Sole trader
Open nowBring in a bank CSV, review each movement, keep a source trail and derive UK Income Tax quarter figures.
Open Starter Books →Starter Books for UK sole traders and landlords
Know where every number came from.
TaxSorted is growing into accounting software for people and small organisations without an in-house accounting team. Open today: local record-keeping for one UK sole trade or one UK property business. Start with money in and money out; open the deeper layers only when you want them.
- No account to start
- Records stay in this browser
- Suggestions wait for your review
- Nothing filed silently
Browser storage is not a cloud backup and is not encrypted by a TaxSorted Account. Clearing site data can erase these books; export them for a portable backup.
Begin where you are
Built wide. Open honestly.
The aim is accounting for every kind of person and organisation. The live UK product is narrower today, so each door says exactly what exists.
UK landlord
Open nowKeep UK property income and costs separate, review the proposed category and derive running totals.
Open property books →Individual
Bounded tools openMap what changed, keep your known facts and unknowns, and follow source-backed personal-tax checks.
Start a Tax Checkup →Limited company or small organisation
Not yetTaxSorted does not yet prepare statutory accounts, a balance sheet or a Company Tax Return. We name that gap before asking for data.
Tell us what you need →One transaction, all the way down
Mina sells one card
A made-up example. Change the numbers and open only the depth you want. Nothing here is saved, sent or mixed with your books.
The simple answerStart here
Mina made a £180.00 sale. The marketplace charged £18.00. Her bank received £162.00.
The bank line is cash, not the whole story. Treating the £162.00 payout as the sale would hide both £18.00 of income and £18.00 of cost.
EvidenceWhy we believe it
- Marketplace sales report: buyer paid £180.00.
- Marketplace fee statement or invoice: fee £18.00.
- Bank statement: payout £162.00.
The three amounts reconcile. The bank statement alone does not prove the gross sale or the fee.
The full accounting entryDouble-entry view
| Account | Debit | Credit | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marketplace receivable | £180.00 | — | The marketplace owes the sale proceeds. |
| Sales | — | £180.00 | Record the gross sale. |
| Marketplace fees | £18.00 | — | Record the fee separately. |
| Marketplace receivable | — | £18.00 | The fee reduces what is owed. |
| Bank | £162.00 | — | Cash arrives. |
| Marketplace receivable | — | £162.00 | The marketplace settles the balance. |
| Check | £360.00 | £360.00 | Debits equal credits. |
Starter Books does not yet claim to be a complete double-entry general ledger. This view shows the deeper accounting model the product is growing towards.
Profit and tax viewUK cash-basis example
Before Mina's other costs, this transaction contributes £162.00 to accounting profit: £180.00 sale less £18.00 fee.
That is not Mina's tax bill. Tax depends on the full year, other income, which costs are allowable, reliefs and personal facts. The example assumes the marketplace was collecting for Mina and the fee was wholly for this business.
Official starting points: cash-basis income and expenses and records and proof to keep.
Machine-readable viewInspect the data
A portable teaching record, not an HMRC submission format and not a promise that the unknowns have been resolved.
{
"schema": "taxsorted.accounting-example/1",
"jurisdiction": "GB",
"tax_basis": "cash",
"facts": {
"gross_sale_pence": 18000,
"marketplace_fee_pence": 1800,
"bank_payout_pence": 16200
},
"checks": [
"gross_sale_pence - marketplace_fee_pence = bank_payout_pence",
"debits = credits"
],
"unknowns": [
"whether the marketplace acted as agent or principal",
"whether the fee was wholly for the business",
"whether VAT applies"
],
"status": "teaching-example-not-saved-not-filed"
}Beginner-friendly by going deep
One calm surface. Six inspectable layers.
Simple does not mean hiding the machinery. It means showing the right layer first and keeping every deeper layer close enough to inspect.
Evidence
What proves the event?
Invoice, receipt, statement, contract, source identity and revision.
Today: Source trail now; document attachments not yet.
Event
What actually happened?
Date, parties, amount, currency, cash direction, purpose and review state.
Today: Local accounting events are open now.
Books
Where does it belong?
Journal, ledger, account, debit, credit, corrections and reconciliation.
Today: Cash and tax postings now; full double-entry is not yet claimed.
Accounts
What does the business look like?
Turnover, costs, profit and loss, assets, debts, capital and balance sheet.
Today: Running income and cost totals now; statutory accounts not yet.
Tax
Which local rules change the accounts?
Jurisdiction, taxpayer, period, allowances, disallowances, adjustments and cited law.
Today: Bounded UK rules with dates and sources.
File
What was sent, when, and what came back?
Prepared return, human approval, submission, authority response and receipt.
Today: HMRC sandbox paths only; no production filing claim.
The UK boundary
Official rules stay one click away
For many UK sole traders, cash basis records income when money is received and expenses when paid. Limited companies follow different accounting and filing duties. TaxSorted keeps those worlds separate.