The short version: "connect our system to Xero" has three honest answers. Free, because a connector already exists and you just haven't looked. Tens of dollars a month, for off-the-shelf glue. Or $4,000 to $8,000 + GST once, for an integration built around how your business runs. Anyone who quotes you the third number without checking the first two is not on your side.
If the job software is Tradify, the native integration covers invoices and payments and little else; Tradify to Xero: what syncs lists exactly where the gaps are before you pay to fill them.
First, check whether the integration already exists
Xero's app marketplace has hundreds of certified connectors, and every serious NZ job management tool ships its own Xero sync built in. If the system you want connected is a mainstream product, the odds are good someone has already built and maintains the bridge. That is the right answer when it fits: a maintained product at tens of dollars a month beats anything custom on price, forever.
The check takes ten minutes. Search the marketplace for your system's name, and read what the connector actually syncs, because "integrates with Xero" on a sales page can mean anything from full two-way sync to a nightly CSV.
The middle level: glue between systems
When no ready-made connector exists but both systems are reasonably standard, the gap can often be bridged with automation tooling rather than a ground-up build. If you're on Microsoft 365, Power Automate connects to Xero and can move invoices, contacts and payments on a schedule under licensing you may already pay for. This level suits processes that are standard: an invoice is an invoice, a contact is a contact, nothing needs judgement.
What a custom integration costs, and what the money buys
A single custom Xero integration typically lands between $4,000 and $8,000 + GST. That number surprises people in both directions, so here is what the money buys, because none of it is visible in a demo:
- A connection that stays connected. Xero's API uses OAuth tokens that expire and refresh. Done casually, the integration works for a fortnight and then silently stops.
- Correct mapping. Your accounts, tax rates, tracking categories and contacts have to line up exactly. A GST error in a sync lands in your accounts, and your accountant finds it before you do.
- The edge cases. Credit notes, part payments, overpayments, the invoice that was edited in Xero after it synced. Happy-path integrations break on precisely the transactions that matter.
- Failure that speaks up. When a sync fails, someone gets told, with enough detail to fix it. A dropped invoice no one notices until month-end costs more than the build.
One thing you don't need: Xero's certification. That applies to public apps sold in their marketplace. A private integration for your own business uses the same API without the approval process.
What pushes it past the range
Two-way sync roughly doubles the thinking, because now both systems can be wrong. Migrating historical data, syncing across multiple Xero organisations, or folding the integration into a bigger job-tracking build moves the work into the $10,000 to $22,000 range that custom builds generally occupy. The integration itself is rarely the expensive part of those projects; it's the system around it.
The most common Xero integration I'm asked about is the one that stops someone retyping the day's invoices every night. That specific problem, and the levels of fixing it, is covered in its own post.
Which of the three applies to your systems
Book a free 30-minute call and tell me what you want talking to Xero. If a connector exists, I'll name it and you can go buy it. If it needs building, you'll get the range and the calculator to check the payback against your own hours before you spend anything.
Questions I get asked about Xero integrations
How much does a custom Xero integration cost in NZ?
A single custom integration typically lands between $4,000 and $8,000 + GST as a one-off build. The price covers the parts you can't see: an authenticated connection that stays connected, correct mapping onto your accounts and tax rates, handling for credit notes and part payments, and error handling that tells a human when a sync fails instead of silently dropping an invoice.
Do I need Xero's approval to build a custom integration?
Not for your own business. Xero's certification process applies to public apps sold in their marketplace. A private integration built for one organisation connects through the same API without certification. It just has to be built to behave well within Xero's API limits.
Should I buy a connector or build one?
If a connector already exists for your exact pair of systems, buy it. A custom build can't beat tens of dollars a month for a maintained product. Custom only wins when no connector fits how you work, when the edge cases the connector skips are the actual problem, or when the integration is part of a bigger build.