Xero is a cloud-native accounting platform optimized for small businesses with lower pricing and better mobile accessibility, while Sage offers more comprehensive enterprise features and deeper customization for mid-market companies with higher user counts.
Xero vs Sage — Side-by-side comparison on A Versus B
Cloud-based accounting software focused on small businesses with strong UX and multi-currency support.
Cloud accounting software optimized for international businesses and multi-entity management
Cloud Architecture. Starting Monthly Price (USD). Maximum Users Included. Inventory Management. API Rate Limits. Mobile App Functionality. Multi-Currency Support
Choose Xero if you're a growing small business (1-50 employees) prioritizing ease of use, mobile accessibility, and lower total cost of ownership with predictable pricing. Choose Sage if you're a mid-market company (50-500+ employees) needing advanced inventory management, on-premise deployment options, and higher user capacity with deep ERP integration.
Xero: Good but secondary focus | Sage: N/A
Xero: Comprehensive accounting-focused | Sage: N/A
Xero: Standard tools included | Sage: N/A
Xero: Native multi-entity support | Sage: N/A
Xero: Available (Select tier+) | Sage: N/A
Xero: $8-15 (Standard plan) | Sage: $0 (Unlimited on Enterprise)
Xero: 5 (Standard), Unlimited (Premium) | Sage: Unlimited (All Enterprise tiers)
Xero: Full capability with offline mode | Sage: Dashboard view only
Xero: Unlimited (all tiers) | Sage: Unlimited (enterprise)
Xero: 60 (standard tier) | Sage: 500 (Sage Intacct)
Xero: Unlimited organizations | Sage: 999 (Sage Intacct)
Xero: Yes (Snap Invoice) | Sage: Sage Business Cloud (limited)
Xero: 168 (24/7) | Sage: 40-168 (varies by plan)
Xero: Third-party add-on (Guidepoint, Namely) | Sage: N/A
Xero: $13-62 depending on plan | Sage: N/A
Xero: 50+ customizable reports | Sage: N/A
Xero: Full accounting and expense tracking | Sage: N/A
Xero: Advanced automation saves ~8 hours | Sage: N/A
Xero: Varies by Starter plan | Sage: N/A
Xero: Full (multi-user simultaneous editing) | Sage: Limited (document comments only)
Xero: Full invoicing, payments, expense tracking | Sage: N/A
Xero: 1-3 limited (unlimited on higher tiers) | Sage: N/A
Xero: 4.6 stars (18,000+ reviews) | Sage: N/A
Xero: 500+ native integrations | Sage: N/A
Xero: Manual entry + basic matching | Sage: N/A
Xero: N/A | Sage: 3 options (AWS, Azure, on-premise)
5-Year Total Cost of Ownership (50 users)
Xero: N/A | Sage: 3.8/5 stars (8,500+ reviews)
Xero: N/A | Sage: Advanced (batch, serial, multi-warehouse)
Xero: N/A | Sage: Invoice viewing, basic read-only access
Xero: N/A | Sage: Standard feature on all tiers
Xero: N/A | Sage: No; per-user licensing model
Maximum Company Accounts (Single Subscription)
Certified Professional Partners (Global)
Xero vs Sage — Structured Comparison Data
Machine-readable comparison dataset for Xero vs Sage. Contains 109 attribute comparisons, 5 FAQ pairs.
Xero vs Sage — Attribute Category Vocabulary
Taxonomy of attribute categories used to classify comparison data for Xero vs Sage.
Which is better for small businesses under 10 employees?
Xero is significantly better for micro-businesses. At $11/month with unlimited invoices and expenses, Xero's total cost of ownership is 75% lower than Sage. The intuitive mobile app and 94% user satisfaction rating make it ideal for bootstrapped teams where every dollar matters and users need to work on-the-go.
Can I use Sage on-premise if my company needs data sovereignty?
Yes, Sage offers on-premise deployment options (Sage 100, Sage 300), making it compliant with countries requiring local data residency like Australia and certain EU jurisdictions. Xero is cloud-only, so on-premise isn't an option—though Xero's SOC 2 Type II certification and GDPR compliance satisfy most regulatory requirements.
Which handles multi-location inventory better?
Sage is purpose-built for enterprise inventory with demand forecasting, purchase order optimization, and supply chain visibility across unlimited locations. Xero's inventory is basic, designed for single-warehouse operations with limited SKU management. For companies with 3+ locations and complex stock movements, Sage is essential.
How does pricing scale as my company grows?
Xero's pricing scales linearly: at 25 users on Standard plan, expect ~$200/month ($11 base + 24 users × $8). Sage's Enterprise tier offers unlimited users, so scaling to 100 employees costs the same per user. Sage becomes cost-advantageous around 10-15 concurrent users; Xero wins for 1-5 users.
Which integrates better with third-party apps?
Xero has 1,000+ native integrations via its marketplace and supports 5,000 API calls/minute, making it ideal for custom automation. Sage supports 10,000+ API calls/minute for heavier integration loads but has fewer pre-built connectors. For most SMBs, Xero's ecosystem is more accessible; for enterprises needing custom builds, Sage's higher API limits win.
Cloud Architecture: Xero has 100% cloud-based, SaaS-only, while Sage has Hybrid: cloud and on-premise options.
Starting Monthly Price (USD): Xero has $11/month (Early), while Sage has $50/month (Sage Business Cloud).
Maximum Users Included: Xero has 5 users (Standard plan), while Sage has Unlimited users (Enterprise).
Inventory Management: Xero has Basic inventory tracking, limited SKUs, while Sage has Advanced multi-location inventory with forecasting.
API Rate Limits: Xero has 5,000 API calls/minute, while Sage has 10,000+ API calls/minute (customizable).
Mobile App Functionality: Xero has Full invoice creation, expense capture, approvals, while Sage has Dashboard view only, limited transaction entry.
Multi-Currency Support: Xero has 130+ currencies with real-time rates, while Sage has 80+ currencies.