Stock app with customer tabs for a small shop in the UK — credit book and stock in one (2026)
Ofisx Inventory Management ("Inventory Management: Barcode" on Google Play, "Inventory Management - Ofisx" on the App Store) is a stock and customer-accounts app for small shops that replaces the tab book under the counter: when a regular puts their shopping on the slate, you scan the barcodes, charge the sale to their account and the goods come off stock in the same step. You see who owes what and by when, record payments as they come in, get a reminder on the due date and can send the customer a PDF statement. Staff have their own logins and everyone sees the same balances on the phone and on the web. If you work the counter alone on one phone, or the shop has no signal, Ofisx Offline Inventory keeps stock and customer balances on the phone with no internet. Below we compare both honestly with what UK shops actually use for tabs: Square house accounts, a free POS, a full convenience-store EPOS, a credit-book app, invoicing software and the paper tab book.
Short answer: what to use instead of the tab book
- Customer tabs and stock in one place, more than one person behind the counter: Ofisx Inventory Management — a sale on the customer's account takes the goods off stock, with a balance per customer, payments received, due dates with reminders, a PDF statement, staff logins and a web version. Free download and sign-up, basic features free; Premium on the UK App Store from £6.99 a month or £39.99 a year. Needs internet.
- One phone, no signal, data stays with you: Ofisx Offline Inventory (App Store) — stock and customer balances 100% offline, backup to Google Drive or iCloud; free up to 100 items and 300 transactions, Pro £3.99 a month, £12.99 a year or £22.99 once — a subscription is not required. No staff logins, no web version.
- You already take cards on Square: Square house accounts (documented in Square's UK help centre) let you charge a sale to a customer's account with a spending limit, and stock updates automatically; balances must be settled within 3 months and are collected by Square Invoice. Square for Retail Free is £0 a month plus 1.75% per in-person card payment.
- You only want to replace the paper tab book, not track stock: a credit-book app such as Credit Debit (Android, 1M+ downloads) — balances per customer, payments and reminders, but no stock.
- Your "tabs" are businesses you invoice with payment terms: Zoho Invoice — free VAT invoicing (up to 500 invoices a year) with automated payment reminders and a customer portal; no stock control on its pricing page.
- You want a till first: Loyverse POS (free POS with essential inventory) or an Epos Now convenience-store bundle — neither pricing page mentions customer tabs or balances, so ask before you buy.
Apps for customer tabs and stock compared
| Option | Platforms | Stock control | Customer tabs and balances | Payment reminders | Price (UK, checked 14 Oct 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ofisx Inventory Management (online) | Android, iPhone and web (web.ofisx.com) on one account | Yes — camera barcode scanning, multiple barcodes per product, low-stock alerts, stock count, movement history, stock per warehouse and per vehicle | Yes — sell on credit to the customer's account, balance per customer, payments received and made, due dates, customer statement PDF | Due-date reminders for you; the app does not chase customers itself — you send the PDF statement, for example on WhatsApp | Free download and sign-up, basic features free; Premium in-app subscriptions on the UK App Store: £6.99 a month or £39.99 a year, higher tier £12.99 a month or £59.99 a year |
| Ofisx Offline Inventory | Android and iPhone, one device | Yes — barcode scanning, sales, purchases and stock on the phone | Yes — customer and supplier balances and statements, stored on the phone | Due-date tracking for you | Free up to 100 items and 300 transactions; Pro £3.99 a month, £12.99 a year or £22.99 lifetime (UK App Store) — a subscription is not required |
| Square for Retail with house accounts (UK) | Square POS app on phone or tablet, Square Dashboard in the browser | Yes — on the Free plan: no item limit, low-stock alerts, GTIN/SKU barcodes; counting tool and purchase orders on Plus | Yes — house accounts with a spending limit; charging a sale to the account records it and updates stock | Collection by Square Invoice (one-off, recurring or card on file) with a PDF balance statement attached | Free plan £0 a month + 1.75% per in-person card payment; Plus £49 a month per location. The pricing page does not list house accounts, so check availability for your account |
| Credit Debit – debt book (ANKIT SARAF) | Android | No | Yes — customer and supplier accounts, money owed, payments received, real-time balance per account | Yes — send payment reminders with details, call customers from the app | Free, with ads and in-app purchases (amounts not shown in the listing) |
| Zoho Invoice (UK) | Web and mobile apps | Not mentioned on the pricing page (stock is a separate Zoho product, Zoho Inventory) | Through invoices: each customer's unpaid invoices | Yes — automated payment reminders; secure customer self-service portal | Free ("forever-free"): up to 2 users, up to 500 invoices a year, "Powered by Zoho Invoice" branding |
| Loyverse POS | Android and iOS, back office in the browser | Yes — essential inventory free; Advanced inventory paid | Not stated — customer database, purchase history and loyalty programme, but no customer debt balance on the pages we checked | Not stated | POS free; Advanced inventory $25 a month or $250 a year per store, employee management $5 per employee a month, unlimited sales history $5 per store a month (US dollars, excl. tax) |
| Epos Now (convenience store) | Countertop EPOS with cloud back office | Yes — stock control with alerts and purchase orders | Not stated on the convenience-store page — ask Epos Now before you buy | Not stated | Quote-based; on 14 Oct 2026 the convenience-store bundle was advertised from £299 (was £849), requiring a 12-month payments, care and support subscription from £54 a month |
| Paper tab book or a spreadsheet | A pen, or a computer | No (only with a separate sheet) | Yes, by hand | No | Practically free |
The options in detail
Ofisx Inventory Management (online)
Built for a shop where more than one person serves: owner and staff work on the same account on their phones and on the web, each with their own login, and everyone sees the same balance for each customer. When Mrs Patel from up the road takes milk and bread and says "put it on my tab", you pick her account at the sale, scan the barcodes — the stock goes down and the amount goes on her account. Part-payments go on the same account, and per-employee sales reports show who served whom.
Around the tabs you get what a small shop needs: barcode sales, purchases and returns, product photos, low-stock alerts, stock counts, receipts and invoices as PDF, 58/80 mm thermal receipt printing, quotes, expenses, and profit and loss, turnover, VAT and cash reports. Import your range from Excel, and share an e-catalogue so customers can order on WhatsApp. It works in 21 languages and 75+ currencies.
Data is in the cloud, so it needs internet — there is no offline mode. On Google Play it is called "Inventory Management: Barcode", on the App Store "Inventory Management - Ofisx". More in our best inventory apps for small businesses comparison.
Ofisx Offline Inventory
For the owner who serves alone and would rather not keep a list of who owes money on someone else's server: it works 100% offline, with no account and no sign-up, and the data — stock and customer balances — stays on the phone. Back up to your own Google Drive or iCloud.
Limits: one device, no staff logins and no web version. If the tab is kept by several people on different shifts, they all need to see the same balance — then the online app is the better fit. 100 items is enough to try it, rarely enough for a full shop range. More in our offline inventory apps comparison.
Square for Retail with house accounts (UK)
Square's UK help centre documents house accounts: you set a spending limit, take "House Account" as the payment type at checkout, and the sale is recorded and stock updated. The rules are stricter than a corner-shop tab: payments must be completed within 3 months, prepayments are not accepted, a charge cannot be split between the house account and another payment type, and house accounts cannot be used to extend loans, add finance charges or take repayment in instalments. The first account has to be created in Square Dashboard.
A strong option if you already take cards on Square and your regulars settle up monthly. If you want a tab without a card-payment system, or customers who pay off bits over a longer time, it fits less well.
Credit Debit – debt book (ANKIT SARAF)
On Google Play as "Credit Debit- debt book", 1M+ downloads, updated 7 October 2026. The listing names shopkeepers and retailers first: accounts created from contacts, several businesses on one phone, notes and photos of bills, daily, weekly and monthly reports exported to PDF and Excel, and simple invoices. According to the listing, data is stored on the device or Google Drive only, with password and fingerprint lock.
It is a digital tab book, not a stock app: you track goods separately and enter each sale on the slate as an amount, not as products.
Zoho Invoice (UK)
VAT invoicing software that costs nothing. It fits when the people who owe you are businesses — a café, a builder, a school — that you invoice with payment terms, and you want the software to chase late invoices for you.
For a regular who takes a paper and a pint of milk on the slate three times a week, an invoice for every purchase is too heavy, and nothing comes off stock.
Loyverse POS
A free till on your own phone or tablet with stock, sales analytics for the last 31 days, a loyalty programme and multi-store management. Paid add-ons come with a 14-day trial.
Good if a till is what you need first. We found no sale-on-account or customer balance on its pricing page or store listing, so a shop that runs tabs would keep them somewhere else alongside it.
Epos Now (convenience store)
The "proper till" route for a busy convenience store: the bundle includes a Countertop 2 till, an Air card terminal and a thermal receipt printer, with Epos Now Payments for cards.
The page we checked does not mention customer accounts, tabs or balances. If running tabs matters to you, get it confirmed in writing with the quote — the headline bundle price is a time-limited offer.
Paper tab book or a spreadsheet
The book under the counter works while one person keeps it: name, date, amount, crossed out when paid. It falls apart when a member of staff forgets to write it down, the book goes missing, or a customer asks "how much do I owe you, then?" and you have to add up ten pages. And the goods on the slate never come off stock.
A spreadsheet adds up more reliably but rarely sits by the till. Many shops start with the book and then move their regulars into an app — enter the old balance as an opening amount. See also spreadsheet or app?.
How to choose an app for customer tabs
- Does the tab come from the sale itself? — In a credit-book app you type an amount, but your stock has no idea that a crate of water just left the shop. In an app that links the two, charging the sale to the customer's account takes the goods off stock and adds the amount to their balance — one entry instead of two, and the shelf and the tab agree.
- Balances, part-payments and a statement — Check that you can see, for each customer, what they owe, what they bought and when they last paid; that you can take part-payments; and that you can show or send a statement when someone asks how much is left.
- One person or shifts behind the counter — If the same person always serves, an offline app on one phone is enough. If staff serve too, everyone has to see the same balance — you need a cloud app with staff logins.
- Due dates and reminders — A paper book won't remind you that Dave said he'd settle up on Friday. Set a due date on the tab and check the app reminds you. Whether you then send a statement or just have a word at the counter is your call — with regulars, a quiet word often works better than an automated chaser.
- Customers' personal data — Names and amounts owed are personal data under UK GDPR. Record only what you need, lock the phone and don't pin a list of who owes what behind the till. In an offline app the data stays on your phone and your own backup; in a cloud app it sits with the provider, so read their privacy policy.
- Keep it a simple tab — A tab that is settled in one go is everyday shopkeeping. Charging interest or fees, or agreeing that someone pays off a balance in instalments, can bring consumer credit rules into play — talk to your accountant before you do. Square, for example, does not allow house accounts to be used for loans, finance charges or instalments.
What the Ofisx apps do not do
- Ofisx Inventory Management and Ofisx Offline Inventory are not an EPOS till or a card terminal: they do not take card payments. Payments from customers on account are recorded by hand; cards go through your own card reader.
- They are not MTD-compatible VAT software: VAT shows in the reports, but they do not submit VAT returns or connect to HMRC.
- They do not sync with online shops or marketplaces and have no integration with wholesalers or cash-and-carry ordering.
- They do not chase customers for you: due-date reminders go to you, and you pass the statement to the customer yourself. No debt collection or credit reporting.
- The online app needs internet and has no offline mode. The offline app runs on one device, without staff logins or a web version.
Frequently asked questions
What app can I use to keep customer tabs in my shop?
It depends on whether you just want to record amounts or the goods as well. If putting something on the tab should also take it off stock, you need an app that links customer accounts to stock — for example Ofisx Inventory Management (Android, iPhone and web, staff logins, due-date reminders) or Ofisx Offline Inventory on one phone with no internet. If you already take cards on Square, its house accounts do a similar job within Square's rules. If you only want to replace the paper book with amounts, a credit-book app such as Credit Debit is enough.
Is there one app that tracks customers who owe money and inventory?
Yes. Ofisx Inventory Management keeps stock (barcode scanning, low-stock alerts, stock counts) and customer accounts with balances, payments, due dates and a PDF statement in one app, and a sale on account takes the goods off stock. Ofisx Offline Inventory does the basics on one phone without internet. Square house accounts also update stock when you charge a sale to an account. Loyverse and Epos Now have stock control, but we found no customer debt balance on the pages we checked.
How do I move my paper tab book into an app?
Create an account for every regular who is allowed to put things on the tab, and enter what they already owe in the book as an opening balance. From then on, charge each purchase on the slate to their account and record every payment on the same account; when someone asks, show them the statement. In Ofisx Inventory Management this happens at the sale: pick the customer, scan the goods, charge it to their account — stock and balance change together, and you get a reminder on the due date.
Can staff put sales on a customer's tab?
In Ofisx Inventory Management (online), yes: each member of staff has their own login, everyone sees the same customer balance and the reports show sales per employee. The offline app works on one device only. Credit-book apps such as Credit Debit keep the data on one person's phone or their Google Drive.
Will the app send my customers a reminder to pay?
Ofisx does not send automated reminders to customers. The online app reminds you on the due date and creates a PDF statement you can send yourself, for example on WhatsApp. Credit Debit's listing says it sends payment reminders, Zoho Invoice sends automated reminders for unpaid invoices, and Square collects house-account balances by Square Invoice.
Is it legal to let customers pay later in a UK shop?
Letting regulars run a tab and settle up later is common in small shops. A few things are worth knowing: it is still a sale, so record it properly for VAT and your accounts; in England and Wales a simple debt generally becomes time-barred after six years (Limitation Act 1980), so don't let tabs sit for years; names and amounts are personal data under UK GDPR; and charging interest or agreeing instalments can bring consumer credit rules into play. This is general information, not legal advice — ask your accountant if you are unsure.
Where are my customers' details stored?
In Ofisx Offline Inventory, on your phone — no account, no Ofisx server; you back up to your own Google Drive or iCloud. Ofisx Inventory Management (online) keeps data in the cloud so staff and the web version see the same balances. Whichever you use, treat names and amounts owed as personal data.
Does a customer tab app replace my till?
Not Ofisx: it does not take card payments and is not an EPOS. In many small shops the tools sit side by side — a card reader or till takes the payment, and the app on the phone keeps the stock and the customer balances. If you want the till itself to run tabs, look at Square house accounts. See also our corner shop stock app comparison.