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Comparison · Last updated 2026-07-28

HelloBooks vs RealBooks: Flat pricing with AI vs per-user pricing with a five-user floor

RealBooks, from Adansa Solutions in Kolkata, is one of the more serious cloud accounting products in India — a genuine double-entry general ledger with ledger masters, day book, journals and trial balance all documented in its own help pages, plus multi-branch and multi-GSTIN consolidation. It positions itself as a Tally replacement rather than a Tally companion.

The number most comparisons miss is the five-user minimum. Professional is ₹8,000 per user per year, so the real entry cost is ₹40,000 a year, not ₹8,000. Techjockey and SoftwareSuggest both list materially lower per-user prices and omit the minimum — use the vendor page.

HelloBooks is ₹499/month per entity on Pro with unlimited users, AI categorization and OCR included, GSTR-1 and 3B filed (GSTR-9 generated ready to file), and a Tally connector that keeps every voucher number (the connector is included from Free). RealBooks ships no AI features at all.

Researched & written by the HelloBooks editorial team. Checked against RealBooks's public pricing and docs on 2026-07-28 · how we compare.

Scorecard: how they stack up

An at-a-glance rating on the criteria that decide an accounting-software purchase. Ratings reflect verifiable facts — not an invented score. See how we compare.

HelloBooks rates strong on 8 of 9 buyer criteria

HelloBooks vs RealBooks — criteria scorecard
CriterionHelloBooksRealBooks
Entry price & free tierStrongLimited
Cost predictability as the team growsStrongLimited
Double-entry general ledgerStrongStrong
GST filingStrongPartial
Multi-branch consolidationPartialStrong
AI shipped and generally availableStrongNot offered
Mobile data entryStrongLimited
Tally coexistenceStrongNot offered
Developer APIStrongStrong

Side-by-side feature comparison

Where a value is shown as “—”, the feature was not verified at review time. See RealBooks's site for the latest specifics. No paid placements — how we compare.

HelloBooks vs RealBooks— feature-by-feature comparison
FeatureHelloBooksRealBooks
CategoryAI-native cloud accounting with inventory, warehouse, POS and manufacturingCloud accounting and ERP for multi-branch Indian businesses and CA firms
Double-entry general ledgerYes — chart of accounts, journals, trial balance, IFRS and GAAP compliant reportsYes, and unusually well documented — ledger masters by group, voucher-based day book, journal entries, trial balance, credit notes and purchase returns all in the help docs
Pricing modelPer entity: Free; Pro ₹499/mo per entity or ₹4,999/yr per entity; Business ₹1,999/mo per entity or ₹19,999/yr per entity — unlimited users on paid plansPer user, with a five-user minimum: Professional ₹8,000/user/yr, Business ₹12,500/user/yr, Enterprise ₹20,000/user/yr
Real entry cost₹0 on Free, or ₹4,999/year per entity on Pro₹40,000/year — five users × ₹8,000 on Professional. The headline ₹8,000 is per seat, not per company
Free planFree, no credit card, uncapped by turnover in India — invoices, bills, quotes and POs included within 200 transactions, full core reports, mobile app, 2 users, free AI credits to get startedNone. 14-day single-user free trial. Directory listings mention a free "Explorer" plan but it is not on the vendor pricing page
GST return filingGSTR-1 and 3B filed (GSTR-9 generated ready to file), with GSTR-2B and IMS reconciliation and ITC matchingGSTR-1 filing — data uploaded directly to the GST portal from the software. GSTR-3B and GSTR-9 filing are not confirmed
GSTR-2A / 2B reconciliationGSTR-2B and IMS reconciliation with ITC matching, included from ProAuto-reconciliation listed — a genuine strength versus the billing-layer products
E-invoicing & e-way billsIRN and QR through the IRP; e-way bills through the NIC portal — included from Pro at ₹499/mo per entityIntegrations page names IRP and GSTN endpoints; e-way bill part-A data flows automatically. Exact in-app IRN/QR mechanics are not documented
AI capabilityAI categorization at 95%+ accuracy, OCR line extraction, Munimji assistant with 60+ tools, WhatsApp bookkeeping with voice notes, AI payables, AI calling for AR, CFO agent, AI analysis on every reportNone found. No AI feature page, announcement or documentation on the vendor site or in any 2026 directory listing
Multi-branch & multi-entityMulti-entity management from Business with consolidation reporting for cross-company viewsA core strength — multi-branch accounting with centralised consolidated reporting, branch transfers, cost centres and multi-GSTIN
TallyCoexists — import keeps every voucher number and the connector keeps pushing to Tally 6.2 if your CA wants itPositions as a replacement. No Tally connector; migration is via Excel master and transaction templates
Inventory & manufacturingItem master, BOM, FIFO/LIFO/weighted-average valuation, GRN, multi-warehouse, POS and manufacturing with MRP — included from ProInventory from Professional; purchase requisition and order cycles from Business; manufacturing with BOM and quality control only on Enterprise (₹20,000/user/yr)
Mobile appFull iOS and Android apps on every plan, with complete data entryAndroid and iOS, 4.6 stars from 52 reviews — but reviewers report it does not allow making entries and lacks GST reporting. It is largely a read and approve app
Public APIAPI access from Business at ₹1,999/mo per entity, BI connector, plus a public read-only MCP serverYes — documented open API covering vouchers, masters, purchase orders, day books, ledgers and stock summaries. Plan gating is not published
Getting your data outCSV and Excel import/export throughout, plus a migration path with dry-run preview and one-click rollbackExcel import/export templates for masters and transactions, plus full read access via the API. A one-click full-account export is not documented
Independent ratingsNewer product with a smaller review base — judge us on the free plan rather than review volumeSoftwareSuggest 4.9/5 (8); Play Store 4.6/5 (52); Techjockey 4.0/5 (12). Low review volume across the board

When to choose HelloBooks

  • The five-user minimum makes RealBooks ₹40,000 a year before you have done anything — HelloBooks Pro is ₹4,999 for the whole company.
  • You want AI doing the categorisation, OCR and reconciliation; RealBooks ships no AI features.
  • Your team enters transactions on phones — the RealBooks mobile app is read and approve, not data entry.
  • Your CA still lives in Tally and you need a connector that keeps every voucher number.
  • You need manufacturing without paying ₹20,000 per user per year for the Enterprise tier.
  • You want a free plan to evaluate on real data rather than a 14-day single-user trial.

When to choose RealBooks

  • You run a genuinely multi-branch business and need centralised consolidation with branch transfers and cost centres.
  • Accounting depth documented in help pages rather than marketing matters to you — RealBooks is the best-documented ledger in this comparison set.
  • Your CA firm wants a cloud product built for handling client books at scale, with a dedicated chartered-accountant workflow.
  • You operate an auto dealership or a logistics business and want the Maruti DMS or ShipX integrations.
  • GSTR-2A and 2B auto-reconciliation is central to how you close the month.
  • You have enough seats that per-user pricing works out fairly, and the five-user floor is not a floor for you.

Frequently asked questions

How much does RealBooks actually cost?

Checked against realbooks.in/pricing on 28 July 2026: Professional ₹800 per user per month or ₹8,000 per user per year, Business ₹1,250/₹12,500, Enterprise ₹2,000/₹20,000 — with a minimum of five users. So the real entry cost is ₹40,000 a year, not ₹8,000. That minimum is the single most commonly missed fact about RealBooks pricing. Note also that Techjockey lists Professional at ₹5,000/year and SoftwareSuggest lists it at about $56/user/year — both materially below the vendor page and both omitting the five-user floor.

What does HelloBooks cost in India?

Free with up to two users, free AI credits to get started, and no turnover cap. Pro is ₹499/month per entity or ₹4,999/year per entity against a list price of ₹999/month per entity, with unlimited users, GST filing and e-invoicing, and multi-currency (Tally sync is included from Free); multi-entity management across subscribed entities, API access and batch and multi-warehouse inventory are on Business. Business is ₹1,999/month per entity or ₹19,999/year per entity. Adding people does not change the price.

Is RealBooks a real double-entry accounting system?

Yes, and it is the best-documented one in our India comparison set. Its help pages show ledger creation under Masters, Accounts, Ledger with groups selected according to the chart of accounts; a Day Book described as a book of original entries with voucher edit, copy, cancel and restore; and dedicated articles for journal entries, trial balance, credit notes and purchase returns. This is a genuine ledger, not a billing app.

Does RealBooks file GST returns?

For GSTR-1, it says yes — its GSTR-1 page states data can be uploaded directly to the GST portal from the software, replacing the JSON download-and-upload cycle. One caveat: GSTR-3B and GSTR-9 filing are not confirmed anywhere. HelloBooks files GSTR-1 and 3B (with GSTR-9 generated ready to file) through it.

Does RealBooks have AI?

No. We found no AI feature page, announcement or documentation on realbooks.in, and no 2026 directory listing attributes AI capability to it. If AI-assisted categorisation, OCR or a conversational assistant is part of what you are shopping for, there is nothing to evaluate here — which is a straightforward factual difference rather than a criticism of the accounting engine.

What AI does HelloBooks include?

AI auto-categorization at 95%+ accuracy, OCR bill and receipt capture with smart line-item extraction, Munimji — a conversational accounting assistant with 60+ tools — bookkeeping over the official WhatsApp Business API in Hindi, English and Hinglish with voice notes and India data residency, AI payables, AI calling for overdue receivables, a CFO agent, and an AI Analysis tab on every standard report. The Free plan includes free AI credits to get started.

Can I do data entry on the RealBooks mobile app?

Largely no, according to its own users. Play Store reviewers state the app does not provide the facility of making entries, that expected reporting tools including GST features are missing, and that many improvements are pending. Techjockey echoes that the mobile app lacks advanced features and comprehensive reporting. Treat it as a read-and-approve companion. HelloBooks ships full iOS and Android apps with complete data entry on every plan, including Free.

Does RealBooks work with Tally?

No — it positions as a replacement. Its integrations page lists HDFC, ICICI, Federal Bank, GSTN, IRP, Maruti DMS, ShipX and Excel templates, but not Tally, and there is no Tally connector. Migration would be through Excel master and transaction templates. HelloBooks takes the opposite approach: a Tally 6.2 connector that imports keeping every voucher number and keeps pushing to Tally afterwards, so your CA is not forced off it.

Which is better for multi-branch businesses?

RealBooks has the edge here and it is worth saying so. Multi-branch accounting with centralised consolidated reporting, branch transfers, cost centres and multi-GSTIN is core to the product rather than an add-on. HelloBooks includes multi-entity management and consolidation reporting from Business at ₹1,999/month per entity, which suits semi-independent entities consolidating at month-end, but a genuinely branch-heavy operation should evaluate RealBooks properly.

What about manufacturing?

On RealBooks, bill of materials and quality control are Enterprise-only at ₹20,000 per user per year — so five seats is ₹100,000 a year. HelloBooks includes bill of materials, work orders, MRP and job costing from Pro at ₹499/month per entity, with every movement posting to valuation and the general ledger in the same transaction.

Can I migrate from RealBooks to HelloBooks?

Yes, and RealBooks gives you the tools. Excel import and export templates cover masters and transactions, and its read API exposes vouchers, ledgers, day books and purchase and sale registers, so a complete extraction is achievable. HelloBooks imports chart of accounts, customers, vendors, items, invoices and bills from CSV with AI mapping that retains your account numbers, and the flow at /migrate includes a dry-run preview and one-click rollback.

What do RealBooks users complain about?

The mobile app not supporting data entry is the loudest theme. Beyond that, SoftwareSuggest reviewers cite occasional challenges with bank integration and Techjockey notes bank reconciliation sometimes requires manual intervention; reviewers on both platforms ask for expanded reporting. Techjockey also notes limited functionality for complex accounting needs versus larger ERPs. Review volume is low across the board — 8 to 52 depending on the platform — so weigh accordingly. Reviewers do consistently praise the document-attachment feature.

Is HelloBooks secure?

HelloBooks is SOC 2 Type II attested, with the report available under NDA through the Trust Center; ISO 27001 is on the compliance roadmap and we do not claim it as certified. Data is AES-256 encrypted at rest and TLS 1.2+ in transit, MFA is available, hosting is AWS with 99.9% uptime and daily encrypted backups, and bank connections are read-only. India DPDP is covered.

Which should a CA firm choose?

Both target CA firms and the models differ. RealBooks sells per user with a five-seat floor, which suits a firm that wants one system across a client book and can absorb the seat cost. The HelloBooks Partner Program is free to join with no upfront fee — you resell standard Pro and Business plans to clients and earn a wholesale discount that grows from Bronze 5% to Platinum 20%, with unlimited clients on one practice dashboard and bulk AI operations across clients. You earn margin rather than paying per seat.

Migrating from RealBooks?

HelloBooks supports CSV import for chart of accounts, customers, vendors, items, invoices, and bills. For QuickBooks, we offer a guided one-time company-file import. For other platforms, our migration team can assist with a structured cutover.

Start freeTalk to migration teamView pricing

Related reading

India GST returns

GSTR-1/3B/9 filed.

Multi-entity accounting

Consolidation and cross-company views from the Pro plan.

Tally integration

Import keeping every voucher number, plus ongoing push to Tally 6.2.

For chartered accountants

How Indian CA firms run client books on HelloBooks.

Partner program

Free to join, unlimited clients, wholesale discount from 5% to 20%.

HelloBooks pricing

Free, Pro ₹499/month per entity, Business ₹1,999/month per entity in India.

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