Item: Xero
Rating: 9
Author: Verified User

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Xero is being used as part of tool bag of online accounting applications that we recommend to clients. Xero handles the day to day accounting function and integration with online banking that most clients need without the complexity of some competing providers.

Pros and Cons

Online functionality seems extremely well thought out and user friendly.
Online banking integration seems far superior to competitors!
Reports are easy to read and understand, without a college degree in accounting.

Demo version used to require you to subscribe to a full version with your billing information before the demo would activate. The user then had to deactivate in order to avoid being billed if the solution wasn't a good fit. Hope they fix this soon!

Return on Investment

We see the greatest benefit of this sort of application in its user friendly functionality and its purely online collaborative content. With multiple log in for both client and advisor, the client can easily identify items that require further attention by the advisor. This reduces the client's dependence and expense on the advisor and frees the advisor up for more high level advising rather than data entry.

Alternatives Considered

QuickBooks Online,QuickBooks Pro,FreshBooks

Xero appears to have a better user friendly "feel" and look compared to QuickBooks Online. It certainly has more functionality, at this stage, than does FreshBooks. But the online accounting industry is exploding and applications are constantly changing. Xero seems to the vender who is most seriously competing in this area.

Xero Rating for Public Practice CPAs

The ease of set up and functionality are attractive features. The ability to manage and support multiple clients on this same platform is inviting! Staff and others can also have log-ins as well as other interested parties such as financial planners, business agents, etc. This truly makes for a collaborative team approach to get the most out of the client's financial data!

Percentage of clients doing full Business Process Outsourcing

25% to 50% of my clients

Likelihood to Recommend

Xero is not suited well for clients with multiple departments that want more detailed reporting across divisions. It also doesn't yet handle inventory control, job costing and other more advanced features. The software is being constantly updated and it will rapidly become a major player in the industry, so I suspect many of these negative observations will be resolved soon.

Xero is rapidly becoming the leader in collaborative accounting packages!

Software Version

Overall Satisfaction with Xero