In this article you will read what integration between AFASDutch ERP package for administration, HR and payroll. Many SMBs have their single source of truth in it. or Exact and your other systems precisely means, which three routes you can choose, what each route costs in practice in money and hassle, and how you set up an integration in five steps that still works a year from now. Without a major new system — because the data you want to connect is already in the packages you have.
What entering data twice really costs you
The calculation everyone makes is the wrong one. "Re-entering a customer takes two minutes, that's not so bad." True — the minutes are not the problem. The problem is what happens after that.
As soon as the same data exists in two places, a truth problem. Which one is correct? With an address, you notice quickly. With a changed pricing agreement, an adjusted payment term or a contact who no longer works there, you only notice when something goes wrong with the client. And then you haven’t lost two minutes, but an afternoon investigating, plus a loss of credibility.
On top of that, people adapt to systems that don't talk to each other. They start keeping their own lists. They email around “the latest version.” They remember things instead of documenting them. That's how your company's knowledge shifts into your employees' heads—the exact leak we described in what a Bedrijfsgeheugen is and why it leaks.
Software has long been commonplace in SMEs. Statistics Netherlands (CBS) measures it in the statistic ICT use in businesses annually, how many companies use ERP, CRM, and BI software, broken down by company size. What a table like that doesn't show is whether those packages communicate with each other. And that's exactly where most of the gains are in the companies we see.
The practical test: ask your team where the current email address of a regular customer is stored. If you get three different answers, you don’t have a data quality problem — you have an integration problem.
Type over this order number. Once is doable. Forty times a day, every day, is a job.
What “connecting” does and doesn’t mean
Integration means: two systems automatically exchange data, so you only have to enter it in one place. Nothing more. It is emphatically not a merger of your packages, not a switch and not a new system on top of it.
What you most often want to connect with AFAS or Exact OnlineAccounting and ERP software in the cloud, widely used in Dutch SMEs.:
- Website or quote tool → administration. An inquiry automatically becomes a contact, without retyping.
- Time tracking → invoicing. Recorded hours are automatically added to the invoice, with the correct rates.
- Webshop or order portal → accounting. Orders and payments reach the accounts without intervention.
- Administration → Microsoft 365. Customer data and outstanding balances visible in Teams, Excel, or a dashboard, without everyone needing access to the financial software.
An important concept to understand first: source system. For each data item, you decide which system is authoritative. Customer data: the accounting system. Project status: the project tool. If you don’t agree on this in advance, two systems will overwrite each other and you’ll only have created the data integrity problem sooner.
Three ways to connect systems—and when each one is right
There is not one way to connect AFAS or Exact. There are roughly three, and the most common mistake is immediately going for the most expensive option.
The ready-made integration
Both AFAS and Exact Online have marketplaces with existing integrations for widely used software: time tracking, webshops, payroll, and scan-and-recognize. Often available for a fixed monthly fee, ready to activate in a day, with maintenance taken care of for you. Choose this if your process is standard enough. It is more often than people think.
The integration platform
A middle layer that connects two systems using rules you set yourself: when an order comes in, create a sales invoice. You pay a monthly fee plus a one-time setup fee. Choose this if there is no standard integration, or your process has a few custom rules that don't quite fit the standard. For SMEs, this is usually the best middle ground.
Custom development via the API
Both packages have an open interface that lets a developer build exactly what you want. Powerful, but you’re responsible for maintenance: if something changes on the AFAS or Exact side, someone has to update it. Choose this only if your process is genuinely distinctive and the first two options demonstrably aren’t sufficient.
Honest advice you rarely read in a brochure: start at the top of this list and move down only if you really have to. Each step down roughly doubles the lead time and ongoing management.
The way it works now
- The appointment is in one colleague's mailbox
- Data is manually retyped from one system to another
- The person who knows is on vacation
- No one can see afterwards why this decision was made
As it is
- The agreement is stored with the client, findable for everyone
- Once entered, information flows through to the rest
- Work continues, even if someone is absent
- Every decision has a source, an owner, and a date
An integration that keeps working, in five steps
Most integration projects fail not on technology, but on unclear agreements. This sequence prevents:
- Choose one process, not your entire business. Choose the process with the most retyping — usually quote to invoice, or hours to invoice. One working integration is worth more than a plan for five.
- Document what data is transferred and which system is authoritative. Write down exactly: customer name, address, VAT number, contact person—and which system is the system of record for each. One A4 page is enough and prevents most problems.
- Clean things up first, then integrate. An integration also copies your duplicate customer records and old debtors just as neatly. Clean up your data before switching it on, not afterward.
- Start by turning it on at a small scale. Run one customer group or one type of order alongside the current process for a week and compare the results manually. If everything checks out, then move on to the rest. That way, you’ll catch errors while they’re still small.
- Decide who receives notifications. An integration that fails silently is worse than no integration. Agree on who receives error messages and who does what with them—and schedule a quarterly check.
For a first SME integration, allow a few weeks from selection to go-live, most of which will be spent on steps 2 and 3. The technical work is rarely the longest part.
Connect time tracking to AFAS or Exact
The question we get most often after the standard integrations: can the hours logged on the shop floor automatically end up in AFAS or Exact? Yes, and it’s usually one of the cheapest integrations you can have built — precisely because the data is simple: who, when, how long, and on which job.
When things go wrong, it’s not because of the technology but because of the agreements around it. Three things determine whether it works:
- Which time-tracking app is the source of truth. If technicians write in an app, planners in Excel, and project managers directly in AFAS, you’re connecting three versions of the truth. Choose one and make the others read-only.
- When a time entry is final. Hours adjusted after the fact must also be updated in the records. Agree on when a week is locked.
- How to name assignments and projects. If the project number is called something different in the app than in AFAS, every record gets dropped. In practice, this is the biggest cost when building an integration.
Once the integration is running, it usually saves half a day to a full day each week on retyping and corrections — and, more importantly, your invoicing no longer lags behind the work. See also what an AFAS integration costs for the ranges.
Curious which integration would deliver the most value for your company?
Take the free self-assessment and see in two minutes where your company has the most duplicate work — from quote follow-up to administration. For a clearer picture, Frisse blik (€ 2.900 excl. VAT, fully credited if you continue) maps your entire process in one day at your premises, including a concrete integration proposal. The report is yours, even if you decide to continue on your own.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to switch from Exact to AFAS (or vice versa) to connect them?
Almost never. Both AFAS and Exact Online have open interfaces, so you can connect either package to your website, time tracking, online store or Microsoft 365. Switching takes months and costs a lot; an integration usually eliminates the double work in weeks. Consider migrating only when the package itself can no longer support your process, not because it can’t be connected.
How much does a connection between AFAS or Exact and another system cost?
That mainly depends on the route. A ready-made integration from the package's marketplace usually costs a fixed monthly amount and is set up in a day. An integration via an integration platform costs a monthly fee plus one-time setup work. Custom work via the APIAn agreed connection point with which two systems can read and write each other's data, without anyone having to type anything over. is the most expensive and only sensible if your process really differs. With each route, also budget for maintenance: an integration is not a one-time project.
How can I prevent a connection from silently passing on incorrect data?
For each data item, agree which system is the source of truth, and have the connection write in only one direction where possible. Also make sure errors are visible: a connection that fails silently is more dangerous than no connection at all. Route failed records to someone who can act on them, and check a sample daily for the first few weeks. Need help setting it up? See our integrations and automation or get in touch.
From knowing to doing
This article helps you get oriented. Then view the concrete approach for connecting systems in SMEs.