns, payroll, the year-end statements and the tax return. Good software does the first for you as a side effect of the second — you send an invoice and the ledger is already up to date.
What South African businesses need that others do not
- Tax invoices that meet section 20(4) of the VAT Act, full or abridged
- VAT kept apart the way a VAT201 asks for it
- Payroll with PAYE, UIF, SDL and ETI, and the EMP201 figures every month
- A year-end laid out for the return you file: ITR14 for a company, ITR12 for a sole proprietor, TT03 on turnover tax
- Prices in rands, so a weak rand does not move your bill
What Bookkeeping & Invoicing includes
Quotes your customers accept online, tax invoices, credit notes, statements with an age analysis, costs and bills, bank statement import with rules, basic payroll, a double-entry ledger that posts itself, and a year-end pack with the income statement, balance sheet and trial balance. Payroll covers 3, 15 or 60 employees by plan. Every plan has one free login for your accountant.
When a big suite is the better choice
If you run several companies with consolidations, need hundreds of app integrations, or your accountant only works in one package, a large international suite may suit you better. If you are a small business that quotes, invoices and pays a few people, you do not need to pay for that.