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Frontrunner 2021
Software Advice's FrontRunners report ranks top products based on user reviews, which helps businesses find the right software.
What is Xero?
Xero is an accounting system designed for small and growing businesses. Xero connects small businesses with their trusted advisors and provides business owners with instant visibility of their financial position. As a web-based solution, Xero can be accessed from any device with an active internet connection. With Xero's robust accounting features, small businesses can view their cash flows, transactions and account details from any location. Bank transactions are all automatically imported and coded. Online bill pay helps keep track of spending and stay on top of bills due, improving relationships with the vendors that provide critical business materials. With Xero, personal expenses can also be managed with mobile review and approval of each receipt. Xero offers unlim... read more
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User Review Highlights
4.32
2,077 Reviews
Ease-of-use
out of 5Customer Support
out of 5Value for money
out of 5Functionality
out of 5"We were currently using Quickbooks, which had, at the time, very limited cloub-based capability. Xero looked great, was easy to use, and made it possible for our virtual team to work together."
"I love how easy it is to sync bank feeds and reconcile transactions. I love the rule feature that allows me to set my routine transactions to the correct COA."
"I believe Xero have captured a very nice niche of the industry with it's very business orientated user interface and simplisitic feel. It makes accounting somewhat fun for the business owner."
"Customer Service was horrible. You could not talk to someone when you wanted to."
"The single most annoying thing about it is the support."
"The FreshBooks/Xero integration stopped working around 2017 (I don't know why; each company blames the other)."
Read user reviews
How much does Xero cost?
Early: $5.50/month Growing: $16/month Established: $31/month
Starting price
$5.50 per month
Free trial
Available
Free version
Not Available
Which features does Xero offer?
Core features:
"What If" Scenarios401(k) TrackingAccess Controls/PermissionsAccountingAccounts PayableAccounts ReceivableAccrual AccountingACH Payment ProcessingActivity DashboardActivity TrackingShow more features +
Other Top Recommended Accounting Software
How easy is Xero to use and deploy?
Xero supports multiple deployment options, including: Cloud, SaaS, Web-based, iPhone, iPad, Android.
4.32/5 out of 2077 Reviews
Showing 1 - 5 of 2,075 reviews
Karim
Company size: 11 - 50 employees
Time used: More than 2 years
Review Source: Capterra
This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you.
January 2021
One stop Accounting solutions for Small to Medium organisations.
Kathryn
Verified reviewer
Company size: 1 employee
Industry: Arts and Crafts
Time used: Less than 2 years
Review Source: Capterra
This review was submitted organically. No incentive was offered
August 2019
Affordable professional level accounting software for small business
It's been easier to use Xero than I expected, but I had a nasty surprise at tax time when I realized the default accounts/descriptions for expenses did not correlate 1:1 to IRS categories. (I should have checked this more closely when I set up my accounts because it's a New Zealand company, and the previous product was local.) This means I will need to double-check all my transactions for 2018 and the IRS has my vastly overestimated tax payment until I can do that and file my return on an extension. I've had a much better experience importing data from financial institutions because Xero uses a well-known importing service that is trusted by the institutions. I like being able to match multiple invoices to bank deposits because I usually don't run to the bank for each check. This will be more valuable as my company grows. I should probably find an accountant to assist me with this, but I haven't found an accountant who understands both craft businesses and Xero.
Pros
Professional double entry software at a very affordable price Accommodates both cash and accrual accounting Links to financial institutions to get transactions Uses standard importer recognized by the financial institutions instead of just trying to log in remotely (and triggering fraud alerts) Can match multiple invoices to a single deposit transaction imported from bank Can keep using Xero as company grows
Cons
Pre-existing expense categories/descriptions don't map 1:1 with IRS definitions, so I'm having to go back to all my receipts to make sure expenses are entered in proper accounts because I didn't realize this when I switched More difficult to focus on specific expense categories to check transactions Have not been able to import historic data from previous app (possibly because it's not double entry) so I am still paying the subscription on that software to retain access to my data No integration with Craftybase, so I have to enter supply purchases and customer invoices there independently
Reasons for choosing Xero
QuickBooks introduced a special product for Etsy integration, but early adopters had problems with data disappearing and no way to recover it. Otherwise, the cost of QuickBooks to cover the same features I use in Xero would have been very expensive; even a QB consultant told me it's overkill for a business of my size. I forget which other products I looked at, but Xero was recommended by several owners of similar businesses.
Reasons for switching to Xero
Outright depends on importing data from financial institutions but they were extremely unreliable (apparently they don't use a standard importing service and my credit union kept flagging them as hackers for remote logins) and customer service kept giving me the runaround. It also isn't "professional" double-entry bookkeeping and can't be audited. Outright can't handle Cost of Goods Sold properly and requires manual workarounds. It can't generate professional reports needed when applying for loans.
Andrew
Company size: 11-50 employees
Industry: Marketing and Advertising
Time used: More than 2 years
Review Source: Capterra
This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you.
March 2022
Xero makes finance so easy
Since starting with Xero over six years ago, we couldn't be happier. We've centralised all our financial activity into one platform, which is great for non-finance people like myself!
Pros
Xero makes managing the finances for a business really straightforward. The user interface is intuitive and it centralises all my accounts information. One of my favourite features is the the dashboard, which is clear and customisable, and gives a great summary of the position position at any time. The software also integrates really well to other platforms for things like receipt capture and detailed business analysis.
Cons
I'm really happy with how it performs, however, our bookkeeper still does some levels of manual reporting, which he finds easier in Excel, than in Xero. The integration of BA tools does negate this issue.
Reasons for choosing Xero
At the time the product looked to have better features and functionality, and the user experience was excellent.
Reasons for switching to Xero
It wasn't SaaS at the time and was only able to be understood and used by our bookkeeper.
Amanda
Company size: 2-10 employees
Industry: Food Production
Time used: More than 2 years
Review Source
This review was submitted organically. No incentive was offered
April 2022
if you have bills and invoiced with a product list over 40 lines - this system is not for you
the concept is good the IT is not.
Pros
It's easy to learn, very strait forward.
Cons
when a bill or invoice is larger then 2 pages, if you save, you will not be able to edit, approve or print. also putting in a ticket for a fix is completely useless the responding staff care and are friendly- but the problem does not get fixed. I've put in several tickets. I've always had to find a work around, no one has ever fixed my problem
Mahnaz
Company size: 51-200 employees
Industry: Education Management
Time used: More than 2 years
Review Source: Capterra
This reviewer was invited by us to submit an honest review and offered a nominal incentive as a thank you.
March 2022
Xero use in a School
Reconciliations are so much easier, integrating with other products is so much easier, there are so many apps which can easily integrate into Xero.
Pros
Xero is very easy to navigate around and is user friendly. Even a non-finance employee is able to use Xero. The product is able to integrate seamlessly with a school management system importing invoices and contacts which are managed in the school management system. The integration is almost automatic and does not require a user to sync. AMAZING PLATFORM!
Cons
Nil - Honestly there is nothing I dislike about Xero.
Reasons for choosing Xero
Integration, Ease of use, ease of navigation, reporting
Reasons for switching to Xero
MYOB was not able to integrate with a school management system.
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