‘I just looove accounting!’ said no editor ever. Yet, if we consider that we as freelancers are all running businesses, then bringing home the bacon and accounting for it [insert eye-roll here] should be a top priority.

‘But why are numbers so boooring?’ [much stomping, pouting and crossing of arms]

For years, I had a love–hate relationship with Microsoft Excel which, I suspect, is the tool of choice for most editors trying to keep track of their randelas. With the advent of AI, setting up those pesky Excel formulae has now become a breeze, but nothing beats proper bookkeeping software if you want a real bird’s-eye view of your business. So, if you share my Excel frustration, let’s look at a free tool that can take the boredom out of numbers: Zoho Books.

Free and easy

When it comes to accounting, free and easy are two words I can get behind; this is where Zoho Books excels (See what I did there?). It combines cloud-based bookkeeping, financial management, reporting, time-tracking and invoicing tools with a user-friendly interface for people who have never worked with accounting software before (That’s you, number-averse editor.). Let’s see what free can get you:

• Estimates/quotes: Set expectations early on to avoid client-haggling further down the road (Automated invoices after quote acceptance make client comms a dream.).
• Invoicing: Create and send up to 1 000 branded invoices per year (That’s plenty for most freelancers; I freelance full time and sent 72 invoices last year.).
• Expense tracking: Categorise expenses, upload receipts (for providing those infernal ‘additional supporting documents’ come tax time) and monitor where your coffee budget is going.
• Client management: Store all your client information and transactions to simplify your communication, so no more chasing emails in the abyss.
• Banking: Import your bank transactions for easy reconciliation (or to see if you should up your emergency chocolate budget for those late-night edits).
• Reporting: Generate pretty reports your accountant can get excited about (profit and loss statements, balance sheets, tax summaries and more).
• Collaboration: Invite your accountant to admire the spectacle of your books, so you can both panic about tax season together.

Zoho Books screenshot

When free and easy are not enough

• You stay organised: No more boxes overflowing with receipts or Excel sheets named ‘final_ final_ really_ final_ this_ time_ I_ mean_ it_ final.xlsx’. Everything is accessible from anywhere (because the cloud).
• You look professional: Branded invoices help you look less like someone fiddling with the Oxford comma for kicks and more like the editing pro you are.
• You save time: Automation for generating invoices from quotes frees up more time for semicolon surgery with your red pen (or, let’s be honest, procrastinating).
• You have better cash flow: Keeping track of who owes what means more money in your pocket for important things like editor fuel (aka coffee).

For a good overview of the different pricing plans and features, have a look at the comprehensive Zoho Books plan comparison. Other free accounting tools to explore are manager.io, stub and INV24. Paid tools to try out are QuickBooks Online, Xero and FreshBooks. Even your bank has some rudimentary bookkeeping tools these days (mostly for business accounts).

When SARS comes knocking

I started using Zoho Books back when only the Global Edition was available. These days, the South African Edition, which complies with all our country’s accounting standards and VAT requirements, makes tax time perhaps a bit less terrifying (Who am I kidding?).

Unfortunately, most of the VAT functionality is only available in the paid plans, but I would venture a guess that VAT isn’t really a concern for the majority of editors as the income threshold for registering is relatively high. Still, if you value your sanity when it comes to dealing with SARS or perhaps run your business as a (Pty) Ltd, then using the SA edition will be the best way to go. Three disadvantages that have prevented me from making the switch are that progress invoicing, retention payments and multicurrency invoicing are not available in the free SA edition.

Final two cents

If you’re a solo editor wrestling with words by day and receipts by night, Zoho Books can be a great middle ground between DIY spreadsheets (ugh!) and hiring an accountant for every little thing (costly!). This way you get to spend more time (and money!) on books and less time on ‘the books’.

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