Clear Books vs Xero
Both are full cloud accounting tools for Making Tax Digital for Income Tax.
Clear Books is the cheaper starting point at £0 (VAT included) versus from £100.80/yr for Xero — but the cheapest plan only wins if it covers the income types you actually have.
| Clear Books | Xero | |
|---|---|---|
| True annual cost from | £0 | from £100.80/yr |
| Self-employment | Yes | Yes |
| Property / rent | Yes | Yes |
| Keeps your spreadsheet | No | No |
| Accountant access | Yes | Yes |
| Type | full cloud accounting | full cloud accounting |
| HMRC status | Recognised | Recognised |
| Price verified | 2026-07-01 | 2026-06-24 |
Clear Books
Established UK cloud accounting with a genuinely free plan for sole traders and landlords — MTD for Income Tax quarterly updates and year-end filing at no cost, with low-priced paid tiers that add bank feeds and per-property tracking.
- People who want free cloud accounting from an established UK provider
- Sole traders and landlords who may later want bank feeds
Xero
Full cloud accounting. The Simple plan is purpose-built for MTD for Income Tax with bank-feed automation, so you do less typing.
- Sole traders who want proper bookkeeping
- People who want bank feeds to do the work
Not sure either is right? Use the finder to get a recommendation ranked by what it will actually cost you.
Prices are each tool's cheapest plan, VAT included, last verified 1 July 2026 (catalogue reconciled 1 July 2026). Links are affiliate links and never affect ranking. Not affiliated with HMRC; not tax advice.