We’ve heard from several developers who try to integrate with QuickBooks Online, and they’re just pulling their hair out. At the same time, some tools look cleaner and less clunky with QuickBooks integration. For example, if you don’t care about multi-currency, it may be more cost-effective to use Xero. Now, juxtapose that with how Intuit rolled out “QuickBooks what is the matching principle Live,” which acts as a direct competitor to many of its accountant customers. Taking these factors into account will assist you in making an informed decision that aligns with your specific business needs, preferences, and budget. Upon logging in to either platform, you can quickly view your latest balance and review pending expenses from the dashboard.

Granted, this doesn’t mean Xero is the most cost-effective option for your business needs. Here’s how each accounting software vendor breaks down their services, so you can see how they compare. Both Xero and QuickBooks Online are optimized for small to mid-sized businesses, so large enterprises with more complex requirements may struggle to tick all of their boxes.

Xero vs. QuickBooks: Online Accounting Showdown

As the leading business accounting software platform, QuickBooks is unsurprisingly a standout when it comes to integrations. The platform offers high-quality built-in integrations with many leading business software vendors. For example, QuickBooks integrates with Square, Gusto, PayPal, eBay, Shopify and Etsy. Those looking for an all-in-one accounting and payroll system may find QuickBooks a suitable choice. However, QuickBooks Payroll’s pricing can be more expensive than Gusto’s (depending on the plan you choose and how many employees you have), and it takes a little more time to set up. Gusto’s basic plan also has more payroll and HR features than QuickBooks’, including health benefits, workers’ compensation administration, commuter benefits and more.

Whether it’s customer relationship management (CRM) software, ecommerce platforms, or point-of-sale systems, seamless integration enhances workflow efficiency and prevents data silos. To determine which software is right for you, consider your specific needs and circumstances. If you prioritize mobility and collaboration, Xero’s cloud-based platform and user-friendly interface may be the ideal fit. However, if you require advanced features and a more extensive set of accounting tools, QuickBooks might be the better choice.

• Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.
• While both QuickBooks and Xero offer similar functionalities, the choice ultimately depends on the specific needs and preferences of your business.
• Let’s further discuss these software features to ensure the software’s suitability to your business needs.
• Pricing levels for Xero and QuickBooks Online are very similar, with both applications offering three pricing plans.
• We also found it easy to apply formulas in Xero to compare our budget and actuals side by side.

This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data. In this guide, we’ll compare Xero and QuickBooks head to head, looking at the pros and cons, features, fees and much more. Every business needs a good system for its accounts, from the smallest startup to the biggest multinational − not to mention freelancers. Its data-entry screens are more minimalist than those of QuickBooks Online, and its invoice and billing entries require less in the way of data entry. Help is accessible from any data-entry screen, and a demo company is available for those who want to enter practice transactions without worrying about messing up their own data.

The Bottom Line in the Xero vs. QuickBooks Debate

There are no manual uploads needed, and you can set up secure, encrypted feeds from any number of different bank accounts. If you pay VAT, work with suppliers or are a growing business, you can take your pick from Essentials (up to 3 users) or Plus (up to 5 users). The features list grows with the monthly subscription cost, and you can bolt-on extra services such as Payroll for a small extra monthly fee. With the QuickBooks app, you can stay on top of all your business finances and accounting from your phone. Available for free on iOS and Android when you’re a QuickBooks Online customer, the app offers instant access to your QuickBooks dashboard, including accounting reports, invoicing and much more. For those who like everything in neat compartments, Xero may be your best option.

• Ease of use gets the highest weight in this case study because we want to give more credit to easy accounting software.
• Instead of the “add what you need” process many other accounting software applications employ, Xero requires you to set up your business completely before you can start using the software.
• On the other hand, Xero accounting software is gaining traction for its cloud-based approach and accessibility.
• QuickBooks Online accounting software is a popular choice for small and mid-sized businesses,  but it has drawbacks.
• The A/P section focuses on vendor management, bill management, bill payments, and other payable-related transactions.
• But more important is identifying which of these two top accounting tools can meet your business accounting needs.

On the other hand, Xero initially provides you with a minimalist dashboard, which you can customize later on. Xero has a similar pricing structure as QuickBooks Online and offers three products–Early, Growing, and Established–that range from $13 per month to $70 per month. For companies in need of a payroll function for their employees, Xero offers add-on integrations for an additional cost. QuickBooks is a great bookkeeping solution for freelancers, small to medium businesses, and companies that want a full product suite.

QuickBooks Online, on the other hand, makes it simple to get to this type of View. Now that you’ve gotten a better sense of what Xero and QuickBooks Online have to offer, let’s take a closer look at how their features compare. After all, the goal of using Accounting Software is to automate and expedite your Accounting Activities and Financial Processes, so you’ll want to understand how these capabilities will benefit your company. Both applications are easy to use, and users can easily see results from the dashboard.

Xero vs QuickBooks / QuickBooks Online: Ultimate QuickBooks vs Xero (QuickBooks alternative) Faceoff

If mobile payment is important to you, QuickBooks’ app might be better. If you often need to record bills and bill payments on the go, Xero’s mobile app might be preferable. A satisfied Xero user shared that the program is the most user-friendly accounting software on the market.

QBO uses their own proprietary credit card payment collection system, while Xero integrates with 27 payment apps like Stripe, or Square. If your customer opts to pay by bank transfer (ACH), QBO charges you no fee, while Xero charges $1 per transfer. Hevo with its minimal learning curve can be set up in just a few minutes allowing the users to load data without having to compromise performance. Xero offers a 30-day trial to see if this accounting tool is the one for your business. Growing businesses can invest and upgrade to enjoy more advanced features, from Xero’s Starter, Xero Standard, to Xero Premium. Yes, both have a fixed asset manager that allows you to track fixed assets and calculate depreciation.

Fixed Asset and Inventory Management

Our Xero accounting vs QuickBooks Online comparison will help you evaluate both invoicing and business accounting software solutions. As part of your accounting software evaluation, decide whether Xero or QuickBooks for small business is a better match for your business needs. Ease of use gets the highest weight in this case study because we want to give more credit to easy accounting software. For this section, we considered customer service, support network, and a subjective expert opinion score. Users must have easy access to customer service channels in case of problems, questions, or assistance. The A/P section focuses on vendor management, bill management, bill payments, and other payable-related transactions.

QuickBooks also provides an extensive library of video tutorials and webinars to help users maximize their software’s capabilities. Both QBO and Xero let you import customer or vendor lists to save you time if you’re switching accounting programs. QBO also lets you add sub-customers that are listed under a parent customer, if you have, for example, bills that you send to different departments of one particular company. Both have a customizable chart of accounts, and journal entry capabilities, and both allow you to import a chart of accounts.

Both services will allow you to modify your main dashboard to display the stats that matter most to you, but QuickBooks offers a little more flexibility. We’d recommend checking the total features offered by the QuickBooks Essentials and Xero Growing plans against your business’s needs. That said, both QuickBooks and Xero often offer a special entry deal for your first few months, although these deals can vary. At different seasons of the year, QuickBooks plans have been between 50% and 70% off for the first three months. Whatever the current deal, users will need to skip their free trial to qualify.