Item: Xero
Rating: 7
Author: Verified User

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

Needed to right-size the accounting system to something that automates as much as possible. This software is used for all aspects of financial management; it synchronizes with my time-tracking and project management software, sends recurring invoices for monthly work, automates A/R follow up, manages A/P and thus helps manage cashflow. Overall happy with these features.

Pros and Cons

Automation of recurring invoies
Automation of invoice follow-ups
Automation of A/P albeit through a cumbersome input process

Bank feeds break often and are slow to be repaired.
Multi-currency support doesn't take into account usability
Highly requested features by 100s of users from as far back as a 10 years do not get implemented
User requested features almost never make it into the software; and these requests are often extremely simple and basic, but would make a huge improvement in usability.

Return on Investment

Saved many hours through automatic invoices and followups
Saved many hours by allowing transactions to start via bank feeds (ie I don't have to input a transaction and mark it against what is in the bank/cc account; rather, the transaction in the account is where you input the transaction into the books.
Has the scalability my business requires, and not much more.

Usability

Overall it is well designed. Why isn't this a 10? In mh opinion, too much white space in many of the input modules Several daily tasks have needlessly complex inputs (ie: taking 1 deposit from my MSP and attributing it to 1 invoices from my client takes 10 user inputs; five of which are saying "the difference in the balance between these two are the fees the MSP take from the transaction and even though this is always to the same vendor, for the amount that is the difference between the invoice and the deposit, with the same tax rate and to the same GL account EVERY SINGLE TIME", that takes 6 different inputs to tell teh software There is no way to cc myself on invoice followups that get sent so I still have to manually check those Automatic invoices always go out at midnight local time; it would be much more professional to send those during busienss hours but that is not a setting that exists. Features requested frequently by users are ignored.

Cloud Costs

This software is more expensive than what I replaced it with; so it has increased my overhead costs. The time it takes to do the bookkeeping day to day is in-line with other softwares I have used. It being cloud based has not affected my overhead costs in any significant manner.

Ease of Integration

I have not integrated Xero with any other products so I cannot answer.

Even though this question instructs me to skip it, I cannot submit a blank answer without fifty words, so here are some words in so that it allows for the answering of the question. Three more words.

Alternatives Considered

QuickBooks Desktop Enterprise and QuickBooks Online

Xero has a more modern user interface, better bank account synchronization, better automations, and an overall more pleasurable user experience. The setup is more simple.

Quickbooks Desktop has easier to use and more robust reporting; however, for my needs that is overkill. What Xero does have is thorough enough for any accounting and decisions I need to make.

Key Insights

Do you think Xero delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Xero's feature set?

Yes

Did Xero live up to sales and marketing promises?

Did implementation of Xero go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Xero again?

Yes

Other Software Used

Basecamp, Streamtime, Meta for Business

Likelihood to Recommend

Xero is effective for a small to medium size business with not very much complexity; but it does offer enough power to do actual accounting work within the business' books; you can make GL adjustments, it has a full memory of all transactions and adjustments should an auditor wish to see everything that has happened - though this might not be what you're looking for ;) - and is overall an effective accounting tool.

There are some minor usability gripes which, when compounded over months and years, cause many hours of what I believe to be unnecessary work.

Xero is okay, but lacks customer suggested minor improvements.

Overall Satisfaction with Xero