Palladium Accounting

Palladium is the South African accounting product that grew up next to Pastel and decided to compete on substance: a proper SQL database, real inventory depth and features like serial tracking, manufacturing and point of sale that usually mean graduating to an ERP. It was built in Johannesburg with the local statutory layer native, VAT at 15% throughout and SARS aligned reporting, and it has a loyal base among wholesalers, retailers and light manufacturers who outgrew entry level books but resent ERP money.

The editions ladder is the story. Palladium Individual is free for single user basic books. Business brings multi user invoicing, inventory and the trading essentials. Enterprise carries the serious toolkit: multiple warehouses, serial and lot tracking, bills of materials, procurement controls and user level security, on an annual subscription around R4,049 per user per year ex VAT at typical volume tiers, which lands near R340 per user per month with support and updates included. Hosting with SQL licensing and daily backups is available per user for those done with server rooms.

The honest picture: the interface is Windows business software rather than cloud pretty, the mobile story is thin, and the brand carries less consultant mindshare than Sage, so check your accountant knows it. In exchange you get local support that answers, development that responds to SA requests, and a feature to price ratio at the Enterprise level that embarrasses bigger names. For a stock heavy SA business stepping past entry level accounting, it deserves the evaluation.