Can You Use Excel for Making Tax Digital? Yes — Here's How

If you already track your income and expenses in Excel or Google Sheets, you might be wondering whether Making Tax Digital forces you to switch to accounting software like Xero or QuickBooks.

The short answer: no. You can absolutely keep using your spreadsheet. You just need a piece of bridging software to send your figures to HMRC.

What HMRC actually requires

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax requires two things:

• You keep digital records of your income and expenses (a spreadsheet counts)
• You submit quarterly summary updates to HMRC using compatible software

HMRC doesn't care what tool you use to keep your records. They care that the numbers reach them digitally, four times a year.

What is bridging software?

Bridging software sits between your spreadsheet and HMRC. It reads your figures and submits them through HMRC's API. You don't need to learn a new system, re-enter data, or change how you work.

Think of it as a translator — your spreadsheet speaks Excel, HMRC speaks API, and bridging software handles the conversation.

How it works with Flonancial

Flonancial is free bridging software built specifically for spreadsheet users. Here's the process:

1. Upload your spreadsheet — drag and drop your .xlsx, .xls, .csv, or .ods file
2. Pick your cells — click the cell containing your total turnover and the cell containing your total expenses
3. Review and submit — check the figures and submit directly to HMRC

Your spreadsheet file is parsed entirely in your browser. It never touches our servers. We only send the two summary numbers to HMRC.

What about the Flo tab?

If you download our free template, it includes a Flo tab with your turnover and expenses totals pre-linked. When you upload, Flonancial reads these automatically — no cell-picking needed. But this is optional. You can use any spreadsheet you like.

Do I need to change my spreadsheet?

No. As long as your spreadsheet has a total for turnover and a total for expenses somewhere, Flonancial can read it. You don't need to restructure anything, add special columns, or follow a particular format.

What HMRC receives

Each quarterly submission sends three numbers: your turnover, your expenses, and any other business income (usually zero). That's it. HMRC never sees your individual transactions — the record-keeping obligation sits with you.

Getting started

Flonancial is completely free. Create an account, connect to HMRC once, and you're ready to submit your first quarterly update using your existing spreadsheet.