QuickBooks Online vs Xero
Both are good ledgers. The right one depends less on features than on who else will work in your books.
Short answer
In the US with a US accountant or bookkeeper, choose QuickBooks Online: almost every US practitioner works in it. Billing in several currencies, or wanting many users without paying per head, choose Xero.
What each costs (US list prices)
| Plan | Price / month | Users | Worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|
| QuickBooks Simple Start | $38 | 1 | Fine for one owner doing their own books |
| QuickBooks Essentials | $85 | 3 | Adds bill management and time tracking |
| QuickBooks Plus | $140 | 5 | Adds inventory, projects and budgets |
| QuickBooks Advanced | $340 | 25 | Larger teams and workflow automation |
| Xero Early | $27 | Unlimited | Capped at 20 invoices and 5 bills a month |
| Xero Growing | $59 | Unlimited | No invoice or bill caps |
| Xero Established | $97 | Unlimited | Adds multi-currency, projects and expense claims |
QuickBooks raised Essentials, Plus and Advanced from August 2026; Xero raised all US plans from October 2026. Both run frequent new-customer discounts, so check the live price before you sign up.
Where they really differ
- Users. QuickBooks caps users by plan tier. Xero gives unlimited users on every plan. For a team of six who all enter bills or expenses, that alone can be $80 a month or more.
- Volume limits on the cheapest plan. Xero Early's cap of 20 invoices and 5 bills a month suits a consultant with a handful of clients. A shop or busy service business outgrows it in the first month.
- Your accountant. In the US, QuickBooks is the default. If your CPA or bookkeeper already works in it, their time costs less, and you avoid paying for a migration later.
- Multi-currency. If you invoice or buy in more than one currency, Xero Established handles it cleanly. Check that the QuickBooks plan you choose supports your currencies before relying on it.
- Payroll. QuickBooks sells its own payroll add-on inside the same subscription. Xero's US customers usually run payroll in a connected service such as Gusto.
What matters at year end
After years of auditing company books, we can tell you the software rarely decides whether a year-end goes well. Three habits do: every bank and card account reconciled to its statement each month, closed months locked so nobody posts into them later, and an audit trail you never switch off. Both QuickBooks and Xero do all three well. Pick the one you and your accountant will actually keep up to date.
Four questions to settle it
- Does your accountant or bookkeeper prefer one? If yes, use that one.
- Dealing in more than one currency? Lean Xero.
- Will more than three people need access? Compare Xero Growing against QuickBooks Plus on price.
- Want payroll inside the same product? Lean QuickBooks.
Then start the free trial, connect your bank, import three months of transactions and reconcile one month. If reconciling feels fiddly by day two, it will feel worse in month twelve.
Try QuickBooks Online ↗ Try Xero ↗
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