Spreadsheet or ERP for a Zid store?
A spreadsheet starts fast but runs on manual entry. An ERP connected to Zid receives orders and returns and keeps stock in step. Point by point.
Plenty of stores start on spreadsheets: a tab for sales, a tab for stock, a tab for returns. The question comes when the tabs grow. Is it time for an ERP?
The short answer: a spreadsheet starts fast, but every order, return and quantity in it is keyed by hand, and checking it is manual too. An ERP keeps sales, stock and returns in one system. With the app, every paid Zid order reaches it, and stock flows from it to your Zid locations.
Point by point
| Spreadsheet | ERP connected to Zid | |
|---|---|---|
| Zid orders | Copied or exported from Zid by hand | Every paid order posted with the customer, items, tax and shipping |
| Returns | A separate tab updated by hand | One credit note per return, with Odoo, ERPNext and Wafeq |
| Stock in Zid | Zid quantities updated by hand | From ERP warehouses to each Zid location, from the Growth plan |
| Duplicates | Possible when the same order is copied twice | The same order is never posted twice |
| Several users | People can overwrite each other's work | Usually a role for each user |
| Change history | Limited, depending on the tool | Usually a history on each document |
| Invoices | A spreadsheet is not an e-invoicing system | Depends on the system and e-invoicing rules |
| Getting started | Right away, no setup | Pick a system, then connect Zid in about two weeks |
The general ERP points vary by system.
Signs your store has outgrown spreadsheets
- The stock in the sheet matches neither the warehouse nor what Zid shows.
- The same order appears twice, or one goes missing, and you find out at reconciliation.
- Returns do not reach the sales numbers at the same time.
- VAT figures need manual fixes before you file.
- More than one person edits the same file.
Invoices: what ZATCA says
ZATCA defines an e-invoice as one generated in a structured electronic format through electronic means. A paper invoice turned electronic by copying or scanning does not count as an e-invoice. So a spreadsheet cannot stand in for an invoicing system.
Moving from spreadsheets to an ERP connected to Zid
List what the sheets hold
Products, quantities per warehouse, customers and balances, with your accountant.
Pick a system
An accounting app or an ERP, depending on what your books must track.
Load opening data
Enter products, quantities and balances in the new system.
Connect Zid
Install the app, approve the scope of work, then test the link on your store's orders.
Go live
Live once you approve the test report, about two weeks after install.
Questions merchants ask
Can I keep using spreadsheets for analysis after moving to an ERP?
Yes. You can export from the ERP into a spreadsheet for analysis, while the ERP stays the source of the numbers.
Do all my past orders have to go into the ERP?
That is an accounting decision to make with your accountant. Once the link is live, every new paid Zid order reaches the ERP.
Which systems does the app work with?
Odoo 18 and 19, ERPNext, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations, Wafeq as an accounting app, and any system with a public API on request.
Sources
Systems in this comparison
- OdooOdoo 18 and 19: orders, returns and stock between Zid and Odoo.
- ERPNextERPNext: orders, returns, and each warehouse's stock at its Zid location.
- Microsoft Dynamics 365 Finance and OperationsDynamics 365 Finance and Operations: orders and stock between Zid and the ERP.
- WafeqWafeq (accounting): orders, returns and stock between Zid and your books.
Further reading
- ERP or accounting app at 100, 500 and 2,000 orders a monthWhat your books must track decides the system: stock across warehouses, purchasing and branches usually point to an ERP. Monthly orders decide the plan.
- From Zid order to ERP in six stepsA paid Zid order takes six steps: notice, customer, posting, read-back, the document number in Zid, then status with Dynamics 365 Finance and Operations.