Comparisons
SmokoBooks compared with Xero, MYOB and a spreadsheet
Three comparisons for a tradie deciding how to run the books. Each one starts with what the other option does better, because for some businesses it is the better choice, and each gives a straight answer.
Checked 30 September 2026. No competitor prices quoted.
The comparisons
SmokoBooks vs Xero for tradies
An honest comparison of SmokoBooks and Xero for sole trader tradies: what Xero does that SmokoBooks does not, where SmokoBooks is better, and how to choose.
Short answer: If you have staff, want bank feeds, or your accountant insists on logging in, use Xero. If you are on your own, the paperwork is the pain, and you would rather keep your books on your own PC, SmokoBooks is built for exactly that.
Updated 30 September 2026
Read the comparisonSmokoBooks vs MYOB for tradies
SmokoBooks compared with MYOB for sole trader tradies: bank feeds, payroll and accountant access versus job documents, quote-to-invoice and data on your PC.
Short answer: MYOB if you have employees, stock, or an accountant who needs to be in the file every week. SmokoBooks if you are a one-person trade business and the job paperwork and BAS figures are what eat your evenings.
Updated 30 September 2026
Read the comparisonSmokoBooks vs a spreadsheet for your tradie books
Running your trade business on Excel or Google Sheets? Where a spreadsheet wins, where it breaks, and what changes with quotes, invoices and BAS in one app.
Short answer: If you send fewer than a handful of invoices a month and have no job paperwork to speak of, keep the spreadsheet. The day you find yourself rebuilding a quote as an invoice, hunting for a receipt at BAS time, or realising someone paid late and nobody noticed, that is the day it costs more than $19 a month.
Updated 30 September 2026
Read the comparison
What SmokoBooks is for
A comparison only makes sense against the job the software is built to do. SmokoBooks is a Windows desktop app for Australian trade businesses where one person works in the books at a time. It does three things.
The paperwork
Quotes, invoices, receipts, work orders, variations, defect notices, service reports and SWMS, plus a rental electrical safety check for electricians. Each is a branded PDF made from the same customer record.
The cash-book behind it
An accepted quote becomes a job, the invoice and payments land against it, and expenses carry a photo of the receipt. Subcontractors, assets and a vehicle log sit alongside, and a job number on an expense comes off that job's profit.
The figures for tax time
BAS figures by quarter with the G1, 1A and 1B labels if you are registered for GST, a tax set-aside figure on the dashboard, and an Excel workbook for your accountant.
Your books are never sent to us. On Solo they stay on your PC, with a backup each day you use the app; on Solo + office PC they sync through your own OneDrive, Google Drive or Dropbox folder. The app needs the internet to activate and for a daily licence check, and keeps working for 14 days offline.
What it does not do
- No bank feeds. You record payments and expenses yourself.
- No payroll, super or Single Touch Payroll.
- It does not lodge your BAS or tax return. It gives you the figures; you or your agent lodge.
- No inventory or stock control.
- No importer from Xero, MYOB or a spreadsheet. Import backup only restores a SmokoBooks backup.
- Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit only. No Mac or phone version.
- One person works in the books at a time.
If you need any of these, the choice is already made, and the comparison pages say so.
How the comparisons were checked
- Competitor details come from their own Australian websites, checked on 30 September 2026: Xero's pricing plans (opens in a new tab), MYOB's pricing (opens in a new tab), Solo by MYOB (opens in a new tab) and MYOB's AccountRight offline mode notice (opens in a new tab). The Xero and MYOB pages each say when they were checked.
- SmokoBooks details come from the app itself (version 1.5.2), not from a wish list. Where it cannot do something, the page says so.
- No competitor prices. Plans and prices change, so the Xero and MYOB pages link the competitor's own pricing page rather than quoting a figure that may be out of date by the time you read it. Our own price is filled in from the live shop settings, not typed into the page.
- What the other option does better comes first on every page, before where SmokoBooks wins.
If you spot something out of date, email admin@aenetworks.com.au.
Which one fits your business
The short version of all three pages. Each row links to the comparison that explains it.
| If this is you | Better fit |
|---|---|
| You employ staff and need payroll | Xero or MYOB |
| You want bank feeds and reconciliation against your statement | Xero or MYOB |
| Your accountant or bookkeeper wants to log in to your file | Xero or MYOB |
| You carry stock | An MYOB Business plan with inventory |
| You want to do the books on your phone | Xero, Solo by MYOB or a spreadsheet |
| You used AccountRight offline and work on your own | SmokoBooks, if you can do without payroll, inventory and bank feeds |
| A handful of invoices a month and no job paperwork to speak of | Keep the spreadsheet |
| You work alone, the job paperwork is the pain, and you want the books on your own PC | SmokoBooks |
Looking for your trade instead? See SmokoBooks for your trade, or SmokoBooks for sole trader tradies. Every feature is on the features page.
See for yourself
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Solo is $19/month or $190/year for one computer; Solo + office PC is $29/month or $290/year for two. Every plan has every feature. AENETWORKS is not registered for GST, so no GST is charged. See pricing.
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