Two major players in accounting tech—Xero and Karbon—have announced a new integration designed to streamline workflows for accounting firms, combining Xero’s cloud-based financial platform with Karbon’s practice management system.
The collaboration addresses one of the sector’s most pressing challenges: how to manage increasingly complex operations while shifting toward higher-value client advisory services (CAS). According to both firms, the integration will allow accounting professionals to reduce time spent on manual tasks and enhance collaboration across client workstreams.
“This new integration between Karbon and Xero will be a significant benefit to our customers,” said Ben Richmond, Managing Director of Americas at Xero. “It will help them work faster and much more efficiently, freeing them up to spend more time working directly with their clients – which is what modern accounting is all about.”
Among the integration’s headline features are real-time data synchronisation between client, billing and payment records, as well as tools that automate client onboarding and categorisation. The aim is to give firms a centralised view of both financials and practice operations—something that has historically required multiple platforms or workarounds.
Key reported benefits include:
- Up to 18.5 hours saved per employee per week, based on Karbon’s 2024 usage survey;
- 18% boost in productivity;
- Seamless data exchange between Xero and Karbon to reduce re-keying and manual reconciliations;
- Improved client visibility and task management within Karbon, powered by Xero data.
For existing users of both platforms, the development is being welcomed as a long-awaited move. Jason Ackerman, CPA at BNA CPAs & Advisors, commented:
“The ability for our firm to have two-way syncing between both platforms will allow us to spend more time with our customers and less time on manual tasks. It will give us much-needed visibility in Karbon that we didn’t have before.”
Mary Delaney, CEO of Karbon, said the partnership was a natural fit:
“Our joint customers consistently tell us that Karbon and Xero are two of the most essential tools in their tech stack, so this deep integration is an exciting leap forward. We’re giving firms an efficient, more powerful foundation to run and grow their firms.”
The integration is now available in the US and other major Xero markets, with further feature rollouts planned in the coming months. Both companies have signalled that ongoing product innovation is a shared priority, as firms continue to adapt to the dual pressures of regulatory change and client demand for advisory insight.