Xero is excellent accounting software. It just doesn't run jobs, send quotes from a van, or track time on site. Graft does all of that plus HMRC MTD — for less than half the price.
Xero Starter is £15/month and handles invoicing + MTD. But you'll still need a separate job-tracking tool. Most Xero users on a tradesperson stack pair it with Tradify or similar (£29+/mo). Graft does everything for £6.99/mo, no add-ons needed.
Compared against Xero Starter and Xero Standard (the two tiers most sole traders consider).
| GRAFT | Xero Starter | Xero Standard | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Job management | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Quote on site | ✓ | Limited | ✓ |
| Invoice from a job | ✓ | 5 / month | ✓ |
| Time tracking on site | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Materials & cost tracking | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Job photos & notes | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Mileage tracking | ✓ | ✗ | Add-on |
| AI receipt scanning | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Direct HMRC MTD submissions | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Stripe payment links on invoices | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Built specifically for trades | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Price | £6.99/mo | £15/mo | £33/mo |
Xero is built for limited companies, accountants, and businesses with VAT and payroll. It's overkill for most sole trader tradespeople — and underkill for managing actual jobs.
No. Xero is purpose-built for accounting. It can produce quotes and invoices, but it has no concept of "a job on site" — no time tracking against a job, no materials log, no job photos, no per-job profit calculation. You'd add a separate field-service tool like Tradify or ServiceM8 to fill that gap.
Yes. Xero is HMRC-recognised and handles MTD ITSA submissions. Graft submits via the same HMRC API, so the tax outcome is identical — Graft just adds everything that happens before tax-time.
Yes — Xero Starter is capped at 20 invoices/quotes a month. If you do more, you're on Standard at £33/month. Graft has no invoice limit on any plan.
If you've got an accountant who works in Xero, stick with it for now. Graft is for sole traders going it alone. If you're paying £15+/month and only using a fraction of what Xero offers — you're a candidate to switch.
Stop paying for Xero plus a job tracker. Graft does both — for tradespeople, by tradespeople.
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