Compare · Accounting and invoicing
SME AI Office vs Excel and Google Sheets
A spreadsheet is a blank grid you build and keep up yourself. SME AI Office is accounting, invoicing and payroll that already follow Singapore's GST and CPF rules.
Prices checked 30 September 2026
The short answer
Choose Excel or Google Sheets if you have a handful of transactions a month, like building your own layout, and your accountant is happy to take a spreadsheet at year end.
Choose SME AI Office if you want the GST F5, CPF and PayNow QR invoices done without building formulas. The Free plan is S$0 and Pro 365 is S$365 a year. Google Sheets is free, and Microsoft 365 Business Basic is USD$84 a user a year before GST.
Side by side
| SME AI Office | Excel and Google Sheets | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free plan S$0. Pro 365 S$39 a month or S$365 a year | Google Sheets free. Microsoft 365 Business Basic USD$7 a user a month, paid yearlyMicrosoft price before GST. Google Workspace Business Starter S$9.40 a user a month, yearly |
| Free plan | Yes, for good. Your P&L and 10 invoices a month, no card | Google Sheets is free with a Google account |
| GST F5 | Every box filled in from your records on Pro 365. You file on myTax Portal | Not by itself. You set up the tax codes and formulas |
| Invoices with PayNow | A PayNow QR for the exact amount on every SGD invoice, free | Not by itself. A QR must be made elsewhere and pasted in |
| Payment reminders | Email reminders on days you pick, stopping when paid | Not by itself. You chase each invoice |
| Payroll and CPF | Built in on Pro 365: CPF by age and PR year, the CPF file and IR8A | Not by itself. You keep the CPF rates and age bands up to date |
| Receipts | Photographed, read and filed on Pro 365, GST split out | Typed in by hand |
| Sales | Bookings, orders, POS and paid invoices post to your P&L by themselves | Copied in from each app by hand |
| Flexibility | Fixed screens built for Singapore rules. Lists export to CSV | Any layout you like, and every accountant can open it |
Which one fits
SME AI Office fits when
- You are tired of rebuilding GST and CPF formulas every quarter.
- You want invoices with a PayNow QR and reminders that stop when paid.
- You sell through bookings, an order page or a POS and want each sale in your P&L.
Excel and Google Sheets fits when
- You have only a few transactions a month and no staff.
- You want a layout of your own design.
- Your accountant asks for a spreadsheet and does the rest.
Your P&L and 10 invoices a month are free. Everything else is Pro 365, S$365 a year.
Questions
Is SME AI Office cheaper than Excel or Google Sheets in Singapore?
Google Sheets is free, and SME AI Office's Free plan is also S$0, with your profit and loss and 10 PayNow QR invoices a month. Microsoft 365 Business Basic is USD$7 a user a month paid yearly, before GST. SME AI Office Pro 365 is S$365 a year and adds GST F5 figures, payroll and CPF.
Can I do my GST F5 in a spreadsheet?
Yes, if you set up the tax codes and formulas yourself and keep them right each quarter. SME AI Office fills in every box of the GST F5 from receipts and sales that already carry their GST, on Pro 365. You then file on myTax Portal yourself.
Can a spreadsheet work out CPF?
Only if you build and update the rates yourself, including age bands and the graduated PR rates. SME AI Office works out CPF from each person's age, citizenship and PR year on Pro 365, and the rate changes by itself when someone turns 55.
What is a better alternative to Excel for accounting in Singapore?
SME AI Office replaces the spreadsheet with screens built for Singapore: a live profit and loss, invoices with a PayNow QR, and on Pro 365 receipt scanning, GST F5 figures and CPF payroll. It starts free, and Pro 365 is S$365 a year.
Can I move my spreadsheet into SME AI Office?
Yes. Send us the spreadsheet itself; contacts import from CSV, and you can start from the current month. WhatsApp us on +65 9613 7676 and we help you move it over. For a limited time we set the business up for you free, on every plan.
Excel and Google Sheets facts are from microsoft.com/en-sg Microsoft 365 business plans, workspace.google.com pricing (Singapore), google.com/sheets/about, checked on 30 September 2026. Prices are as shown there. Excel and Google Sheets is a trademark of Microsoft Corporation and Google LLC. SME AI Office is not connected with Excel and Google Sheets.