Pub accounting software in Ireland for pubs and bars

Most modern tills can do this with product categories set up once.

Revenue’s rate database lists beer at the standard rate, and the 9% reduction from July 2026 covers food and catering. Your till needs to report sales by category so the books can split them by rate. A pub that records all takings at one rate will either overpay VAT on food or underpay it on drink.

Record each day’s takings from the till report, split by rate, and let the card settlements and cash lodgements match when the bank statement is uploaded. Differences between takings and lodgements, such as cash paid out for small expenses, should be recorded with a receipt the same day.

Deliveries arrive several times a week.

Brewers and drinks distributors invoice weekly, often with deposits and returns on kegs. Photograph or upload each invoice and HelloBooks reads it and proposes the account and VAT. Keep deposits and returns on their own account so they do not distort drink costs.

Pub customers are consumers, so many pubs can use the moneys received basis for VAT, accounting for it when paid. Revenue’s test is turnover of up to €2,000,000 in any continuous twelve months, or 90% or more of supplies made to people who are unregistered or not entitled to a full deduction.

HelloBooks does not run Irish payroll. Use your payroll product for bar staff and kitchen wages and post the totals after each pay run; a direct payroll journal import is coming soon.

Pubs still take more cash than most businesses. Count and record cash daily, lodge it regularly, and record any cash paid out of the till with a receipt. Consistent records protect the business in a Revenue review and make discrepancies visible quickly.

Food and drink are run almost as two businesses under one roof.

With sales and purchases split between drink and food, gross margin for each is visible every month. A drop in drink margin is often the first sign of waste, theft or a supplier price change, and it is far easier to act on early.