Exact Online vs Xero (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Xero grades higher than Exact Online: 2.6 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Nov 9, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 17, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Xero grades higher on value for money and ease of use. They get the same grade on the free plan, features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Exact Online
Dutch cloud accounting with bank feeds, VAT filing and AI agents
Xero
Cloud accounting for small businesses, with unlimited users
Which one is for you
Pick Exact Online if
- Fits if you run a small Dutch company and want VAT returns and bank links in one place
- Makes sense if your accountant already works in Exact
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you are one person: €49 a month for 1 user and 25 sales invoices
- Tight if you need unlimited bank links or debtor follow-up, which start on the €99 plan
- Watch out: documents past the 3 included each month cost €0.39 to €0.50 each
- Watch out: the pricing page is Dutch, quoted in euros, and doesn't say whether VAT is included
- Skip it if you want a free plan, because there is only a trial
Pick Xero if
- Fits if your accountant already works in Xero
- Works for businesses where several staff and advisers need to be in the books, as users are unlimited
Look elsewhere if
- Tight if you send more than 20 invoices or enter more than 5 bills, since that's where Early stops
- Watch out: the advertised prices are 80% off for 3 months only, then $27, $59 or $97 a month
- Pricey if you need US payroll, at $36 a month plus $6 a person on top
- Pricey if you bill in other currencies, which need Established at $97, or want auto-reconcile on Early, a $5 add-on
- Skip it if you want a free plan to start on, as there isn't one, and taking the free month costs you the discount
How we grade them
| 2.2GPAExact OnlineFair | 2.6GPAXeroGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | D€49 a month is the entry price, well above the $20 the category's middle plan costs, and it caps you at 1 user and 25 sales invoices. Bank links, debtor follow-up and unlimited invoices sit on €99 and up. | CEarly is $27 a month, between this category's middle at $23 and its dearer quarter at $31.10, and it stops at 20 invoices and 5 bills. No limits means Growing at $59. Users are unlimited on every plan, so a team costs no more. |
| Free plan and trial | CA 30-day free trial, which is long enough to try it. The listing does not say whether a card is needed, and there is no free plan. | COne month free on any plan, but you give up the 80%-off-for-3-months offer to take it. There's no free plan, and the listing doesn't say whether a card is needed for the trial. |
| Features | BPurchase and sales invoices, bank connections, VAT and ICP returns, automatic invoice processing and accountant access. The listing shows no missing piece in the core bookkeeping. | BBank reconciliation, invoices and quotes, Tap to Pay, bill capture, free ACH bill payments, cash flow forecasts, Syft analytics, the JAX assistant and Gusto payroll. Multiple currencies need Established, but the whole job is here. |
| Ease of use | CNo store rating on record, and you connect bank accounts and set up an administration before it is useful. | B4.65 from 1,689 App Store ratings, just under the top band. Auto-reconcile, which takes away the most clicking, is part of Growing and Established and a $5 a month add-on on Early. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android apps and accountant collaboration. No integration list or API is shown. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, plus an app store with Gusto, Stripe, Syft, Dext, A2X and Mercury. There's no desktop app, which is what keeps it off an A. |
| Best for | Dutch small-business bookkeeping and VAT | small businesses that work with an accountant |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Exact Online and Xero. How we grade
Price against what you get
Exact Online starts at about $54.74 a month and scores 2.7 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Xero starts at $27 a month and scores 3.0.
Xero scores higher and starts $27.74 a month lower. Of the other accounting and invoicing tools on the chart, 7 score higher than Exact Online for less, and 3 score higher than Xero for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Exact Online also covers dashboards.
- Xero also covers expense tracking and payroll.
At a glance
| Exact Online | Xero | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | €49 per month for 1 user and 1 administration | $27 per month, billed monthly |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 30-day free trial | One month free on any plan, taken instead of the 3-month discount |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Exact | Xero Limited |
| Price read from | exact.com | xero.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 9, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Exact Online
- Prices were read from the Dutch pricing page in euros; the page does not say whether VAT is included.
- Essentials allows one user and one administration and cannot be extended.
- Processing beyond the 3 included documents a month is charged: €0.39 each inside a bundle, €0.50 outside it.
Xero
- The advertised prices are 80% off for the first 3 months; plans then renew at $27, $59 or $97 a month.
- Early stops at 20 invoices and 5 bills, and its graphs and cash flow forecast are the basic ones.
- US payroll costs $36 a month plus $6 per employee or contractor, and is not offered to Xero's US mobile-only subscribers.
- These are US prices; Xero sells in other countries, including New Zealand, Australia and the UK, on separate regional sites.
Key features
Exact Online
- Bookkeeping and VAT
- Purchase and sales ledgers with automatic matching of invoices to bank statements, and digital VAT and ICP returns.
- Bank connections
- One bank link on Essentials, five on Plus and unlimited on Professional and Premium.
- Automatic invoice processing
- Incoming and outgoing invoices, PDFs, scans and receipts can be read automatically; the first 3 documents a month are included.
- AI agents for debtors and anomalies
- A debtor agent follows up unpaid invoices from Plus, and anomaly detection starts at Professional.
- Accountant collaboration
- Users share tasks, documents and roles in one administration, and an accountant can work in the same books.
- Mobile app
- A free mobile app for smartphone and tablet is available for iOS and Android.
Xero
- Bank reconciliation
- Match bank transactions to invoices and bills. Auto-reconcile is part of Growing and Established, and a $5 a month add-on on Early.
- Invoices, quotes and online payments
- Send invoices and quotes with a payment service attached, and take card payments in person with Tap to Pay on iPhone and Android.
- Bills and Smart Document Capture
- Bills and receipts are pulled into Xero from documents, and standard ACH bill payments in US dollars are included on every plan.
- Cash flow forecasts and analytics
- Forecasts run 30, 60 or 180 days ahead depending on the plan, and Syft analytics, dashboards and health scorecards are built in.
- JAX assistant
- Xero's AI assistant answers questions about the business's numbers and handles routine bookkeeping tasks.
- Xero Payroll, powered by Gusto
- Full-service payroll that calculates, files and pays federal and state taxes across all 50 states, without leaving Xero.
Plans
Exact Online
Essentials€49
per month: 1 user, 1 administration, 25 sales invoices
Purchase and sales invoices, 1 bank link, VAT and ICP returns. Users and administrations cannot be added.
Plus€99
per month: 2 users, 2 administrations, 100 sales invoices
Adds 5 bank links, debtor follow-up agent, fixed assets and invoice approval. Extra user €23, extra administration €20 a month.
Professional€159
per month: 2 users, 2 administrations, unlimited invoices
Unlimited bank links; adds current-account postings, recurring invoice templates, anomaly flags. Extra user €23, administration €21.
Premium€299
per month: 2 users, 2 administrations, unlimited invoices
Adds multi-company support, period and year-end close and Power BI. Extra user €49, extra administration €38 a month.
Xero
Early$27
per month, billed monthly
Advertised at $5.40 a month for the first 3 months. Quotes, 20 invoices, 5 bills, bank reconciliation, sales tax and a 30-day cash flow forecast.
Growing$59
per month, billed monthly
Advertised at $11.80 a month for the first 3 months. No invoice or bill limits, auto-reconcile, dashboards, budgets and a 60-day forecast.
Established$97
per month, billed monthly
Advertised at $19.40 a month for the first 3 months. Adds multiple currencies, project time and costs, expense claims and a 180-day forecast.
Ways to pay less
Exact Online
No public discounts listed.
Xero
- Other savings
80% off the first 3 months
New US customers buying their first organization pay 20% of the base plan price for 3 months, then the regular monthly price. Add-ons are not discounted.
- Other savings
Two months of Xero Payroll free
Xero's payroll page offers two months free to try Xero Payroll, which then costs $36 a month plus $6 per employee or contractor.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Exact Online or Xero?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Xero is cheaper to start with: $27 a month, against about $54.74 a month for Exact Online. Exact Online starts at €49 per month for 1 user and 1 administration, and Xero starts at $27 per month, billed monthly.
Which has a free plan, Exact Online or Xero?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither Exact Online nor Xero has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.