ERP
Best Xero Alternatives for Growing Australian Businesses (2026)
Last updated: 6 October 2026 · Independent buyer’s guide · We do not sell rankings or coverage.
If your business has outgrown Xero, the right alternative depends on which part of the business Xero can no longer carry. Choose MYOB Acumatica if you want a mid-market ERP that runs Australian payroll and STP Phase 2 natively. Choose Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central if you want published AUD per-user pricing and already work in Microsoft 365. Choose Oracle NetSuite or Sage Intacct if multi-entity consolidation is the main problem, and Odoo if you want one low-cost suite covering sales, stock and accounts. If only one function has outgrown Xero, staying on Xero and adding a specialist app such as Cin7 Core or WorkflowMax by BlueRock is a legitimate and often cheaper path. There is no single best replacement for every business.
This guide is for Australian finance leads and owners whose business has grown past what Xero does well, not for anyone looking for a cheaper Xero clone. It compares the realistic step-up options on price, Australian payroll, multi-entity support and fit, using Xero’s current Australian plan prices as the baseline. If you are still deciding whether you need ERP at all, read our guide to the signs that you have outgrown Xero or MYOB first. For the difference between the two categories of software, see accounting software vs ERP.
Key takeaways
- Xero’s Australian plans run from AU$37 to AU$500 per month including GST, with no per-user licence fees. Every ERP on this list charges per user, so expect a step change in cost.
- Xero now sells an Ultra plan at AU$500 per month that includes multi-entity consolidation through Syft. Check whether it solves your group reporting problem before you replace the ledger.
- MYOB Acumatica is the only mid-market ERP here that documents native Australian payroll with STP Phase 2. NetSuite and Business Central both need a separate payroll product.
- Business Central is the only ERP on this list with published AUD pricing: AU$119.70 per user per month for Essentials, excluding GST.
- NetSuite and Sage Intacct are quote-only. Budget for a partner-led scoping exercise before you can compare them on cost.
- If your only gap is inventory or job costing, an app such as Cin7 Core or WorkflowMax by BlueRock on top of Xero can carry you further at lower cost and risk.
What Xero costs in Australia today
Any alternative has to be judged against what you pay now. Xero publishes its Australian prices in AUD including GST, and charges by plan rather than by user. The table below shows the regular monthly price after any introductory discount, as listed on Xero’s Australian pricing page on 6 October 2026 (Xero AU pricing, checked 6 Oct 2026).
| Xero plan | Monthly price (AUD, incl. GST) | People paid in payroll | Notable inclusions |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ignite | $37 | 1 | Limited bill entry, 30-day cash flow forecast |
| Grow | $78 | 2 | Dashboards, 60-day forecast |
| Comprehensive | $107 | 5 | Multi-currency, budgets |
| Ultimate 10 / 20 / 50 / 100 | $143 / $180 / $250 / $300 | 10 / 20 / 50 / 100 | Project tracking, KPI analysis, benchmarking |
| Ultra | $500 | 10, then $2 per extra employee (max 200) | Multi-entity consolidation and forecasting with Syft, priority support |
Xero states that extra charges apply when you exceed the included number of expense users, project users or people paid, and that each organisation is a separate subscription (Xero AU pricing, checked 6 Oct 2026). On Ultra, payroll covers 10 employees, then costs $2 per additional employee per month up to a maximum of 200 (Xero Ultra plan page, checked 6 Oct 2026). For a group of three entities, you are paying for three subscriptions before any consolidation tool.
The cost gap to ERP is real. Twenty users on Business Central Essentials cost AU$2,394 per month excluding GST at Microsoft’s list price (Microsoft AU pricing, checked 6 Oct 2026), against AU$300 per month including GST for Xero Ultimate 100. That difference is only worth paying if the ERP removes integration work, manual reconciliation or reporting delay that is costing you more.
Xero alternatives at a glance
| Option | Best fit | Published pricing | Australian payroll |
|---|---|---|---|
| Xero Ultra plus Cin7 Core or WorkflowMax | Single-function gap: stock or jobs | Xero AU$500/month incl. GST; Cin7 Core from US$349/month; WorkflowMax from AU$11/user/month | Yes, through Xero Payroll |
| MYOB Business AccountRight | Payroll-heavy small business wanting a different ledger | Plus AU$165/month; Premier AU$210/month | Yes, native |
| MYOB Acumatica | Mid-market ERP with payroll in one system | Quote only; partner range AU$2k to $5k/month | Yes, documented STP Phase 2 |
| Business Central | Microsoft 365 users wanting predictable licensing | AU$119.70 to $164.60/user/month excl. GST | Not documented; third party needed |
| Oracle NetSuite | Multi-entity, multi-currency groups | Quote only; no Oracle price list | No; SuitePeople Payroll is US-only |
| Odoo | Cost-conscious, all-in-one operations | USD shown: Standard US$24.90/user/month annual | Not yet: Odoo says it is becoming compliant |
| Sage Intacct | Finance-led, multi-entity service businesses | Quote only | Via Employment Hero integration |
The alternatives in detail
1. Stay on Xero and add specialist apps
Many businesses leave Xero too early. If the general ledger, bank feeds, GST and payroll still work and only one operational area is under strain, an add-on is usually faster and cheaper than an ERP project. Xero itself points users to its App Store for specialist stock needs and states that Xero manages up to 4,000 finished items natively (Xero inventory page, no date shown).
Cin7 Core is a common choice for distributors and light manufacturers that need multi-location stock, assemblies and sales channels on top of Xero. Cin7 lists Core at US$349 per month for 5 users and 6,000 orders a year, US$599 for 10 users and 24,000 orders, and US$1,199 for 15 users and 120,000 orders. Prices are in USD and exclude taxes, and Cin7 does not show AUD pricing on that page (Cin7 pricing, no date shown, checked 6 Oct 2026).
WorkflowMax by BlueRock suits professional services and trade businesses that need quoting, job costing, timesheets and work in progress. Xero retired its own WorkflowMax product in June 2024 and transferred the brand to BlueRock, which now sells a new product under the same name (Xero media release, 23 Mar 2023). BlueRock lists Essentials at AU$12.22 per user per month on monthly billing or AU$11.00 on annual billing for 3 to 25 users, Pro at AU$22.00 or AU$20.00 from 5 users, and Advanced at AU$37.78 or AU$34.00 from 10 users (WorkflowMax pricing, no date shown, checked 6 Oct 2026). The pricing page does not say whether these AUD prices include GST, so check before you compare them with Xero’s GST-inclusive plan prices.
The limitation of this path is integration. Each app holds its own data, and reconciliation between systems becomes your team’s job. Once you need three or four connected apps, or more than one legal entity, the case for a single ERP database becomes stronger.
2. MYOB Business AccountRight
MYOB Business is a sideways move rather than a step up into ERP. It belongs on this list because some Xero users move for payroll cost and inventory locations rather than for scale. MYOB lists AccountRight Plus at AU$165 per month after the introductory offer, with unlimited payroll included (MYOB pricing, no date shown, checked 6 Oct 2026), and AccountRight Premier, for businesses that manage multiple locations, jobs or currencies, at AU$210 per month after the offer period (MYOB AccountRight Premier, no date shown, checked 6 Oct 2026). MYOB states that its payroll fees include GST, but its pricing pages do not say whether the AccountRight subscription prices include or exclude GST. Confirm this with MYOB before you compare them with Xero, whose prices include GST.
If your team pays 60 people, unlimited payroll on AccountRight Plus compares well with Xero Ultimate 100 at AU$300. If your problem is multi-entity reporting or operational depth, MYOB Business will not solve it, and you should look at MYOB Acumatica instead.
3. MYOB Acumatica
MYOB Acumatica, formerly MYOB Advanced, is the mid-market ERP in MYOB’s range. Its main advantage for Australian buyers is payroll. MYOB documents native STP Phase 2 support for Australian payroll inside the ERP (MYOB Enterprise Support, 25 Sep 2024). With Payday Super in force since 1 July 2026, requiring super to be paid with each pay cycle and reported through STP Phase 2 (ATO, 10 Aug 2026), keeping payroll and the general ledger in one system removes an integration point that matters.
MYOB does not publish Acumatica pricing. Kilimanjaro Consulting, an MYOB partner, states that implementations typically cost between $50,000 and $150,000 and that ongoing subscription fees range from $2,000 to $5,000 per month, depending on seat numbers and resources (Kilimanjaro Consulting, 10 Jun 2026). The limitations are a smaller partner pool than Microsoft or Oracle and less reach outside Australia and New Zealand. For a direct comparison, see NetSuite vs MYOB Acumatica.
4. Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
Business Central is the only ERP here with a public AUD price list. Essentials is AU$119.70 per user per month, Premium is AU$164.60 and Team Members is AU$12.00, all on annual commitment and excluding GST (Microsoft AU pricing, checked 6 Oct 2026). Premium adds service management and manufacturing. Team Members licences suit staff who only approve, read or update limited records.
Microsoft documents Australian GST, withholding tax, BAS business units, ABN and EFT support, but its Australia local functionality article does not cover payroll (Microsoft Learn, 23 May 2025). You will need a third-party payroll product. Implementation costs are set by partners rather than Microsoft, so request fixed-scope quotes. Our NetSuite vs Business Central comparison covers the two platforms side by side.
5. Oracle NetSuite
NetSuite is the option most often shortlisted by Australian groups with several entities, currencies or overseas subsidiaries. It runs all entities in one database with consolidated reporting, supports GST and BAS through its tax reporting framework, and Oracle documents data centres in Melbourne and Sydney (Oracle NetSuite help, checked 30 Aug 2026).
Oracle does not publish a NetSuite price list. Annexa, a NetSuite partner, states plainly that there is no price list and that pricing depends on edition, industry package and infrastructure tier (Annexa, updated 21 Sep 2026). Australian payroll is not included: Oracle states SuitePeople Payroll supports only US payroll taxes (Oracle NetSuite help, checked 30 Aug 2026). For cost detail, see our NetSuite pricing guide for Australia, and for group structures, multi-entity ERP in Australia.
6. Odoo
Odoo bundles accounting, CRM, inventory, manufacturing, eCommerce and other apps under one per-user price. When we checked on 6 October 2026, Odoo’s pricing page displayed only US dollars: Standard at US$24.90 per user per month on annual billing, shown against US$31.10, and Custom at US$49.00 against US$61.00. The Custom plan is required to run multiple companies in one database (Odoo pricing, no date shown, checked 6 Oct 2026). Odoo does not publish AUD prices, so ask your implementation partner to quote licences in AUD and state the exchange rate and GST treatment it has assumed.
Odoo publishes Australian payroll localisation. Its version 19.0 documentation states that Odoo is “in the process of becoming compliant” with STP Phase 2 and SuperStream (Odoo documentation, checked 6 Oct 2026). Until Odoo confirms compliance, plan to run Australian payroll in a separate STP Phase 2 product, or ask your partner to demonstrate a lodged STP Phase 2 pay event before you rely on Odoo Payroll. Odoo’s low licence cost can be offset by configuration effort, and quality varies widely between implementation partners.
7. Sage Intacct
Sage Intacct is a cloud financial management system rather than a full operations ERP. Sage positions it for organisations with more than 20 employees and annual revenue above $10 million, and promotes multi-entity consolidation as a core capability. Pricing is quote-only (Sage Australia, no date shown, checked 6 Oct 2026).
Sage’s Australian documentation covers automated GST tax rates, BAS calculation through Sage Regulatory Reporting and the Taxable Payments Annual Report (Sage Intacct help, last modified 1 Oct 2026). Payroll is handled through integration: Sage and Employment Hero announced an integration that passes payroll journals, tax codes and chart of accounts data into Sage Intacct (CFOtech, 16 Jan 2024). Sage Intacct fits professional services, SaaS and nonprofit groups well. It is a weaker fit for businesses whose main problem is stock or manufacturing.
When NetSuite is not the right choice
NetSuite is often the first name a growing Xero customer hears, but it is not the right step for every business. It is usually the wrong choice if you run a single Australian entity with simple stock, because you will pay for consolidation and multi-currency capability you do not use. It is also a poor fit if budget certainty matters more than breadth, since there is no public price list and every figure comes through a partner quote.
If you want payroll inside the ERP, NetSuite cannot provide it for Australian employees, and you will run Xero Payroll, Employment Hero or a similar product alongside it. For a structured view of the trade-offs, read is NetSuite worth it in Australia and our guide to NetSuite implementation in Australia.
Australian buyer scenarios
Melbourne wholesale distributor, 25 staff, one entity. The business runs Xero Ultimate 20, holds about 5,000 SKUs across two warehouses and manages stock in spreadsheets. Its catalogue exceeds the 4,000 finished items Xero manages natively. The team needs multi-location stock and purchasing but has no group structure. Adding Cin7 Core to Xero is the lower-risk next step. If the business later adds entities or needs landed cost across imports, Business Central or MYOB Acumatica becomes the logical move. Our guide to ERP for wholesale distribution in Australia covers that stage.
Sydney professional services group, 120 staff, three entities in Australia, New Zealand and Singapore. Each entity has its own Xero subscription and month-end consolidation takes several days in spreadsheets. The group needs consolidation, intercompany handling and multi-currency reporting. NetSuite and Sage Intacct both fit. Xero Ultra with Syft is worth a demonstration first, but the group should test intercompany eliminations before relying on it. Payroll will sit in a separate system with either ERP.
Brisbane construction contractor, 70 staff, project-based. The business uses Xero with a job-costing app and pays a large site workforce weekly. Payday Super has increased the payroll workload, and the finance team wants payroll, job costing and the ledger in one place. MYOB Acumatica is the strongest fit because it documents native Australian payroll and STP Phase 2. The business should plan for an implementation in the partner range of $50,000 to $150,000.
Adelaide food manufacturer, 40 staff, Microsoft 365 user. The business needs bills of materials, production orders and lot tracking, and its IT team already manages Microsoft licensing. Business Central Premium at AU$164.60 per user per month covers manufacturing, and Team Members licences at AU$12.00 keep costs down for production staff who only record time or approvals. The business will need a third-party payroll product, so it may keep Xero Payroll or move to a dedicated payroll platform. Xero stopped selling its Payroll Only plan on 1 July 2024 (Xero blog, 1 Jul 2024), so keeping Xero Payroll means keeping a Xero business plan that includes payroll.
Our independent take
Most growing businesses that ask for a Xero alternative are describing one of two problems. The first is a single operational gap, usually inventory or job costing, and an app on top of Xero solves it for a fraction of ERP cost. The second is structural: several entities, several currencies or several connected apps that no longer reconcile. That second problem is where ERP earns its cost.
For Australian buyers, payroll should weigh more heavily than vendor marketing suggests. Xero and MYOB both run Australian payroll natively, and so does MYOB Acumatica. NetSuite and Business Central do not. Since Payday Super began on 1 July 2026, the cost of running and integrating a separate payroll system has risen, so price it into any comparison.
How we evaluated
We started from Xero’s current Australian plans and asked what a business does next when those plans no longer fit. We included options that Australian businesses commonly shortlist after Xero, plus the stay-on-Xero route as a genuine alternative. For each option, we checked published AUD pricing, documented Australian payroll and STP Phase 2 support, GST and BAS documentation, and multi-entity capability. We used vendor pricing pages and documentation first, the ATO for compliance facts, and partner sources only where vendors publish nothing. Partner sources are labelled because those firms sell the software they describe. We do not name an overall winner, because the right choice depends on your entity structure, industry and payroll arrangements. For a wider ranking of mid-market systems, see our guide to the best ERP software in Australia.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best ERP alternative to Xero?
It depends on why you are leaving. MYOB Acumatica is the strongest choice if you want Australian payroll inside the ERP. Business Central suits businesses that want published AUD pricing and Microsoft integration. NetSuite and Sage Intacct suit multi-entity groups. Odoo suits cost-conscious businesses that want one suite for sales, stock and accounting.
NetSuite vs Xero: when does a business need ERP?
A business typically needs ERP such as NetSuite when it runs several entities or currencies that must be consolidated, or when operations depend on several connected apps that no longer reconcile cleanly. A single-entity business with one operational gap can usually stay on Xero and add an app. NetSuite is quote-only and does not include Australian payroll, so compare total cost including a payroll product. Our guide to outgrowing Xero and MYOB explains the decision triggers.
Can Xero handle multiple entities?
Each Xero organisation is a separate subscription. Xero’s Ultra plan, at AU$500 per month including GST, adds multi-entity consolidation and forecasting through Syft (Xero AU pricing, checked 6 Oct 2026). Test how it handles intercompany transactions in your group before you decide it is enough.
Is MYOB a step up from Xero?
MYOB Business AccountRight is broadly a peer of Xero rather than a step up, although AccountRight Plus includes unlimited payroll at AU$165 per month. MYOB Acumatica is a genuine step up into mid-market ERP, with native Australian payroll and STP Phase 2.
Which Xero alternatives include Australian payroll?
MYOB Business and MYOB Acumatica both include native Australian payroll. Odoo publishes an Australian payroll localisation, but its own documentation says it is still becoming compliant with STP Phase 2 and SuperStream. NetSuite and Business Central do not document Australian payroll, and Sage Intacct relies on an Employment Hero integration.
How much more does ERP cost than Xero?
Expect a large step. Xero tops out at AU$500 per month including GST. Twenty Business Central Essentials users cost AU$2,394 per month excluding GST before implementation, and one MYOB partner quotes Acumatica subscriptions at $2,000 to $5,000 per month plus $50,000 to $150,000 to implement (Kilimanjaro Consulting, 10 Jun 2026). For the global view of how Xero compares with its closest small-business rival, see our QuickBooks vs Xero comparison.
Sources
Every figure and claim in this article traces to one of these. Prices were checked on the date shown. Partner links are marked as such because those firms sell the software they publish prices for.
- Xero, Australian pricing plans, no date shown, checked 6 October 2026. xero.com
- Xero, Xero Ultra plan page (payroll inclusions), no date shown, checked 6 October 2026. xero.com
- Xero blog, New subscription plans live in Australia, 1 July 2024. blog.xero.com
- Xero, Inventory management feature page, no date shown, checked 6 October 2026. xero.com
- Xero, BlueRock to acquire WorkflowMax brand, media release, 23 March 2023. xero.com
- WorkflowMax by BlueRock, pricing, no date shown, checked 6 October 2026. Vendor of a Xero add-on. workflowmax.com
- Cin7, pricing, no date shown, checked 6 October 2026. Vendor of a Xero add-on. cin7.com
- MYOB, Plans and pricing, no date shown, checked 6 October 2026. myob.com
- MYOB, MYOB Business AccountRight Premier, no date shown, checked 6 October 2026. myob.com
- MYOB Enterprise Support, Changes in MYOB Acumatica for STP Phase 2, 25 September 2024. enterprise-support.myob.com
- Kilimanjaro Consulting, MYOB Acumatica pricing guide, 10 June 2026. MYOB partner. kilimanjaro-consulting.com
- Microsoft, Dynamics 365 Business Central Australian pricing, checked 6 October 2026. microsoft.com
- Microsoft Learn, Australia local functionality for Business Central, 23 May 2025. learn.microsoft.com
- Oracle, NetSuite online help, SuitePeople Payroll country support and data centres, checked 30 August 2026. docs.oracle.com
- Annexa, How much does NetSuite cost in Australia and New Zealand, updated 21 September 2026. NetSuite partner. annexa.com.au
- Odoo, Pricing, no date shown, checked 6 October 2026. odoo.com
- Odoo, Australian payroll localisation documentation, version 19.0, checked 6 October 2026. odoo.com
- Sage, Sage Intacct Australia, no date shown, checked 6 October 2026. sage.com
- Sage Intacct help, Australia region overview, last modified 1 October 2026. intacct.com
- CFOtech Australia, Employment Hero and Sage partner to aid Australian SMEs’ growth, 16 January 2024. cfotech.com.au
- ATO, About Payday Super, 10 August 2026. ato.gov.au
Sherman Hsieh
Independent analysis of enterprise software — ERP, CRM and more
