PropZy vs Spreadsheets vs Manual Tracking
Not sure which approach is right for managing your investment properties? Here's an honest, side-by-side comparison to help you decide.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Feature | PropZy | Spreadsheets (Excel / Google Sheets) | Manual Tracking (Paper / Notes) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Portfolio Tracking | Dedicated dashboard with per-property values, equity, mortgage balances, rental yields, and health scores — updated in real time | Possible with custom formulas, but requires manual data entry and formula maintenance for each property | Paper records or notebooks; no calculations, easy to lose or misplace |
| Expense Management | Log expenses by category with receipt uploads, recurring expense support, auto-end-dating, and smart email inbox that auto-extracts expenses from forwarded bills | Manual entry into rows; no receipt attachment, no recurring expense automation, error-prone over time | Shoeboxes of receipts and handwritten logs; difficult to categorise or search at tax time |
| Cash Flow Reporting | Automated income vs expense reports per property per Australian financial year, with gearing position indicators and portfolio-wide summaries | Requires building and maintaining custom pivot tables or formulas; breaks when structure changes | Not feasible — no way to generate reports from paper records without re-entering everything |
| AI Insights | AI-powered portfolio health analysis, property valuations, strategy recommendations, tax summaries, and weekly Riyun portfolio reviews — included on all plans | No AI capabilities; all analysis is manual | No analysis capabilities at all |
| Loan Review & Refinancing | AI loan review compares your current mortgage against live CDR bank products, recommends top refinancing options with savings estimates, and emails results to your broker | Manual comparison across bank websites; no automated product matching or savings calculations | Rely entirely on your broker with no independent comparison data |
| Tax Preparation | ATO Schedule E rental property tax schedules generated automatically, with depreciation tracking (Div 40 + Div 43), AI review, and secure share links for your accountant | Manual compilation of expenses into tax categories; no depreciation automation, no accountant sharing | Gather paper receipts and hand them to your accountant; high risk of missed deductions |
| Document Management | Smart email inbox auto-extracts data from forwarded bills, ownership statements, and rate notices. Documents stored per property with AI-powered extraction | No document storage; files saved separately in folders with no link to expense records | Filing cabinets; documents easily lost, no search capability |
| Automation | Recurring expenses tracked automatically, rate changes handled, email-to-expense pipeline, daily CDR loan product sync, weekly AI portfolio reviews, and daily blog content | No automation — every update is manual; formulas can break silently when rows are added or deleted | No automation at all; everything is manual effort |
| Collaboration | Agency partnership support with consent-based portfolio sharing, co-branded experience, and secure tax schedule share links for accountants | Share via Google Sheets or email; version conflicts common, no permission controls per property | Not shareable — physical records stay with one person |
| Mobile Access | Fully responsive web app accessible on any device; dedicated Android app with biometric lock and push notifications | Google Sheets has a mobile app but complex spreadsheets are hard to use on small screens | Carry a notebook; no digital access |
| Pricing Approach | Free plan for 1 property; Plus (3 properties) and Ultra (20 properties) — AI features included on all plans. See pricing for current rates | Free (Google Sheets) or licensed (Excel); but your time building and maintaining formulas has a real cost | Free in direct cost, but highest time investment and highest risk of errors or lost records |
Why Australian Investors Choose PropZy
Built for Australian Property Investors
Financial year reporting (July–June), Australian expense categories, ATO tax schedules, CDR loan product data from major banks, and local market context — all built in.
AI on Every Plan
AI-powered portfolio reviews, property valuations, strategy recommendations, loan comparisons, and tax summaries — included on Free, Plus, and Ultra. No AI paywall.
Smart Email Inbox
Forward bills, rate notices, and ownership statements to your PropZy inbox. AI extracts the data, matches it to your properties, and logs expenses automatically.
Ready to Move Beyond Spreadsheets?
Start tracking your property portfolio for free. No credit card required.
Explore PropZy Features
Cash Flow Tracker
Track rental income against expenses per property and financial year.
Expense Management
Log expenses, upload receipts, and auto-extract from forwarded emails.
Portfolio Analytics
Track equity, calculate yields, and get AI-powered insights across your portfolio.
PropZy Blog
Daily AI-generated insights on Australian property investment, market updates, and tax tips.