Spreadsheets are not the enemy
A spreadsheet is cheap, flexible and known to almost everyone. Many sound businesses run on them for years. We sell software, so we have a reason to say otherwise, but moving too early costs money and attention you may need elsewhere.
The real question is whether the spreadsheet is still giving you the right answers, at a cost you can accept.
Side by side
| Spreadsheets | Navigate | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting cost | Often little or nothing. | A monthly subscription. Check the current prices on the website. |
| Setup | Minutes, and you design it yourself. | Registration is short, but tax, opening balances and training take real time. |
| Several users at once | Possible with shared files, but overwriting is easy. | Each user has their own login, role and branch limits. |
| Stock | Typed or calculated by you. | Updated by purchases, sales and transfers. Serials, batches and pack sizes are supported. |
| Accounting | Separate, or built by hand. | Sales, receipts and stock post to a double-entry ledger. |
| Audit trail | Limited. Hard to see who changed a figure. | Records who changed what, when and from where. |
| Payments | Entered by hand. | M-Pesa prompts and matching, plus card links through Pesapal or Flutterwave. |
| eTIMS in Kenya | A spreadsheet cannot sign invoices. You would use a KRA option separately. | Sales invoices and credit notes can be signed through OSCU, VSCU or an integrator. |
| Flexibility | Very high. You can model anything. | Works within its modules, with custom fields, rules and a report builder. |
| Offline | Works offline on a computer. | Mostly needs a connection. Phone visits and orders work offline. |
| Ability to leave | You own the file. | Reports can be exported, but moving to another system is a project. |
Signs it is time to move
- Two people have different versions of the same file.
- Stock counts regularly differ from the sheet, and nobody can say why.
- You cannot say who owes you what without an hour of work.
- Month-end takes more than a few days.
- You have opened a second branch or warehouse.
- A formula error has cost you real money.
- Only one person understands the file, and the business would stall without them.
- eTIMS re-entry is taking staff time each day.
Signs you should stay
- A single owner or bookkeeper keeps everything accurate.
- You have few items, few sales a day and no credit customers.
- Your accountant can close the year from your records without trouble.
- You meet your eTIMS duties through a KRA option without much effort.
- You are about to change your business model. Wait until it settles.
There is a middle step
You need not jump straight to an ERP. If bookkeeping is your issue, accounting software may do. Zoho publishes a free Zoho Books plan in Kenya for businesses with annual revenue under KSh 5 million, and Zoho describes Books as KRA-approved eTIMS software. If only stock is the issue, a stock tool such as Zoho Inventory has a free plan with limits. Prices and limits are as stated on 31 October 2026.
If you move, keep what works
- Use your spreadsheets to prepare the move. Navigate takes products by Excel template and opening balances by upload.
- Count your stock first. Opening stock can be brought in without a full trial balance, if that is all you need.
- Keep exporting reports for the analysis you like. Navigate reports export to CSV.
- Keep the old file read-only for reference. Stop entering new work in it on the day you go live.
Where Navigate may not fit
- If one careful person runs a simple business well on a spreadsheet, Navigate will likely add cost and effort without enough return.
- If your work needs free-form modelling, such as bespoke costing or pricing scenarios, keep a spreadsheet for this. Navigate will not replace it.
- If you have long internet outages, a spreadsheet keeps working and most Navigate screens do not.
- Moving away from Navigate later would be a project, as with any system. Reports can be exported, but plan your exit in advance.
Frequently asked questions
Can I keep using Excel with Navigate?
Yes, for analysis. Reports export to CSV, and you can open them in Excel or Google Sheets. Products can be imported with an Excel template. Spreadsheets with formulas may be refused on import, so paste values instead.
How long does it take to move from spreadsheets?
It depends on how clean your data is and how many people you must train. Registration is short, but plan time for cleaning lists, counting stock and setting up tax.
Can I try before I commit?
New registrations get a free period, and the website states its current length. Use it to run real transactions rather than only looking around.
How many users can use a spreadsheet safely?
There is no fixed number. Trouble tends to start when more than one person edits the same figures, or when nobody can tell who changed what.