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Xero Review
December 13, 2021

Xero Review

Lauren Boyle | TrustRadius Reviewer
Score 10 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User

Overall Satisfaction with Xero

I work in a bookkeeping company that manages bookkeeping across a diverse range of clients from small to large business sizes. Xero is the main accounting software we use for our clients and find it is suitable for a variety of business types and sizes. It manages the transactions, payables, receivables, BAS preparation, easy to use superannuation payments, and also has payroll (which if you have a complex payroll or timesheets with penalty rates then Xero is best used integrated with an external payroll software).
  • BAS Prep & GST Reconciliation.
  • Payables.
  • Bank feed processing.
  • Superannuation.
  • Report building.
  • Payroll - timesheet function very basic and can be tedious if not integrated with another payroll software.
  • Audit trail reporting.
  • Bank reconciliation - doesn't show matched-off items (eg: cash deposit can't have sales deposits ticked off to balance to deposit).
  • Makes bookkeeping easier for clients or for us to do on behalf of clients.
  • Time saving reports for BAS preparation.
  • Picks up on potential issues in General Ledger Exceptions report.
  • Dashboard can show accounts watchlist and current payables/receivables.
  • Matches bills/sales to bank feed transactions and you can select multiple or split payments.
Xero has a much easier, user-friendly interface for ease of use in comparison to the above software and also saves time with day-to-day processing, payables, visibility on items due or requiring attention and the payroll is far easier to use. You can view previous pay runs and figures without needing to rely on reports and specific dates. It is easy to edit items and payroll. Setup of employees is easy.
Easy to interpret how to do things and the online free learning portal gives so much information. Their customer service is also easy to access and sends a support ticket if the answer can't be found online. The dashboard is clear and the tabs for each area are very clear. The bank feed is easy to use and scheduling bill payments is easy. It's a good software for bookkeeping/accounting where you interact with the client a lot because it's easy to show them where items are or what needs to be done. Eg: Scheduling bills for payment so they can see upcoming scheduled dates for supplier batch payments.
It's streamlined a lot of the processes and made it easier to change clients over to being paperless and offsite, rather than relying on someone physically being there with the folders of documents. It has saved time, paper and gives the ability to direct resources more efficiently. It also has the option to have employees conduct the Xero training and become certified so you know they have a certain level of understanding about the software and you don't need as much time having a second person there to go through the basic training.
There can always be some hiccups or issues that arise but it depends on the software being integrated. If there is a background issue sometimes it isn't clear if it is Xero or the other software and this can lead to each software telling you to contact the other one which can waste some time. Generally, it syncs ok with Deputy, Keypay (though it won't preload W1 and W2 to BAS reports if you use external payroll software), and Trybooking is ok but does tend to have drop-off issues. Paypal doesn't integrate well when there are multiple currencies.

Do you think Xero delivers good value for the price?

Not sure

Are you happy with Xero's feature set?

Yes

Did Xero live up to sales and marketing promises?

Yes

Did implementation of Xero go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Xero again?

Yes

Not suitable for complex payrolls - if you are processing a large payroll through Xero it gets quite pricey, especially if you are paying to add on another software such as Deputy. Excellent for report building, bank feed processing, BAS preparation made easier, payables are easy to see. It's very user-friendly and the amount of online learning options available to everyone is brilliant. It's easy for us to convert clients to Xero and do training with them plus we can send them additional resources for learning provided by Xero.

Xero Feature Ratings

9.4
Accounts payable
10
Accounts receivable
10
Cash management
10
Bank reconciliation
10
Expense management
10
Time tracking
8
Fixed asset management
10
Multi-currency support
9
Multi-division support
9
Regulations compliance
Not Rated
Electronic tax filing
Not Rated
Self-service portal
Not Rated
Global Financial Support
Not Rated
Primary and Secondary Ledgers
Not Rated
Intercompany Accounting
Not Rated
Localizations
Not Rated
Journals and Reconciliations
10
Enterprise Accounting
Not Rated
Configurable Accounting
8
Centralized Rules Framework
Not Rated
Standardized Processes
9
4.0
Inventory tracking
4
Location management
4
4.5
Order entry
4
Credit card processing
5
7.7
Pay calculation
5
Direct deposit files
9
Reimbursement management
9
9.3
Dashboards
9
Standard reports
10
Custom reports
9
8.0
API for custom integration
8
10.0
Role-based user permissions
10
Single sign-on capability
10