In this guide · 7 sections
Short answer
Intuit's Singapore migration page says it converts Xero data to QuickBooks Online free, on Essentials or Plus only, in up to five business days. Templates, attachments and bank feeds need redoing. Cut over at the start of a GST period.
Should you move from Xero to QuickBooks?
Switching accounting software costs time even when the conversion is free. Common reasons Singapore businesses switch are price, a preference of their accountant, or QuickBooks features such as project profitability. Prices as of October 2026:
| Plan | Price per month | Users |
|---|---|---|
| QuickBooks Simple Start | S$31 | 1 user plus your accountant |
| QuickBooks Essentials | S$57 | 3 users plus your accountant |
| QuickBooks Plus | S$78.99 | 5 users plus your accountant |
| Xero Standard (from 1 Nov 2026) | S$77, incl. GST | Unlimited users |
| Xero Premium (from 1 Nov 2026) | S$99, incl. GST | Unlimited users |
Compare like for like: the free conversion needs Essentials or Plus, and Xero doesn't charge per user. Our Xero vs QuickBooks comparison covers GST filing, bank feeds and InvoiceNow differences, and our Xero price increase guide has the full Xero price change.
Your conversion options
There are three realistic routes. Intuit's Singapore migration page describes the first, as of October 2026.
| Option | What moves | Cost | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Intuit's conversion service | Chart of accounts, customers, suppliers, products, invoices, bank statements | Free (Intuit pays the conversion fee) | Most small businesses on Essentials or Plus |
| Opening balances only | Trial balance at cut-over, open invoices and bills, contacts and products by CSV | Your time or a bookkeeper | Clean start; history kept in Xero exports |
| Paid conversion specialist | Full history, more years, special cases | Quoted per job | Multi-currency, several entities, complex files |
Intuit says the conversion is only supported on QuickBooks Online Essentials and Plus, so Simple Start users must upgrade first so its conversion team can be invited into the account. It also says the import typically takes up to five business days, during which you can't access the QuickBooks file, and changes made in Xero during that time won't be included.
What transfers and what you rebuild
Every conversion tool has limits. Intuit's help article for Australia, where the conversion is done by its partner Dataswitcher, lists what Xero data doesn't transfer: budgets, multicurrency, memorised transactions, invoice templates, sales orders, payroll records, projects, attachments and quotes. Singapore conversions may differ, so ask for the list in writing before you start.
Usually comes across
- Chart of accounts
- Customers and suppliers
- Products and services
- Invoices, bills and bank transactions
- Balances at the cut-over date
Usually rebuilt by hand
- Bank feeds (re-authorise in your internet banking)
- Invoice templates, logo and payment terms
- Attachments such as receipts and bill PDFs
- Connected apps (Stripe, Shopify, POS, payroll)
- Users, roles and your accountant's access
The same Intuit article notes that older history can be consolidated into an opening balance, and that some report figures for older periods may not match Xero exactly even when current balances do. Keep Xero's reports as the record for those periods.
Step by step: a safe cut-over
The goal is one clean date where Xero stops and QuickBooks starts, with nothing entered twice or missed.
Pick the cut-over date
The first day of a GST period, after the previous GST return is filed. Agree it with your accountant.
Reconcile and lock Xero
Reconcile every bank account to the cut-over date and set a lock date so nobody changes the old period.
Export everything from Xero
Reports for each year, the trial balance, GST reports, contacts, invoices, bills and fixed assets (see the checklist below).
Set up QuickBooks and run the conversion
Choose Essentials or Plus, turn on GST with the right settings, then start the conversion. Don't enter new transactions until it finishes.
Check the numbers
Compare the trial balance, bank balances, and open invoices and bills in QuickBooks against Xero at the cut-over date.
Reconnect bank feeds and apps
Authorise bank feeds in your internet banking and reconnect payment, e-commerce and payroll apps to QuickBooks.
Run one period in parallel, then switch
For the first month, keep the locked Xero file for reference while all new work happens in QuickBooks.
Export these from Xero before you cancel
Xero's help article on exporting data out of Xero recommends exporting your chart of accounts, contacts, invoices, bills and fixed asset list, plus key reports for each year. Xero says users keep access during the one-month cancellation notice period, which is the time to do it.
Xero export checklist
IRAS record-keeping rules require businesses to keep accounting records for at least 5 years, and that applies whichever software produced them. Store the exports somewhere backed up and shared with your accountant. Our guide to moving from QuickBooks to Xero covers the same steps in the other direction.
Do it yourself or get help?
For a single-entity business with one currency, Intuit's free conversion plus a careful cut-over is manageable with your accountant. Multi-currency, several companies, lots of connected apps or years of history to preserve make it worth getting help.
Our Accounting Migration (from S$690) agrees a written migration plan and cut-over date with you and your accountant, imports customers, suppliers and products (up to 500 records), brings across up to 200 open invoices and bills, enters opening balances from your accountant's trial balance, compares totals with the old system in a short report, and keeps the old system read-only until you both confirm. It doesn't include bookkeeping.
Frequently asked questions
Intuit's Singapore migration page says yes: it pays the conversion fee for moving from Xero or Sage to QuickBooks Online. Conversion is only supported on QuickBooks Online Essentials and Plus, so Simple Start users must upgrade first. The import takes up to five business days, during which you can't use the QuickBooks file.
Expect to rebuild bank feeds, invoice templates, attachments, connected apps and user access. Intuit's Australian help article for its conversion partner also lists budgets, multicurrency, memorised transactions, sales orders, payroll records, projects and quotes as not transferring. Ask for the Singapore list in writing before you start, as it may differ.
At the start of a GST period, after you have filed the previous return from Xero, and ideally at the start of a quarter or financial year. That keeps each GST return and each year's accounts in one system. Agree the date with your accountant and reconcile and lock Xero up to that date first.
Not necessarily, but export everything first. Xero has no read-only plan; once cancelled, after the one-month notice period, you lose access. Export reports for every year, the trial balance, GST reports, transactions, contacts, invoices, bills and attachments, because IRAS expects accounting records to be kept for at least 5 years.
No. Bank feeds are authorised between your bank and each accounting system separately, so you set them up again in QuickBooks and authorise them in your internet banking. Remove the Xero feed afterwards. Check that QuickBooks supports a direct feed for your bank; otherwise you import statements.