Accounting Software for Indian Businesses
Arthlekha is cloud accounting, inventory and GST-compliance software built for Indian businesses — GST invoicing, e-Invoice and e-Way Bill, GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B preparation, bank reconciliation and stock, in one place. ₹14,999 per year, billed annually.
In short: accounting software records your sales, purchases, payments and stock, and turns them into the ledgers, returns and reports your business and your chartered accountant need. Arthlekha does that with Indian GST rules built in rather than bolted on, and runs in a browser so there is nothing to install or back up.
Try it on your own data. One plan, everything included, no per-feature upsell.
What the software actually does
| Area | What you get |
|---|---|
| Sales | GST tax invoices, bills of supply, proforma invoices, delivery challans, credit and debit notes, with your own numbering series per voucher type |
| Purchases | Purchase orders, purchase bills, supplier ledgers, purchase registers, and conversion from order to bill without re-keying |
| GST compliance | GSTR-1, GSTR-3B and IFF preparation, HSN summary, e-Invoice (IRN) and e-Way Bill generation through the NIC portal |
| Accounting | Double-entry ledgers, journal and payment vouchers, trial balance, profit and loss, balance sheet, party ledgers with drill-down to the document |
| Banking | Bank statement import, rule-based narration matching and reconciliation against your books |
| Inventory | Stock ledger, FIFO valuation, stock journals, manufacturing with bills of material — see inventory management software |
| TDS / TCS | Deduction tracking, challan records and return preparation, switched off by default until you need it |
Why "GST-first" matters more than it sounds
Most accounting packages were designed elsewhere and had Indian tax added later. That shows up in small, expensive ways: place of supply guessed wrong on an inter-State sale, CGST and SGST that do not split evenly on an odd-paise invoice, an HSN summary that quietly disagrees with the invoice lines, a challan series that reissues a cancelled number.
Arthlekha treats those as the core cases rather than the edge ones. Place of supply drives the tax split. Reverse charge, exempt supplies and nil-rated supplies each have their own treatment. Round-off is applied consistently across invoices, credit notes, debit notes and delivery challans so your books and your return agree.
Who it suits
- Traders and distributors — invoicing, stock, purchase registers and party ledgers in one system, with e-Way Bills raised from the invoice rather than re-typed on the portal.
- Manufacturers — bills of material, job-work challans, and stock that moves correctly between raw material and finished goods.
- Service businesses — SAC-based invoicing, RCM handling, and TDS tracking without an inventory module you do not need.
- Multi-branch businesses — location-wise stock, so each godown or branch is visible separately rather than pooled.
Moving from Tally
Most businesses asking about accounting software in India are already running something — usually Tally. Arthlekha imports Tally data, so the switch does not start from an empty ledger. The practical differences:
| Desktop accounting software | Arthlekha | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it runs | One machine, or a LAN licence per seat | Any browser, any device |
| Backups | Your responsibility | Managed, with daily backups |
| Working remotely | Needs remote desktop or a VPN | Just sign in |
| e-Invoice / e-Way Bill | Often a separate connector or utility | Built in, from the invoice screen |
| Your CA's access | Send a data file | Give them a login |
What desktop software still does better: it works with no internet at all. If your premises has genuinely unreliable connectivity, that is a real consideration and worth weighing honestly.
Working in your own language
The interface is available in seven languages — English, Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu and Odia — so the person entering vouchers does not have to work in a second language to do it accurately.
Pricing
One plan, ₹14,999 per year, billed annually: multiple users, unlimited invoices, products, customers and suppliers, GST return preparation, e-Invoice and e-Way Bill, bank reconciliation, inventory and manufacturing, TDS/TCS and the document archive. There is no per-invoice charge and no separate module fee. Full detail on the pricing page, including refunds and cancellation.
Frequently asked questions
Is Arthlekha GST compliant?
Yes. It produces GST tax invoices and bills of supply, prepares GSTR-1, GSTR-3B and IFF, and generates e-Invoices (IRN) and e-Way Bills through the NIC portal.
Can I use it if my business is not GST registered?
Yes. GST is a tenant-level setting. Switch it off and tax is forced to zero, GST-specific screens are hidden, and documents print as plain invoices.
Does it handle inventory as well as accounting?
Yes — stock ledger, FIFO valuation, stock journals, manufacturing with bills of material, and optional location-wise stock. See inventory management software.
Can my chartered accountant access the books?
Yes. Add them as a user and they work in the same live data rather than on an exported file.
Can I import my existing data?
Yes — Tally import, plus Excel import for masters and opening balances. Write to us with what you are moving from and we will tell you honestly what transfers cleanly and what does not.
Is my data backed up?
Yes, daily, and you can export your own data at any time.
See whether it fits your business
The fastest way to judge accounting software is to put one month of your own invoices through it.
Free tool: you do not need an account to use our delivery challan format generator — fill it in and download in Excel, Word or PDF.