Its pricing model aligns with the features it offers, striking a balance rarely seen in other similar tools. The functionality extends from excellent reporting capabilities to a wide range of app integrations, setting it apart. However, where it falters is its initial complexity and occasional limitations in customization and support responsiveness. In this review, I’m going to share my analysis and evaluation from my hands-on experience with Xero. But first, if you’re just beginning your search for the best accounting tools, check out my picks for the best accounting software.
Comprehensive accounting for small and growing businesses
But for those needing extensive customization or direct, immediate support, it’s worth comparing with alternatives. Based on functionality and ease of onboarding, I find it best suited for small to medium businesses needing comprehensive financial monitoring. Things start out at the Dashboard, which is just that; the area that lets you move into the other sections of the site and from which you can manage the overall way it ticks. The layout is, on the face of it, pretty simple with a user-experience that delivers quick and easy access to core features. These are found via a top gross profit margin menu that houses not only the Dashboard, but Business, Accounting and Contacts options too.
QuickBooks Online
- Established companies and growing businesses alike have adopted Xero for its modern approach to financial management.
- The customization capabilities is probably the best out of all online accounting software.
- But for those needing extensive customization or direct, immediate support, it’s worth comparing with alternatives.
- After you start a free 30-day trial of Xero, you’ll activate the account and provide details about your business.
- Notable integrations include Stripe for payment processing, HubSpot for CRM, and Shopify for e-commerce, among others.
Sage 50 Accounting’s Cash Flow Manager tool is a helpful feature for people who want to better understand how future transactions could impact their business. The tool also lets you adjust the time frame to see how your business has north star fund changed over time. As the industry standard, QuickBooks Online is ideal if you have a growing business with specific accounting needs — as long as you don’t mind taking the time to learn the program’s ins and outs. After a 30-day trial period, Xero will bill a monthly charge of $13 per month for the Early plan, $37 per month for the Growing plan and $70 per month for the Established plan.
Does Xero integrate with third-party applications?
Xero has multiple layers of protection for the personal and financial information you entrust to the company, including encryption when data is transferred and stored. Multi-factor authentication (MFA) adds an additional level of security. The company claims its servers and data centers have robust physical security controls, along with 24/7 monitoring and surveillance.
After you set up an account, Xero suggests a handful of accounting tasks to help you learn the ropes. You can play with the app using a demo company and fake data, which is the best place to start practicing. When you’re back in your live account, you should spend some time establishing your preferences for settings like user permissions, currencies, invoices, and online customer payments. Xero’s onboarding experience benefits from an improved UI and a new invoice preview tool. Businesses can further perform a cost-benefit analysis to evaluate the financial viability of projects and ensure resources are allocated efficiently. FreshBooks starts at $19 per month after the signup discount and incorporates standout features like team roles and time tracking on all plans.
QuickBooks offers receipt and document organization with its mobile app as well as the online version. Xero and QuickBooks have similar pricing, except when it comes to QuickBooks Desktop. The Enterprise Desktop plan mental health billing offered by QuickBooks starts at $1,922 per year. QuickBooks also offers Payroll, but this service is an additional fee starting at $45 to $125 per month.
One is traditional bank account reconciliation, which will allow you to compare your monthly bank statements to your Xero account registers. Meanwhile, integrations with Bill will give you powerful, industry-standard tools for managing and automating accounts receivable and payable. As mentioned, the Avalara-backed feature helps Xero automatically calculate sales tax on invoices.