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With four plans to choose from, Xero has different tiers suited to different business types, including sole traders, growing small businesses, established companies and larger organisations.
Each plan is Making Tax Digital (MTD) compliant, allows you to submit VAT returns directly to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), and can provide account access to an unlimited number of users at no extra cost.
However, you should be aware that Xero requires you to pay monthly add-ons for certain features at anything below its Ultimate level, including payroll, expenses and tracking projects.
» MORE: Best accounting software for small businesses
Key features
Key features
- Making Tax Digital-compliantAll Xero accounts are MTD-compliant, and allow you to submit VAT returns directly to HMRC.
- Unlimited usersYou can have an unlimited number of users logged into your Xero account at no extra cost.
- Payroll featuresXero’s payroll plan costs £5 a month for up to five employees, which is cheaper than many competitors.
- Cash-flow forecastsEvery Xero plan comes with the ability to forecast your cash flow over seven- and 30-day periods.
Xero accounting software pros & cons
Pros
- Every Xero account is Making Tax Digital-compliant.
- You can submit MTD-compliant VAT returns directly to HMRC.
- Xero’s payroll features are cheaper than many of its competitors.
- You have an unlimited number of users logged into your Xero account at no extra cost.
- Seven- and 30-day cash flow forecasting is available with every plan.
Cons
- The entry-level Xero Starter plan is more expensive than comparable plans elsewhere.
- Xero’s customer service options are limited, despite claiming to offer 24/7 online support.
- You can only access multiple currencies if you pay for the more expensive Premium or Ultimate plans.
The pros and cons featured here are chosen by us based on our expert, research-based opinions. They are unlikely to be the only product features and restrictions that you should consider. Pros and cons are subjective and you should align them to your own personal and business circumstances. Information was correct at the time of publication but may have changed since.
Xero accounting software full review
Founded in 2006, Xero is a global accounting software platform that claims to have over 3.7 million subscribers across the world.
All Xero plans are compliant with Making Tax Digital. It is now required by the UK government that you use MTD compatible software when submitting returns as a VAT-registered business. Further MTD rules will be introduced around income tax returns in April 2026 and 2027.
In the UK, Xero offers four options: Starter, Standard, Premium and Ultimate, each of which allows for an unlimited number of users. The plans, pre-VAT and pre-discounts, are as follows:
- Starter: This plan costs £15 a month It allows customers to enter five bills a month and approve and send 20 invoices, alongside submitting VAT returns to HMRC, bill and receipt capture, automatic Construction Industry Scheme (CIS) calculations, and short-term cash-flow forecasting.
- Standard: This plan costs £30 a month, and includes everything in the Starter plan, but with unlimited invoices and bill entries. On top of this, you can also bulk reconcile transactions.
- Premium: This plan costs £42 a month. On top of everything included in the Standard plan, you can also use multiple currencies when accounting.
- Ultimate: This plan costs £55 a month. This tier includes everything in the Premium plan, as well as a built-in payroll function for up to 10 people, expenses and project tracking for up to five people, and Analytics Plus. These are all features you have to pay extra for with the other plans.
Xero also offers a number of add-ons for the Starter, Standard and Premium plans:
- Payroll: This starts at £5 a month for up to five employees.
- Expenses: This starts at £2.50 a month for one user.
- Projects: The ability to track projects starts at £5 a month for one user.
Xero accounting software features: at a glance
| Monthly fee (pre-discounts, pre-VAT) | £15 (Starter) £30 (Standard) £42 (Premium) £55 (Ultimate) |
| Free trial | 30 days |
| Making Tax Digital compliant | Yes |
| Submit VAT to HMRC | Yes |
| Payroll costs per month (for five employees, pre-discounts, pre-VAT) | £5 per month (Starter, Standard and Premium) Free (Ultimate) |
| Multi-user access | Yes (Unlimited) |
| Multi-currency accounting | Yes (Premium and Ultimate) |
| Customer service | ‘24/7 online support’ via email |
Where Xero stands out
Free trial and introductory offers: Xero offers a 30-day free trial when you first sign up for an account. Xero also offers discounts, which can vary depending on when you apply. At the time of writing, its Starter, Standard and Premium plans also come with two free months of its payroll, expenses, and project tracking services, and four free months of Analytics Plus.
Making Tax Digital-compliant VAT returns: All Xero accounting plans are MTD-compliant, and allow you to submit VAT returns directly to HMRC.
Cash-flow forecasting: Every Xero accounting plan allows you to forecast your cash flow over a seven- or 30-day period. Longer term cash flow forecasts of 60 and 90 days are available with Analytics Plus. Analytics Plus costs an extra £5 a month for Starter, Standard and Premium customers, and is included for free in the Ultimate plan.
Payroll: At £5 a month for up to five employees, Xero’s payroll option is at the cheaper end of the market. It is then an extra £1 a month per additional user. If you pay for the Ultimate plan, meanwhile, you can run payroll for up to 10 people as part of your subscription.
Multiple user access: You can have an unlimited number of users attached to your Xero account at no extra cost.
Where Xero falls short
Monthly fee: At £15 a month (pre-VAT), Xero’s Starter plan is more expensive than comparable options at other accounting software providers.
Paywalled features: Certain basic features, such as the ability to claim expenses, require additional monthly fees to use, except for the Ultimate plan.
Multi-currency: You can only access multi-currencies with the more expensive Premium and Ultimate plans.
Customer support: While Xero claims to provide 24/7 online support, this requires you to send Xero an email, which it will respond to as soon as it can. There is no live chat option, nor does Xero publish a customer support phone number you can call.
Xero customer reviews
Xero’s customers have left reviews on a range of sites. Generally, these reviews are very positive.
- App Store: 4.6 out of 5, based on over 900reviews
- Google Play: 4.6 out of 5, based on over 10,000 reviews
- Trustpilot: 4.3 out of 5, based on over 5,700 reviews
This information is correct as of 19 September 2023.
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