Everyone talks about "saving time on admin." Here's what that actually looks like in real money for a typical week.
We followed a fictional sole trader - call him Sean, a self-employed plumber based in Cork - through a normal working week. Every expense, every receipt, every hour.
Sean's Week - Every Cost That Happened
| Day | What happened | Amount | VAT (23%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monday | Diesel fill - work van | €85.00 | €15.93 |
| Monday | Pipe fittings - builders provider | €143.60 | €26.89 |
| Tuesday | Copper pipe - builders provider | €211.40 | €39.55 |
| Tuesday | Coffee and roll on site | €6.50 | - |
| Wednesday | New pipe wrench - tool shop | €34.99 | €6.55 |
| Wednesday | Diesel fill - work van | €72.00 | €13.48 |
| Thursday | Sealant and tape - hardware | €28.40 | €5.32 |
| Thursday | Phone bill (business portion) | €22.00 | €4.12 |
| Friday | Diesel fill - work van | €91.00 | €17.03 |
| Friday | Public liability insurance (monthly) | €47.00 | - |
| Total spend | €741.89 | €128.87 |
What Happens to Those Receipts Without a System
Monday's diesel receipt - left on the dashboard, gone by Wednesday.
Tuesday's builders provider docket - shoved in the back pocket, through the wash Thursday night.
Wednesday's tool receipt - never asked for one at the till.
Thursday's hardware slip - in the van somewhere.
By Friday, Sean has €47 worth of receipts in his wallet. The other €694 is gone.
That's €128.87 in VAT he can't claim back. In a single week.
Over a year at the same rate, that's roughly €6,700 in unrecoverable VAT - plus the income tax effect of unclaimed expenses on top.
The Time Cost on Top of That
At the end of the month Sean spends a Sunday afternoon trying to piece it together. Bank statements, memory, a few photos on his phone. He gets maybe 60% of it. The rest is gone.
Time spent: 3 hours. At €45 an hour on the tools, that Sunday afternoon cost him €135 in lost earning time - every single month. That's €1,620 a year just in time.
What the Same Week Looks Like With Graft
Every time Sean pays for something, he takes a photo of the receipt and sends it to Graft on WhatsApp. Takes about 8 seconds.
| Day | What Sean did | Time taken |
|---|---|---|
| Monday | Sent photo of diesel receipt | 8 seconds |
| Monday | Sent photo of pipe fittings receipt | 8 seconds |
| Tuesday | Sent photo of copper pipe receipt | 8 seconds |
| Wednesday | Sent photo of wrench receipt | 8 seconds |
| Wednesday | Sent photo of diesel receipt | 8 seconds |
| Thursday | Sent photo of hardware receipt | 8 seconds |
| Thursday | Sent photo of phone bill | 8 seconds |
| Friday | Sent photo of diesel receipt | 8 seconds |
| Total admin time | 64 seconds |
Everything goes straight to his Google Drive. VAT flagged. Date logged. Category sorted. At year end, his accountant gets a clean folder. No shoebox. No Sunday afternoon. No missing receipts.
The Savings Side by Side
| Without Graft | With Graft | |
|---|---|---|
| VAT recovered per week | ~€47 | ~€129 |
| Extra VAT recovered per year | - | ~€4,200 |
| Admin time per month | 3+ hours | Under 10 mins |
| Time saved per year (@ €45/hr) | - | ~€1,600 |
| Accountant fees (records quality) | €1,200+ | €700–€900 |
| Estimated annual saving | - | €5,000–€6,500 |
Graft costs €19 a month on the Basic plan. That's €228 a year.
The maths isn't complicated.
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