Manual bookkeeping in spreadsheets
Spreadsheets (Excel & Google Sheets) review
Fine for the very early days — a growing liability once GST, payroll and volume arrive.
The short version
Running the books in Excel or Google Sheets is genuinely fine for the very earliest, simplest stage of a business — a pre-GST sole trader with a handful of transactions a month. Beyond that, spreadsheets become a real risk: no bank feeds, no audit trail, easy formula errors, painful GST and BAS preparation, and no Single Touch Payroll. Most spreadsheet “systems” we are called in to rescue were quietly wrong for months.
Best for
Very early-stage sole traders, pre-GST, with minimal transactions — as a temporary measure only.
Pricing
Effectively free to start, but the hidden cost is your time, error risk and eventual clean-up. A rescue often costs far more than proper software would have.
Our rating
2.0/5 — Rated low as an ongoing bookkeeping system — not as a tool. Spreadsheets remain excellent for analysis alongside proper software.
The honest pros and cons
What works
- Free or near-free and instantly available
- Fine for a handful of transactions in the earliest, pre-GST days
- Flexible and familiar for quick calculations and one-off analysis
- Excellent alongside proper software for modelling, budgets and ad-hoc analysis
What to watch
- No bank feeds — every transaction is manual and error-prone
- No audit trail — changes and deletions leave no trace
- Formula and copy-paste errors compound silently over months
- GST and BAS preparation is manual, slow and easy to get wrong
- No Single Touch Payroll — a compliance gap the moment you employ anyone
- No proper reconciliation, so the numbers can drift from reality unnoticed
- Hard to hand to a lender, auditor or the ATO with confidence
Our verdict
We are not anti-spreadsheet — we use them every day for analysis and modelling. But as your actual books, a spreadsheet stops being an asset and starts being a liability the moment GST, payroll or real transaction volume arrive. The businesses we rescue rarely failed because they were reckless; they failed because a spreadsheet quietly drifted out of step with reality and no one caught it. If you are still in a spreadsheet, the honest advice is to move to proper software before a deadline forces the issue — and we make that move painless.
Who it suits
- Very early-stage sole traders with minimal, pre-GST activity
- Anyone needing quick analysis or modelling alongside proper accounting software
- Short-term use only, before transaction volume, GST or payroll arrive
Key takeaways
- Spreadsheets are fine for the very earliest, simplest stage — and only then
- They become a real risk once GST, payroll or volume arrive: no feeds, no audit trail, no STP
- Most spreadsheet “systems” we rescue were quietly wrong for months
- Keep spreadsheets for analysis; move the books to proper software before a deadline forces it
How we help with Spreadsheets (Excel & Google Sheets)
Whichever tool you choose, the value is in how it is set up and kept clean. These are the services that do exactly that.
Software Setup
The right software, set up properly — Xero, MYOB or QuickBooks configured, migrated and optimised so your bookkeeping runs cleanly from day one.
Urgent Triage
Books years behind, an ATO deadline looming, or a lender demanding financials by Friday? This is the specialist rescue team Sydney business owners turn to when there is no room left for error — and no time to start over.
Bank Reconciliation
The foundation everything else rests on — every transaction coded correctly and every account reconciled, so your numbers are trustworthy.
BAS & GST
Quarterly BAS handled end to end — correctly coded, reconciled and lodged on time, every time, by a registered CPA team that watches the deadlines so you never have to.
Why trust this review
Genuinely independent
We are not a reseller for any platform. No commissions, no bias — just what fits your business.
Principal-led by an FCPA
Reviewed from real practice experience by Graham Chee FCPA and an 18-year CPA team.
We run it in the real world
We set up, migrate and maintain these platforms daily — so the pros and cons are lived, not theoretical.
Frequently asked questions
Is it really that bad to run my books in a spreadsheet?
For a pre-GST sole trader with a few transactions a month, it is genuinely fine as a temporary measure. The problem is that businesses grow faster than their systems — the day you register for GST, take on an employee, or hit real volume, the spreadsheet becomes a liability with no bank feeds, no audit trail and no Single Touch Payroll. We would rather move you across early than rescue it later.
When exactly should I move off spreadsheets?
The honest triggers are: registering for GST, employing your first person, needing to give numbers to a lender or the ATO, or simply spending more than an hour or two a month wrestling the sheet. Any one of those is the signal. Moving is far cheaper and calmer before a deadline forces it.
Can you move me from a spreadsheet to proper software?
Yes — this is one of our most common jobs. Our software setup and migration service takes your spreadsheet history, sets up a clean chart of accounts, opening balances, bank feeds and payroll, and gets you onto a proper platform without losing your data. If the spreadsheet is already behind or wrong, our triage service straightens it out first.
Should I stop using spreadsheets altogether?
No. Spreadsheets are excellent tools for budgets, modelling and one-off analysis, and we use them constantly. The point is narrow: a spreadsheet should sit alongside proper accounting software, not be your accounting system.