freshbooks vs quickbooks vs xero

Otherwise, you’ll have to bump up your subscription or consider QuickBooks Online plans. Xero comes with built-in payroll capabilities, allowing users to handle payroll tasks directly without needing to rely on a third-party solution. FreshBooks doesn’t offer built-in payroll features and requires integration with Gusto for payroll services, which may involve additional costs. Xero also offers Analytics Plus, available on the Established plan, to analyze your cash flow. This feature uses AI to predict future recurring transactions up to 90 days in advance based on patterns from the last three months. Zoho Books stands out for its 24/5 customer support, strong feature set and affordability.

Pricing and plans

You don’t have time to spend figuring out how to use complicated accounting software. With FreshBooks, you’ll confidently create invoices, input expenses, and do your bookkeeping in half the time. And with the best customer support in the industry, it’s easy to see why Xero customers switched to FreshBooks. Apart from FreshBooks’ user-friendliness for those who aren’t accounting experts, it also appeals to freelancers through its time tracking and client management tools. All plans offer unlimited time tracking and allow you to bill clients for the time you track.

You can also browse the Xero App Store to connect to over 1,000 third-party apps. These are separated by function and industry to make it easier to search. Popular categories include payroll, inventory, time tracking, payments and CRM.

Whether you’re sick of losing records, chasing up invoices, or just want a central hub through which you can manage your accounts, there’s an app to perfectly suit your needs. While both software solutions offer features like mileage tracking, inventory management and reporting, QuickBooks’ capabilities typically exceed those of vintage yellow accounting practice forms FreshBooks. We have financial relationships with some companies we cover, earning commissions when readers purchase from our partners or share information about their needs. Our editorial team independently evaluates and recommends products and services based on their research and expertise.

Xero integrations

  1. Includes tools that help automate the reconciliation process, along with a global search function; has a simple layout and a customizable dashboard.
  2. FreshBooks doesn’t allow users to get deep into the weeds with customizations.
  3. For example, integrating with NiceJob can automate FreshBooks to solicit and capture reviews and referrals from your existing client base.
  4. FreshBooks also offers a product called Advanced Payments, which is used to accept credit card payments by phone and in person.
  5. All Xero plans come with accountant access, but FreshBooks’ least expensive option does not.

FreshBooks and Xero are both powerful accounting tools that can help farm operating accounts businesses keep their financial information and assets organized and accessible. But the two apps are geared toward different audiences, which explains their functional differences. Both FreshBooks and Xero allow you to track business performance using your dashboard, and generate and download financial reports.

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It’s designed specifically for small businesses and offers invoicing, time tracking and expense management. Track mileage, send invoices and get a snapshot of your business cash flow with both Xero and QuickBooks. While Xero’s lowest-tiered plan allows you to send and approve up to 20 invoices, partner apps that initiate transactions can automatically contribute to your limit. Xero is an accounting software best suited to small businesses looking for high-level accounting systems. FreshBooks is better geared toward freelancers and very small businesses that need to send a lot of invoices to clients.

Even with FreshBooks Lite, I was able to create and send unlimited customized invoices for up to five clients, whereas Xero restricted me to 20 total invoices per month. ​​With FreshBooks Plus, this limit increased to 50 clients, and with Premium, quickbooks online journal entry there’s no client limit at all. These ratings are meant to provide clarity in the decision-making process, but what’s best for your business will depend on its size, growth trajectory and which features you need most. We encourage you to research and compare multiple accounting software products before choosing one. NerdWallet independently reviews accounting software products before determining our top picks. We collect the data for our software ratings from products’ public-facing websites and from company representatives.

Entry-level plan limits bills and invoices to five and 20 per month, respectively. Intuitive, customizable invoicing capabilities compete with those of more robust accounting solutions. Katherine Haan is a small business owner with nearly two decades of experience helping other business owners increase their incomes.

Xero vs. QuickBooks Online at a glance

freshbooks vs quickbooks vs xero

This helps workflows move smoothly and prevents users from having to constantly toggle between two programs when working. By customizing fields, QuickBooks allows business owners to track what they want in a way that makes sense for their business. For business owners working with an accountant, this keeps both parties synced to data that is meaningful to operations. For example, you can track sales based on sales representatives working on ways to motivate the sales force to generate more revenues. FreshBooks doesn’t allow users to get deep into the weeds with customizations. Both Xero and QuickBooks Online have their own versions of transaction tracking tags, but QuickBooks Online is the winner in this arena.

Xero is ideal for businesses that keep a team of bookkeepers or accountants in-house. Compared side by side, Xero is clearly the winner when it comes to features. FreshBooks’ least expensive Lite plan doesn’t allow for accountant access, which can be limiting for micro businesses that want an accountant to look over their financials every so often. And regardless of plan tier, the software doesn’t provide audit trails, which help your accountant verify information and catch errors. And thanks to the software’s popularity, most accountants should be familiar with it.