Tally Prime is the best accounting software in India. But it was never built for factories. If you run a manufacturing business, here's the honest comparison you need before choosing your software.
Read our full guide on Tally alternativesTally Prime is excellent if you only need accounting and GST. If you also need to manage production, BOM, work orders, job work, or factory inventory - you need Shikhar ERP. Many manufacturers use Tally for accounts and still need a separate ERP for production; Shikhar combines both, eliminating the double data entry that causes stock mismatches and GST errors.
Every feature that matters for a manufacturing business, compared directly.
| Feature | Shikhar ERP Recommended | Tally Prime | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bill of Materials (BOM) | Multi-level BOM | Not available | Core manufacturing need |
| Work Order Management | Full | Not available | - |
| Production Entry & Tracking | Yes | No | - |
| Job Work / Subcontracting | Full module | No | Send out, receive finished goods |
| Scrap & By-product Tracking | Yes | No | - |
| Multi-Warehouse Inventory | Full | Basic godowns | - |
| Reorder Level Alerts | Yes | Manual | - |
| Batch / Lot Tracking | Yes | Basic | - |
| GST Invoicing | Full offline | Full | Both handle GST well |
| GSTR Reports | Yes | Yes | - |
| Bank Reconciliation | Yes | Yes | - |
| P&L & Balance Sheet | Yes | Yes | - |
| Purchase Order Management | Full PO workflow | Basic | - |
| Sales Order Management | Full SO workflow | Basic | - |
| Delivery Challan | Yes | Yes | - |
| E-Way Bill | Yes | Yes | - |
| Multi-User | Yes | Yes (paid plan) | - |
| Works Offline | 100% | 100% | Both are desktop apps |
| Runs on Mac / Linux | Yes | Windows only | Shikhar advantage |
| Purpose-built for Manufacturing | Yes | Accounting-first | - |
✓ Fully supported · ~ Partial / Basic · ✗ Not available
Tally is faster to set up for pure accounting. Every CA firm in India knows it, and its voucher interface has been battle-tested for over 30 years. If your business is purely trading - buying and selling with no production floor - Tally Prime is an excellent choice and arguably the most mature accounting software for the Indian market.
Shikhar ERP was built from day one for manufacturing. BOM, work orders, job work, scrap management - these aren't add-ons, they're core modules. For any business that has a production floor, Shikhar does what Tally simply cannot: it tracks the journey from raw material to finished goods in the same system that handles your accounts and GST.
Many Indian manufacturers run Tally for accounts and Excel or paper for production. This seems practical until you look at the real cost: double data entry, raw material stock that doesn't match the books, purchase orders tracked in WhatsApp, and GSTR filings that take days to reconcile. Shikhar ERP consolidates both - your production data and financial data stay in sync automatically. When a work order is completed, inventory is updated and accounts are posted in the same step. There is no reconciliation because there is no gap.
Three scenarios where manufacturers outgrew Tally and found Shikhar ERP the natural next step.
Before: Tally for GST invoicing, Excel for BOM management, and paper registers for work orders. After switching to Shikhar ERP, one system now tracks the full cycle - from raw material purchase order to finished goods delivery challan. Stock discrepancies that took hours to find are now caught instantly.
This hydraulics manufacturer sent components to third-party processors for machining and surface treatment. Every send-out and receipt was tracked in a physical notebook. Shikhar's job work module now tracks every subcontracting transaction automatically - materials dispatched, work received, inventory deducted, and vendor liability posted - all in the same step.
Sheet metal parts required BOMs with 4 levels of sub-assemblies - impossible to manage in Tally, impractical in Excel. Shikhar ERP handles multi-level BOMs with operation-wise costing, scrap percentage by process, and work order scheduling. The production team and accounts team now work from the same system and the same numbers.
Honest answers for manufacturing business owners evaluating both products.
Book a free demo and see how Shikhar ERP handles your full factory workflow - not just the ledger. We'll walk you through BOM, work orders, job work, and GST invoicing live.
