At a Glance
Xero and QuickBooks suit small businesses but can restrict growing SMEs as operations become more complex. It’s important to recognise when basic accounting software no longer meets your reporting, integration, and control needs. Migrating to Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central supports scalability and allows for stronger financial governance, all within a single, centralised operational platform.
Should You Migrate from Xero or QuickBooks to Business Central?
Is your business currently using QuickBooks or Xero for accounting? Both of these tools are a good choice for small businesses, but they have limited capabilities. While they might be just fine when your company is starting out, they may limit the deeper reporting, compliance, and consolidation needs of fast-growing SMEs.
If your business needs software that offers capabilities beyond basic accounting and finance, you might find yourself relying on multiple tools for daily operations. To avoid the hassle and extra time spent juggling more than one platform, it’s worth moving from Xero or QuickBooks to Business Central.
But why consider Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central? With this software offering an all-in-one comprehensive solution for businesses and being named the best ERP system in 2025 by Forbes Advisors, there are many reasons why migrating from QuickBooks or Xero to Business Central (BC) is the natural step.
Read this guide to explore the reasons why you should move from Xero or QuickBooks to Business Central, and how Brookland Solutions can help you with this transition.
5 Signs You’ve Outgrown Xero or QuickBooks
Are you concerned that these basic accounting tools are holding your business back from growth? Here are five signs that indicate so:
1. Operations Are Getting More Complex
Xero can support up to 2,000 invoices and bills per month, making it suitable for small firms with limited accounting needs.
As your business grows, the financial structure becomes more complicated. QuickBooks and Xero serve simple setups, but they can struggle when your business is expanding to multiple locations or branching out, dealing with multiple currencies, and routinely processing a high volume of transactions.
If you feel your finance and accounting tools are slowing you down, it’s a clear sign that they may be acting as a bottleneck to your progress.
2. Overreliance on Manual Work and Spreadsheets
Xero and QuickBooks are popular for their ease of use as entry-level accounting tools.
But if your team is constantly exporting data to Excel to create reports, using spreadsheets to create budgets, or manually reconciling data despite using these tools, it usually means the existing systems are lacking.
3. Limited Reporting and Insights
Xero and QuickBooks are basic accounting software that may support reporting needs, but fall behind when your business needs real-time insights to make quick decisions.
With their limited capabilities, you may struggle to gain real-time insights into your cash flow, margins, or performance. You need a system that supports informed decision-making.
4. Limited Integrations
Growing businesses add more tools to boost productivity, but the problem arises when they don’t integrate properly. QuickBooks offers more features and capabilities than Xero, such as managing payroll and generating reports, but it has limited scalability and integrations.
Using separate systems for managing inventory, payroll, CRM, and manual entries can often lead to conflicting figures across reports. You can reduce inefficiencies and confusion by investing in an integrated system that generates a single source of truth.
5. Pressure of Financial Controls
Fast-growing companies have greater responsibilities around financial controls and compliance. You may find Xero or QuickBooks limiting in their capabilities to generate clear audit trails, better approval workflows, and more control over user access and permissions.
If you find your teams struggling with meeting audit, governance, and compliance requirements, it’s a sign that it may be time for an upgrade.
5 Compelling Reasons to Move from Xero or QuickBooks to Business Central
If you’re looking for an upgrade from Xero or QuickBooks, consider migrating to Dynamics 365 Business Central. It’s a modern cloud-first ERP solution that covers all your operational needs, from finance to sales.
Here are the benefits of migrating from QuickBooks or Xero to Business Central:
1. Extensive Integrations
Business Central is designed to integrate with various Microsoft products and third-party applications. It allows integrations that improve productivity, from creating detailed reports and analytics in real-time without additional software to connecting with SharePoint and Excel. This is a perk that Xero or QuickBooks may not be able to match.
2. Customisations
BC can connect with Power Platform, which offers tools to build low-code applications. Using Power Apps, Power BI, Power Automate, and Power Agents, you can extend the capabilities of this ERP.
3. Better Scale
BC is designed to serve the growing needs of SME and mid-sized organisations. When you migrate from QuickBooks or Xero to BC, you can support the higher transaction volumes and complex organisational structures of your fast-growing setup.
4. More Flexibility
Dynamics 365 BC is a cloud-first ERP that supports hybrid capabilities. It’s an out-of-the-box solution that can be configured to support the needs of a wide range of industries, from construction to arts and entertainment.
5. Centralised Data
Business Central integrates all your operations, connecting sales to finance to CRM. This centralised feature allows teams to access a single source of information across departments.
5 Steps for a Successful Move from QuickBooks/ Xero to Business Central
- Identify your need to move to Business Central
- Connect to a Dynamics 365 implementation partner
- Find out what you can migrate from Xero and QuickBooks
- Customise and configure the BC system to your business’ needs
- Adequately train your teams
Get QuickBooks/ Xero to Business Central Migration Support from Brookland Solutions
Brookland Solutions is a Microsoft Partner specialising in Dynamics 365 products, particularly Business Central. We have extensive experience in planning and delivering migrations to BC for UK businesses in a wide range of industries. Our team of consultants understand the challenges and requirements specific to your business and can create a comprehensive implementation plan.
Collaborating with a partner like us can not only facilitate a seamless migration to BC but also help your business stay competitive and relevant. We also offer continued support to help you reap maximum benefits.
To book a consultation with our team, get in touch with us today.
