Xero vs QuickBooks Online: Features Comparison, Pros, Cons

It’s also less expensive than QuickBooks Online and a bit easier to use, thanks to its customizable dashboard and simple layout. All of your bank and credit card transactions automatically sync to QuickBooks to help you seamlessly track your income and expenses. Total cost per year is calculated by adding all the features that require additional fees.

Plans start at $15 per month for up to 20 invoices, five bills, bank account reconciliation, receipt capture and short-term cash flow snapshots. Its $78-per-month plan also includes multiple currencies, project tracking, in-depth analytics and employee expense claims. All of the QuickBooks plans allow you to create unlimited invoices and quotes and customize them to reflect your company branding.

Live Bookkeeping

First-time QuickBooks customers can choose to explore QuickBooks without committing to a plan by signing up for a 30-day free trial. You can also skip the free trial in favor of locking in 50% off for your first three months — but you can’t choose both. QuickBooks has an online portal that users with common problems can check to resolve any issues without involving customer support.

Xero vs. QuickBooks Online: Setup

QuickBooks Online leads in many categories, but Xero has some slight advantages in terms of fixed asset management, project accounting, and taxes. We tackle these differences between Xero and QuickBooks in detail in the following sections. Can support larger small businesses with dozens of employees; highest-tier plan includes 25 users. We believe everyone should be able to make financial decisions with confidence. However, the layout and navigation may not be as intuitive for some users, especially those who are new to accounting software. Seamlessly connect QuickBooks net lease capital advisors to your favorite apps and tools, creating a unified hub for your business operations.

We are driven by the Fit Small Business mission to provide you with the best answers to your small business questions—allowing you to choose the right accounting solution for your needs. Our meticulous evaluation process makes us a trustworthy source for accounting software insights. We don’t just scratch the surface; we immerse ourselves in every platform we review by exploring the features down to the finest nuances.

Expense Tracking

User preference can play a role in which style you prefer, but generally, the more self-explanatory a central navigation screen is, the easier it is for new users to find their way around. QuickBooks Online, an offshoot of the popular QuickBooks Desktop application, is a good fit for small and growing businesses. If you didn’t receive an email don’t forgot to check your spam folder, otherwise contact support.

Like QuickBooks, Xero has a function to automatically calculate sales taxes for each invoice, as well as state or city taxes. A tax default can be set for any purchase, and Xero offers an integration with what are financial records definition and meaning Avalara TrustFile in order to help you file your returns. Xero’s software also lets you map your accounts to different categories of tax form, keeping everything organized.

1. Our only QuickBooks bill-paying disappointment was that you can’t access the feature via the Simple Start package.
2. Total cost per year is calculated by adding all the features that require additional fees.
3. Service or project-based businesses should choose accounting software that can track project costs, revenues, and profits.
4. We went to user review websites to read first-hand reviews from actual software users.
5. However, despite Wave’s advantages, its overall offering is pretty basic and support tools leave a lot to be desired, giving it a 4/5 score overall.

The Report Center in QuickBooks Online offers a central location to process reports, which include all standard financial statements as well as a healthy selection of management reports. The Xero accounting interface is clean and uncluttered, and new users have access to a demo company where they can manipulate data without worrying about entering or deleting important information. Both QuickBooks and Xero let you set up automated data tracking and report generation, but cheap car insurance quotes QuickBooks has more granular options, making it faster to compare reports against historical data. You’ll still be able to accomplish everything you need with both, but it’ll be a little faster with QuickBooks.

Whatever your needs, there’s sure to be an accounting software program that’s a perfect fit. QuickBooks is a popular accounting software used by small businesses, solopreneurs and freelancers. The software helps users to keep track of their finances, customers and vendors. This is because QuickBooks was designed for small businesses that might not have an accounting background, whereas Xero was designed with accountants and bookkeepers in mind. QuickBooks is also better for businesses that need to track inventory, as it has built-in inventory management features. Xero also has inventory management, but it’s not one of its core functions.

Both services are available on all the most common devices and browsers. It’s worth noting that QuickBooks uses a first-party payment processor, which means that the money goes through QuickBooks, while Xero uses third-party processors, like PayPal or Stripe. Neither of these is better than the other, but it pays to be aware of the differences. Discover BusinessLoans.com’s lender network offering up to $3M in funding, no minimum credit score required. If you don’t have the time to devote to learning the software, QuickBooks Online may be the better fit.