FreshBooks’ reports may be more aesthetically pleasing and easier to navigate, but Xero’s include the level of detail needed to stay organized as your company grows. It creates this feel through bright colors, creative design, a straightforward layout, clear navigation, fun fonts, and a super casual tone. I never thought I’d hear the phrase “invoicing like a boss,” yet here we are. To get the best possible experience please use the latest version of Chrome, Firefox, Safari, or Microsoft Edge to view this website. Our simple yet robust interface has a very short learning curve, so you and your team can hit the ground running.
Importantly, FreshBooks allows you to send unlimited invoices to five clients on its entry-level plan, while Xero caps you at 20 monthly invoices. However, Xero’s higher-tier plans are more expensive than FreshBooks’ premium offerings. FreshBooks also offers customized pricing for large enterprise customers, while Xero only offers three preset plans.
Xero offers accounts payable features with all plans — although you can enter only five bills per month with the Early plan. The software’s bill management tools are detailed, giving you the ability to access all of your bills online in one place, make batch payments and schedule them in advance. In contrast, FreshBooks includes basic accounts payable tools like bill tracking with the Premium plan and doesn’t offer them with the Lite or Plus plans. Many business owners like to use the free versions of apps, especially when they are just starting out. Unfortunately, neither FreshBooks nor Xero has a free version of their apps.
Pricing Model
Xero automates bill payments in bulk and across vendors, whereas FreshBooks only allows manual bill recording, not payment. We found Xero’s bill pay tools to be the best of any accounting software we reviewed ― not just when compared to FreshBooks. Choose Xero over FreshBooks if you want to organize and expedite your vendor payments. Both platforms offer approximately the same number of integrations and organize them neatly in their respective app stores.
- The quality you get for the amount you spend is the essence of bang for your buck.
- FreshBooks allows users to manage key processes easily from turning receipts into expense files to tracking billable hours.
- However, time tracking and invoicing lean in favor of FreshBooks, which offers unlimited use compared to Xero’s restrictions.
- Some are designed to grow with your business, offering modular features like inventory management or e-commerce integrations that you can add on as needed.
- We recommend Xero for businesses looking to streamline their vendor payments, especially when you deal with many vendors.
The action you just performed triggered the security solution. There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data. You can save 10 percent on a FreshBooks subscription by making a single annual payment rather than monthly payments. FreshBooks brings some serious pizzazz and excitement to accounting, while Xero takes a more polished, business-like approach. Kristy Snyder is a professional writer and editor living in Pittsburgh with over 10 years of content creation experience. In addition to being a Content Editor for Clever Real Estate, she has contributed to numerous leading financial and tech websites, including Bankrate, The Simple Dollar, NextAdvisor, and more.
Accounting Software Program Reviews
FreshBooks and Xero aren’t at the same level of difficulty in terms of ease of use. FreshBooks is much simpler and straightforward, which is expected since the software caters primarily to people without accounting experience. Xero’s difficulty is average to someone who has been using accounting software programs for quite some time. However, first-time users might find a little bit of a learning curve. Xero has the majority of general accounting features we’d like to see, and this includes the features we’ve mentioned above that are missing on FreshBooks.
List of Features
User-friendly interfaces, complete with dashboards and drag-and-drop features, make these software solutions accessible even for novices. Navigating the small business accounting software offerings available today can feel like venturing into a maze – but don’t worry, you’re about to get a map. Accounting software options serve as the backbone of a small business, helping you manage every cent that comes in or goes out. And yes, we’re talking about more than just a glorified calculator or a digital ledger.
Accounts Payable
This kept our costs comparatively low as we tested the platform at different team sizes. We felt that each tier’s features justified its costs as did the automatically included (but optional) Gusto payroll integration. We’ve encountered few platforms that make it so easy and low-cost to automate your payroll accounting. FreshBooks integrates with a number of payment processors so that you can choose the payment method that works best for you and your business. Whether you want to accept credit card payments, set up bank transfers, or get paid through FreshBooks Payments, you can easily set up the method you prefer. Easy-to-use invoicing, payments, project management, accounting features, and so much more, is why over 30 million businesses in 160+ countries have used FreshBooks.
And FreshBooks also lets you send automatic recurring invoices—a time-saving feature that most accounting software overlooks, especially basic accounting plans. Each additional user costs $11 per month if you wish to grant access to more employees. Transactions made using FreshBooks Payments, which allows you to accept credit cards online, cost 2.9 percent plus 30 cents per transaction. FreshBooks also offers a product called Advanced Payments, which is used to accept credit card payments by phone and in person.
Two leading solutions that have emerged in this sector are FreshBooks and Xero. This report offers an in-depth analysis of each software platform, comparing their pricing, features, pros and cons. We recommend FreshBooks for all business customers that prioritize invoicing tools. Of all the accounting software platforms we reviewed, FreshBooks’ invoicing functionality impressed us the most. Creating invoices in FreshBooks is much easier than in other platforms ― automatic invoice generation and customization are a breeze. We especially like the fact that you can generate invoices from estimates and quotes in two clicks.
If your business is already experiencing a growth spurt, FreshBooks might not be able to meet the customization demands that alternatives like QuickBooks online can. With Zapier, you can create automated workflows that connect Xero and FreshBooks, allowing you to transfer data seamlessly between the two platforms. asset definition accounting Xero used a timesheet that can be used to track time at a location, but it is not often considered its greatest strength, and there are provisions for integration options. FreshBooks also has help resources such as its ‘How to guides,’ an faq section, on-demand webinars, and a mobile help guide.
Both vendors offer reporting, analytics and data visualization to meet the demands of companies that wish to become data-driven. While FreshBooks includes bills as part of its Expense dashboard, Xero has a unique centralized bill dashboard that was recently launched by the company. Get started for as low as $5/mo NZD with FreshBooks invoicing-only plan. The Digital Merchant has the best strategies and tools to grow your digital business. On the other hand, Xero works well with startups that have hit the ground running and possibly have an employee with a good grasp of accounting. FreshBooks is ideal for the freelancer or solopreneur just coming to terms with budgeting, amongst other financial knowledge needed to run a small profitable business.