Welcome to 360books. This guide walks through every part of the app. If you'd rather explore hands-on, open the free demo from the home page — it's a fully seeded company you can click around without signing up.
1. Create your account and company
1. Sign up with your email and a password (or log in if you already have an account). 2. Create your company: enter the business name, base currency (ZAR by default), and your financial year-end (end of February is the South African default). 3. Tick "Set up a standard chart of accounts and 15% VAT" to seed a ready-to-use accounting structure. You can change everything later.
You can create more than one company and switch between them from the company selector at the top.
2. Find your way around
- Left sidebar — the main navigation, grouped into modules: CRM, Sales, Purchases, Banking, Reports, HR & Payroll, Tax (SARS) and Accounting. You only see the modules you have access to, and you can shorten your own menu under Preferences → My menu.
- Top bar — the company switcher, a + New button for quick actions, a 🔔 Review bell for things needing attention, the ✨ AI CFO, and your account menu.
- Footer of the sidebar — Team, Plan & usage, Settings, Preferences and Help.
3. Your first steps
1. Set up Settings — map your key accounts (Accounts Receivable, VAT, Accounts Payable) and your default VAT rate. See Settings, team & plans. 2. Add a customer and send an invoice — see Sales & invoicing. 3. Import a bank statement and reconcile it — see Banking. 4. Invite your team — accountant seats are free, and staff can be given access to only the modules they need (a salesperson gets CRM + Sales; payroll stays private). See Settings, team & plans.
If something ever goes wrong
You never need to file a support ticket. If an error happens while you work, 360books captures the details automatically, alerts our team with a diagnosis, and shows you a reference number — then emails you once it's fixed. Your data is never saved incorrectly by an error: anything that can't complete safely simply doesn't happen.
4. Already using Xero or Sage?
You can bring your history across in minutes — your chart of accounts, contacts and an opening trial balance. See Accounting setup → Import, or follow the step-by-step move.
5. Put it on your phone
360books installs as an app straight from the browser — no app store. Open 360books.co.za on your phone and tap Install when it offers, or use your browser's Add to Home Screen. You get a normal app icon, full screen with no browser bar, and pages you've already opened still load when signal drops.
Worth doing for your staff too: employees checking payslips and submitting leave through the self-service portal will use a home-screen icon long after they'd have given up on a bookmark.
Next: The dashboard →