Big Red Cloud Alternative in Ireland | HelloBooks A Big Red Cloud alternative for Irish owners who want AI to do the bookkeeping: free to start, VAT3 computed from the ledger, honest about payroll and feeds.
Big Red Cloud is a respected Irish product with integrated payroll, Irish bank feeds and local phone support. People look for an alternative when the price after the first year matters, when they want to start free, or when they want AI to code transactions rather than answer questions. HelloBooks fits those needs, though it has no Irish payroll yet and its Irish bank connections are still rolling out.
Free Plan with invoices within 200 transactions, bills & quotes — no credit card.
A free plan for very small businesses and tiers that grow with you. AI that proposes the account and VAT rate for every bank line and reads receipts and bills. VAT3 figures computed from the ledger with each box traceable to its transactions. Live access for your accountant at no extra cost.
Be clear-eyed about it. Big Red Cloud runs Irish payroll; HelloBooks does not yet, so employers keep a payroll product and post the totals until the payroll journal import arrives. Big Red Cloud lists feeds from the main Irish banks; HelloBooks uses statement uploads while direct connections roll out. And Big Red Cloud’s Irish phone support is a real advantage for owners who like to talk things through.
Sole traders and micro companies without staff, businesses that already run payroll through a bureau or their accountant, and owners who are comfortable with online support tend to do well on HelloBooks. For them, the time saved on coding outweighs the gaps.
Upload last week’s bank statement and confirm the proposed coding. Through the week, photograph receipts and forward supplier bills so AI reads them, and raise invoices from your phone when a job finishes. At the end of the month, review the draft close; at the end of the VAT period, review the VAT3 and enter it in ROS.
HelloBooks support is online, through email and in-app help, rather than an Irish phone line. Most owners set themselves up in an afternoon. If you would like a second pair of eyes, invite your accountant to review the set-up before the first VAT period closes.
Export the trial balance and open items from Big Red Cloud at the end of a VAT period, import them into HelloBooks with the CSV templates, and upload statements from the next day. Keep the Big Red Cloud data available for history and Revenue’s retention rules, and have your accountant review the first HelloBooks VAT3.
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