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Xero vs Wave pricing
Xero is a paid accounting platform and Wave leads with a free plan. This page compares them using StackScope's accounting report, last verified October 2026.
Wave is cheaper: its Starter plan is $0 and includes unlimited estimates, invoices, bills and bookkeeping records, and Wave Pro is $19 per month or $190 per year, against $27 per month for Xero Early since its October 1, 2026 price rise from $25. Xero has no ongoing free plan, only a 30-day trial, and Early is capped at 20 invoices and 5 bills. Xero states no per-user license fees and includes accountant and bookkeeper access at no extra cost. Wave Pro is priced per business profile with unlimited users. Wave's online payments, receipt scanning and payroll are separate paid add-ons. Xero's main US page advertises a first-3-months promotion, while other pages still show an older offer, so verify at checkout.
| Tool | Free plan | Entry tier | Mid tier | Highest public price | Aggregated sentiment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Xero | 30-day free trial; no ongoing free plan. [VENDOR]Accountant/bookkeeper access included at no extra cost. [VENDOR] | [PRICE INCREASE — Oct 1, 2026] $27/mo standardEarly · MONTHLY: $27 standard, up from $25, effective October 1, 2026; applies to new and existing US subscribers, excludes add-ons and sales tax [VENDOR]. Xero's current main US pricing page advertises 80% off for the first 3 months (code DC80325309US) = $5.40/mo for 3 months, then $27 — other current Xero pages still display the prior 90%-off-for-6-months offer, a live vendor-source conflict; verify the active offer at checkout. [VENDOR — source conflict] ANNUAL: not publicly offered — monthly-only public pricing. Xero states no per-user license fees, so 1-user and 5-user prices are identical. [VENDOR] Early remains capped at 20 invoices and 5 bills. | [PRICE INCREASE — Oct 1, 2026] $59/mo standardGrowing · MONTHLY: $59 standard, up from $55, effective October 1, 2026 [VENDOR]. Current main page promo = $11.80/mo for first 3 months, then $59 — see Early's cell for the promo source conflict. ANNUAL: not publicly offered. Removes Early's invoice/bill caps. JAX automated reconciliation available starting here, not on Early. | [PRICE INCREASE — Oct 1, 2026] $97/mo standardEstablished · MONTHLY: $97 standard, up from $90, effective October 1, 2026 [VENDOR]. Current main page promo = $19.40/mo for first 3 months, then $97 — see Early's cell for the promo source conflict. ANNUAL: not publicly offered. Publicly priced, not Contact Sales. | Catch: advanced reporting/customization and occasional bank-feed issues are recurring complaints. [3P — G2] Reviewers consistently praise the clean interface, ease of use, invoicing, and reconciliation. Capterra currently shows stale pre-increase figures ($25/$55) and G2 shows even older figures ($13/$37/$70) — both conflict with Xero's current Oct. 1 pricing and are flagged, not used. [3P — G2/Capterra] Users: unlimited on every tier, no per-user fee. Invoices/bills/clients: Early capped at 20 invoices and 5 bills/month; Growing and Established remove that cap. Upgrade trigger: exceeding Early's invoice/bill volume, or needing JAX automated reconciliation. AI: JAX (Xero's AI finance partner) carries no additional charge; JAX automated reconciliation is bundled starting on Growing, not available on Early. [VENDOR] |
| Wave | Ongoing Starter plan: $0. [VENDOR]Includes unlimited estimates, invoices, bills, and bookkeeping records. Online payments, receipt scanning, and payroll are separate paid add-ons — not part of the free plan's limitations, but genuinely optional extras. [VENDOR] | $19/mo standardPro · MONTHLY: $19 standard; $9.50/mo current promo for first 3 months — not the standard price [VENDOR]. ANNUAL: $190/year — vendor-published annual-billing price [VENDOR]; annual promo price not publicly specified. Pro is priced per business profile, not per owner or per seat, and includes unlimited user access — 1-user and 5-user prices are identical. [VENDOR] | — (by design)No public mid tier exists — this is not a research gap. Wave currently presents Pro as its only paid subscription tier; there is no distinct mid-tier product to price. [VENDOR] | $19/moPro · $19/mo monthly or $190/year annual. [VENDOR] Publicly priced; no Contact Sales tier exists above it. | Catch: payment processing fees are where Wave's real cost lives, not the subscription price. Starter charges 2.9% + $0.60 per Visa/Mastercard/Discover transaction and 3.4% + $0.60 for Amex; Pro waives the fixed $0.60 fee for the first 10 qualifying transactions in each monthly subscription period, then reverts to the same rate as Starter for the rest [VENDOR — Wave's own payments pages]. On high-volume invoicing this adds up fast and is easy to miss when comparing Wave's low subscription price against competitors. [3P — G2] Users consistently praise the free core, simple interface, and invoicing/bookkeeping value. Capterra currently confirms Pro $19 and the free tier; G2's current pricing page is stale and focuses on older Wave payroll products rather than the current Starter/Pro accounting subscription — its review data still supports the free-tier/value sentiment theme. [3P — G2/Capterra] Users: unlimited on both Starter and Pro, priced per business profile not per seat. Invoices/bills/clients: unlimited estimates, invoices, bills, and bookkeeping records on both tiers. Upgrade trigger: wanting bank import automation, receipt capture bundled in, the first-10-transaction fee waiver, or online payments/payroll access. AI: no separate AI add-on price found; automatic bank import, transaction categorization, and unlimited receipt capture are bundled into Pro. Receipt scanning alone is also available standalone on Starter at $8/month or $72/year for those who don't want the full Pro upgrade. [VENDOR] |
Figures are aggregated from vendor pricing pages and independent third-party pricing research as of October 2026 and reflect published list prices. This page shows two of the four tools in the full Accounting Software report, which carries the complete footnotes and every source conflict we flagged. Confirm current pricing directly with each vendor before purchasing. This is not a recommendation to buy any specific product.
FAQ
Common questions
Is Wave cheaper than Xero?
Yes: Wave Starter is $0 and Wave Pro is $19 per month, against $27 per month for Xero Early since the October 1, 2026 increase.
Does Xero limit invoices?
Early is capped at 20 invoices and 5 bills. Wave Starter includes unlimited estimates, invoices and bills.
Do Xero and Wave charge per user?
Neither: Xero states no per-user license fees, and Wave Pro includes unlimited user access.
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Vendor pricing: Xero pricing · Wave pricing