Offline accounting software that keeps your data on your own computer
Your books stay on your computer
Each business in Kontuly is a file on your own computer. Your transactions, contacts and receipts are never uploaded to us, and Kontuly doesn't report what you do in the app. Here's exactly what does go online, and how your books are kept safe.
Is my accounting data stored in the cloud?
No. Each business is a file on your computer. Receipts are read on your computer too, so photos of them never leave it. Kontuly works offline for everything except the four things listed here.
| What goes online | When, and what's sent |
|---|---|
| Email you ask it to send | Invoices, statements and reminders, through your own email account |
| Updates | A check at launch. Downloading and installing only happen when you choose |
| Your licence | Starting the trial, and a check-in at least every 60 days |
| Exchange rates | Only if you use other currencies: daily rates from the RBA or the Frankfurter service. Just currency codes and dates are sent |
Backups
How are my books backed up?
Automatically. Kontuly backs up each business every day you use it and keeps the last 14, and also takes one before every update changes your data and before any business is deleted.
Local backups sit on the same computer, so set an off-site folder too. Kontuly copies every business there daily.
- Off-site copies to a folder you choose: a USB drive, a NAS, or a folder your own sync software copies elsewhere
- Manual backups and exports whenever you like
- Restore as a new business, so a restore never overwrites the books you're working in
- Backup password that encrypts exported and off-site backups
Security
Is Kontuly secure?
Your data stays on your computer, behind your own login. Kontuly adds these protections.
App password
Locks Kontuly when it starts, when it's idle and when the computer sleeps.
Backup password
Encrypts exported and off-site backups, so a lost USB drive doesn't expose your books.
Email password
Stored encrypted with your operating system's keychain.
Audit log
Every change is recorded with before and after details, searchable and exportable to CSV.
Private logs
Logs mask email addresses. Crash reports stay on your computer unless you choose to send them.
Signed installers
Mac builds are signed and notarised by Apple. Windows installers are code-signed.
One thing to do yourself: Kontuly doesn't encrypt the live books file. Protect your computer with a login password and disk encryption: FileVault on a Mac, BitLocker on Windows.
Kontuly data and privacy questions
Does Kontuly work offline?
Yes, everything except sending email, updates, the licence check-in and exchange rates. Starting the trial needs the internet once, and a licence checks in at least every 60 days.
Can my bookkeeper and I both use the same books?
One person at a time, on one computer. To share, send your bookkeeper a backup file, which they restore as a separate business, or an export.
Does Kontuly collect analytics about how I use it?
No. The licensing server knows about trial sign-ups, licences and check-ins, not what you do in the app.
What happens to my books if I stop paying?
Nothing. A licence keeps working after its 12 months of updates. If a trial ends without a licence, the books open read-only, with every report, export and backup still working.
Keep your books where you can see them
Join the beta and run Kontuly on your own computer, with a copy to your own drive.