Xero vs Odoo : Features, Pricing and Reviews Compared
- Starting price
- $27/mo
- Ease of use
- 8.5
- Functionality
- 8.6
- Value for money
- 7.9
- Customer support
- 7.4
Best for
- Businesses with several people who need to be in the books (owner, office manager, bookkeeper, partner)
- Owners who want to understand their numbers from a dashboard rather than a report pack
- Agencies, consultancies and trades that bill by project and want time and cost tracking
- Starting price
- Quote
- Ease of use
- 7.3
- Functionality
- 7.6
- Value for money
- 5.9
- Customer support
- 7.6
Best for
- Small and midsize businesses
- Companies that want open source code and data control
- Teams running accounting, sales, and inventory together
Our verdict
Xero comes out ahead at 82/100 versus Odoo at 71. Unlimited users on all plans. Xero is the better fit for small businesses that want unlimited users at a flat price. Odoo makes more sense if you need the Community edition is free and open source, so a company can start without a license fee.
On Xero: Xero is the accounting platform we recommend to owners who want unlimited users and a cleaner interface than QuickBooks, and who don't need the deepest US-specific ecosystem. Bank reconciliation is the best in class, the dashboards are readable without an accountant, and every plan includes unlimited seats. The trade-offs are the invoice cap on the Early plan, support that is ticket-only, and payroll that is an add-on through Gusto.
Features comparison
The 8 accounting capabilities we check on every product, ordered by importance to buyers.
| Feature | Importance | Xero | Odoo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Invoicing | 95% | Included | Included |
| Bank feeds | 89% | Included | Included |
| Accountant access | 72% | Included | Not included |
| Receipt capture | 66% | Included | Included |
| Payroll | 61% | Included | Included |
| Inventory | 34% | Included | Included |
| Multi-currency | 28% | Included | Included |
| API access | 22% | Included | Included |
What stands out in each
Bank reconciliation
Xero's reconciliation screen is the reason many bookkeepers prefer it: suggested matches, bank rules, cash coding for bulk work and a clean audit trail. On Growing and above, auto-reconcile handles the routine transactions without you.
Unlimited users on every plan
Unlike QuickBooks, Xero never charges per seat. Owners, staff and your accountant all get logins with role-based permissions, which matters for businesses that want several people entering bills and expenses.
Dashboards and analytics
The home dashboard shows cash in and out, invoices owed and bills due in plain language. Syft-powered analytics add performance dashboards, scorecards and (on Established) industry benchmarks that are unusually readable for an accounting tool.
Invoicing and payments
Quotes, recurring invoices, automatic reminders and online payment through Stripe, PayPal or GoCardless. Tap-to-pay on iPhone and Android lets you take cards in person without a reader.
Integrated accounting and invoicing
Accounts payable and receivable, bank reconciliation, budgeting, and customizable invoices sit in the same system as sales and inventory. Transactions move between modules without manual re-entry.
Manufacturing and inventory planning
Bills of material, capacity planning, demand forecasting, and backorder management support production and stock decisions. Teams can plan output and purchasing from the same records.
Open source with data ownership
Data is stored in PostgreSQL with no proprietary format, and buyers receive the source code and GitHub access. Hosting can be on Odoo's infrastructure or on premise.
Modular app catalog
The suite includes more than 40,000 community apps, and buyers add only the modules they need. This lets a company start with accounting and expand into sales, HR, or eCommerce later.
Pricing comparison
Xero starts at $27/mo (30-day trial); Odoo starts at Quote (Free trial). Plans are shown as the vendors publish them; the BSR Value subscore reflects what you get for the money.
Early
For new businesses with light volume. Unlimited users.
- 20 invoices and 5 bills per month
- Bank reconciliation
- Online invoice payments
- 30-day cash flow forecast
Growing
Unlimited invoices and bills, dashboards and budgets.
- Unlimited invoices and bills
- Auto-reconcile transactions
- Performance dashboards
- 3 budgets
Established
Multi-currency, projects, expenses and advanced analytics.
- Multi-currency
- Project time and cost tracking
- Employee expense claims
- KPIs and industry benchmarks
Introductory discounts (often 90% off for the first six months) make the first bills very low; the regular price kicks in afterward. The Early plan's 20-invoice and 5-bill cap is the main gotcha. Payroll, Inventory Plus and auto-reconcile on Early are add-ons, and online payment processing fees apply.
Value for money: 7.9/10 · Monthly, Cancel anytime, No per-user fees · Vendor pricing page ↗
Starter
A consultant pack for simple apps used by teams of 1 to 5 users.
- 4 dedicated consultant hours
- Recommended for simple apps and 1-5 users
- Consultant handles configuration, training, and coaching
- New customer price: US$493
Basic
A consultant pack for advanced apps and data import, with 25 hours of consultant time.
- 25 dedicated consultant hours
- Covers advanced apps and data import
- Consultant handles configuration, training, and coaching
Standard
A consultant pack for businesses that need customizations, with 50 hours of consultant time.
- 50 dedicated consultant hours
- Covers customizations of forms, reports, and workflows
- Minimum level for performance issues work
Custom
A consultant pack for businesses that need custom developments, with 100 hours of consultant time.
- 100 dedicated consultant hours
- Covers custom developments
- Consultant handles configuration, training, and coaching
Software is priced at US$24.90 per user per month for all apps, and the Community edition is free. Success Packs are sold separately, with 15% off the first pack for new customers, and travel time and expenses billed separately. Projects above 50 users require a custom quote.
Value for money: 5.9/10
Integrations comparison
1 integration in common · 15 only in Xero · 12 only in Odoo . Logos link to our review when we cover the tool.
Both connect to
ShopifyWhich one is best for my use case?
Who each product is built for, who should look elsewhere, and the jobs it gets bought for, from our editorial review and the vendor's own customer profile.
Ideal for
- Businesses with several people who need to be in the books (owner, office manager, bookkeeper, partner)
- Owners who want to understand their numbers from a dashboard rather than a report pack
- Agencies, consultancies and trades that bill by project and want time and cost tracking
Not for
- Very new businesses sending more than 20 invoices a month; the Early plan cap pushes you to Growing fast
- Businesses that want to pick up the phone for support
- US companies whose accountant only works in QuickBooks
Common use cases
Sells to: Freelancers, Small businesses, Mid-size companies. Common industries: Professional services, Construction and trades, Retail, Hospitality, Nonprofits, Agencies.
Ideal for
- Small and midsize businesses
- Companies that want open source code and data control
- Teams running accounting, sales, and inventory together
Not for
- Companies with more than 50 users that want published pricing
- Buyers who want a fixed-price setup with no consulting
- Teams that need a native desktop deployment
Common use cases
Sells to: Freelancers, Small businesses, Mid size businesses, Enterprises.
Support, training and setup
How you get help, how you learn the product, and how fast you can be running.
- Support score
- 7.4/10
- Ease of use
- 8.5/10Leads
- Support channels
- 24/7 online support (ticket)
- Help center (Xero Central)
- Xero Coach onboarding (first 90 days)
- No inbound phone line
- Training
- Xero Central guides
- Video tutorials
- Live webinars
- Xero Advisor certification
- Free onboarding calls
- Deployment
- Cloud / SaaS
- iOS app
- Android app
- Typical setup
- Same day; free conversion from QuickBooks
- Languages
- English
- Support score
- 7.6/10Leads
- Ease of use
- 7.3/10
- Support channels
- Email/Help Desk
- FAQs/Forum
- Knowledge Base
- Phone Support
- Chat
- Training
- In Person
- Live Online
- Webinars
- Documentation
- Videos
- Deployment
- Web
- Typical setup
- Not published
- Languages
- English, Arabic, Catalan, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Czech +25
Security and reliability
Certifications and controls as published by each vendor. We list them; we don't audit them.
- Security
- ISO 27001
- SOC 2 Type II
- Two-factor authentication (required)
- Data encrypted at rest
- Public API
- Yes
- Mobile apps
- iOS · Android
- Company
- Wellington, New Zealand · 5,000+ employees · founded 2006
- Security
- CSA STAR Level 1
- HTTPS with 256-bit SSL encryption in transit
- AES-256 encryption at rest for databases, files, and backups
- PBKDF2+SHA512 password hashing with salting
- Rate limiting, cooldown periods, and CAPTCHA for repeated login attempts
- Dedicated database per customer with isolation from other customers
- Multi-factor credentials for remote server administration
- Backups replicated across at least 3 data centers
- Credit card data processed by PCI-compliant payment acquirers
- Independent security audits and penetration tests
- Public API
- Yes
- Mobile apps
- None published
- Company
- Not published
Pros and cons
Our editors' pros and cons for each product. No user reviews have been published for these products yet.
Pros
- Unlimited users on all plans
- Clean, modern interface with fast bank reconciliation
- Large app marketplace
Cons
- Entry plan caps invoices and bills per month
- Support is email-based with no phone line
- US payroll relies on a third-party integration
Pros
- The Community edition is free and open source, so a company can start without a license fee.
- Data is stored in PostgreSQL with no proprietary format, and buyers receive the source code.
- The all-apps subscription is US$24.90 per user per month with no usage-based fees or long-term contracts.
- Accounting, sales, inventory, manufacturing, and HR share one database, so records stay consistent across departments.
- A free trial is available with no credit card required.
Cons
- Implementation help is sold separately through Success Packs that range from US$580 to US$25,000.
- Performance issues are handled only through success packs, with a minimum of 50 hours.
- Companies with more than 50 users must contact Odoo for an in-depth analysis before pricing applies.
- Custom development is charged per day of consulting or handled by an official partner.
- Extra monthly charges apply for maintaining additional modules or lines of code added through customization.
Full side-by-side table
Xero leads in 7 of 8 rows where they differ. Green marks the leader in each row.
| Feature | Xero Best for small businesses that want unlimited users at a flat price | Best for small and midsize companies wanting one open source suite for finance, sales, and operations. |
|---|---|---|
| Scores | ||
| BSR score | 82 | 71 |
| Ease | 8.5 | 7.3 |
| Features | 8.6 | 7.6 |
| Value | 7.9 | 5.9 |
| Support | 7.4 | 7.6 |
| Pricing | ||
| Starting price | $27/mo | Quote |
| Free plan | Not included | Not included |
| Free trial | 30-day trial | Free trial |
| Features | ||
| Features included | 8 / 8 | 7 / 8 |
| Invoicing | Included | Included |
| Bank feeds | Included | Included |
| Payroll | Included | Included |
| Multi-currency | Included | Included |
| Receipt capture | Included | Included |
| Inventory | Included | Included |
| Accountant access | Included | Not included |
| API access | Included | Included |
| Details | ||
| Biggest strength | Unlimited users on all plans | The Community edition is free and open source, so a company can start without a license fee. |
| Biggest weakness | Entry plan caps invoices and bills per month | Implementation help is sold separately through Success Packs that range from US$580 to US$25,000. |
| Platforms | Web, iOS, Android | Web |
| Best fit | Unlimited users | Freelancers, Small businesses, Mid size businesses, Enterprises |
Not a match?
Other accounting software we list, ranked by BSR score.
Xero vs Odoo : FAQs
Is Xero better than Odoo ?
Xero scores 82/100 against Odoo 's 71, a 11-point lead. Unlimited users on all plans. Odoo is the better pick if the Community edition is free and open source, so a company can start without a license fee matters more to you.
Which is cheaper, Xero or Odoo ?
Xero has the lowest starting price at $27/mo. Odoo starts at Quote. Per-user pricing, annual discounts and add-ons change the real total, so price out your actual seat count.
Which has more features?
Xero covers 8 of the 8 accounting features we track, including Accountant access which Odoo lacks.
Do Xero and Odoo integrate with the same tools?
Both connect to Zapier. Only Xero lists Gusto (Xero Payroll), Stripe, PayPal; Only Odoo lists Instagram, Stripe Payments, Meta for Business.
How this comparison was made
Each product was scored on the same four subscores (Ease, Features, Value, Support) from the vendor's published pricing and documentation, our editorial review, then combined into a 100-point BSR score. Hands-on tested: Xero. Feature checks use one list per category; plans, integrations, support and security come from what each vendor publishes and are refreshed when listings change. Green marks the leader in a row. Sponsored placements are labeled elsewhere on the site and never touch a comparison. Full methodology →