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It's a split decision.
Choose Expensify for receipt capture, expense reports and reimbursements: its Submit plan is free, while Collect is $5 per member/month. Choose Xero for broader accounting, invoicing and access to 1,000+ connected apps; its plans start at $7/month, with employee expense claims from $4/month extra. These products overlap, but they are not direct substitutes: compare Xero’s plan caps and add-ons against your expense workflow before switching.
01Side by side
| Expensify | Xero | |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | Free Submit; Collect is $5/member/month | Lite is $7/month |
| Free plan | Submit is free for all members | No free plan; 30-day trial |
| Best for | Expense reports and reimbursements | Business accounting and bookkeeping |
| Core strength | Receipt capture and expense workflows | Accounting, invoices and financial reports |
| Learning curve | Ease-of-use review score: 5 | Ease-of-use review score: 7.5 |
| Integrations | QuickBooks, NetSuite, Sage Intacct and Xero | Connects with 1,000+ apps |
| Team/seat costs | Collect: $5 per member/month | Plans: $7–$82/month; expense claims from $4/month |
| Support | Support review score: 3 | Support review score: 5 |
Expensify Choose Expensify if
- Choose Expensify if expense reports are your main need.
- Choose Expensify if you want free expense submissions.
- Choose Expensify if you need reimbursements and receipt capture.
Xero Choose Xero if
- Choose Xero if you need accounting software, not just expense tools.
- Choose Xero if invoicing and financial reports matter.
- Choose Xero if you want access to 1,000+ connected apps.
02Pricing compared
Expensify is cheaper to start if you only need expense submissions: its Submit plan is free and includes expense reports, mileage tracking and unlimited SmartScans. Collect costs $5 per member/month and adds receipt scanning, reimbursements, corporate card management, and QuickBooks and Xero integrations. Control starts at $9 per active member/month, with custom pricing. Annual-commitment discounts are available, but the rate is not published.
Xero starts at $7/month for Lite, capped at five invoices and quotes. Starter is $32/month and includes 20 invoices and quotes and five bills; Standard is $54/month and Premium is $82/month. Xero lists a 30-day trial and an 80% discount for new customers’ first three months. Employee expense and mileage claims cost from $4/month extra, so compare the add-on and plan caps—not just the starting prices.
03Features and depth
Expensify is built around expense workflows: employees capture receipts, submit reports, and get reimbursed, while businesses can set spending limits, approvals, and budgets. Collect includes receipt scanning, reimbursements, corporate card management, and QuickBooks and Xero integrations. Control adds multiple approval flows and ERP integrations. Expensify also offers travel booking, bill pay, invoices, and global reimbursements, according to the published product information.
Xero is broader accounting software rather than a dedicated expense-management tool. Its plans cover bank reconciliation, invoices and quotes, bills, and real-time reports, with forecasting, budgets, and multi-currency features varying by plan. Xero also lists AI assistance and connections to more than 1,000 apps. Employee expense and mileage claims are an add-on from $4/month, not a listed core plan feature. Choose Expensify when expense submission and reimbursement are the main job; choose Xero when accounting is central and check whether its plan caps fit your invoice and bill volume.
04Ease of use and learning curve
These tools organize work differently, so ease depends on what your team needs to do. Expensify centers on receipt capture, reports, approvals, and reimbursement; Xero covers accounting tasks such as reconciliation, invoices, bills, and reporting. Switching from one to the other may mean changing the workflow, not just moving data.
Our review scores rate Expensify’s ease of use at 5 and Xero’s at 7.5, but they do not establish how either product will fit your team. Before choosing, check Xero’s invoice and bill caps and the extra charge for expense claims. For Expensify, confirm whether the free Submit plan covers your process or whether you need paid Collect or Control features.
Questions people ask
Is Xero easier than QuickBooks?
The published information does not compare Xero with QuickBooks, so we can’t say which is easier. Xero includes bank reconciliation, invoicing, reports, and connections to more than 1,000 apps. Ease will depend on your accounting workflow and the plan limits you need.
Is Expensify any good?
Expensify covers receipt capture, expense reports, approvals, reimbursements, and spend controls, with a free Submit plan and paid plans from $5 per member/month. The published review gives it a 5.7 overall score, with lower scores for support and user sentiment, so check those concerns before switching.
Why is Xero declining?
The published information does not include customer, revenue, or usage trends showing that Xero is declining, so it does not support a reason. It lists Xero’s plans, features, and review score, but that is not enough to establish a decline or explain one.
Is Hubdoc still free with Xero?
The published Xero plan and add-on information does not mention Hubdoc or whether it is included at no extra cost. We can’t confirm its current price or availability from these sources; check Xero’s current pricing details or Hubdoc documentation before budgeting for it.