Finance & bookkeeping · Claude

Plan and build a small bookkeeping app that runs on your own computer

Idea + starter prompt, not run by us yet

For: Owners of a small, simple business who pay for bookkeeping software they barely use

The poster planned with several AI tools, then built a Mac app that runs on their own machine. Transactions arrive from the bank, Claude assigns tax categories, unclear ones wait in a review list, and each correction becomes a rule. They still get a professional to review the books.

Steps

1. Write a short plan of what the app must do, such as import, tag, review and export.
2. Ask Claude to turn that plan into a step-by-step build plan and check it for gaps.
3. Build with test transactions first, not your live bank feed.
4. Review everything in the queue yourself and keep a professional checking the books.
5. Connect live bank data last, since the poster found that the hardest part.

Starter prompt

Help me plan a small bookkeeping app that runs only on my computer, for [type of business].

It should: import transactions from [CSV export or bank feed], suggest a category from [my category list], send unsure items to a review list, and remember my corrections as rules.

First write a build plan in plain steps and list the risks. Then build using the fake transactions in [test file] only. Do not connect to any bank or ask me for login details. Tell me what still needs an accountant's review.

Original post: Reddit · found via agentusecases.ai. Written up in our own words. We haven't run it, so test it on made-up data first.