In a short time, two major accounting software packages in the Netherlands have gained an AI assistant. Moneybird is now testing Vraag het Moneybird (“Ask Moneybird”), and Exact has the Exact Assistant and, since September, a Financial Agent. That is good news: AI bookkeeping is no longer a thing of the future, it is happening now. But what exactly does such an assistant do? And is it the same as an AI bookkeeper? In this article, we set it all out.
The short answer
The AI in your accounting software helps you do the bookkeeping. An AI bookkeeper does the bookkeeping for you. An assistant answers your questions, looks up figures and points out things that stand out. The work and the responsibility stay with you. At Boekhoudlive, Fenna does the daily work, an accountant checks what matters, and a tax return only goes out after you approve it. Both are part of AI bookkeeping, but they are two different things.
What Moneybird and Exact are doing now
Moneybird: Vraag het Moneybird
For a first group of users, Vraag het Moneybird (Ask Moneybird) now appears at the bottom of every page in Moneybird. It is still in beta. You ask a question in plain language and get an answer in a side panel. According to Moneybird, the answer comes from your own administration, from Moneybird’s knowledge base or from the government’s business portal (Ondernemersplein), with a link to the source. Examples Moneybird itself gives:
- Which customers still need to pay me?
- What were my biggest expenses in October?
- Create an invoice of € 450 for a customer.
- How am I doing this year? (with a chart of revenue and costs per month)
Exact: Exact Assistant and Financial Agent
Exact Online includes the Exact Assistant. It helps you find your way around the software, answers how-to questions, also outside office hours, and points out anomalies in your bookkeeping and unpaid invoices. In September 2026, Exact also announced the Financial Agent. It analyses your balance sheet and profit and loss account and looks at more than sixty key ratios, such as liquidity, solvency and profitability. Exact aims this agent at finance professionals, so they spend less time on number crunching and more on advice.
The shift to AI bookkeeping has begun
When the big software packages build in AI, it is a sign of the times. Entrepreneurs expect to simply ask their bookkeeping a question, at any moment. To no longer have to dig through reports. And for their figures to always be up to date, instead of once a quarter.
That last part is what we call live bookkeeping: your administration is up to date every day, so you always know where you stand. The AI in your software makes it easier to look at your figures. But those figures are only up to date if someone actually does the work every day.
Curious what an AI bookkeeper can do for you?
Ask Fenna your question, on the right of this page. Free, no account needed, and your conversation is not saved.
AI assistant or AI bookkeeper: the difference
Both use AI. The difference is who does the work and who is responsible.
| Item | AI assistant in your software | AI bookkeeper with checks |
|---|---|---|
| Who does the work? | You, with help from AI | Fenna, every day |
| Receipts and bank | You book and match | Fenna books and matches, and asks when she is unsure |
| Checks | You, or no one | An accountant |
| VAT return | You fill it in and file it | Prepared, checked, filed after you approve |
| Who is responsible? | You | An accountant, together with you |
| Questions | The assistant, 24/7 | Fenna 24/7, and an accountant when needed |
| Suits | People who want to and can do it themselves | People who want the work off their plate, with a person as a safety net |
What does not change
A smart assistant makes bookkeeping easier, but a few things stay exactly as they were:
- You remain responsible for your tax return. An assistant can explain what belongs in a box on the form. It does not file anything for you and does not check whether it is correct.
- Exceptions need someone who knows your business. Private and business costs mixed up, foreign invoices, an investment: those are decisions, not search queries.
- The work still has to be done. An assistant that tells you which receipts have not been booked yet does not book them for you.
- Advice is still work for people. Setting up a private limited company (BV), hiring staff or a company car: for that you want an accountant who thinks along with you.
Do you use Moneybird? Then they complement each other
Fenna works in your own Moneybird administration. So everything she books is simply in Moneybird. If you get access to Vraag het Moneybird, you can just as easily ask it about your figures. This is how they work together:
- Fenna reads your receipts, books them, matches your bank transactions and prepares your tax return.
- An accountant checks what matters, and we file your return after you approve it.
- Vraag het Moneybird helps you quickly look something up in your own administration.
Using different software right now? Then we will move your administration to e-Boekhouden or Moneybird for free.
Which one suits you?
An AI assistant in your software is enough if you like doing your own bookkeeping, you know how VAT works, you have few exceptions and you want to file your own return.
An AI bookkeeper suits you better if you have no time for or interest in bookkeeping, you want someone to check before your return goes out, or you have just started and don’t want to figure everything out yourself. At Boekhoudlive, this costs from € 50 a month (excl. VAT), with e-Boekhouden, VAT returns and income tax return included. Moneybird is also possible. Starters pay from € 30 a month in year one. Calculate your price with the four questions below.
Frequently asked questions
Is an AI assistant in my accounting software the same as AI bookkeeping?
Not quite. An AI assistant in your software helps you: it answers questions, looks up figures and points things out. Booking, checking and filing your return are still your job. With an AI bookkeeper like Fenna, the work is done for you and an accountant checks the result.
Do I still need an accountant if my software has AI?
If you like doing your own bookkeeping and it is simple, an AI assistant helps you work faster. If you want the work off your plate, or you want someone to check before you file your return, you need an accountant. The AI in your software takes no responsibility for your figures.
Does Fenna work together with Moneybird's AI?
Fenna works in your own Moneybird administration. So what she books, you also see in Moneybird, and you can ask Moneybird's assistant about it there. Fenna does the work, Moneybird's assistant helps you find it again. They don't get in each other's way.
Do I need to switch from Exact to Moneybird?
For Boekhoudlive, yes: Fenna works in e-Boekhouden and Moneybird, not in Exact. Switching is free with us. e-Boekhouden is included in the price, and Moneybird is possible with a surcharge from € 10 a month.