Question 1

What is Khata?

Accepted Answer

Khata is an all-in-one business management app for billing, inventory, and accounting (Khata). It is designed for small and medium businesses to digitise and automate their operations, and it bills in the local currency of whichever country you register in.

Question 2

Who is Khata for?

Accepted Answer

Retailers, wholesalers, distributors, service providers and restaurant owners — most often shops still keeping accounts on paper, or on a desktop package that never leaves the shop. If your books live in a register or on one computer, this is built for you.

Question 3

Is Khata really free to get started?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Khata is one free business plan — not a trial, not a freemium tier. Every feature is included at no cost, with no credit card required and no checkout anywhere in the product.

Question 4

Is there a catch? Any time limit?

Accepted Answer

No catch and no time limit. Khata does not expire, does not convert to a paid plan, and has no locked features. You are never asked for payment details.

Question 5

On which devices can I use Khata?

Accepted Answer

Khata runs as an Android app, an iPhone and iPad app, a web dashboard and a staff portal. There is no separate Windows or Mac program to install — the web surfaces open in any current browser on a computer. Everything shares one account, so a bill raised on the counter is on the dashboard without exporting anything.

Question 6

Do I need an internet connection to use Khata?

Accepted Answer

No, Khata works perfectly offline. You can continue billing and managing your business without internet. It will automatically sync all your data to the cloud once you're back online.

Question 7

Where can I use Khata?

Accepted Answer

Four places, all sharing one account: the Android app, the iPhone and iPad app, the business dashboard on a computer, and a staff portal for your employees. Most shops only ever use the app — it is the complete product on its own.

Question 8

Is the iPhone app the same as the Android one?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Same features, same data and the same free access. Both apps work offline, scan barcodes with the camera and print to Bluetooth thermal printers.

Question 9

How do I get the web dashboard?

Accepted Answer

Ask us. Dashboard access is granted on request for larger businesses that want to work on a computer, and we approve it individually — there is no public sign-up page for it. It exists for the jobs a phone is genuinely bad at: editing hundreds of rows at once, month-end reports and handing a file to your accountant.

Question 10

How do my staff sign in?

Accepted Answer

You create each staff member inside the app and give them a Staff ID and a PIN. They use those on the staff portal. Your team never registers themselves, and each person only sees what you allow — so a cashier can raise bills without seeing your profit.

Question 11

What do I need to run it?

Accepted Answer

Android 7.0 or newer, or an iPhone or iPad on iOS 16.4 or newer. The dashboard and staff portal need only a current browser. The store will tell you at install time if a device is below the line.

Question 12

Can I create GST and non-GST invoices?

Accepted Answer

Yes, Khata supports both GST and non-GST invoicing. You can easily set up your tax information and the app will handle all the calculations for you.

Question 13

Can I customize my invoices?

Accepted Answer

Definitely. You can add your business logo, choose from multiple professional templates, add a digital signature, and customize the color scheme to match your brand.

Question 14

How can I share invoices with customers?

Accepted Answer

You can share invoices instantly via WhatsApp, SMS, or email as a professional PDF. You can also print them using a thermal printer (Bluetooth/USB) or a regular printer.

Question 15

Does it support barcode scanning?

Accepted Answer

Yes, Khata has full support for barcode billing. You can use your device's camera or an external barcode scanner for rapid billing.

Question 16

Can I create estimates or quotations?

Accepted Answer

Not yet. There is no estimate, quotation or proforma document type — a bill is a bill. If quoting before you sell is a large part of your trade, that gap is worth knowing about before you switch.

Question 17

How does stock management work?

Accepted Answer

Khata automatically updates your stock levels in real-time with every sale and purchase. This eliminates the need for manual counting and prevents stockouts.

Question 18

Will I get alerts for low stock?

Accepted Answer

Yes, you can set low-stock thresholds for each item. The app will send you automatic alerts so you know exactly when to reorder.

Question 19

Can I manage products with batch numbers and expiry dates?

Accepted Answer

Not yet. Products carry a name, price, cost, unit, stock level, barcode and reorder threshold, but there is no batch or expiry field. If your trade depends on tracking expiry — pharmacy is the clearest case — Khata is not the right tool for that part of your stock today.

Question 20

Can I import my existing product list?

Accepted Answer

There is no bulk file import yet. Most shops add products as they sell them, which spreads the work across days that were happening anyway rather than requiring one long sitting. If you have a large catalogue you want moved, contact the team.

Question 21

Is my business data safe with Khata?

Accepted Answer

Your data is sent over an encrypted connection and stored on managed cloud infrastructure, scoped so that one business cannot read another's records. We publish what we actually do, and who processes data on our behalf, in the Security and Sub-processors documents in the Legal Centre. We do not hold SOC 2 or ISO 27001 certification and do not claim to.

Question 22

What happens if I lose my phone?

Accepted Answer

Your data is completely safe. Simply log into your Khata account on a new device, and all your information—bills, stock, and reports—will be there, synced from the cloud.

Question 23

Can my staff use the app? Can I restrict their access?

Accepted Answer

Yes, you can create multiple staff accounts and set specific role-based permissions. For example, you can allow a salesperson to only make bills but not see business reports.

Question 24

What does Khata cost?

Accepted Answer

Nothing. Khata is free to download and free to use, with every feature included. There are no tiers, no add-ons and no in-app purchases. Web dashboard access for larger businesses is granted on request — ask our team.

Question 25

Will you start charging later?

Accepted Answer

Khata is free and stays free — that is a commitment, not a launch offer. There is no checkout in the product, and nothing is ever agreed without you agreeing to it in writing first.

Question 26

Why is it free?

Accepted Answer

Khata is built by Lacspace to get small businesses onto digital books. Charging a shopkeeper to keep their own records defeats that purpose.

Question 27

How does the Digital Khata (Udhar) feature work?

Accepted Answer

It is a digital ledger for the credit you give customers (len-den). Record credit sales, see every customer's full payment history, and sort by how long a balance has been outstanding — which is the list that tells you who to chase. Reminders go out over WhatsApp or SMS to the number on file; you choose who gets one and when, so nothing is sent on your behalf.

Question 28

What kind of reports can I generate?

Accepted Answer

Sales and purchase reports, profit and loss, stock reports and party ledgers, exportable as PDF. Khata also tracks filing deadlines so one does not pass unnoticed — but it does not generate GSTR returns or file anything on your behalf. That is your accountant's work, and we are careful not to blur the two.

Question 29

Can I manage multiple business locations?

Accepted Answer

Not as one connected group — there is no branch switcher, and no combined view across shops. What people do today is run a separate account per shop, which keeps each shop's stock, khata and staff correct on their own but means comparing two shops is a manual job. If you need several locations under one owner view, tell us, because that is the version of this we would build next.

Frequently Asked Questions

General & Getting Started

Keep reading