Quick answer
Xero is full small-business accounting software. Free Invoice App is focused invoicing and expense tracking. If you have employees, inventory, or a bookkeeper who insists on bank reconciliation, you want Xero. If you’re a sole trader who needs to send invoices, log expenses, and see a P&L for tax time, Free Invoice App costs a fraction as much and does what you actually need.
Honest disclosure
We make Free Invoice App. We’re going to recommend Xero for the cases where Xero is actually the right fit — because if you pick the wrong tool you’ll churn within a quarter anyway, and we’d rather you find the right one. The rest of this article is a feature-by-feature comparison based on each product’s public 2026 pricing and documentation.
Pricing (Australia, 2026)
Free Invoice App Xero (AU) Free plan Yes (7 sends/mo) 30-day trial only Entry plan ~$15/mo $35/mo (Starter) Mid plan ~$25/mo $75/mo (Standard) Top plan ~$45/mo $99/mo (Premium) Annual saving available Yes Yes Setup cost $0 $0
Xero Starter caps you at 20 quotes and 20 invoices a month, plus 5 bills — you hit the cap fast on Starter and have to upgrade. Free Invoice App’s entry paid plan covers unlimited invoicing.
Feature comparison: what each one does
Free Invoice App Xero Send invoices Yes Yes Recurring invoices Yes (Pro) Yes Quotes / estimates Yes Yes GST on invoices Yes Yes ATO-compliant tax invoices Yes Yes Custom branding / logo Yes Yes Custom email domain Yes (Pro+) Add-on Scheduled send Yes (Pro) Limited Per-service T&Cs Yes (Pro+) No Expense tracking Yes Yes Receipts attached Yes Yes P&L / revenue dashboard Yes Yes Full double-entry accounting No Yes Bank feeds No Yes Bank reconciliation No Yes Payroll (single touch payroll) No Yes (Premium) Inventory tracking No Yes Multi-user / accountant access No Yes Direct BAS lodgement No Yes
That table is essentially the whole comparison. Xero does everything Free Invoice App does plus a lot more — for a much higher price. Free Invoice App is deliberately narrower: the features that 90% of sole traders actually use, at a sole-trader price.
Where Xero is the right answer
Pick Xero if any of these apply:
- You have employees — Single Touch Payroll (STP) is mandatory for wages in Australia. Xero Premium includes it. Free Invoice App doesn’t do payroll.
- You hold inventory — if you stock and sell physical product, Xero tracks inventory, cost of goods sold, and stock movements. Free Invoice App treats every line item as a one-off.
- You want bank feeds and reconciliation — Xero connects directly to most Australian banks and matches transactions to invoices and bills. Powerful, but only useful once your transaction count is high.
- Your bookkeeper or accountant uses Xero — if a paid bookkeeper is already in your business, ask them. They’ll have a tooling preference, and fighting it isn’t worth it.
- You operate as a Pty Ltd company with multiple bank accounts and credit cards — the complexity warrants the heavier toolset.
Where Free Invoice App is the right answer
Pick Free Invoice App if any of these apply:
- You’re a sole trader with no staff — the typical Free Invoice App user is a freelancer, tradie, consultant, or service business owner who needs to send and track invoices and log a handful of expenses a week.
- You don’t want to pay $99/month — Xero’s pricing is built around businesses that can absorb $1,000+ a year in software costs. Sole traders often can’t justify that.
- You don’t use most of Xero’s features — a huge proportion of Xero subscribers use only invoicing and expense tracking, and are paying $35–$99/mo for features they never touch.
- You want to invoice from a phone — Free Invoice App is mobile-first. Xero’s mobile app exists but the experience is far better on a laptop.
- You file BAS yourself through MyGov — most sole traders do this anyway. The P&L view in Free Invoice App gives you the totals you need.
What changes when you outgrow Free Invoice App
Two common signals that it’s time to consider Xero:
- You hire your first employee. Payroll obligations kick in immediately and you need Single Touch Payroll-compliant software.
- Your transaction count makes bank reconciliation worth it. Past roughly $250k revenue, manual matching becomes expensive in time. Bank feeds pay for themselves.
Until then, Free Invoice App handles what you actually do every day — send invoices, log expenses, see your P&L — at a fraction of the cost.
The export question
If you start on Free Invoice App and later move to Xero, you export your invoices and expense records as CSV. Your accountant imports the CSV into Xero (or attaches it to your tax return). No data is locked in. Lots of small businesses use Free Invoice App as their year 1–3 tool, then graduate to Xero when staff appear.
How to decide in 60 seconds
Answer these three questions:
- Do you have employees on payroll? If yes → Xero.
- Do you hold inventory? If yes → Xero.
- Does your accountant insist on Xero? If yes → Xero.
If you answered no to all three, Free Invoice App is going to do everything you need at a tiny fraction of the price. Start free — 7 sends per month forever, no card required.
Frequently asked questions
Is Free Invoice App a Xero alternative?
For invoicing, expense tracking, and a P&L view — yes. For payroll, full double-entry accounting, or direct BAS lodgement — no.
How much does Xero cost in Australia?
$35/$75/$99 per month for Starter / Standard / Premium (AUD, 2026). Free Invoice App paid plans start around $15/month, with a free 7-sends-per-month plan.
Can Free Invoice App handle GST and BAS like Xero?
GST per line and a P&L breakdown by quarter, yes. Direct lodgement, no — you file via MyGov/business portal with the totals.
Does Xero have a free plan?
No, just a 30-day trial. Free Invoice App has a permanent Free plan with 7 sends a month.
Who should use Xero instead of Free Invoice App?
Businesses with employees, inventory, bank-feed reconciliation needs, or an accountant who insists on Xero.