Lexware Office vs Zoho Books Comparison
Compare Lexware Office vs Zoho Books features, pricing, and more.
Last updated: November 2026
Lexware Office
6.7/10
A German cloud tool for bookkeeping, invoicing, receipt capture, VAT filing and optional payroll, made for freelancers and small businesses.
Zoho Books
7/10
Cloud accounting software from Zoho for small and growing businesses, covering invoicing, bank reconciliation, bills, inventory and financial reporting.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Feature | | |
|---|---|---|
| Scores | ||
| Overall Rating | 6.7/10 | 7/10 |
| Analytics | 4/10 | 7/10 |
| Compliance | 8/10 | 7/10 |
| Cost | 8/10 | 8/10 |
| Customization | 4/10 | 8/10 |
| Ease of Use | 8/10 | 7/10 |
| Integration | 7/10 | 7/10 |
| Scalability | 4/10 | 6/10 |
| Security | 7/10 | 7/10 |
| Support | 6/10 | 5/10 |
| Pricing | ||
| Free plan | No | Yes |
| Cheapest paid plan | €8/mo S | $20/mo Standard |
| Estimated cost for 10 users | €8/mo S | $70/mo Premium |
| Features | ||
| Inventory Accounting | ||
| Multi-currency | ||
| Accountant Access | ||
| Bank Reconciliation | ||
| Expense Management | ||
| Financial Reporting | ||
| General Ledger | ||
| Invoicing | ||
| Online Payments | ||
| Tax Compliance | ||
| Accounts Payable | Not listed | |
| Audit Trail | Not listed | |
| Budgeting and Forecasting | Not listed | |
| Multi-entity Consolidation | Not listed | |
| Payroll | Not listed | |
Lexware Office vs Zoho Books cost by team size
| Team size | Lexware Office | Zoho Books |
|---|---|---|
| 1 user | €8/moS | FreeFree |
| 5 users | €8/moS | $50/moProfessional |
| 10 users | €8/moS | $70/moPremium |
| 25 users | €8/moS | FreeFree |
| 50 users | €8/moS | FreeFree |
The plan that fits each team size, billed monthly, before add-ons and usage charges. Each cost opens that tool's pricing calculator for the team size.
Which One Should You Choose?
Why choose Lexware Office
- Higher Compliance score (8/10 vs 7/10)
- Higher Ease of Use score (8/10 vs 7/10)
Why choose Zoho Books
- Has a free plan (Lexware Office does not)
- Higher Customization score (8/10 vs 4/10)
- Higher Analytics score (7/10 vs 4/10)
- Includes Inventory Accounting, which Lexware Office lacks
- Includes Multi-currency, which Lexware Office lacks
Pros & Cons
Lexware Office
Pros
- Users on OMR Reviews and testers on Experte.de describe receipt scanning and bank matching as fast and easy to set up.
- Creates ZUGFeRD and XRechnung e-invoices and files VAT returns directly to ELSTER.
- Every plan can be cancelled monthly, and users are unlimited according to Für-Gründer.
- Tax advisor access and DATEV export make it easy to hand the books to an accountant.
- An optional payroll add-on handles social security and tax filings for up to 50 employees.
Cons
- Invoices can only be issued in euros.
- Cannot manage several companies, and has no approval workflow and no cost-centre reporting.
- Bookkeeping and VAT returns need the L plan, and recurring features need higher tiers.
- Users report bank connections that drop and support that is hard to reach by phone.
- There is no postal invoice sending and no built-in time tracking.
Zoho Books
Pros
- The free plan includes online payments, bank reconciliation, recurring invoices and 1099 tracking for one user plus an accountant.
- Pricing is per organization, not per user, so small teams avoid per-seat costs.
- It connects natively with Zoho CRM, Zoho Payroll, Zoho Inventory and Zoho Analytics.
- Professional and higher plans include custom workflows, custom roles and approvals, and Premium adds custom modules and functions.
- On the Elite plan, inventory features cover warehouses, serial and batch tracking, and marketplace sync.
Cons
- Budgets, multi-currency and advanced inventory are only available on higher-priced tiers.
- Reviewers on Capterra and in NerdWallet's write-up describe slow or unhelpful customer support.
- It has fewer third-party integrations than its main competitors, according to NerdWallet.
- A PeerSpot reviewer found it awkward to invoice the same customer in different currencies.
- Even the top plan has a hard cap of 15 users, plus annual transaction limits.
Not sold on either?
Frequently Asked Questions
Zoho Books scores higher on our Finance Software criteria: 7/10 against 6.7/10 for Lexware Office. The largest gap is in Customization: 4/10 for Lexware Office and 8/10 for Zoho Books.
Zoho Books has a free plan; Lexware Office does not list one.
Zoho Books has Inventory Accounting and Multi-currency, which Lexware Office lacks.
