GoTally is an AGPL-3.0 browser accounting application following the supplied roadmap. It is intentionally limited to accounting, inventory, VAT-era data, POS, reports, and the roadmap's later accounting compliance/access featuresβnot a generic ERP.
# GoTally β Project Plan
## What this is
A web-based clone of TallyPrime β the same accounting capabilities
(ledgers, vouchers, GST, inventory, reports) that businesses already know
from Tally, but running as a website instead of desktop software. No
installation, works on any system with a browser, accessible remotely.
This is **not** a general-purpose ERP like Odoo or ERPNext. It does not aim
to cover HR, manufacturing planning, CRM, or e-commerce out of the box.
It aims to do what TallyPrime does β accounting, GST compliance,
inventory, standard financial reports β and do it well, in a browser.
**UI/UX approach:** the screen layout, navigation, and workflow match
TallyPrime as closely as possible β same voucher entry flow, same report
structure, same mental model β so existing Tally users don't have to
relearn anything. The only intentional difference is visual theme
(colors, typography, light/dark mode). This is a re-skin of a familiar
layout, not a redesign.
**One addition beyond a pure Tally clone:** an Administrator-only
system-health panel inside the app β database size, storage usage, app
usage patterns/spikes, and an access/activity log. This is an operations
tool for whoever runs the server, not an accounting feature, and it is
not visible to Owner or Data Entry-level users. User roles themselves are
TallyPrime's own model (Administrator, Owner, Data Entry, Remote User,
Remote Auditor, plus any custom
security levels an Administrator defines) β we are not inventing a new
role scheme. Everything else β permissions and all functional
requirements β stays exactly as scoped below; this is the one addition,
not a new direction.
AI features (smart search, auto-suggestions, natural-language reports) are
a **later addition**, not part of the core product. The core has to work
correctly and simply first.
## License
GoTally is licensed under **AGPL-3.0**. In practice this means: anyone can
use, self-host, and modify GoTally, but if they run a modified version as
a network service (which is exactly what this product is), they must make
their modified source available to the users of that service. This keeps
the project open and prevents a closed-source fork from being offered as
a competing SaaS without contributing back.
## Why this instead of Tally itself
| | TallyPrime (desktop) | GoTally (this project) |
|---|---|---|
| Access | Installed on one Windows PC, or LAN-shared with extra setup | Any device with a browser, anywhere |
| Multi-user, remote | Needs Tally Server / VPN setup | Native β it's a website |
| Updates | Manual TSS renewal + install | Instant, server-side |
| Cost model | Per-seat licensing | Flexible (subscription/hosted) |
| Look and feel | Desktop grid UI, keyboard-driven, dated look | Modern web UI, works the same way underneath |
Nothing about the accounting logic changes β the same voucher types, the
same double-entry rules, the same GST forms. Only *how you reach it*
changes.
## Scope: what's in, what's out
**In scope (v1):**
- Company setup, Chart of Accounts (Groups + Ledgers)
- All core voucher types: Sales, Purchase, Payment, Receipt, Contra,
Journal, Debit Note, Credit Note
- Party (customer/supplier) ledgers with bill-wise tracking
- Basic inventory: stock items, units, godowns, stock ledger
- Core reports: Trial Balance, Ledger, Day Book, Balance Sheet, Profit & Loss
- GST fields on ledgers/items (GSTIN, HSN/SAC, rate) and GST-ready vouchers
- Multi-company support
- User accounts with role-based access (who can see/edit what)
**Explicitly out of scope for v1** (can be added later, one at a time,
same as Tally itself added them over the years):
- Direct GST portal filing (GSTR-1/3B e-filing)
- Bank feed integration / auto-reconciliation
- Payroll
- Manufacturing / Bill of Materials
- Multi-currency
- AI features of any kind
**Never in scope** (this is not an ERP):
- CRM, HR, manufacturing planning, e-commerce, project management β
if the client needs these, that's an Odoo/ERPNext conversation, not this one.
## How it's built (short version)
- **Backend:** Go + PostgreSQL. Every financial transaction goes through
one internal "posting engine" that enforces double-entry correctness
(debits always equal credits) before anything is saved β this is the
same rule real accounting systems rely on, done in the database from day one.
- **Frontend:** A standard web app (works on desktop and mobile browsers),
laid out to match TallyPrime's own screens and navigation β same
voucher forms, same report layout β with a modernized visual theme on
top (colors, type, dark mode). Familiar to existing Tally users on day one.
- No dependency on TallyPrime itself. This is a fresh build, not a plugin
or wrapper around Tally.
## Delivery approach
Built in stages, each stage fully working end-to-end before the next
starts β not "half of everything," but "all of a little, then a little more."
1. **Stage 1 β Core accounting.** Ledgers, vouchers, Trial Balance, P&L,
Balance Sheet. This alone is a usable bookkeeping tool.
2. **Stage 2 β Inventory + GST fields.** Stock tracking, GST-aware vouchers.
3. **Stage 3 β Reports depth + multi-company.** Custom report views,
consolidated reporting across companies.
4. **Stage 4 (optional, later) β GST filing integration, bank feeds.**
5. **Stage 5 (optional, later) β AI layer.** Only after the above is stable
and proven β smart search, auto-categorization, natural-language
queries against the client's own data.
Each stage ends with something the client can actually use, not just a
progress report.
## Who this is for
Small and mid-size businesses currently on TallyPrime (or considering it)
who want the same accounting discipline without being tied to one desktop
PC β teams that are remote, multi-location, or simply want it to work the
way every other tool they use already does: in a browser.