Everything you know in Xero, mapped to Atlas
Everything you know in Xero, mapped to Atlas. Reading time: 7 minutes
| Xero Term | Atlas Equivalent | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Contacts | Customers / Vendors | Atlas separates contacts into two distinct entities for AR vs AP |
| Tracking Categories | Dimensions | Custom tags for department, project, location — same concept |
| Manual Journals | Journal Entries | Same concept — multi-line debit/credit entries |
| Repeating Invoices | Recurring Invoices | Auto-generated on schedule |
| Quotes | (coming soon) | Use draft invoices as a workaround |
| Bills | Bills | Same concept |
| Spend Money | Payments Made or Journal Entry | Vendor payments or direct expense recording |
| Receive Money | Payments Received or Journal Entry | Customer payments or direct income recording |
| Bank Rules | AI Categorization Rules | Atlas adds AI confidence scoring on top of rule-based matching |
| Find & Match | Bank Reconciliation (auto-match) | Atlas uses 4-axis confidence scoring for matching |
| Fixed Assets | Fixed Assets | Same concept — with 3 depreciation methods |
| Projects | Projects | Same — with time tracking and profitability analysis |
| Payroll (regional add-on) | Payroll (built-in) | Full payroll for US, UK, CA, AU, PK |
| Files | Attachments | Upload supporting documents to transactions |
| Report Pack | Reports + Export | Generate and export BS, P&L, CF, TB |
| Organisation Settings | Settings > Organization | Company and account configuration |
| Adviser (invite) | Settings > Users (Accountant role) | Invite external accountants with Accountant role |
| Multi-currency | Multi-currency | Atlas supports 150+ currencies |
| Short-term Cash Flow | Dashboard Cash Flow Graph | Visual cash position trend on dashboard |
| Activity Feed | Dashboard Activity Feed | Recent transaction activity |
| Hubdoc | Settings > Import | Document capture and data extraction |
| What You Want to Do | In Xero | In Atlas |
|---|---|---|
| Create an invoice | Business > Invoices > New | Invoices > New Invoice |
| Create a repeating invoice | Business > Invoices > Repeating tab | Invoices > Recurring tab |
| Create a credit note | Business > Invoices > New Credit Note | Credit Notes > New Credit Note |
| Enter a bill | Business > Bills to Pay > New | Bills > New Bill |
| Create a purchase order | Business > Purchase Orders > New | Purchase Orders > New PO |
| Pay a bill | Business > Bills to Pay > Make Payment | Payments Made > New Payment |
| Receive a payment | Business > Invoices > Receive Payment | Payments > New Payment |
| Create a manual journal | Accounting > Manual Journals | Journal Entries > New Entry |
| Reconcile bank transactions | Accounting > Bank Accounts > Reconcile | Banking > [Account] > Reconcile |
| Import a bank statement | Accounting > Bank Accounts > Import | Banking > [Account] > Import |
| View Chart of Accounts | Accounting > Chart of Accounts | Chart of Accounts (sidebar) |
| Set up tracking categories | Accounting > Advanced > Tracking Categories | Settings > Dimensions |
| Run Profit & Loss | Accounting > Reports > P&L | Reports > Profit & Loss |
| Run Balance Sheet | Accounting > Reports > Balance Sheet | Reports > Balance Sheet |
| Run Aged Receivables | Accounting > Reports > Aged Receivables | Reports > AR Aging |
| Run Aged Payables | Accounting > Reports > Aged Payables | Reports > AP Aging |
| Lock a period | Settings > General Settings > Lock Dates | Accounting > Period Close |
| Manage users | Settings > Users | Settings > Organization > Users |
| View history | History & Notes (per record) | Settings > Audit Trail |
| Run payroll | Payroll menu (if available) | Payroll (sidebar) |
| Manage fixed assets | Accounting > Fixed Assets | Fixed Assets (sidebar) |
Xero's "Find & Match" uses basic text matching. Atlas uses a 4-axis confidence scoring engine:
Xero requires separate organizations with no built-in consolidation — you need third-party tools or manual Excel work. Atlas includes:
Xero's API is capped at 5,000 calls per day and 60 per minute — a common pain point for integrators and accounting firms with multiple clients. Atlas has modern rate limiting with generous per-endpoint limits.
Xero merges all contacts into one list, which can get unwieldy. Atlas keeps Customers (AR) and Vendors (AP) as separate, purpose-built entities — each with their own fields, workflows, and aging reports.
Xero's payroll is a regional add-on (available in AU, NZ, UK). Atlas includes full payroll for US, UK, Canada, Australia, and Pakistan with tax calculations, W-2/T4 generation, and employee self-service — at no extra charge.
Export these from Xero (Accounting > Reports or Settings):
| Data | How to Export from Xero |
|---|---|
| Chart of Accounts | Accounting > Chart of Accounts > Export (CSV) |
| Contacts (Customers) | Contacts > filter Customers > Export |
| Contacts (Vendors) | Contacts > filter Suppliers > Export |
| Invoices | Business > Invoices > Export |
| Bills | Business > Bills to Pay > Export |
| Bank Transactions | Accounting > Bank Accounts > Account Transactions > Export |
| Manual Journals | Accounting > Manual Journals > Export |
| Feature | Xero | Atlas |
|---|---|---|
| Double-entry bookkeeping | Yes | Yes |
| Chart of Accounts | Yes | Yes (hierarchical, templated) |
| Invoicing | Yes + repeating | Yes + recurring + credit notes |
| Bills & AP | Yes | Yes + purchase orders |
| Bank reconciliation | Find & Match | AI-powered 4-axis matching |
| AI categorization | No | Yes (4-tier with confidence scoring) |
| Multi-company | Separate orgs | Multiple per organization |
| Consolidated reporting | No (third-party required) | Built-in (BS, P&L, CF, TB) |
| Intercompany eliminations | No | Yes |
| Users | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Payroll | Regional add-on (AU, NZ, UK) | Built-in (US, UK, CA, AU, PK) |
| Multi-currency | Higher-tier plans | 150+ currencies (all plans) |
| FX revaluation | Manual | Automated |
| Inventory | Basic | FIFO, LIFO, Weighted Average |
| Fixed assets | Yes | Yes (3 depreciation methods) |
| Projects / time tracking | Yes | Yes |
| Budgets | Yes | Yes + variance analysis |
| Tracking / Dimensions | 2 categories max | Unlimited dimensions |
| Approval workflows | Limited | Multi-step with conditions |
| Audit trail | History & Notes | Full field-level audit trail |
| Tax compliance | Strong AU/NZ/UK | US, UK, CA, AU, EU, PK |
| API rate limits | 5,000/day, 60/min | Generous per-endpoint limits |
| Mobile app | Yes | Responsive web (native planned) |
Q: Where are my Tracking Categories? A: Atlas calls them Dimensions. Go to Settings > Dimensions to create your segments (departments, projects, locations, etc.). Unlike Xero's limit of 2 tracking categories, Atlas supports unlimited dimensions.
Q: I have customers and suppliers in one Contacts list. How does Atlas handle this? A: Atlas separates Customers (for AR) and Vendors (for AP). When importing from Xero, filter your contacts export by type and import to the appropriate entity in Atlas.
Q: Can I import my Xero data directly (like the QuickBooks integration)? A: Not via direct API connection yet. Export your data as CSV from Xero and import into Atlas using the import wizard. The process takes about 15 minutes for most businesses.
Q: Where are Manual Journals? A: They're called Journal Entries in Atlas. Find them in the sidebar under Journal Entries, or press Cmd+K and type "journal."
Q: What about Hubdoc for document capture? A: Atlas supports document attachments on transactions. Upload receipts and documents directly to invoices, bills, and journal entries. OCR-based receipt capture is planned.
Q: Does Atlas support GST/BAS (Australia)? A: Yes. Atlas has built-in BAS (Business Activity Statement) reporting for Australian companies, plus GST/HST for Canada, VAT MTD for UK, and VAT OSS for EU.
Q: How do I invite my accountant? A: Go to Settings > Organization > Users and invite them with the Accountant role. They'll have access to journal entries, period close, reports, and audit trail — without being able to modify user settings or billing.
See also: Migration Checklist | QuickBooks Guide | All Guides