Tally vs Cloud ERP — Honest Comparison for Indian Business Owners

Tally is India's most used accounting software. Millions of businesses rely on it. So why are thousands of them switching to cloud ERP? Is Tally still good enough? Or is cloud ERP genuinely better? This is an honest, balanced comparison to help you decide.

Where Tally Excels

Let's give credit where it's due. Tally is excellent at pure accounting. It has decades of refinement in Indian accounting practices. Your CA knows it. Your accountant is trained on it. It handles double-entry bookkeeping, GST, and financial reports reliably. For a business that only needs accounting and nothing else, Tally is a solid choice.

Where Tally Falls Short

No cloud access: Tally is desktop software. You can only use it from the computer it's installed on. Can't check sales from your phone. Can't access data while travelling.

No built-in POS: Tally is not designed for fast retail billing. No barcode scanning workflow, no thermal receipt printing optimized for checkout speed.

No CRM: Tally doesn't help you manage customer relationships, track leads, or run loyalty programs.

No payroll: Employee salary management requires a separate add-on or software.

Limited inventory: Tally tracks stock but lacks advanced features like multi-warehouse management, barcode operations, batch tracking with alerts, and auto-reorder.

Multi-branch challenges: Running multiple branches on Tally requires complex server setups or data sync procedures.

What Cloud ERP Gives You That Tally Doesn't

Cloud ERP like Sellnaudit gives you everything Tally does for accounting, plus integrated GST billing with barcode scanning, real-time inventory management across locations, built-in CRM and customer management, payroll and HR management, POS system for retail billing, mobile access from any device, automatic cloud backups, and multi-branch management from one dashboard.

The Cost Question

Tally's license costs around ₹18,000-54,000 (one-time) plus annual AMC of ₹4,500-13,500. Add server costs for multi-user (₹15,000-50,000), plus IT maintenance. Cloud ERP like Sellnaudit is subscription-based — a fixed monthly fee with everything included. When you calculate total cost of ownership over 3 years (software + server + backup + IT support + AMC), cloud ERP often comes out more affordable.

The Migration Fear

The biggest reason businesses don't switch is fear. "What about my existing data?" "My accountant only knows Tally." "What if something goes wrong?"

Here's the reality: Sellnaudit provides free data migration from Tally. Your masters, opening balances, and history transfer seamlessly. The interface is intuitive — most accountants get comfortable within 2-3 days. And your data is safer in the cloud (automatic backups) than on a desktop hard drive.

Verdict: When to Stay with Tally, When to Switch

Stay with Tally if: You only need accounting (no billing, inventory, or CRM), you have a single location with one user, your accountant absolutely refuses to learn anything new, and cost is your only consideration.

Switch to Cloud ERP if: You need billing + accounting + inventory in one system, you want to access data from your phone or multiple locations, you have (or plan to have) multiple branches, you want to eliminate duplicate data entry across tools, or you want a modern business management platform that grows with you.

Ready to explore? Try Sellnaudit free — no credit card, no commitment. Call 94 46 41 9000 or WhatsApp 94 46 41 9000.

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