Keep in mind that these services charge a fee to process payments (usually around 2.9% plus 25 cents per transaction, though this varies by the payment processor). Xero users benefit from streamlined invoicing and payment processing, which makes managing their payments easy. They can create and how much does bookkeeping cost for a small to medium sized business send invoices and track payment status from the same platform. Thus, the scope for manual data entry is reduced, and cash flow accelerates. Xero also offers flexibility and convenience to all businesses by integrating various payment gateways. Xero is our pick for the best accounting software for growing companies.
Xero Pricing Plans
Xero, FreshBooks and QuickBooks all offer 30-day free trials and extensive features for online support, including a live chat, email support and a knowledge base. All three of these offer the ability to scale their accounting for larger businesses and both Xero and QuickBooks offer specific training for accountants. These companies offer Gusto integration for the same price—$40 per month and $6 per month per person. On the other replacement value hand, FreshBooks may be a better fit for freelancers and solopreneurs, as the capabilities are easier to navigate. We recommend using Xero if you’re a small-to-medium-sized company that values affordability, collaboration, and user-friendly design.
Xero’s robust financial management features allow businesses to manage their finances effectively and confidently. By automating regular tasks like invoicing and expense tracking, it frees up financial professionals to work on strategic planning and analysis. For those seeking more specialized invoicing capabilities, exploring the best invoicing software can provide additional options.
You can also accept payments from popular services such as Stripe and GoCardless. The Early plan costs $15 per month and lets users send up to 20 invoices and schedule up to 5 bills per month. Other features include reconciling bank transactions and capturing bills and receipts with Hubdoc. Big data is changing businesses, affecting operations more each year.
Project Tracking
The number of users is also technically unlimited, but FreshBooks does charge an extra fee of $11 per user per month. Unlike Xero, QuickBooks allows unlimited invoices on the cheapest Simple Start plan — but limits you to 1 billable user and 2 accountant firm users. If you need only 1 person to use the software but plan to send a high number of invoices and bills, QuickBooks may be a more cost-effective choice than Xero. However, they were not as comprehensive as what we found in our review of QuickBooks Online. Phone support is not available immediately; you must contact customer service first via email or live chat.
Xero Review 2024: Features, Pricing & More
Additionally, we like that Xero avoids accounting jargon, such as “debits” and “credits,” throughout its interface, which is helpful because most business owners aren’t accountants or bookkeepers. With Xero, you can add an unlimited number of users to your account at each subscription level. This is a notable feature for accounting software; often, lower-tier plans allow fewer users while only higher-tier plans allow unlimited users. After you start a free 30-day trial of Xero, you’ll activate the account and provide details about your business.
- I recommend finding a bookkeeper who is experienced who can show you the ropes.
- To keep things organized, Xero logs every action users make and compiles the history of every transaction.
- FreshBooks is another one of our favorites for small businesses — especially freelancers.
- Many pages within the app have how-to videos and links to a step-by-step guide, which is great for business owners who aren’t very tech-savvy.
- FreshBooks starts at $19 per month after the signup discount and incorporates standout features like team roles and time tracking on all plans.
To accept payments from their clients, Xero allows businesses to connect to payment services without any monthly subscription. Clients can make online payments using debit cards, direct debit using GoCardless, credit cards, and Apple Pay or Google Pay using Stripe. Users can stay worry-free as Xero uses encryption and strong security measures to protect against fraud. If you’re on a tight budget, then check out Wave Accounting, which offers a forever free Starter plan — yes, you read that correctly! Xero has a mobile app, Xero Expenses, that allows you to snap pictures of receipts and create an expense instead of having to manually enter all the information. This feature is available on all pricing plans; which I appreciate since some accounting software charges extra for mobile receipt capture.
These reports help small business owners identify areas for improvement and make evidence-based decisions in real time. Xero doesn’t offer as many pre-built reports compared to Xero alternatives such as QuickBooks. The Established plan costs $78 per month and includes unlimited numbers of invoices and bills. In addition to all the features of the other two plans, the Established plan includes the use of multiple currencies, tracking time and projects, claiming expenses and viewing in-depth analytics.
Because its pricing plans are not based on employee numbers, Xero can easily accommodate various development stages and the changing small business accounting needs accompanying business growth. We recommend Xero for companies that are rapidly adding employees and don’t want to worry about deposit slip the number of people at the organization using the product. Xero includes extensive features that make it suitable to handle complex accounting processes for small- and medium-sized businesses as well as larger ones.