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Accounting · head to head

SAP Concur vs Xero

SAP Concur logo

SAP Concur

Accounting

Enterprise travel booking, expense claims and supplier invoice processing sold as separate modules

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Xero logo

Xero

Accounting

Beautiful accounting software

From
$13/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: SAP Concur implementation is done through SAP or a partner and commonly costs a substantial multiple of the first year subscription, because the value sits entirely in the configured policy, approval hierarchy and ledger mapping rather than in the software as shipped.; 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: SAP Concur covers Expense capture, Xero covers Bank reconciliation.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which SAP Concur and Xero actually diverge.

Attributes where SAP Concur and Xero differ
AttributeSAP ConcurXero
Starting price$29/month$13/month
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb, Ios, Android, Api
Founded19932006

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

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 SAP Concur

  • Expense capture
  • Corporate card feeds
  • Policy engine
  • Approval routing
  • Travel booking
  • Travel agency integration
  • Duty of care
  • Invoice capture

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.

SAP Concur

  • A multinational with thousands of travellers where an audit committee has asked for evidence that travel policy is actually enforcednot Xero
  • An organisation replacing spreadsheet expense claims and email approvals that cannot survive an external auditnot Xero
  • A finance team trying to eliminate duplicate claims by matching corporate card feeds against submitted receiptsnot Xero
  • A shared service centre processing high volumes of supplier invoices that needs capture and approval routing before postingnot Xero

Xero

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

Where each one falls short

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

SAP Concur

  • Implementation is done through SAP or a partner and commonly costs a substantial multiple of the first year subscription, because the value sits entirely in the configured policy, approval hierarchy and ledger mapping rather than in the software as shipped.
  • Pricing is driven by transaction volume, expense reports and invoices processed, rather than by seats, so a business with seasonal travel or a growth year sees the bill move in ways headcount based budgeting does not predict.
  • The configuration that makes it valuable is also what makes it rigid, and organisations frequently find that changing an approval chain or adding a cost centre dimension requires a partner change order rather than an administrator's afternoon.
  • Contracts are typically multi year with limited exit, so an organisation that concludes after twelve months that a lighter expense tool would have been enough is still paying for the heavier one for the remainder of the term.
  • The three modules are licensed separately and the strongest case for the product depends on having travel, expense and card feeds together, so buying expense alone gives you a costly receipt system without the control loop that justifies the price.

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

SAP Concur

$29/month
  • Professional$8/month
    • Expense reporting
    • Receipt capture
    • Approvals
  • Premium$12/month
    • Travel booking
    • Invoice management
    • Analytics

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 SAP Concur if

  • You need expense capture.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want corporate card feeds.
SAP Concur 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 SAP Concur or Xero better?
Neither clearly leads. SAP Concur 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, SAP Concur or Xero?
SAP Concur starts at $29/month and Xero at $13/month.
Does SAP Concur or Xero run on more platforms?
SAP Concur runs on Web, Ios, Android. Xero runs on Web, Ios, Android, Api.
What is SAP Concur best used for?
SAP Concur is most often used for a multinational with thousands of travellers where an audit committee has asked for evidence that travel policy is actually enforced, an organisation replacing spreadsheet expense claims and email approvals that cannot survive an external audit, a finance team trying to eliminate duplicate claims by matching corporate card feeds against submitted receipts, a shared service centre processing high volumes of supplier invoices that needs capture and approval routing before posting. Of those, a multinational with thousands of travellers where an audit committee has asked for evidence that travel policy is actually enforced and an organisation replacing spreadsheet expense claims and email approvals that cannot survive an external audit are not what Xero is typically brought in for.
What can SAP Concur do that Xero cannot?
SAP Concur covers Expense capture, Corporate card feeds, Policy engine, Approval routing. Xero covers Bank reconciliation, Invoicing, Bill payment, Expense claims.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

SAP Concur: Do we need SAP ERP to use Concur?

No. It integrates with SAP systems particularly well but it is regularly deployed alongside Oracle, NetSuite, Workday and other ledgers. The integration work is a line item in the implementation either way.

SAP Concur: Is it worth it for a company of a hundred people?

Usually not. Below a few hundred travellers the implementation cost and the contract commitment are hard to justify against lighter expense tools. The case turns on policy enforcement and audit, not on receipt scanning.

SAP Concur: How is it priced?

Broadly on the volume of expense reports and invoices processed, with the modules licensed separately. Because pricing is quoted rather than published, get the volume assumptions written into the contract and check what happens when you exceed them.

SAP Concur: Can it handle multiple countries and currencies?

Yes, that is one of its stronger areas, including per country tax treatment and VAT reclaim identification. Confirm coverage for your specific countries during the sales process rather than assuming global means every jurisdiction.

SAP Concur: How long does implementation take?

Plan in months, not weeks, for anything beyond a single entity with simple approvals. Multi entity rollouts with travel and invoice modules commonly run across a year in phases.

SAP Concur: What does the audit service actually do?

It has a team review a sample or all of your submitted claims against receipts and policy before approval, which some organisations use in place of internal reviewers. It is priced separately from the expense subscription.

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