Most shop owners do not need a full corporate accounting system. They need to know, every day, what they sold, what they bought, what they spent, who owes them money, whom they owe, and what is left as profit. Circle is a free accounting app for small shops and stores that answers exactly those questions from your phone, in Arabic or English. To be clear from the start: Circle is a daily bookkeeping tool for shop owners, not a certified e-invoicing or general-ledger system, and it lets you export your data for your accountant.
What does a small shop actually need from accounting software?
Five things: a record of every sale, a record of every purchase, your expenses, the balances of customers and suppliers, and an honest profit figure. Circle covers all five in one app, and because the same app runs your stock and your sales screen, you type each transaction once instead of copying numbers between a notebook and a spreadsheet.
How does Circle calculate my profit?
Gross profit is your sales minus the cost of what you sold. Circle keeps a cost for each product and updates its average cost when you record a purchase, so profit is calculated for you on every sale, and you see it before you even complete the sale. Returns are taken out of your sales, and your expenses are deducted to give a net profit figure. Choose today, this week, this month or any custom date range to see the numbers.
Sales and purchases
Every sale records the products, the quantities, the payment method and the customer if it was on credit. Every purchase records the supplier, the cost, how much you paid now and how much is still owed. Both update your stock automatically, and both are kept in searchable histories you can filter by date and export to CSV.
Expenses: rent, salaries and bills
Record rent, utilities, salaries, transport, maintenance and anything else with a date, amount, category and payment method, and attach a photo of the receipt. Circle shows your total for the month, an expenses report by category and by month, and your net profit after expenses, so you stop confusing money coming in with money you actually made.
Customer debts and supplier accounts
When a customer buys on credit, the unpaid amount goes on their account. You can set a credit limit per customer, record each payment against the invoice it settles, and see who owes you in the credit overview. The aging report groups debts into 0–30, 31–60, 61–90 and 90+ days. On the other side, each supplier has an outstanding balance and a list of unpaid invoices, and you can record partial payments as you pay them.
What is your inventory worth?
The dashboard shows your inventory value at cost, together with your total receivables (what customers owe you) and payables (what you owe suppliers). Together with your stock levels and the movement history of each product, that gives you a clear picture of what your shop owns and owes on any day.
VAT on receipts
If you charge VAT, set your rate, choose whether your prices include it, and Circle prints your tax number and the VAT lines on every receipt and reports VAT collected and sales excluding VAT. The rate is yours to set and starts at zero. Circle is not certified for e-invoicing systems such as ZATCA in Saudi Arabia, the ETA in Egypt or the FTA in the UAE, so if your business must use one, check the rules with your accountant or tax authority.
Send your numbers to your accountant
Export your sales history, products, stock levels and purchase history to CSV files that open in Excel. Many owners use Circle every day and send one export to their accountant at month end, instead of handing over a notebook.
Does it work on a phone, and without internet?
It is built for the phone, and it works on Android and iOS, phones and tablets. Selling continues when the internet drops: sales are saved on the device and sync when you are back online. Purchases, returns, payments and stock adjustments need a connection. Your records are stored in the cloud, so a lost phone does not mean lost books.
Notebook, Excel, or an accounting system?
Notebook and Excel
Fine for the first month. After that, the debts and the stock drift away from reality, and nobody can say what the real profit was.
Big accounting systems
Essential if you need a full ledger, payroll, multiple branches or certified e-invoicing, but they usually cost a monthly fee and take time to learn. Circle does not do those things. See our honest comparison to decide.
Circle
The middle path for a one-shop business: the daily numbers done right, free, in Arabic, on the phone in your pocket. If you also want a fast counter screen, see our cashier app page.
Which shops is it for?
Circle suits single-location shops that sell physical products: groceries and mini-markets, mobile phone and accessories shops, clothing and shoe stores, perfume and cosmetics shops, home appliance and hardware stores, and car spare parts dealers. If you run several branches or need staff logins, a larger system is the better fit for now.
Is it free?
Yes. No subscription, no credit card, and no features locked behind a premium plan. Everything on this page is available today.
Get your books in order in four steps
- Download Circle from Google Play or the App Store, or try the demo shop first.
- Add your products with their cost and selling price, and your opening stock.
- Add your customers and suppliers, and start recording sales, purchases and expenses.
- Open Reports at the end of the day or month to see sales, profit, debts and stock value.
