FreshBooks vs Xero: Xero Wins

It can be easily accessed from any device, from your PC (Windows desktop) or Mac desktop to your mobile phone. 95% of users agree that FreshBooks makes it easy to work with your accountant. Number of users aside, Xero is a better fit for small businesses with multiple employees, whereas FreshBooks is more ideal for freelancers and independent contractors. Some of the links that appear on the website are from software companies from which CRM.org receives compensation. This site does not include all companies or all available Vendors. Even the best accounting software is not without limitations, and for these two, considering these limitations could determine your eventual choice.

• Global digital transformation has redefined the day-to-day operations of accountants as they increasingly transition to data-driven cloud accounting platforms.
• It has all the functionality you need to manage transactions, calculate payments and track projects at an affordable entry point.
• FreshBooks has its time tracking feature, considered one of the best in its class of accounting software.
• After the 4-month promotional period, you will be billed at full price for the plan you have selected.
• We recommend Xero for businesses looking to streamline their vendor payments, especially when you deal with many vendors.

You can set sales prices, create customers, email invoices, accept short payments, and manage customer accounts in both FreshBooks and Xero. For one thing, it’s hard to maintain balanced books if you aren’t tracking expenses alongside income. For another, many small-business owners rely on end-of-year tax write-offs to finance major purchases or keep their business in the black for another year.

Award-Winning Customer Support

Additionally, Xero’s customizable dashboard and global search function make the software easy to navigate. Xero limits users to 20 invoices per month on its basic plan while its other two plans offer unlimited invoicing access. Both FreshBooks and Xero offer online services and are cloud-based accounting software that can be used on the go. Suppose you have any questions with regard to cash flow, bookkeeping, expense tracking, and other accounting features provided by Xero.

• And FreshBooks also lets you send automatic recurring invoices—a time-saving feature that most accounting software overlooks, especially basic accounting plans.
• I was using this software as a replacement for an accountant, in order to save money, so that advice didn’t help much.
• So either you have to plan to cancel 2 months in advance or you have to plan to pay an additional month of service after you actually cancel.

Check out our other picks for the year’s best small-business accounting software. With plans starting at $15 a month, FreshBooks is well-suited for freelancers, solopreneurs, and small-business owners alike. While FreshBooks lets you send an unlimited amount of invoices each month, it restricts the number of clients you can invoice per plan.

Bills and expense management

We recommend Xero for businesses looking to streamline their vendor payments, especially when you deal with many vendors. We have yet to encounter bill-pay tools as user-friendly and broad as Xero’s in any other accounting software platform we reviewed. We like how easy Xero makes it to batch-schedule advance payments to one or many vendors, removing late payment fees from your expenses. Meanwhile, users who left Xero reviews said that the software is easy to set up and use, adding that it has a simple and clean user interface along with intuitive features. Some also praised its fixed assets manager and project accounting capabilities.

FreshBooks is a super-easy-to-use cloud-based accounting software built specifically for freelancers, soletraders and SMBs, letting you easily do everything yourself. FreshBooks is built to make accounting easy for non-accountants running small and medium sized businesses. This is an important question; if you are a small business owner, would you want the same accounting software McDonald’s uses? You want something that makes your life easier, not complicates it by providing unnecessary options every time you try to create and send invoice. If you want to add team members to your account, you’ll need to pay an additional $10/month, per user.

The accounting software that fits your business could be the difference in a better CRM direction for your business. FreshBooks has significantly reduced the amount of time I spend on the administrative front, while making it easier for my clients to pay me. Do your own books and create better connections with clients, the easy way. Xero specializes in accounting solutions for small businesses and is the popular choice of retail, e-commerce, high-tech, nonprofit, legal, hospitality, coffee shops, and advertising industries. Xero has one of the highest Trust Radius ratings we’ve seen in accounting software.

Time tracking and client management

One of the primary drivers behind the popularity of small business accounting software is its ability to streamline complex financial tasks. Traditionally, small business owners grappled with intricate spreadsheets and manual calculations, leading to errors and inefficiencies. Accounting software automates these processes, reducing the likelihood of errors and saving everyone’s time. This efficiency boost is particularly crucial for small businesses, where every minute counts towards keeping and growing the business. Like FreshBooks, Xero comes with built-in, albeit basic project management capabilities so you can keep track of time, costs, and project profitability within the same tool. You can prepare budgets and can send customized quotes while choosing the level of details to show customers.

Is FreshBooks more expensive than QuickBooks?

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The easiest way to answer that question is to start out with your preferred investment approach. It’s packed with exactly what you need to succeed as a freelancer. Join 100,000+ monthly readers who are leveling up their freelance business. Hazel Raoult is a freelance marketing writer and works with PRmention. She has 6+ years of experience in writing about business, entrepreneurship, marketing and all things SaaS.

Get started for as low as $5/mo NZD with FreshBooks invoicing-only plan. But as a small business owner with limited resources, you might feel lost trying to make Xero work for you, your clients and your budget. The Digital Merchant has the best strategies and tools to grow your digital business.

Add new Freshbooks clients to Google Contacts as new contacts

The best accounting software platforms make it easier to pay vendors, receive customer payments, track expenses and much more. FreshBooks and Xero are excellent accounting software options whose features and focuses may make one or the other better for specific businesses. The FreshBooks app offers a convenient solution because of its invoicing on-the-go feature, which speeds up collections from clients.