Augmented Reality in Accounting: What is it?

Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) are most often linked with gaming and tech innovation — but their use in business, including accounting, is growing fast. These technologies offer new ways to engage with financial data, streamline collaboration, and present information in more interactive ways.

While still an emerging area, the potential of AR and VR in the accounting world is no longer just theoretical. Accountancy firms are beginning to explore how immersive technologies can reshape everything from auditing to training and data visualisation.

What Is Augmented Reality in Accounting?

Augmented reality in accounting refers to the use of AR technology to enhance how financial data is viewed, analysed, and shared. AR overlays digital information — like graphs, tables, or reports — onto the real world through devices such as smart glasses, tablets or AR headsets.

Rather than replacing existing systems, AR complements them by offering a new layer of interaction. You’re not just looking at numbers on a screen — you’re engaging with data in a 3D, spatial format that can improve understanding and insight.

Virtual reality, meanwhile, offers a fully immersive environment. In an accounting context, this could mean entering a virtual office, boardroom, or financial dashboard with interactive elements.

How Are AR and VR Applicable to Accounting?

Both AR and VR can be applied across several areas in accounting:

• Financial data visualisation: Instead of reviewing flat spreadsheets, users can interact with 3D dashboards that highlight key figures, trends, and comparisons in real time.

• Audit processes: AR can assist auditors during site visits by overlaying real-time inventory data, compliance checklists, or historical figures onto physical assets.

• Remote collaboration: VR can simulate virtual boardrooms, enabling teams to meet, present financial reports and discuss figures as if they were in the same room.

• Client presentations: Firms can present financial performance, forecasts or cash flow analysis through immersive experiences that improve client understanding.

• Training and onboarding: Both AR and VR are useful for training new staff on accounting systems, procedures and compliance standards, particularly in complex or regulated environments.

What Are the Benefits of Using AR in Accounting?

One of the biggest benefits of AR in accounting is improved clarity and communication. Financial data can be difficult to digest — especially for non-financial clients. Augmented reality turns figures into interactive models, helping people grasp the meaning behind the numbers more easily.

There’s also a productivity edge. AR can streamline manual tasks, reduce the time it takes to find and verify data, and provide context-sensitive information right when and where it’s needed.

Firms using AR also gain a tech-forward image, appealing to younger talent and more digitally minded clients. It supports modernisation in a sector that is often seen as traditional.

How Can Augmented and Virtual Reality Help an Accountancy Firm?

Let’s look at a few practical examples of how these technologies could be used by an accountancy firm.

A firm conducting a stock audit might use AR headsets during a site visit. As auditors walk through a warehouse, the headset could display real-time stock levels, expected quantities and previous discrepancies for each item scanned — speeding up checks and improving accuracy.

In another case, a firm preparing a year-end review for a client could use VR to walk them through a 3D visualisation of their profit and loss, tax position, and growth projections. Instead of sending a PDF report, they create an immersive financial experience that builds engagement and trust.

For internal training, a junior accountant might use VR to practise using payroll software or navigating HMRC compliance checks in a simulated environment — reducing the learning curve without real-world risk.

These tools aren’t mainstream yet — but they’re not far off. Larger firms are already experimenting, and as the tech becomes more affordable, it's likely to play a more visible role in the industry.

Final Thoughts                                      

Augmented and virtual reality are no longer just buzzwords — they offer real, practical value in accounting. From audits and data analysis to training and client engagement, AR and VR give accountancy firms the chance to modernise how they work and present information.

While most UK firms are still in the early stages, the direction of travel is clear. As finance becomes more tech-integrated, the firms that explore these tools now will be ahead of the curve.