Grocery store billing software for kirana and general stores

Loose items

How do you bill loose items sold by weight?

There are two ways, and er4u supports both. In the first, the scale sits at the billing counter and its reading goes straight into the bill, so the item is weighed and billed in one step. In the second, staff weigh items at a separate scale that prints a sticker with the weight inside the barcode, and the cashier simply scans it. Packed items still scan on their own barcodes, so one bill can mix a kilo of loose sugar with a packet of biscuits.

• Integration: ₹4,000 + GST, one time, for up to 5 devices, so one charge usually covers the whole shop.
• The scale: er4u supplies the Phoenix NPW 30 kg scale at ₹6,500 including tax, and Essae scales that print weight-embedded barcode labels.
• Legal Metrology: a scale used to sell by weight must be verified and stamped under the Legal Metrology Act, 2009, and re-verified at the intervals your state's Legal Metrology department sets. The Phoenix scale er4u supplies comes verified and stamped by Nitiraj Engineers Ltd.

More detail, including how weight-embedded barcodes work, is on the weighing and billing software page.

GST

Tax invoice or bill of supply: what should a grocery shop issue?

It depends on how your shop is registered under GST. Many small grocery shops choose the composition scheme because it is simpler; larger shops and those selling to other businesses usually stay on the regular scheme. er4u prints the right document for either, on every plan.

Rates differ for loose and packed versions of the same item. Loose, unbranded rice, atta and dal are generally exempt, while pre-packaged and labelled versions attract 5%. Rates on many grocery items changed on 22 September 2025; ghee, butter and packaged namkeen, for example, moved from 12% to 5%. Keep the HSN code and GST rate on every item in your item master current, and confirm anything unclear with your CA or on the CBIC website.

In er4u, supplier and customer GSTIN verification and GST return export (Excel, CSV and JSON) are on every plan. See GST billing software for invoice formats.

Udhaar

How do you manage udhaar without a notebook?

Credit to regular customers keeps a neighbourhood shop's business, but a notebook can't tell you who has gone 60 days without paying. In er4u, a sale on credit goes to that customer's account automatically, and every part payment reduces the balance.

• Running balance per customer, with every bill and payment listed, on every plan.
• Credit limits, daily and per bill, so staff can't extend more credit than you allow.
• Due reminders by SMS on Premium and above (1,000 transactional SMS on Premium, 5,000 on Enterprise).
• Purchase history for each customer at the counter, so the cashier knows a regular before the bill starts.

Plans

Which er4u plan suits a grocery shop?

Every plan includes barcode billing, GST or composition bills, purchase and inventory, accounts, udhaar and unlimited invoices, with unlimited training and support. Prices are for the first year, plus 18% GST, with a smaller renewal from the second year.

Worked example: a kirana shop on Startup Off with a weighing scale pays ₹5,000 for the software and ₹4,000 for scale integration in year one, then ₹1,500 in each of years two and three: ₹12,000 + GST over three years, plus ₹6,500 (tax included) for the Phoenix scale. Thermal receipt printers and barcode scanners from er4u start at ₹2,500 and ₹3,000 including GST; see retail hardware.

See the full plan comparison →

Free software

Is free grocery billing software worth it?

Free billing apps can suit a very small shop with one phone and a handful of bills a day. Once you have staff, loose items and customers on credit, check these before you rely on one:

• GST updates: does it change rates when the law changes, as it did on 22 September 2025?
• Loose items: can it read a weighing scale, or does every weight get typed by hand?
• Backups: if the phone or PC is lost, is your data, including udhaar balances, recoverable?
• Staff controls: can a cashier be stopped from deleting bills or changing rates?
• Support: who answers when billing stops on a Sunday morning, and in which language?

Avoid "free download" copies of paid software: they get no updates or support and can carry malware. er4u is paid software, but you can see it first in a free live demo, learn from 90+ training videos in Hindi and English, and buy with a 30-day money-back policy on the conditions in our refund policy.

Demo checklist

What should you test in a grocery billing demo?

Bring a list of your own items, packed and loose, and ask every vendor to do these live:

1. Bill a 20-item basket that mixes barcoded packets and loose items weighed on the scale. Time it.
2. Sell the same product by the piece and by the box, and check stock afterwards.
3. Bill a regular customer on udhaar, take a part payment, and show the balance.
4. Enter a purchase with batch and expiry dates and see the expiry alert.
5. Change the MRP on an item and print new labels.
6. Print the bill your registration needs: a tax invoice, or a bill of supply if you are under composition.
7. Take a split payment (cash + UPI) and close the day.
8. On an offline plan, unplug the internet and keep billing.

er4u runs free demos over Google Meet, TeamViewer or AnyDesk. For a wider checklist, see the retail billing software buyer's guide.