A Bonsai bookkeeping alternative for reviewing the tax year
If you use Bonsai to run client work, a software change may touch far more than expense records. Contracts, project schedules and billing can all depend on the same setup. Decide which part of that setup you want to improve before moving it.
Arkrel offers a focused way to review business statements and prepare a tax-report handoff. Start with one statement free, review merchants and preview My year with no card needed. Full reports, downloads, exports and accountant sharing are paid.
Keep client operations in the decision
Bonsai brings together contracts and project workflows, with time tracking and billing connected to client work. If you rely on those tools, list the live work that would be affected by a change.
Identify active contracts, open proposals, unfinished projects, scheduled invoices and unbilled work. Note who needs access and which client-facing links are still in use. Give each continuing responsibility a home before retiring any part of the system.
You may be able to improve the tax-year record review while keeping the client workflow that already works for you. Evaluate the bookkeeping job on that basis.
Distinguish project performance from tax-year activity
A project view can include hours, budgets, milestones and work awaiting an invoice. A bank statement records activity in the account. Both can be useful, and they answer different questions about the business.
When reviewing a payment, keep the related invoice and project context available. A client may pay a deposit, settle more than one invoice or receive a refund. Payment-provider records may also be needed to explain fees and net deposits.
For the statement-based income-and-expense view, see profit and loss from bank statements. Ask your accountant to review timing or classification questions that remain after you gather the underlying records.
Give the statement review its own routine
Upload or email your statements to Arkrel. Work through transactions grouped by merchant, using receipts and project records to explain purchases. Confirmed rules remember your decisions for future reviews.
On a paid plan, the report includes a profit and loss summary, Schedule C totals and likely deductions to review. Downloads, exports and accountant sharing support the handoff to your preparer.
Keep a separate list of unresolved questions as you work. It might include a client refund, a reimbursable purchase or a deposit whose purpose is unclear. The accountant document checklist helps gather the source material for those questions.
Plan the change around live client work
Choose a small, completed period for the first evaluation. Keep current contracts, billing and project records accessible while you review its statement activity in Arkrel.
Before changing the wider setup, answer four questions:
- Which client workflows will stay where they are?
- Where will active contracts and project records remain accessible?
- Who will issue invoices and follow up on outstanding payments?
- Which records will your accountant use for the tax year?
Save the history you rely on before any account change. Check that saved documents are readable and that the people responsible for ongoing work know which system to use. An orderly handoff should cover the live client obligations as well as the financial records.
Choose the Arkrel plan for your records
Catch-Up costs $499 one time per purchased tax year and includes a 30-day money-back guarantee. If the backlog is spread across earlier periods, use the prior-year bookkeeping guide to collect each year separately.
Autopilot costs $49 per month, with a 14-day free trial, and covers the current calendar year. The monthly bookkeeping page explains the ongoing statement routine. Include the client-management tools you will keep when comparing the total setup.
Questions about a Bonsai bookkeeping alternative
Which Bonsai does this page discuss?
This page concerns the client and business-management software at hellobonsai.com. It focuses on the tax-year bookkeeping part of that software decision.
What if I need to replace contracts and project management too?
Keep those requirements in your product shortlist. Map active client work and decide how those responsibilities will continue before changing the system that holds them.
Can a project report and a statement report show different figures?
Yes. They may represent different dates or different stages of the work and payment process. Compare the underlying invoices, payments and accounting treatment with your accountant.
Can I evaluate Arkrel while keeping my client workflow?
You can start the evaluation with an original bank or card statement while retaining your existing client records and tools. Use that trial to judge the statement-review experience.
What does the free preview include?
One statement upload, merchant review and a My year preview, with no card needed. Full reports, downloads, exports and accountant sharing require a paid plan.
Try a completed statement before changing the wider setup
Review the financial activity for a period you know. Use that experience to decide how Arkrel fits the way you run the business.