Zoho Books
Zoho Books is the lowest-cost paid cloud ledger in South Africa — R82.50 a month billed annually for Standard with three users and VAT returns, excluding VAT — and its Professional plan adds multi-currency at R165.83. It lacks Sage’s local payroll and Xero’s accountant network, but on value it is hard to beat.
Last verified 28 Oct 2026 · Reviewed by Accounting Software Africa editorial, Publisher editorial desk. Tax figures are cited to the Nigeria Tax Act 2025. Assign a named ICAN reviewer in this field before treating a page as a signed professional opinion.
- Product kind
- Accounting
- Made in
- India
- Headquarters
- India
- Founded
- 2011
Strengths
- Not African-made
- Lowest paid global cloud
- Forever-free tier
- Zoho suite
What it actually is
Zoho Books is a cloud accounting app, not payroll and not an ERP. The strength is price and the rest of Zoho. Nigerian VAT can be modelled; NRS e-invoicing and NTA 2025 PAYE are not what you are buying.
Features
| Feature | Coverage | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Invoicing | Core strength | The job it does well for an SME: send, chase, record. |
| Double-entry ledger | Strong | A real ledger at a lower list price than QuickBooks. |
| Bookkeeping | Strong | Bank rules and recurring bills; chart is yours to Nigerian-ise. |
| Financial reports | Strong | Tax and P&L reports exist. They are not NRS return packs. |
| Multi-currency | Present | Professional and above on the public plan chart. |
| Inventory | Present | Higher plans / Elite. Not Odoo-style MRP. |
| Accountant portal | Present | Accountant access exists; the network is thinner than Intuit’s. |
| VAT | Present | Rates and VAT reports. Filing remains with NRS. |
| Bank feeds | Limited | Depends on Zoho’s banking partners. Test GTBank/Access/Zenith. |
| WHT | Limited | Can be a tax or a bill line. Not a Nigerian WHT schedule. |
| E-invoicing | Limited | Reseller pages claim connectors. Verify on a live tenant. |
| Payroll / PAYE | Not offered | Payroll is a separate Zoho app and is not NTA 2025. |
| Spend / cards | Limited | Expense modules exist in the suite. Books itself is a ledger. |
Africa reach
| Countries | Presence |
|---|---|
 Nigeria | Available |
 Ghana | Available |
 Kenya | Available |
 South Africa | Available |
Pricing
| Plan | Amount | Billing | Includes | As of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free | R 0 | Monthly | 1 user + accountant; invoicing, bank reconciliation. | 28 Oct 2026 |
| Standard | R 82,50 | Monthly | Billed annually (R99 monthly), excl. VAT. 3 users, VAT returns, bank feeds. | 28 Oct 2026 |
| Professional | R 165,83 | Monthly | Billed annually (R199 monthly). 5 users, multi-currency, inventory. | 28 Oct 2026 |
| Premium | R 249,17 | Monthly | Billed annually (R299 monthly). 10 users, budgets, fixed assets. | 28 Oct 2026 |
Compliance
| Requirement | Status | Note | Verified on |
|---|---|---|---|
| E-invoicing | Partial | No SARS mandate yet. | 28 Oct 2026 |
| VAT filing | Supported | VAT returns and audit reports on Standard and up. | 28 Oct 2026 |
| WHT | Not supported | Not applicable. | 28 Oct 2026 |
| PAYE | Via third party | Integrate SimplePay or another SA payroll. | 28 Oct 2026 |
| Local COA | Supported | Configurable. | 28 Oct 2026 |
| Multi-currency | Supported | Professional and up. | 28 Oct 2026 |
| Bank feeds | Supported | Bank feeds on Standard and up. | 28 Oct 2026 |
Best for
- Price-sensitive SMEs
- Importers needing multi-currency cheaply
- Zoho One customers
Not suitable for
- Businesses whose accountant only works in Sage or Xero
Local support
Zoho sells in SA with rand pricing and local partners; support is online.
Migration notes
Zoho’s migration tools read QuickBooks and Xero exports.
How does Zoho compare on price?
Standard at R82.50 a month (billed annually, plus VAT) versus Xero Standard at R795 including VAT. Even after VAT, Zoho is roughly a tenth of the cost.
What is the catch?
Ecosystem. Fewer South African accountants run practices on Zoho, and payroll needs an integration.
Sources
- Zoho Books South Africa pricing 28 Oct 2026
Keep reading
- Sage alternatives
Zoho ranks high.
- Sage vs Xero
The incumbents.
Related in South Africa
- How to choose accounting software in South Africa
- PaySpace is the South African payroll platform larger employers and bureaus choose when SimplePay is too light: deeper HR, complex structures, and the ability to run payroll in many other African countries on one platform. It is now part of Deel and marketed as Deel Local Payroll.
- SimplePay is the default cloud payroll for South African SMEs on Xero and many on Sage or QuickBooks: PAYE, UIF and SDL, IRP5/IT3(a) through e@syFile, leave and an employee self-service app. Pricing is a base fee plus a per-employee monthly fee, excluding VAT, with a free 30-day trial and an instant online quote.
- Business Central is the leading mid-market ERP step for South African companies outgrowing Sage Accounting, Pastel or Xero — especially distributors and manufacturers. Expect about R1,312 (Essentials) to R1,804 (Premium) per full user per month at list, plus a partner and an SA payroll integration.
- Dynamics 365 Finance is an enterprise ERP for large South African groups — retailers, mining services, financial-services groups — that run many entities and need consolidations, advanced cost accounting and a global tax engine. At about R3,444 per user per month at list, plus a multi-month programme, it is for organisations with an ERP team.
- NetSuite has a solid South African customer base among services, software, fintech and distribution companies with offshore parents or several subsidiaries. Pricing is by quote — an annual base licence plus users (indicatively $129–$199 each per month) and modules such as OneWorld.
- Xero is the main challenger to Sage for South African SMEs: rand pricing including VAT (R450 Starter, R795 Standard, R1,095 Premium from 1 November 2025), feeds with the major banks, and the largest app marketplace. Payroll is a partner app — most South African Xero users pair it with SimplePay.
- Tyms offers South African businesses AI-assisted bookkeeping at $200 per seat per year (about R3,280), with rand billing listed among its supported currencies. It is a strong catch-up and statement-driven ledger, but in South Africa it competes with mature local defaults — Sage and Xero have deeper bank feeds and accountant networks. Tyms Inc. publishes this site.