QuickBooks Desktop users
Move from a QuickBooks Desktop company file to cloud accounting priced in rand, built around South African VAT and the March to February tax year, with an assisted conversion of your data.
Who it is for
South African businesses and bookkeepers still running QuickBooks Desktop who want cloud access, ZAR pricing and South African VAT and tax-year workflows.
The assisted conversion loads the records you need to keep trading from your first day in Accounter.
Accounter is made for South African businesses and the accountants who support them, so local VAT and the tax year are the default rather than a set-up project.
Decision support
Step by step
Switching from QuickBooks Desktop to Accounter with an assisted conversion.
Pick a financial year-end or the start of a VAT period so the opening position is easy to check.
Capture everything up to the cut-over date and reconcile your bank accounts.
Export the chart of accounts, customer and supplier lists, trial balance and open invoice and unpaid bills reports to Excel or CSV.
Our team maps the accounts to Accounter and loads your customers, suppliers, opening balances and open items.
Compare the Accounter opening trial balance with your QuickBooks report, approve it, then capture new transactions in Accounter.
Done with you
Our team maps your QuickBooks Desktop exports into Accounter and loads them for you. You review the result against your own reports and sign it off before you start capturing. It is a people-led service, not an automated file converter.
Tools and next steps
Compare the features and costs, or try a tool for the bookkeeping task you need to finish today.
Look for cloud accounting priced in rand that is set up for 15% VAT, the March to February tax year and accountant access. Accounter is built for South African businesses and accountants, with public ZAR pricing.
No. Accounter does not open QuickBooks company files. Moving across uses an assisted conversion from lists and reports you export from QuickBooks Desktop to Excel or CSV.
Your chart of accounts, customers, suppliers, opening balances from the trial balance at your cut-over date, and open items (unpaid customer and supplier invoices).
No. This page is for QuickBooks Desktop users moving off a desktop install. For a feature and pricing comparison with QuickBooks Online, see Accounter vs QuickBooks.
Many South African companies have a February year-end, and the tax year runs 1 March 2026 to 28 February 2027. Converting at year-end lets you close the old year in your current system and start the new year in Accounter with clean opening balances. If that is not practical, the start of a VAT period is the next best cut-over date.
Reviewed and sourced
Last reviewed 2026-07-18. Tax and VAT references use official SARS sources where applicable.