Learn about the features and pricing of QuickBooks and Xero to discover which better suits your financial management needs. We’re firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers. The Ascent, a Motley Fool service, does not cover all offers on the market. While Xero might be a good application to start with, growing businesses will appreciate the scalability offered by QuickBooks Online. The Contacts category lets you manage all contacts, from customers to suppliers to contractors, from one location. Reporting in Xero is solid, with a variety of financial statements and management reports available.
A/R Management: QuickBooks Online Wins
Xero Growing is designed for growing businesses, offering everything in Early, plus bill management tools, additional invoicing, and bulk reconciling transactions. Known for its strong financial management tools, Sage is often favoured by larger enterprises or businesses with more complex accounting needs. Yes, QuickBooks’ accounting tools do come in a little higher in overall pricing, but the plan options are more flexible and offer more features than Xero’s plans. The QuickBooks Online accounting dashboard provides much of the same information that’s included in Xero’s dashboard, but it also provides quick links to tasks such as invoicing, time tracking, and payroll. These ratings are meant to provide clarity in the decision-making process, but what’s best for your business will depend on its size, growth trajectory and which features you need most.
Xero vs QuickBooks: Top Features Comparison
Has robust reporting tools and report customization options, basic inventory tracking in all plans and a capable mobile app; Early plan limits the number of invoices and bills. Overall, the cheaper cost of Xero’s time tracking abilities is likely to make it the more appealing option, even if QuickBooks includes more features. Some businesses may rely on those features, however, particularly bookkeeping for medium sized business if they opt for top-down oversight that requires greater control. Compared to QuickBooks, Xero’s time tracking features are easy to use. You can simply download the free Xero Projects app on iOS and Android, using it to record time and costs, as well as seamlessly and automatically feed the data into invoices and reports.
Xero uses third-party add-on connections allowing users to accept payments online. With Stripe integration, users can accept credit cards, debit cards, and Apple Pay from their customers. With GoCardless, customers can pay them by using an ACH debit (bank transfer). Users can choose other third-party add-on apps to the difference between depreciable assets and fixed assets integrate with Xero for payment processing.
Summary – Xero vs. QuickBooks Online
Includes tools that help automate the reconciliation process, along with a global search function and customizable dashboard; has a simple layout. Easy to share information with your accountant and to find QuickBooks experts and online resources if needed. QuickBooks works on Windows PCs, Macs, and major browsers including Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, and Microsoft Edge.
- Xero’s automation features and scalability make it a strong choice for small to medium-sized businesses, although it can also work well for larger enterprises.
- Both have basic accounting features, including invoices, estimates, bank reconciliation, expense tracking, and journal entries.
- Xero also allows you to create quotes, send invoices and enter bills, and you can accept online payments by credit card, debit card, direct debit, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Stripe and GoCardless.
- With QuickBooks, you’ll get expert help from real people through phone and live chat six days a week.
This takes into account customer management, revenue recognition, invoice management, and collections. Xero does not offer built-in payroll but partners with Gusto, which has plans starting at $40/month plus $6/month per employee. There is no built-in payment processing, although you can choose from several options including Stripe and GoCardless. Xero is cloud-based accounting software that supports cash-basis and accrual accounting. Xero has a robust set of features, an impressive number of integrations, and strong mobile apps for accounting on the go.
If needed, you can easily send customers reminders, and can match any payments received with the correct invoice for efficient bookkeeping. Yes, both have a fixed asset manager that allows you to track fixed assets and calculate depreciation. Fixed asset accounting is part of all Xero’s plans, whereas it’s offered only in the most expensive plan of QuickBooks Online, Advanced.
Xero is an innovative cloud accounting solution developed and provided by a New Zealand company, Xero Limited, which has U.S. and other global regional operations. The software is user-friendly with a modern user interface that provides a fast learning curve to master its online accounting features, customizable dashboards, and real-time data and reports. QuickBooks Online offers integration with hundreds of apps, making it great for small business owners. These integrations including PayPal, TSheets, Bill Pay for QuickBooks Online, and Stripe, with apps available for inventory, payroll, CRM, and time tracking. QuickBooks offers a main dashboard that can be customized gross wages definition with a series of tile-like graphs or lists, which lets you see real-time KPIs at a glance.