Custom Exact Online integration
Appfront builds custom integrations between Exact Online and your web shop, CRM, project administration, HR system or in-house application. Using Exact's official REST API, we synchronise relations, invoices, items, project hours and financial transactions — automatically, reliably and tailored to your business processes.
Why integrate Exact Online?
Exact Online is the most widely used cloud accounting platform in the Netherlands. Tens of thousands of SMEs rely on it for their financial administration, invoicing, project administration and CRM. But as soon as multiple systems are involved — a web shop, a separate CRM package, a planning tool — manual work appears: retyping data, importing export files, correcting duplicates.
A custom Exact Online integration eliminates those manual steps. Orders from your web shop automatically become invoices in Exact. Customer data in your CRM stays synchronised with the debtors ledger. Project hours from your time-tracking tool are converted into sales invoices. The result: fewer errors, less administrative burden and financial data that is always up to date.
Appfront builds these integrations using the official Exact Online REST API, with OAuth 2.0 authentication and support for multi-division environments. You can read more about our broader approach to integration on smart API integrations.
Bidirectional synchronisation
Changes in Exact Online or the connected system are passed on immediately or at fixed intervals. No more overnight CSV imports, but data that moves in step with your processes.
Multi-division support
Exact Online works with divisions (administrations). Our integrations support multi-division setups, so data flows to the right administration per entity.
Via the official REST API
We build exclusively on the Exact Online REST API with OAuth 2.0 authentication. No scraping, no workarounds — a stable, documented connection that scales with you.
Common Exact Online integrations
Every integration is built specifically for your situation. Below are the integration types we build most often for organisations that want to connect Exact Online to the rest of their software landscape.
Webshop integration
Orders, customers and payments from WooCommerce, Shopify, Magento or Lightspeed flow automatically into Exact Online. Invoices are created, stock is updated and your accounts receivable stay consistent — without manual work.
CRM synchronisation
Relations and contacts in Exact Online (Accounts) stay in sync with your CRM — HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive or a custom solution. Sales teams see up-to-date invoice and payment history, and the finance team works with consistent customer data.
Time tracking and projects
Logged hours and project costs from tools such as Harvest, Clockify, Simplicate or TimeChimp are converted into sales invoices via the Exact Online API (HourEntries, Projects). Ideal for service organisations with weekly or monthly billing cycles.
Stock and items
Items, prices and stock levels in Exact Online stay in sync with your WMS, ERP or webshop. Purchasing, sales and the warehouse all work from the same picture: no overselling, no manual stock corrections.
HR and payroll
Employee details, leave records and payroll data are synchronised between Exact Online and your HR system. Changes are processed automatically, so HR and finance work from the same information.
Reporting and dashboards
Financial data from Exact Online is combined with operational data in custom dashboards or in tools such as Power BI, Looker Studio or Tableau. Real-time insight into revenue, outstanding items and margins, without manual exports.
Technical approach
Exact Online offers an extensive REST API with access to virtually all entities in the platform: Accounts, SalesInvoices, Items, FinancialTransactions, Projects, HourEntries and more. Authentication uses OAuth 2.0 with refresh tokens, so integrations run reliably over the long term without manual re-authentication.
Appfront builds an integration layer that acts as middleware between Exact Online and your other systems. We process data in the correct order (dependencies between entities), handle errors in a structured way with retry mechanisms and dead-letter queues, and log every transaction for audit purposes.
For organisations with multiple administrations, Exact Online offers multi-division support. Our integrations automatically route data to the right division based on your business rules. You can read more about our technical integration approach on the in-depth page on Exact Online integrations.
- REST API with full CRUD operations on all entities
- OAuth 2.0 authentication with automatic token refresh
- Webhooks and polling for real-time or near-real-time sync
- Multi-division routing based on business logic
- Idempotent operations to prevent duplicates
- Structured error handling and retry mechanisms
- Extensive logging and monitoring via dashboards
- Rate limiting in line with Exact Online API guidelines
Typical use cases in practice
Depending on your industry and workflows, an Exact Online integration can look very different. Below are the patterns we encounter most often.
E-commerce and retail
Webshops that process dozens to hundreds of orders a day can't run on manual bookkeeping. We connect WooCommerce, Shopify, Magento or Lightspeed to Exact Online so that orders, customers and payments are processed automatically — including VAT logic and item groups. See also our e-commerce development.
Professional services
Consultancies, IT service providers and design agencies invoice based on hours or project phases. An integration with time tracking automatically pulls in hours and project costs and converts them into sales invoices in Exact Online. That saves you recurring administrative work every week. Also see our custom software.
Wholesale and logistics
Organisations that use a separate WMS or inventory package alongside Exact Online benefit from two-way synchronisation of items, stock movements and purchase invoices. From purchasing to financial processing, the whole chain works with the same data.
Subscriptions and SaaS
Companies with recurring invoicing connect their subscription management to Exact Online. Contracts, periodic invoices and payment status are synchronised automatically, so revenue recognition and accounts receivable stay up to date without manual intervention.
Technology we use
We build Exact Online integrations with modern, easily maintainable stacks. The exact choice depends on your situation and preferences, so that your own team can manage or further develop the integration. We are happy to work with other suppliers and deliver clear documentation.
Why Appfront for your Exact Online integration?
Appfront has extensive experience building API integrations for a wide range of organisations in the Netherlands. We always start with a thorough analysis of your existing systems and processes, because an integration must not only be technically correct but also add practical value to the way you work.
For every integration we write clear documentation and make sure your own team, or a future supplier, can understand and manage the integration. No black box, but transparent code and clear agreements on monitoring, alerting and maintenance.
You work with a dedicated point of contact who understands both the technical and the functional side. That keeps communication lines short, prevents miscommunication and speeds up decisions when choices have to be made during the build.
Also see our services around middleware, custom software and all services.
- Specialists in Dutch ERP and accounting integrations
- Experience with the Exact Online REST API and OAuth 2.0 flow
- Multi-division support as standard
- Structured error handling and retry mechanisms
- Extensive logging and monitoring from day one
- Clear documentation that your team can read and maintain
- A single point of contact, no passing you between account managers
- Ongoing maintenance and proactive further development
Security and GDPR compliance
Financial data and customer information largely fall under the GDPR and contain commercially sensitive information. Appfront treats every integration with that as the starting point: we do not store unnecessary data, we encrypt sensitive information in transit and at rest, and we document the data flows so your record of processing activities stays up to date.
Authentication with Exact Online runs via OAuth 2.0, the standard prescribed by Exact. Tokens are stored securely with automatic refresh, without passwords or API keys being hardcoded in the integration. We discuss up front which data actually needs to be exchanged and minimise the scope in line with the data minimisation principle.
More about our approach to security: information security policy and CVD policy.
- GDPR-compliant data processing and minimisation
- Encryption in transit (TLS 1.2+) and at rest
- OAuth 2.0 with secure token storage
- Role-based access and least-privilege principles
- Audit logs with traceable data flows
- Automatic retry and dead-letter queues
- Monitoring and alerting for anomalies
- Documentation for your record of processing activities
Frequently asked questions about Exact Online integrations
Answers to the questions we are asked most often about custom integrations with Exact Online.
An Exact Online integration is a technical link that lets Exact Online exchange data automatically with another software system. It works through Exact's official REST API. This allows relations, sales invoices, items, project hours and financial entries to be synchronised automatically with, for example, a web shop, CRM package or in-house application.
In principle, any system that can send or receive data. Common integrations are with web shops (WooCommerce, Shopify, Magento, Lightspeed), CRM packages (HubSpot, Salesforce, Pipedrive), time tracking and project tools (Harvest, Clockify, Simplicate), HR systems and custom applications. The Exact Online REST API provides access to virtually all entities in the platform.
The lead time depends on the complexity. A simple one-way integration, such as passing orders through to invoices, can be operational within a few weeks. Two-way synchronisation with multiple entities and multi-division support takes more time. After an intake conversation, we give you a realistic schedule.
Standard connectors offer a fixed set of functionality that works for many organisations, but leave little room for non-standard processes. A custom integration is built specifically for your situation: tailored data mappings, business rules, error handling and synchronisation logic that match exactly how you work. That prevents manual workarounds and data inconsistencies.
All integrations are developed with OAuth 2.0 authentication (the Exact Online standard), encryption of data in transit and at rest, and the principle of data minimisation. We only exchange the data that is actually needed and document the data flows so your record of processing activities stays up to date. You can read more about this in our information security policy.
The cost depends on the number of systems to be integrated, the complexity of the data flows, whether multi-division support is needed, the required synchronisation frequency and the amount of custom business logic. Ongoing maintenance and monitoring are separate items. We always provide a clear quote after a no-obligation analysis of your situation.
Ready to build your Exact Online integration?
Tell us which systems you want to connect to Exact Online and what you want to automate. We'll help you think through the architecture, data mappings and synchronisation logic, and deliver a working integration that fits your situation. A no-obligation consultation gives you a clear picture of the possibilities within half an hour.