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Pennylane vs Xero

Pennylane and Xero are both accounting & finance tools aimed at small businesses.

Pennylane

Finance and accounting platform for French SMBs

Xero

Cloud accounting popular outside the US

PricingPaidPaid · $27
Starting priceNot published$27/mo
Free planNoNo
Free trial15 days30 days
Built forSmall businessesSmall businesses
Platformswebweb, ios, android
CountryFR · 2020NZ · 2006
Rating——

Choose Pennylane if

French SMEs and accountants.

  • Shared workspace with accountants
  • Modern UI
  • Strong French compliance

Look elsewhere if: Businesses outside France (yet).

Choose Xero if

Small businesses outside the US and teams with many users who need books access.

  • Unlimited users on all plans
  • Excellent reconciliation experience
  • Strong in UK, ANZ and international markets

Look elsewhere if: Very small freelancers (Wave, FreshBooks) or Turkish e-invoice compliance (Paraşüt).

Pennylane vs Xero pricing

Pennylane

  • Starter€7/moExcl. VAT, 1 user, freelancers; Pro account required
  • Basique€14/moExcl. VAT, 1 user (freelancer price)
  • Essentiel€24/moExcl. VAT, 1 user (freelancer price)
  • Premium€79/moExcl. VAT, 1 user, includes accounting module

Xero

  • Early$27/mo20 invoices, 5 bills; 90% off first 6 months until Nov 2 2026
  • Growing$59/moUnlimited invoices and bills
  • Established$97/moMulti-currency, projects, analytics

Pennylane · Key features

  • Invoicing and quotes
  • Bank and payment sync
  • Receipt capture and matching
  • Pre-accounting and accounting
  • Accountant collaboration
  • Cash flow dashboards

Cons

  • Primarily France
  • Pricing varies by tier
  • Limited international features

Xero · Key features

  • Bank reconciliation with smart matching
  • Invoices, quotes and online payments
  • Bills, expenses and Hubdoc document capture
  • Multi-currency accounting (Established)
  • Projects, inventory and fixed assets
  • Analytics, short-term cash flow and reporting

Cons

  • Early plan limits are tight
  • US payroll requires integrations
  • Multi-currency only on the top plan

Pennylane vs Xero: FAQ

Do Pennylane and Xero have a free plan?

Pennylane has no free plan, a 15-day free trial. Xero has no free plan, a 30-day free trial.

Not sure yet?