Zoho Books for Australian businesses: Features, costs, & more

On any given day, a business has to stay on top of its finances to keep things moving. Invoices need attention, expenses keep coming in, GST has to be tracked, and bank balances need to match up.

When all of this happens at once, it becomes difficult to manage without a system in place. Accounting software helps bring order to this work and keeps financial activity under control.

Zoho Books is one such accounting tool that businesses turn to for day-to-day finance work. Whether it fits well or not usually depends on the size of the business, how finance tasks are handled internally, and how closely the team wants to stay involved in the numbers. Let us look closer into Zoho Books and how businesses can leverage the tool for their accounting needs.

Table of contents
What is Zoho Books? Features offered Pricing plans in Australia Benefits Alternative solutions to Zoho Books Wise Business: Managing global finance alongside Zoho Books FAQs

What is Zoho Books?

Zoho Books is an online accounting tool businesses use to handle invoices, expenses, inventory, banking, GST, and financial reporting in one system rather than across multiple tools.

Because it’s cloud-based, the same financial information stays available to business owners, finance teams, and accountants at the same time, even when they’re working from different places.

Most businesses use Zoho Books to manage everyday accounting work, preparing quotes, sending invoices, recording payments, and matching transactions with bank records.

Why businesses use Zoho Books

• It supports standard accounting workflows, including quotes, invoicing, payments, and bank reconciliation
• It includes functionality for GST and BAS reporting in Australia
• It can be used by sole traders as well as businesses with multiple entities
• It integrates with other Zoho applications and selected third-party services

Zoho Books is commonly used by businesses that require a central accounting system without the complexity of enterprise accounting software.

Features offered by Zoho Books

The core areas it focuses on include transaction recording, compliance support, and providing a basic view of a business’s financial position. More advanced capabilities are available through higher-tier plans.

Invoicing and income

Zoho Books applies Australian GST requirements during invoice creation. Invoices can be issued for one-time transactions as well as ongoing revenue arrangements such as retainers or subscriptions.

Accounts receivable tracking is managed within the same workflow, which streamlines the monitoring of overdue invoices and reminder scheduling. When payment methods are integrated, customer payments are automatically matched to the corresponding invoices.

Expenses and payables

Operating expenses, supplier invoices, vendor credits, and recurring payables are recorded within a consolidated ledger. Supporting documents, such as receipts, can be attached to transactions during entry. GST treatment is applied as part of expense categorisation. Supplier payments are recorded against payable entries, keeping a clear trail of outgoing cash flows.

Banking and reconciliation

Zoho Books integrates with supported banking institutions to import transaction data from bank and credit card accounts. Imported transactions can be classified using predefined rules to keep categorisation consistent. Bank reconciliation aligns system records with external bank statements, supporting balance checks and highlighting any differences.

GST and BAS compliance (Australia)

For Australian businesses, Zoho Books includes functionality related to GST and BAS reporting requirements. GST configuration can be applied at both contact and item levels to keep tax treatment consistent across transactions. GST data flows from transaction records into BAS reports, which follow Australian reporting structures and can be exported for lodgement.

Inventory and orders

Inventory and order management features are available on selected plans for stock-based businesses. These cover inventory tracking, sales order processing, purchase order management, and pricing structures. Landed costs can be included in inventory valuation. Advanced plans support batch and serial-level tracking for businesses with more detailed inventory control needs.

Reporting and financial visibility

Zoho Books generates standard financial reports based on recorded transactions, including cash flow statements, profit and loss reports, and accounts receivable ageing. Reports can be scheduled for regular review. Higher-tier plans offer additional reporting options, including configurable and custom report formats to meet specific reporting requirements.

Zoho Books pricing in Australia

Zoho Books offers multiple pricing tiers in Australia, structured around business size, transaction volume, and operational complexity. Pricing¹ is charged per organisation per month and is typically billed annually.

The available plans range from a free tier for very small businesses to advanced plans designed for businesses with complex reporting and inventory needs. Let us look at the tiers offered by Zoho Books:

Free plan

The Free plan covers essential accounting work such as creating invoices, recording expenses, reconciling bank transactions, applying GST, and viewing basic financial reports. Usage limits apply, including restrictions on invoice volume and user access. The plan supports one main user and accountant access and is limited to businesses below a set revenue threshold.

Price: Free (Only for businesses with annual revenue under AUD 50,000)

Standard plan

The Standard plan increases invoice limits and adds features such as progress invoicing, retention payments, recurring expenses, and predefined user roles. Bank feeds can be integrated to automatically pull in transactions, which reduces manual entry. The plan also supports additional users.

Price: AUD16.50 per organisation per month (billed annually)

Professional plan

The Professional plan supports businesses with more structured billing and supplier workflows. It includes tools for project expenses, timesheets, billing, purchase and sales orders, vendor credits, and multi-currency contacts. This tier also supports deeper integrations with other Zoho products.

Price: AUD 33.00 per organisation per month (billed annually)

Premium plan

The Premium plan adds stronger accounting controls. This includes fixed asset tracking, budgeting tools, vendor portal access, basic revenue recognition, and expanded workflow options. These features suit businesses that need more formal accounting processes and internal approvals.

Price: AUD 44.00 per organisation per month (billed annually)

Elite plan

The Elite plan targets businesses with advanced reporting and inventory needs. It includes advanced revenue recognition, expanded reporting options, multi-currency transactions at the contact level, dashboard customisation, and more detailed inventory features. Integrations for eCommerce and inventory-related workflows are available at this level.

Price: AUD 181.50 per organisation per month (billed annually)

Ultimate plan

The Ultimate plan includes all Elite features and adds advanced reporting and analytics through integrated analytics tools. It supports real-time dashboards, large data volumes, and deeper financial analysis across connected data sources.

Price: AUD 319.00 per organisation per month (billed annually)

Benefits of Zoho Books for businesses

Zoho Books offers practical benefits for everyday accounting needs without adding unnecessary complexity. Its design focuses on regulatory compliance, routine financial workflows, and ease of use.

1. Zoho Books applies GST settings consistently across invoices, expenses, and reports, for accurate GST tracking and BAS preparation.
2. Zoho Books automates tasks such as invoicing, payment reminders, and transaction categorisation, which reduces manual effort and improves consistency.
3. Zoho Books supports integrations with other Zoho applications and selected third-party tools, which helps connect accounting data with related business workflows.
4. The interface presents accounting information in a structured way, making it comprehensible and easy to navigate for users without formal accounting backgrounds.

Alternative solutions to Zoho Books

Businesses considering cloud-based accounting software often review Zoho Books alongside other established platforms in the market. Common alternatives include Xero, QuickBooks Online, MYOB Business, Reckon One, and FreshBooks. These tools differ in pricing, feature depth, and how closely they involve accountants versus business owners. Here’s how Zoho Books compares with some of the more widely used options:

Zoho Books vs QuickBooks

Zoho Books and QuickBooks are both cloud-based accounting platforms, but they differ in how they structure pricing, workflows, and user involvement.

Zoho Books offers a lower entry point, including a free plan for eligible Australian businesses. It is commonly used by small to mid-sized businesses where owners or in-house teams manage accounting directly.

QuickBooks follows a subscription-only model² and starts from around AUD 33 per month, with higher tiers increasing based on features and users. It is widely adopted in accountant-led setups.

Zoho Books stands out for built-in automation, while QuickBooks is known for its scale and broad adoption among accounting firms.

Zoho Books vs Xero

Zoho Books and Xero both cover core accounting needs but differ in pricing approach and system structure. Xero is strongly positioned around accountant collaboration and practice adoption, particularly in Australia.

Both platforms support Australian GST compliance and bank reconciliation. Businesses with simpler, cost-controlled setups often lean toward Zoho Books, while those that rely on add-on ecosystems and accountant-driven workflows tend to choose Xero.

Xero typically starts from around AUD 75 per month³, depending on the plan, with extra costs for add-ons.

Wise Business: Managing global finance alongside Zoho Books

While Zoho Books organizes your day-to-day accounting, expanding into global markets often adds layers of administrative work. Paying overseas suppliers or receiving foreign currency can lead to reconciliation mismatches due to shifting exchange rates and unclear bank fees.

Wise Business helps solve these discrepancies by offering a multi-currency account that uses the mid-market rate. By running your international finances through Wise alongside your accounting system, you can reduce currency costs and keep a tighter grip on your cash flow across different borders.

A Wise Business account allows users to can send, receive, and hold in multiple currencies. Experience hassle-free global transactions by transacting like a local business. Here's what you get with a Wise Business account:

• Free to register — Hold and convert between 40+ currencies. Send to 140+ countries
• Debit cards for you and your team, which you can use in 150+ countries
• Multi-user access for team members, with ways to control and manage permissions
• Pay up to 1,000 recipients at once with the Wise batch payments feature
• Integrate with your favourite cloud accounting solutions like Xero, QuickBooks, and more
• Get account details to receive in 8+ currencies for a one-time fee of 65 AUD

Sign up for the Wise Business account! 🚀

This general advice does not take into account your objectives, financial circumstances or needs and you should consider if it is appropriate for you.

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FAQs

1. What are undeposited funds in Zoho Books?
   Undeposited funds show payments received but not yet deposited into a bank account. It helps track cash and cheques before reconciliation.

2. Can I migrate data from QuickBooks or Xero to Zoho Books?
   Yes. Zoho provides migration tools for importing data from QuickBooks and Xero.

3. Does Zoho Books support multi-currency transactions?
   Yes. Multi-currency features are available on paid plans with automatic exchange rate handling.

4. What is the difference between Zoho Books and Zoho Invoice?
   Zoho Invoice focuses only on invoicing. Zoho Books includes full accounting, banking, GST, and reporting features.

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Sources:

1. Zoho Books Pricing
2. QuickBooks Price
3. Xero price