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Zoho Books vs Xero

Verified ratings, feature by feature comparison and real pricing. Everything a North American business needs to pick between these two.

Zoho Books logo

Zoho Books

Serious accounting at a price that reads like a typo

4.2(248)
Visit Zoho website
Xero logo

Xero

Clean, modern accounting with unlimited users on every plan

4.5(194)
Visit Xero Limited website

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Ratings

Every score, at a glance

Verified user ratings across every dimension. Zoho Books against Xero, nothing weighted.

Dimensions won

14Zoho Books 1, Xero 4

Zoho Books vs Xero, across 5 rating dimensions

Widest rating gap

+0.4

Xero leads on ease of use

Verified reviews

442

248 for Zoho Books, 194 for Xero

Zoho Books logoZoho Books
4.2 out of 5

248 verified reviews

Xero logoXero
4.5 out of 5

194 verified reviews

Ratings by dimension

  • Zoho Books
  • Xero
Overall
4.2
4.5
Ease of use
4.3
4.7
Value for money
4.7
4.6
Customer service
3.7
4.1
Functionality
4.4
4.5

Share of verified reviews

Which product reviewers actually write about.

442verified reviews
  • Zoho Books248
  • Xero194

Cost to get started

Cheapest paid plan, shown per month.

Zoho Books$20/mo
Xero$20/mo

Zoho Books is the cheaper way in. Lower is not automatically better, so weigh it against the ratings above.

Head to head

Where each one wins

Row by row, with the stronger score highlighted. Straight from verified reviews.

Zoho Books against Xero, row by row
Zoho BooksXero
Overall rating4.24.5
Reviews248194
Ease of use4.34.7
Value for money4.74.6
Customer service3.74.1
Functionality4.44.5
Starting price$20/mo$20/mo
Free trialYesYes
Free versionYesNo

Features

Feature by feature, checked off

Everything each product ships, side by side. No marketing gloss.

Features Zoho Books and Xero each ship
FeatureZoho BooksXero
True double entry accounting
Automated bank feeds and reconciliation rules
Client portal with online payment
Recurring invoices and payment reminders
Inventory tracking on Professional and above
Multi currency with automatic exchange rates
Custom workflow automation
Project time tracking and billing
Open API on affordable tiers
Deep integration with the wider Zoho suite
Unlimited users on every plan
Automated bank feeds
Side by side reconciliation
Invoicing and online payments
GST/HST returns for CRA
Sales tax via Avalara
Project tracking
Expense claims
Multi currency
Inventory
Fixed asset register
Full audit trail
Accountant tools

Pricing

Both price lists, side by side

Every plan from both vendors, side by side, priced in US dollars.

Zoho Books plans

Free

For businesses under 50,000 dollars of annual revenue.

Free

no card required

Start free trial
  • 1 user plus 1 accountant
  • Client portal
  • Automatic payment reminders
  • Up to 1,000 invoices a year
  • Bank feed connections

Standard

3 users. The plan most small businesses actually start on.

$20/mo

per month

Start free trial
  • 3 users
  • Recurring invoices and expenses
  • Bank reconciliation rules
  • Project time tracking
  • Sales tax tracking
  • 15 dollars a month billed annually

Professional

5 users. Adds purchase orders, inventory and multi currency.

$50/mo

per month

Start free trial
  • 5 users
  • Purchase orders and sales orders
  • Inventory tracking
  • Multi currency handling
  • Custom workflow rules
  • Vendor portal

Premium

10 users. Custom domain, budgeting and deeper automation.

$70/mo

per month

Start free trial
  • 10 users
  • Custom domain and branding
  • Budgeting
  • Custom buttons and functions
  • Twenty five custom modules
  • Validation rules
Straight from the vendor

Get current pricing

These are list prices and vendors adjust them from time to time. Check with Zoho for the figure you will actually pay.

Visit Zoho

Xero plans

Early

Capped at 20 invoices and 5 bills a month. Genuinely small.

$20/mo

per month

Start free trial
  • 20 invoices per month
  • 5 bills per month
  • Bank reconciliation
  • Unlimited users
  • Short term cash flow

Growing

Uncapped invoicing. Where almost everyone actually starts.

$47/mo

per month

Start free trial
  • Unlimited invoices and bills
  • Bank reconciliation
  • Unlimited users
  • Bulk transaction reconcile
  • Short term cash flow

Established

Adds multi currency, projects and expense claims.

$80/mo

per month

Start free trial
  • Everything in Growing
  • Multi currency
  • Project tracking
  • Expense claims
  • Advanced analytics
Straight from the vendor

Get current pricing

These are list prices and vendors adjust them from time to time. Check with Xero Limited for the figure you will actually pay.

Visit Xero Limited