Xero

Cloud accounting with project time, cost, and invoice tracking for small AEC practices

Xero is cloud accounting software with invoicing, bank reconciliation, expense tracking, and a Projects module that records time, materials, and overhead costs against individual jobs for budget and profitability tracking. It is a general small-business accounting product, not AEC-specific, and does not replace construction cost control, payroll, or professional accounting advice.

Established

Founded Not verified in this research pass · Not publicly specified in reviewed sources for this research pass

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WHY IT EXISTS

Why This Tool Exists

The Problem

Small AEC practices tracking billable time, reimbursable expenses, and job costs across multiple client projects can lose visibility into project profitability if time, materials, and overhead are not consistently coded to the right job.

The Solution

Xero's Projects module lets a practice log time and assign labor, materials, and overhead costs to a specific project, compare actuals against budget, and generate invoices directly from tracked time and costs.

USAGE

How You Use It

Integrations

Over 50 time-tracking apps (e.g. Deputy, LiveCosts, ServiceM8)Bank feedsXero App Marketplace connectors

Disciplines

Architecture, Interior Design, Facility Management

Workflows

Practice & Business Development, Operations & Facility Management

Project Phases

Business Development, All Project Phases, Closeout

TRANSPARENCY

Data Transparency

Exactly what this tool uses and how

Input

What it needs

Required:Client and project records, Billable service or time entries

Optional:Materials and overhead cost entries, Project budgets, Connected bank feed transactions

Formats:Web and mobile entry, Bank feed import, Third-party time-tracking app sync

Output

What you get

Format:Financial documents and project cost reports

Fields:Invoices, Project time and cost ledger, Budget-vs-actual reports, Bank reconciliation records

Algorithm

How it works

Model:Rules-based cloud accounting and project-cost application

Privacy

How your data is protected

Retention:Vendor and account terms apply; not independently verified in this research pass

Training:No AI-training conclusion recorded

Compliance:Financial records require firm retention and access policies

API

Integration

Endpoint:Xero API (developer.xero.com)

Method:REST/JSON

Webhook support available

USE CASES

Use Cases

·Job costing for a small architecture or engineering practice
·Time tracking synced to project invoices
·Bank reconciliation for practice operating accounts
·Budget-vs-actual tracking on a per-project basis

PRICING

Pricing

Free

No permanent free plan verified in this research pass

Pro

Tiered monthly subscription plans; current pricing changes and should be verified on xero.com before purchase

Enterprise

Not publicly specified in this research pass

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Research Sources & Data QualityLast verified: 2026-08-24

Data Sources (4)

Verified Data (5)

Xero Projects lets users create projects, assign tasks, track time, manage costs, and invoice clients within Xero, Time tracked in Xero Projects can populate invoices directly, Xero integrates with 50+ third-party time-tracking apps, Xero runs a publisher affiliate program hosted on PartnerStack, separate from its channel/reseller partner program, A PartnerStack network listing for Xero states a $200 flat reward per qualified purchase (per the research-requests queue entry, affiliateVerifiedAt 2026-08-24)

Not Found (5)

Current subscription tier pricing, Xero's founding year and customer-base size (not re-verified this pass), Exact qualification definition for a 'qualified purchase' under the PartnerStack offer, Whether the $200 PartnerStack rate is the standing rate for this program or a time-limited spotlight offer, Data retention and AI-training policy specifics

Our Commitment: We only include verified data from official sources. If information isn't publicly available, we mark it as "Not publicly specified" rather than guessing.

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