Zoho Books vs SupaJack Construct for contractors: one month, task by task

How to read this page

Our Zoho Books alternative page compares the two products area by area. This page takes a different route: it follows one contractor month in the order the work happens, and asks at each task what Zoho's own pages describe and what SupaJack Construct does. Zoho facts come from Zoho's UAE pages, checked 3 November 2026. Where we write that Zoho's pages do not describe something, that is a statement about those pages, not about what Zoho could do with a workaround.

The month at a glance

1. Raise a progress claim and get it certified

Zoho Books' UAE page describes projects that quote, accommodate partial payments and log time. Zoho's pages do not describe payment certificates, so a certified amount from the consultant would be recorded outside the product's own certificate step.

In SupaJack Construct the commercial team prepares the application citing the work inspection reports behind each item. The consultant certifies the amount, and only then can the invoice be raised: no certificate, no invoice. The invoice takes the certified value, deducts the advance being recovered, adds 5% VAT and posts to the ledger in the same step.

2. Retention held and released

Zoho's pages do not describe retention. A contractor on Zoho Books would need its own way to track what each client holds and when it falls due.

SupaJack Construct holds retention from each payment and adds it to the project's retention balance. At handover and again at the end of the defects period, each tranche is applied for, certified and invoiced on its own. The retention VAT setting locks after the first progress invoice posts, so the treatment does not change halfway through a job. The retention calculator shows the arithmetic.

3. Advance recovery

Zoho's UAE page describes partial payments. Ask Zoho how an advance received at the start of a contract would be recovered from later claims and how VAT on it is treated.

SupaJack Construct takes the recovery rate from the project's recorded terms, applies it on each certificate, caps it at what is still outstanding and reverses the VAT on the recovered part. A project that received an advance but has no recovery rate cannot be invoiced until the rate is recorded. The advance payment recovery calculator shows the steps.

4. Pay subcontractors against measured work

Zoho's pages do not describe subcontractor management or a bill of quantities. Supplier bills and purchase orders exist, but measuring a subcontractor's progress against agreed quantities is not described.

SupaJack Construct records each subcontract with its BOQ lines. A certificate measures progress against those lines, works out the previously certified figure itself, withholds retention by tranche, and creates the supplier bill and its ledger posting in one transaction, so a certificate and its payable cannot drift apart. Use the subcontractor payable calculator to test a certificate.

5. Site material receipts

Zoho Books lists stock tracking and purchase orders. For a contractor the open question is whether stock can be seen by project and whether use on site is recorded. Zoho's pages, as we read them, describe inventory generally.

SupaJack Construct builds the goods receipt from the purchase order, commercial invoice, bill of lading and packing list, shows each project only the stock its own orders brought in, and records what was installed, wasted or missing. See site stores and the procurement guide.

6. Payroll and the WPS file

Zoho Payroll is a separate product. Its UAE page describes auto-generated SIF files for WPS, calculation of end-of-service benefits, and integration with Zoho Books.

SupaJack Construct runs payroll in the same system as the ledger. Payslips come from approved time, unpaid leave and loans, overtime reaches payroll only inside an approved authorisation, the run checks every worker's IBAN, person code and routing code before it produces the WPS file, and the payroll journal posts by cost centre and project. Test a file with the WPS SIF file checker.

7. VAT return and e-invoicing

Zoho Books' UAE page says VAT returns can be filed directly with EmaraTax. Zoho's e-invoicing page states: "Zoho is an accredited eInvoicing Service Provider (ASP) recognized by the UAE Ministry of Finance." It says the first 100 e-invoicing transactions are free on Professional and above, with further packs starting at AED 41 for 100 transactions.

SupaJack Construct produces the VAT 201 figures from the same ledger that holds the invoices and bills, but does not file with EmaraTax. It does not send e-invoices and is not an accredited provider. It has an onboarding workflow for choosing and appointing a provider and recording the company's Peppol ID, which has not yet been proven against a live provider. See the e-invoicing answer.

What each costs

Zoho publishes prices for Zoho Books in AED per organisation per month, excluding local taxes: Free AED 0 while revenue stays under AED 200,000, Standard AED 69 monthly or AED 60 billed annually, Professional AED 129 or AED 90, Premium AED 159 or AED 120, Elite AED 349 or AED 280, and Ultimate AED 799 or AED 660. Extra users are AED 10 monthly or AED 8 annually. The page we read gave no figures for Zoho Payroll. SupaJack Construct is priced by quote, based on company size and modules, with no published list.

Combining them

Some contractors keep Zoho Books for the books and use a project system beside it. With SupaJack Construct, be clear about what is and is not connected. It has no live Zoho sync. What exists is a one-time import of a Zoho Books chart of accounts and trial balance export when you start. After that SupaJack Construct posts to its own ledger, so running both means two ledgers, and totals must be carried across by your accountant. We do not provide that feed.

If you want one set of books, the buyer's guide lists questions to ask any vendor, and the FirstBit comparison covers another contractor-specific ERP. Read the interim payments guide and the VAT guide, or book a demo.