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AI bookkeeping tools for tilers and flooring fitters in the UK

Tilers and flooring fitters often do a mix of CIS work for builders, direct jobs for homeowners and supply-and-fit jobs where the customer's tiles or flooring pass through your books. Whether CIS applies depends on the job: tiling is construction work, but carpet fitting isn't. Getting that right on each invoice avoids wrong deductions.

Prices were re-checked on each provider's own page; the date is next to each one. Rules and figures from GOV.UK are linked where they're used.

Tiling vs carpet fitting under CIS

GOV.UK lists carpet fitting among the jobs not covered by CIS (GOV.UK), while tiling and most hard flooring done as construction work is covered. Mark each job's type in your software so a contractor doesn't deduct CIS from carpet work by mistake.

Supply-and-fit

When you buy the tiles or flooring, record the purchase against the job and show materials separately on the invoice: CIS deductions apply to labour, not materials. Our markup and margin calculator helps you check your margin on supplied goods.

Making Tax Digital

Because supplied materials count in turnover, supply-and-fit work can push you over Making Tax Digital thresholds sooner: over £50,000 in 2024 to 2025 means 6 April 2026, then £30,000 from 2027 (GOV.UK). See our Making Tax Digital guide.

The options, with prices

Tool	Price and free plan	UK notes and source
FreeAgent UK accounting software for sole traders, partnerships and small companies.	Sole traders: £19 a month. Limited companies: £33 a month or £330 a year. All excl. VAT, with 50% off the first six months when checked. Free with a NatWest, RBS or Ulster Bank business account, or Mettle (conditions apply). Free for eligible NatWest, RBS, Ulster Bank and Mettle customers; otherwise a 30-day free trial.	UK company, pounds. Source, checked 15 October 2026
QuickBooks Cloud accounting with invoicing, expenses and VAT, plus Intuit Intelligence AI features (some in beta).	Plans: Sole Trader Plus, Simple Start, Essentials, Plus and Advanced, each with a 30-day free trial. All include CIS calculation and submission; VAT submission isn't in Sole Trader Plus. Prices load dynamically on the UK pricing page, so check the current figure there. No free plan; 30-day free trial.	UK pricing in pounds. Source, checked 15 October 2026
Xero Cloud accounting for invoices, bank feeds, VAT and payroll, with AI-assisted features.	Ignite: £18 a month. Grow: £39. Comprehensive: £55. Ultimate: £70 (all excl. VAT). When checked, the first 6 months were 90% off. Payroll £1.50 per person. No free plan; a free trial and introductory discounts are offered.	UK pricing in pounds; Making Tax Digital compatible. Source, checked 15 October 2026
Zoho Books Accounting software with a free plan for very small businesses and paid UK plans.	Free: £0. Standard: £12 a month (£10 billed annually). Professional: £24 (£20). Premium: £30 (£25). Per organisation. Free plan for sole traders and micro businesses.	UK pricing in pounds. Source, checked 15 October 2026
Sage Accounting UK accounting and payroll software with the Sage Copilot AI assistant included in every plan.	Start: £20 a month. Standard: £43 a month. All excl. VAT. Offer when checked: 90% off for 6 months. No free plan; introductory discount instead.	UK company, pounds, Making Tax Digital and CIS support. Source, checked 14 October 2026

What to check before you choose

Is it on HMRC's list of software that works with Making Tax Digital for Income Tax? Check HMRC's finder, not only the provider's page.
Does it read receipts from a photo and match them to your bank feed?
Can you mark jobs as CIS or non-CIS (carpet fitting)?
Introductory discounts: budget for the full price (FreeAgent, Xero and Sage all had offers when checked on 14 and 15 October 2026).
Can your accountant log in?

A prompt to start with

Paste this into ChatGPT or Claude, filling in the brackets:

You're helping me with bookkeeping for my tiling and flooring business. Here are this month's jobs, purchases and payments: [paste]. Mark each job as tiling/hard flooring (CIS) or carpet fitting (not CIS), split labour from supplied materials, and flag any CIS deduction that looks wrong. Don't give tax advice.

Free tools

Price a job with the quote and VAT calculator (20%, 5%, 0% and reverse charge), or work out your day rate (see how much to charge per hour). Near the VAT threshold? Use the VAT threshold checker and read should I register for VAT? Already registered? See if the VAT Flat Rate Scheme calculator would save you money. Estimate your tax bill with the self-employed tax calculator, see what you owe in January and July with the payments on account calculator, or see whether a company would leave you better off with the sole trader vs limited company calculator. Over £50,000 turnover? Making Tax Digital for Income Tax has applied since 6 April 2026; check your date with the Making Tax Digital checker.

Questions

Is carpet fitting covered by CIS?

No. GOV.UK lists carpet fitting among the jobs not covered by the scheme.

Do supplied tiles count towards my turnover?

Yes. Making Tax Digital and VAT thresholds use turnover, which includes materials you sell on.

Are these prices in pounds?

Not all. Where a provider only publishes US dollar prices we show dollars, so check the price in pounds at checkout.

Do you get paid if I sign up?

Some links may become affiliate links, and we'll label them when they do. It doesn't change what we list. See how we make money.

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