Getting Started:

1. Visit zoho.com/books
2. Click on “Sign Up Free” or “Get Started”
3. Enter your email address and create a strong password
4. Verify your email address through the confirmation link
5. Choose a plan (Free plan available for businesses with revenue under ₦25 million annually)

Zoho Books Pricing for Nigerian Businesses (Annual Billing):

• FREE Plan: ₦0 – Perfect for solopreneurs and micro businesses (unlimited invoices)
• STANDARD Plan: ₦3,600/month (billed annually at ₦43,200/year) – Efficiently organize transactions and reports
• PROFESSIONAL Plan: ₦7,600/month (billed annually at ₦91,200/year) – Track projects, inventory, and purchases
• PREMIUM Plan: ₦11,600/month (billed annually at ₦139,200/year) – Enhanced customization and automation
• ELITE Plan: ₦51,600/month (billed annually at ₦619,200/year) – Advanced accounting with inventory management
• ULTIMATE Plan: ₦99,600/month (billed annually at ₦1,195,200/year) – Advanced business intelligence capabilities

Available Add-Ons (Not available on FREE plan):

• Additional Users: $2.50/user/month (billed annually)
• Advanced Autoscans: $8/50 scans/month (available on FREE plan)
• Additional Locations: $10/location/month
• Expense Claims: $5/user/month
• BillPay: $30/month

Basic Information Setup:

1. Navigate to Settings → Organization Profile
2. Organization Name: Enter your registered business name exactly as it appears on your CAC certificate
3. Country: Select Nigeria
4. Time Zone: Select “(GMT+01:00) West Central Africa” for Lagos/Abuja time
5. Fiscal Year: Most Nigerian businesses use January 1 – December 31
6. Currency: Select Nigerian Naira (NGN) as your base currency

Add Your Business Details:

• Business Address: Include street address, city, state, and postal code
• Phone Numbers: Add your business phone and WhatsApp number
• Email: Use your professional business email
• Website: If applicable
• Logo: Upload your company logo (recommended size: 240 x 240 pixels)

Proper VAT setup is critical for Nigerian businesses to ensure tax compliance.

Configure VAT Settings:

1. Go to Settings → Taxes
2. Click “Add Tax” or “New Tax”
3. Tax Name: VAT
4. Tax Rate: 7.5% (current Nigerian VAT rate as of 2025)
5. Tax Type: Select “Tax”
6. Enable “Show tax number in invoices” and enter your VAT registration number

Setting Up Tax Exemptions:

1. Create a new tax called “VAT Exempt”
2. Set the rate to 0%
3. Apply this to items that are VAT-exempt under Nigerian law

The Chart of Accounts is the backbone of your accounting system. Your setup will differ based on whether you run a service or product business.

For Service-Based Businesses:

Revenue Accounts:

• Professional Fees Income
• Consulting Revenue
• Training Income
• Retainer Fees
• Project-Based Revenue
• Subscription Income (if applicable)

Expense Accounts:

• Salaries and Wages
• Contractor/Freelancer Payments
• Office Rent
• Internet and Communication
• Software Subscriptions
• Marketing and Advertising
• Transportation and Fuel
• Professional Development and Training
• Bank Charges
• Generator Fuel (common in Nigeria)
• Office Supplies

For Product-Based Businesses:

Revenue Accounts:

• Product Sales – Retail
• Product Sales – Wholesale
• Online Sales Revenue
• Shipping and Delivery Income

Cost of Goods Sold (COGS):

• Purchase of Inventory
• Freight and Clearing Costs
• Import Duties and Taxes
• Product Packaging
• Direct Labor Costs

Inventory Accounts:

• Finished Goods Inventory
• Raw Materials (if manufacturing)
• Inventory in Transit

Expense Accounts:

• Warehouse/Shop Rent
• Salaries and Wages
• Security Services
• Generator Maintenance and Fuel
• Shop Utilities
• Transportation and Logistics
• Storage Costs
• Marketing and Advertising
• Bank Charges and POS Fees
• Shrinkage and Spoilage

How to Add Accounts:

1. Go to Accountant → Chart of Accounts
2. Click “New Account”
3. Select account type (Income, Expense, Asset, Liability, Equity)
4. Enter account name and description
5. Save and repeat for all necessary accounts

For Service-Based Businesses:

Setting Up Your Services:

1. Navigate to Items (Products & Services module)
2. Click “New Item”
3. Select “Service” as the item type
4. Enter service details:

Service Details to Configure:

• Service Name: E.g., “Digital Marketing Consultation”, “Tax Advisory”, “Website Development”
• Description: Detailed description that appears on invoices
• Unit: Hours, Days, Project, Session
• Rate: Your pricing in Naira (e.g., ₦15,000 per hour, ₦500,000 per project)
• Income Account: Link to appropriate revenue account
• Tax: Select VAT (7.5%) or VAT Exempt – tax is applied at the service item level

Example Service Items:

• “Social Media Management – Monthly Package” at ₦150,000/month
• “Business Consulting – Hourly” at ₦25,000/hour
• “Logo Design Project” at ₦200,000/project
• “Training Workshop – Full Day” at ₦500,000/day

Setting Up Time Tracking (Service Businesses):

For service businesses that bill by the hour or need to track project time:

1. Navigate to Settings → Preferences
2. Enable “Time Tracking”
3. Configure time tracking options:
   • Link time entries to specific services
   • Set hourly billing rates per service or per team member
   • Enable project-based time tracking
4. Team members can then log hours against clients or projects
5. Convert tracked time directly to invoices

Setting Up Projects (Optional – Service Businesses):

Projects are mainly for service-based businesses that need to track time, expenses, or milestones for specific client engagements.

1. Navigate to Projects
2. Click “New Project”
3. Enter project details:
   • Project name and description
   • Client/customer
   • Project budget
   • Start and end dates
   • Billing method (fixed fee, time-based, or milestone-based)
4. Team members can log time and expenses against the project
5. Track project profitability in real-time

For Product-Based Businesses:

Enable Inventory Tracking:

1. Navigate to Settings → Preferences
2. Under “Items”, enable “Track Inventory”
3. Select inventory valuation method (Zoho Books supports two methods):
   • FIFO (First In, First Out): Recommended for most Nigerian businesses, especially those with perishable goods or products affected by price changes
   • Weighted Average Cost: Good for businesses with consistent pricing and homogeneous products

Adding Products:

1. Navigate to Items (Products & Services module)
2. Click “New Item”
3. Select “Goods” or “Product” as the item type
4. Configure product details:

Product Information:

• Product Name: Clear, descriptive name
• SKU: Stock Keeping Unit code (e.g., “SHOE-BLK-42” for Black Shoe Size 42)
• Category: Organize products (Electronics, Fashion, Food, etc.)
• Unit: Pieces, Cartons, Kg, Liters, etc.
• Selling Price: Retail price in Naira (VAT inclusive or exclusive based on your setup)
• Cost Price: What you paid to acquire/produce the item
• Opening Stock: Current inventory quantity
• Reorder Level: Minimum stock before you need to reorder
• Preferred Vendor: Your main supplier
• Tax: Select VAT (7.5%) or VAT Exempt – tax is applied at the item level and on shipping charges if applicable

Example Product Setup:

• Item: Samsung Galaxy Phone
• SKU: PHONE-SAM-GAL-A54
• Cost Price: ₦280,000
• Selling Price: ₦380,000
• Opening Stock: 15 units
• Reorder Level: 5 units
• Vendor: Slot Nigeria

In this guide, we use the following terminology consistently:

• Clients: For service-based businesses (consulting, agencies, professional services)
• Customers: For product-based businesses (retail, wholesale, e-commerce)

Adding Clients (Service Businesses) or Customers (Product Businesses):

1. Navigate to Contacts → Customers
2. Click “New Customer”
3. Enter contact information:

Contact Details:

• Display Name: Client/Customer or company name
• Company Name: If corporate client/customer
• Contact Person: Primary contact name
• Phone: Include mobile and WhatsApp numbers
• Email: For sending invoices and receipts
• Billing Address: Complete address including state
• Shipping Address: (Product businesses only) If different from billing address
• Payment Terms: Net 7, Net 15, Net 30, or custom terms
• Currency: Usually NGN, but can set USD for foreign clients/customers

Contact Categories:

Organize contacts into groups for better tracking:

• Corporate Clients (service businesses)
• Individual Clients (service businesses)
• Wholesale Customers (product businesses)
• Retail Customers (product businesses)
• Government/Parastatal (both types)

For Service-Based Businesses:

Service businesses typically maintain fewer vendors compared to product businesses. Vendors for service businesses are mainly:

• Subcontractors and Freelancers: External specialists you hire for projects
• Software/SaaS Providers: Tools and platforms you subscribe to
• Office Suppliers: Stationery, equipment
• Overhead Services: Internet providers, office cleaners, security

For Product-Based Businesses:

Product businesses rely heavily on vendors for inventory replenishment and supply chain management.

Adding Vendors/Suppliers:

1. Navigate to Contacts → Vendors
2. Click “New Vendor”
3. Enter vendor details:

• Vendor Name: Supplier or distributor name
• Contact Person: Key contact at the vendor
• Phone & Email: Primary communication channels
• Address: Vendor location
• Payment Terms: When you need to pay them
• Products Supplied: (Product businesses) What items they provide

Customize Invoice Template:

1. Navigate to Settings → Templates & Preferences
2. Click on “Invoices”
3. Select a template and click “Customize”
4. Add your logo
5. Customize colors to match your brand
6. Add custom fields if needed

Service Business Invoices:

Service invoices are typically based on:

• Time-based: Hourly or daily rates multiplied by time worked
• Project-based: Fixed fee for completed projects or milestones
• Retainer-based: Monthly or quarterly recurring fees for ongoing services

Product Business Invoices:

Product invoices include:

• Item details: Product name, SKU, and description
• Quantity: Number of units sold
• Unit price: Price per item
• Stock impact: Inventory automatically reduces when invoice is approved
• Shipping charges: Delivery fees (taxable if VAT applies)

Essential Invoice Elements for Nigeria:

• Your business TIN (Tax Identification Number)
• VAT Registration Number (if registered)
• Clear breakdown of VAT (7.5%)
• Bank account details for payment
• Payment instructions

Configure Payment Gateway (Optional):

Zoho Books integrates with several payment gateways popular in Nigeria:

• Paystack: Most popular in Nigeria, low transaction fees
• Flutterwave: Great for multi-currency payments
• Stripe: Good for international clients

To set up:

1. Go to Settings → Payment Gateways
2. Select your preferred gateway
3. Connect your account (you’ll need API keys from the gateway)
4. Enable “Online Payment” option on invoices

Add Your Bank Accounts:

1. Navigate to Banking → Bank Accounts
2. Click “Add Bank Account”
3. Enter account details:

• Bank Name: E.g., Access Bank, GTBank, First Bank, UBA, Zenith, etc.
• Account Name: Your business name
• Account Number: 10-digit NUBAN number
• Account Type: Current Account (most business accounts)
• Opening Balance: Current balance as of the date you start using Zoho Books

Multiple Currency Accounts:

If you have domiciliary (dollar) accounts:

1. Add a separate bank account
2. Set currency to USD, EUR, or GBP as applicable
3. Zoho Books will automatically handle exchange rate conversions

Essential Reports for Nigerian Businesses:

Financial Reports:

• Profit and Loss Statement: Shows revenue and expenses
• Balance Sheet: Shows assets, liabilities, and equity
• Cash Flow Statement: Tracks money movement
• Trial Balance: Verifies accounting accuracy

Tax Reports:

• VAT Report: Critical for filing monthly VAT returns with FIRS
• Sales Tax Summary: Breaks down taxable vs non-taxable sales
• Purchase Tax Report: Shows VAT paid on purchases (input VAT)

Business Insights:

• Sales by Customer: Identifies your best clients
• Product Sales Report: Best and worst-selling items
• Accounts Receivable Aging: Shows who owes you money and for how long
• Inventory Valuation: Current stock value (product businesses)

Schedule Regular Reports:

1. Go to Reports
2. Select any report
3. Click “Schedule” at the top
4. Set frequency (daily, weekly, monthly)
5. Add email recipients (yourself, accountant, business partner)

If you have staff who need access to Zoho Books:

Adding Users:

1. Go to Settings → Users
2. Click “Invite User”
3. Enter their email address
4. Assign a role:

User Roles:

• Admin: Full access (for owners/senior management)
• Accountant: Financial data access, no deletion rights
• Sales Person: Can create invoices and manage customers only
• Purchase Manager: Can create bills and manage vendors
• Custom Roles: Define specific permissions

For Service-Based Businesses:

Daily Tasks:

• Log time spent on client projects (if using time tracking)
• Record any expenses incurred
• Update project status and milestones

Weekly Tasks:

• Create and send invoices to clients
• Follow up on unpaid invoices
• Record payments received
• Review project profitability

Monthly Tasks:

• Reconcile bank accounts
• Generate and file VAT returns (if registered)
• Review Profit & Loss statement
• Analyze client profitability
• Plan next month’s cash flow

For Product-Based Businesses:

Daily Tasks:

• Record all sales transactions
• Update inventory after sales or stock receipts
• Process customer orders
• Check low stock alerts

Weekly Tasks:

• Create purchase orders for low stock items
• Reconcile physical stock with system
• Generate sales reports
• Follow up with customers on payments
• Pay suppliers whose invoices are due

Monthly Tasks:

• Conduct physical inventory count
• Adjust inventory for shrinkage/damage
• Reconcile bank accounts
• File VAT returns
• Analyze inventory turnover
• Review profit margins by product category
• Identify slow-moving stock