A financial system for a small business brings income, expenses, accounts and categories into one place and shows cash flow without relying on a spreadsheet built by hand. It is worth switching when the balance stops matching, when more than one person enters data or when tracking due dates depends on someone remembering. There are three paths: the spreadsheet, a ready-made subscription system and a system of your own installed on the company's hosting, and each one has limits.
I, Anderson Barbosa, of ab/ in Campina Grande, Brazil, built AB Finanças, an in-house financial system. In this text I explain what it needs to have, how to compare the three paths and what a custom system costs, without pushing a solution on someone who does not need it.
When the spreadsheet stops keeping up
A spreadsheet works while one person enters a few accounts and understands every formula. These are common signs that it has become too small:
- the balance does not match the bank statement and nobody knows why;
- payables and receivables are spread across different tabs;
- installments and recurring charges need manual entry every month;
- the monthly report takes hours to produce;
- only the person who built the spreadsheet can explain it.
Many companies keep a spreadsheet for years, because it does not break overnight. The problem is what it stops showing, little by little.
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Need this in your business? I build it for companies in Campina Grande (PB) and across Brazil, with price and timeline in writing before we start.
What a small business financial system needs
Before looking at the price, check whether the solution covers the basics:
- Income and expenses, with status (paid, pending, overdue) and due date.
- Accounts, such as bank and cash, with opening and current balance.
- Categories, to show where the money comes from and where it goes.
- Cash flow, with the balance trend and a summary for each month.
- Reports by period that can be printed or saved as PDF.
- Access levels, so each person sees only what they need.
- Backup, with location and frequency defined in writing.
Each item has a role. Income and expenses with status show what has come in and what is still due. Accounts separate the money of each bank or cash box, and categories show where the company spends. Cash flow brings all of this together over the months.
A small system that handles cash flow well is more useful than a large one full of modules nobody opens. Ask the supplier, in writing, whether access levels and backup are part of the delivery.
Spreadsheet, ready-made system or your own system: how to compare
Each path suits a different moment. The table shows what changes between them.
| Criterion | Spreadsheet | Ready-made subscription system | Own system installed on the hosting |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry cost | No license, but the time of whoever enters data has a cost | Usually low, with a monthly charge | Custom project, starting at R$ 3.900 |
| Where the data lives | In the file or cloud storage of whoever keeps it | In the supplier's environment, usually | On the hosting the company contracts |
| Fit to your process | Total, but the formulas need upkeep | Limited to what the supplier offers | Defined in the scope agreed before starting |
| Main risk | Formula errors and a file only one person understands | Price or feature changes by the supplier | Depending on whoever maintains the system |
| Best for | Simple accounts with one person | Companies whose needs fit what the supplier already offers | Companies with their own process that want control over data and features |
The advantage of a system installed on the company's hosting is that the data stays where the company chooses. The trade-off is that someone has to maintain the system. Before hiring, ask what is and is not in scope, such as bank integration or electronic invoicing.
How AB Finanças was built
AB Finanças is a web financial system with a consolidated balance overview, income and expenses with recurrence and installments, accounts, categories, cash flow and reports that can be printed or saved as PDF. It was built in PHP, on a custom MVC with no framework and no Composer, to run on shared hosting from PHP 8.2. Every table stores the company identifier, and every query is filtered by it, which allows serving more than one company on the same server.
On installation, a web wizard creates the database, the company and the first user. The system can then be used as an installable app on the phone and the computer, with light and dark themes. The first version went live three days after the project started, which ran from August 4 to September 4, 2026. See the full AB Finanças case. The screenshots in the case come from a demo database, with no client data.
The case shows the overview, income, expenses, cash flow, reports and accounts screens, with a screenshot of each.
How much a custom financial system costs
As of October 2026, a custom system starts at R$ 3.900 (see Custom Systems). Hosting and domain are charged separately. The final price depends on the number of screens, access profiles and integrations the company needs, so I have a conversation before closing the budget. You can also see the services.
If the spreadsheet no longer keeps up with your company's cash, talk to me. I work with clients in Campina Grande and with companies across Brazil, remotely.
Frequently asked questions
When should a small business replace the spreadsheet with a financial system?
When the balance stops matching, when more than one person enters data, or when tracking payables depends on memory. In those cases, the time spent checking the spreadsheet usually weighs more than the monthly cost of a system. It is worth comparing the monthly time of whoever closes the cash with the cost of the solution.
Does AB Finanças work on the phone?
Yes. AB Finanças can be installed as an app on the phone and the computer, and it has light and dark themes. The dashboard shows the consolidated balance, monthly income and expenses, and bills due in the next 20 days.
Can AB Finanças stay on my company's hosting?
Yes. AB Finanças is installed on the company's own hosting through a web installer, which creates the database, the company and the first user. It runs on shared hosting with PHP 8.2 or later, and recurring entries and installments are generated at registration, with no dependency on a task scheduler on the hosting.
How much does a custom financial system for a small business cost?
At ab/ Anderson Barbosa, a custom system starts at R$ 3.900, according to the packages page. Hosting and domain are charged separately. The final price depends on the screens, access profiles and integrations the company needs, and I send the budget after our conversation.
Is a spreadsheet still good enough for a small business?
It is good for getting started and for simple accounts with one person entering data. It stops being enough when cash needs a reliable history, more than one user or reports that come out without manual work. At that point, a financial system organizes what the spreadsheet had spread out.
