Sally vs TallyPrime
Tally is the reason most Indian businesses have proper books at all, and this page is not going to pretend otherwise. What follows is where the two genuinely differ, what carries across if you move, and the cases where you should stay put.
| TallyPrime | Sally | |
|---|---|---|
| Where the data lives | On the machine it is installed on. Remote access means a LAN, a VPN, or sending a backup file. | In the cloud, hosted in India (AWS Mumbai). Any browser, and your CA sees the same books you do. |
| Working at the same time | Multi-user needs a licensed server edition and everyone on the same network. | Concurrent by default. Role-based permissions decide who can do what. |
| Accounting model | Voucher-first double entry — groups, ledgers, vouchers. | The same voucher-first double entry, not an invoicing tool with accounting bolted on. |
| GST filing | Generates returns; filing is generally a portal or utility step. | GSTR-1, 3B and 9 prepared from your books, plus GSTR-2B reconciliation to catch input credit your suppliers did not file. |
| E-invoicing & e-way bills | Supported, commonly via connector or portal workflows. | Built in, against the NIC IRP — IRN, signed QR and e-way bills from the invoice itself. |
| Getting your data out | XML export, which is exactly what Sally imports. | Excel, PDF and CSV export on every report; your ledger is never locked in. |
| Cost model | Perpetual licence plus an annual maintenance fee. | Monthly or yearly subscription, with a free plan for small books. |
When you should stay on TallyPrime
Situations where switching would make your life worse, not better.
You are happy offline and rarely share the file
If one person keeps the books on one machine and that has never been a problem, a cloud product is solving a problem you do not have.
You depend on a specific Tally customisation
TDL customisations, bespoke print formats and third-party Tally add-ons do not carry across. If your business runs on one, moving means rebuilding it.
Your internet is genuinely unreliable
Sally needs a connection. If yours drops for hours at a stretch, desktop software will be less painful, whatever the feature list says.
What actually carries across
Export the XML from Tally and upload it. Sally rebuilds:
- Groups, with their parent chain
- Ledgers, with opening balances
- Parties, with addresses
- Units, including compound units
- Stock groups and stock items
- HSN codes and GST rates
- Opening stock quantity and value
- Sales, Purchase, Receipt, Payment vouchers
- Journal, Contra, Credit and Debit Notes
- Bill allocations, so outstanding ties out
Multi-gigabyte daybooks stream through without a time limit, and an interrupted import resumes from its last checkpoint. What does not come across: TDL customisations, bespoke print formats and third-party Tally add-ons.