Softwr

Accounting & Finance · head to head

ADP vs Xero

ADP logo

ADP

Accounting & Finance

Always Designing for People

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Xero logo

Xero

All industries

Beautiful accounting software

From
$13/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: ADP no pricing is published; every quote is custom and driven by employee count and which services are taken; Xero the Early plan caps you at 20 invoices and 5 bills per month, and the invoice limit counts both approving and sending
  • They diverge on capability: ADP covers Payroll, Xero covers Bank reconciliation.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which ADP and Xero actually diverge.

Attributes where ADP and Xero differ
AttributeADPXero
Starting price$29/month$13/month
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb, Ios, Android, Api
CategoryAccounting & FinanceAll industries
Founded19492006

Identical on both: pricing model (subscription), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in ADP

  • Payroll
  • Tax services
  • HR management
  • Time & attendance
  • Benefits administration
  • QuickBooks
  • Sage
  • Oracle

Only in Xero

  • Bank reconciliation
  • Invoicing
  • Bill payment
  • Expense claims
  • Financial reporting
  • Inventory tracking
  • Project tracking
  • Mobile apps

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

ADP

  • Payroll processing and tax filingnot Xero
  • HR administration and employee recordsnot Xero
  • Time and attendance trackingnot Xero
  • Benefits administrationnot Xero
  • Talent management on the mid-market and enterprise productsnot Xero

Xero

  • Small business bookkeeping, invoicing and bank reconciliationnot ADP
  • Bill payment and purchase order managementnot ADP
  • Sharing books with an accountant or bookkeepernot ADP

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

ADP

  • No pricing is published; every quote is custom and driven by employee count and which services are taken
  • Split into three separate products by company size, RUN for 1 to 49 employees, Workforce Now for 50 and above, and Lyric HCM for enterprise, so growing across a threshold means changing product rather than plan

Xero

  • The Early plan caps you at 20 invoices and 5 bills per month, and the invoice limit counts both approving and sending
  • Invoices created by connected app partners count against the Early plan invoice limit
  • Multiple currencies, project time and cost tracking, employee expense and mileage claims and industry benchmarking are restricted to the top Established plan at $90 per month
  • Cash flow forecasting is capped at 30 days on Early and 60 days on Growing, with 180 days only on Established
  • Payroll is not included in any plan and costs an extra $36 a month plus $6 per employee or contractor through Gusto
  • Inventory Plus is a paid optional add-on rather than part of any plan
  • The advertised 90% off applies only to the first 6 months, after which the regular $25, $55 or $90 monthly price auto-renews
  • The introductory discount excludes add-ons, usage charges and payment fees
  • Payment fees apply to online invoice payments and to bill payments other than standard domestic ACH, and are billed on top of the subscription
  • Subscriptions are billed monthly with no annual payment option, and after upgrading you must wait one month before downgrading to a cheaper plan
  • Xero states subscription prices are increasing from October 1, 2026

Pricing, plan by plan

ADP

$29/month
  • Essential$79/month
    • Payroll
    • Tax filing
    • Direct deposit
  • Enhanced$139/month
    • HR tools
    • Background checks
    • Job posting

Xero

$13/month
  • Early$13/month
    • Send 20 invoices
    • Enter 5 bills
    • Reconcile bank transactions
  • Growing$37/month
    • Unlimited invoices & bills
    • Bulk reconcile transactions
    • Short-term cash flow
  • Established$70/month
    • Everything in Growing
    • Use multiple currencies
    • Track projects

Which should you pick?

Choose ADP if

  • You need payroll.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want tax services.
ADP review

Choose Xero if

  • You need bank reconciliation.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
  • You also want invoicing.
Xero review

Questions people ask

Is ADP or Xero better?
Neither clearly leads. ADP starts at $29/month and Xero at $13/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, ADP or Xero?
ADP starts at $29/month and Xero at $13/month.
Does ADP or Xero run on more platforms?
ADP runs on Web, Ios, Android. Xero runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
What is ADP best used for?
ADP is most often used for payroll processing and tax filing, hr administration and employee records, time and attendance tracking, benefits administration. Of those, payroll processing and tax filing and hr administration and employee records are not what Xero is typically brought in for.
What can ADP do that Xero cannot?
ADP covers Payroll, Tax services, HR management, Time & attendance. Xero covers Bank reconciliation, Invoicing, Bill payment, Expense claims.
ShareXLinkedInRedditWhatsAppEmail

Related pages

More on ADP

More on Xero

Keep looking

Other head to heads