Link My Books vs Xero (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Xero grades higher than Link My Books: 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 features and ease of use. They get the same grade on value for money, the free plan and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Link My Books
Ecommerce payout and tax reconciliation for Xero and QuickBooks
Xero
Cloud accounting for small businesses, with unlimited users
Which one is for you
Pick Link My Books if
- Fits if you sell on several marketplaces and keep books in Xero
- Works for small shops that want unlimited users
Look elsewhere if
- Pricey if you grow: the price follows your rolling average of monthly orders
- Tight on Lite: 1 channel and 3 months of history
- Watch out: extra channels on Premium cost $17 each, per the vendor's help center
- Watch out: Walmart is US only, TikTok Shop is UK and US, and QuickBooks means QuickBooks Online
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
| 2.2GPALink My BooksFair | 2.6GPAXeroGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C$20 a month for up to 15 orders and 1 channel, then $47 at 1,000 orders and $112 at 10,000. About the category's middle, and it rises with you. | 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 14-day free trial with no card. 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 | CSettlement posting, VAT, sales tax and GST, profit and loss by channel and many channels. It does one job fully, a smaller job than accounting, and Xero or QuickBooks does the books. | 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 each sales channel and your accounting system. | 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 only, with Xero, QuickBooks Online, Amazon, Shopify, eBay, Etsy, Walmart and Square. | 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 | online sellers who post settlements to Xero or QuickBooks | 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: Link My Books and Xero. How we grade
Price against what you get
Link My Books starts at $20 a month and scores 2.3 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 $7 a month higher: the question is whether the extra is worth that to you. Of the other accounting and invoicing tools on the chart, 18 score higher than Link My Books 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
- Link My Books also covers workflow automation, online store and amazon selling.
- Xero also covers invoicing, expense tracking and payroll.
At a glance
| Link My Books | Xero | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free trial | Free trial |
| Starts at | $20 per month for up to 15 orders a month | $27 per month, billed monthly |
| Free plan | None | None |
| Free trial | 14-day free trial, no card required | One month free on any plan, taken instead of the 3-month discount |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Link My Books | Xero Limited |
| Price read from | help.linkmybooks.com | xero.com |
| Checked | Nov 13, 2026 | Nov 9, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Link My Books
- Price follows a rolling average of monthly orders across all channels, so it rises as a shop grows.
- Extra channels on Premium cost $17 each on top of the plan, according to the vendor's help center.
- Xero is supported on all plans except Cashbook, and QuickBooks only on QuickBooks Online.
- Walmart is supported for the US only, and TikTok Shop for the UK and US.
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
Link My Books
- Settlement posting
- Imports payouts from each channel, summarizes them and posts them to Xero or QuickBooks Online so entries match bank deposits.
- VAT, sales tax and GST
- Applies VAT (UK), sales tax (US) and GST (AU) rules to transactions, with product groups for mixed tax rates.
- Profit and loss by channel
- Shows profit across channels in one place and tracks cost of goods sold to give a view of monthly profit.
- Many channels
- Connects Amazon, eBay, Shopify, Etsy, Walmart (US only), TikTok Shop (UK and US), WooCommerce and Square.
- Historical catch-up
- Imports 90 days of settlements during the trial; paid plans reach back 3 to 24 months, with older data sold as a one-off purchase.
- Unlimited users
- Invite an accountant, bookkeeper or teammates at no extra charge, with bookable 1-to-1 onboarding calls on all plans.
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
Link My Books
Lite$20
per month for up to 15 orders, 1 channel, billed monthly
3 months of history. Price rises with orders: $47 at 1,000 and $112 at 10,000 orders a month.
Plus$27
per month for up to 15 orders, 2 channels, billed monthly
12 months of history. Price rises with orders: $55 at 1,000 and $124 at 10,000 orders a month.
Pro$39
per month for up to 15 orders, 5 channels, billed monthly
18 months of history. Price rises with orders: $68 at 1,000 and $137 at 10,000 orders a month.
Premium$45
per month for up to 15 orders, 10 channels, billed monthly
24 months of history. Price rises with orders: $104 at 1,000 and $174 at 10,000 orders 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
Link My Books
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, Link My Books or Xero?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Link My Books is cheaper to start with: $20 a month, against $27 a month for Xero. Link My Books starts at $20 per month for up to 15 orders a month, and Xero starts at $27 per month, billed monthly.
Which has a free plan, Link My Books or Xero?
As of Nov 13, 2026, neither Link My Books nor Xero has a free plan. Both have a free trial.
Which platforms do Link My Books and Xero run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Xero lists iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
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.