The short answer is yes. You can run Odoo and Xero at the same time, and plenty of Australian businesses do. Xero's FY25 half-year results show 1.9 million subscribers in Australia, which tells you how embedded it is in local accounting teams and bookkeeping practices. When a business starts outgrowing Xero's operational capabilities but its finance team or external accountant lives entirely in Xero, the idea of running both side by side is a reasonable one to explore.
But whether you should run both is a different question. We've covered the broader upgrade decision in our Odoo vs Xero guide. This post is specifically for businesses that have already decided they need Odoo for operations and want to know if they can keep Xero for accounting at the same time.
Why businesses want to run Odoo and Xero together
The motivation is usually one of three things. The finance team knows Xero well and doesn't want disruption. The external accountant or bookkeeper is already set up in Xero and charges less to work there. Or the business is in a transitional phase, bringing on Odoo for inventory, CRM, or job management while planning to deal with the accounting side later.
All of these are legitimate reasons. The problem is that "we'll sort the accounting side later" has a habit of becoming permanent. According to MYOB's 2025 ERP Trends report, 45% of Australian decision-makers say disconnected systems are actively limiting their business growth. Running two systems long-term is a choice worth making deliberately, not drifting into.
When running both actually makes sense
There are scenarios where an Odoo and Xero integration is the right call, at least for a period:
- Your accountant is genuinely better off in Xero. If your external bookkeeper is fast and accurate in Xero and switching them would cost more than the integration, keeping Xero for the accounting layer is defensible.
- You're in a planned transition. If you're bringing Odoo in stages and accounting is the final phase, a temporary integration while staff get trained is a reasonable bridge.
- Xero's bank feeds matter to you. Xero's bank reconciliation and live bank feed connections are genuinely good. If your team relies on them and you're not ready to replicate that workflow in Odoo Accounting, keeping Xero temporarily makes sense.
- The sync is one-directional and limited. Odoo generates invoices, those flow into Xero for payment tracking and reconciliation. That's it. When the scope is narrow and clearly defined, the integration is manageable.
When the integration causes more problems than it solves
The integration runs into trouble when expectations are too broad. Bidirectional syncing of products, inventory levels, payments, and contacts across two systems creates reconciliation complexity that usually costs more to maintain than it saves. Capterra's 2026 Software Buying Trends Report, based on 281 Australian business decision-makers, found that fewer than one in three Australian businesses successfully adopt new software without setbacks that affect productivity and budget. Adding integration complexity on top of a new platform implementation is where projects get into trouble.
The other issue is visibility. One of the main reasons businesses move to Odoo is to get a real-time view of profitability across operations, inventory, and finance in one place. If your financial data lives in Xero and your operational data lives in Odoo, you don't have that. You have two partial pictures.
"We often talk to businesses that want to keep their accountant happy in Xero while using Odoo to run everything else. That's a reasonable starting point. But it only works if you're clear about which system owns what. The integration breaks down when people expect it to do too much."
Josh Craig, Director, Auboros
What the integration actually syncs, and what it doesn't
Third-party Odoo-Xero connectors are available through the Odoo Apps Store for Odoo 17, 18, and 19. What they typically sync:
- Customer invoices and vendor bills: generated in Odoo, pushed to Xero
- Contact data: customers and suppliers synced between both systems
- Payments: recorded in Xero, pulled back into Odoo to reconcile against invoices
- Chart of accounts and tax rules: mapped at setup
What the integration does not handle well: live inventory levels, payroll (Xero Payroll and Odoo Payroll are entirely separate), bank feeds (these stay in Xero), and detailed project or job costing. If you need those to reconcile across systems, you're building a custom integration, not a standard connector.
Keep the scope narrow. One-directional. Invoices and payments only. The more you try to sync, the more you'll spend maintaining it.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a native Odoo Xero connector?
There is no native, Odoo-built Xero connector. Third-party connectors are available on the Odoo Apps Store and are compatible with Odoo 17, 18, and 19. Quality varies between providers. Before committing to a connector, confirm what it actually syncs, how it handles errors, and what support is available when something breaks.
Should I migrate from Xero to Odoo Accounting, or just integrate?
If Odoo is going to be your long-term platform, migrating to Odoo Accounting gives you a single source of truth and removes the ongoing cost of maintaining two systems. Integration makes sense as a transitional measure or when there's a specific reason to keep Xero, such as an existing accountant relationship. If you're unsure, our Odoo implementation packages include guidance on the accounting migration decision.
Can my accountant still use Xero if my business moves to Odoo?
Yes, with an integration in place. Invoices and payments can flow from Odoo into Xero, meaning your accountant works in Xero as usual while your operations run in Odoo. The practical question is whether the integration cost and complexity is worth keeping that workflow intact, or whether it's simpler to move your accountant to Odoo Accounting with proper training.
How long does an Odoo Xero integration take to set up?
A basic connector install and configuration typically takes a few days, assuming your chart of accounts and tax setup are clean in both systems. The longer work is data mapping and testing to make sure invoices are flowing correctly and reconciling properly. Budget for more time than you expect, particularly if your Xero data has inconsistencies that need cleaning before syncing.
Running Odoo alongside Xero in Queensland?
We work with Queensland businesses at every stage of the Odoo journey, from initial implementation through to full accounting migration. If you're weighing up whether to integrate with Xero or move across fully to Odoo's accounting module, we can give you a straight read on which makes sense for your situation.
If you'd like to talk it through, book a free consultation. No obligation, just an honest conversation.
The short answer is yes. You can run Odoo and Xero at the same time, and plenty of Australian businesses do. Xero's FY25 half-year results show 1.9 million subscribers in Australia, which tells you how embedded it is in local accounting teams and bookkeeping practices. When a business starts outgrowing Xero's operational capabilities but its finance team or external accountant lives entirely in Xero, the idea of running both side by side is a reasonable one to explore.
But whether you should run both is a different question. We've covered the broader upgrade decision in our Odoo vs Xero guide. This post is specifically for businesses that have already decided they need Odoo for operations and want to know if they can keep Xero for accounting at the same time.
Why businesses want to run Odoo and Xero together
The motivation is usually one of three things. The finance team knows Xero well and doesn't want disruption. The external accountant or bookkeeper is already set up in Xero and charges less to work there. Or the business is in a transitional phase, bringing on Odoo for inventory, CRM, or job management while planning to deal with the accounting side later.
All of these are legitimate reasons. The problem is that "we'll sort the accounting side later" has a habit of becoming permanent. According to MYOB's 2025 ERP Trends report, 45% of Australian decision-makers say disconnected systems are actively limiting their business growth. Running two systems long-term is a choice worth making deliberately, not drifting into.
When running both actually makes sense
There are scenarios where an Odoo and Xero integration is the right call, at least for a period:
- Your accountant is genuinely better off in Xero. If your external bookkeeper is fast and accurate in Xero and switching them would cost more than the integration, keeping Xero for the accounting layer is defensible.
- You're in a planned transition. If you're bringing Odoo in stages and accounting is the final phase, a temporary integration while staff get trained is a reasonable bridge.
- Xero's bank feeds matter to you. Xero's bank reconciliation and live bank feed connections are genuinely good. If your team relies on them and you're not ready to replicate that workflow in Odoo Accounting, keeping Xero temporarily makes sense.
- The sync is one-directional and limited. Odoo generates invoices, those flow into Xero for payment tracking and reconciliation. That's it. When the scope is narrow and clearly defined, the integration is manageable.
When the integration causes more problems than it solves
The integration runs into trouble when expectations are too broad. Bidirectional syncing of products, inventory levels, payments, and contacts across two systems creates reconciliation complexity that usually costs more to maintain than it saves. Capterra's 2026 Software Buying Trends Report, based on 281 Australian business decision-makers, found that fewer than one in three Australian businesses successfully adopt new software without setbacks that affect productivity and budget. Adding integration complexity on top of a new platform implementation is where projects get into trouble.
The other issue is visibility. One of the main reasons businesses move to Odoo is to get a real-time view of profitability across operations, inventory, and finance in one place. If your financial data lives in Xero and your operational data lives in Odoo, you don't have that. You have two partial pictures.
"We often talk to businesses that want to keep their accountant happy in Xero while using Odoo to run everything else. That's a reasonable starting point. But it only works if you're clear about which system owns what. The integration breaks down when people expect it to do too much."
Josh Craig, Director, Auboros
What the integration actually syncs, and what it doesn't
Third-party Odoo-Xero connectors are available through the Odoo Apps Store for Odoo 17, 18, and 19. What they typically sync:
- Customer invoices and vendor bills: generated in Odoo, pushed to Xero
- Contact data: customers and suppliers synced between both systems
- Payments: recorded in Xero, pulled back into Odoo to reconcile against invoices
- Chart of accounts and tax rules: mapped at setup
What the integration does not handle well: live inventory levels, payroll (Xero Payroll and Odoo Payroll are entirely separate), bank feeds (these stay in Xero), and detailed project or job costing. If you need those to reconcile across systems, you're building a custom integration, not a standard connector.
Keep the scope narrow. One-directional. Invoices and payments only. The more you try to sync, the more you'll spend maintaining it.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a native Odoo Xero connector?
There is no native, Odoo-built Xero connector. Third-party connectors are available on the Odoo Apps Store and are compatible with Odoo 17, 18, and 19. Quality varies between providers. Before committing to a connector, confirm what it actually syncs, how it handles errors, and what support is available when something breaks.
Should I migrate from Xero to Odoo Accounting, or just integrate?
If Odoo is going to be your long-term platform, migrating to Odoo Accounting gives you a single source of truth and removes the ongoing cost of maintaining two systems. Integration makes sense as a transitional measure or when there's a specific reason to keep Xero, such as an existing accountant relationship. If you're unsure, our Odoo implementation packages include guidance on the accounting migration decision.
Can my accountant still use Xero if my business moves to Odoo?
Yes, with an integration in place. Invoices and payments can flow from Odoo into Xero, meaning your accountant works in Xero as usual while your operations run in Odoo. The practical question is whether the integration cost and complexity is worth keeping that workflow intact, or whether it's simpler to move your accountant to Odoo Accounting with proper training.
How long does an Odoo Xero integration take to set up?
A basic connector install and configuration typically takes a few days, assuming your chart of accounts and tax setup are clean in both systems. The longer work is data mapping and testing to make sure invoices are flowing correctly and reconciling properly. Budget for more time than you expect, particularly if your Xero data has inconsistencies that need cleaning before syncing.
Running Odoo alongside Xero in Queensland?
We work with Queensland businesses at every stage of the Odoo journey, from initial implementation through to full accounting migration. If you're weighing up whether to integrate with Xero or move across fully to Odoo's accounting module, we can give you a straight read on which makes sense for your situation.
If you'd like to talk it through, book a free consultation. No obligation, just an honest conversation.