Xero launches Ultra plan for medium-sized businesses

Xero has launched its Ultra plan in Australia, targeting medium-sized businesses.

The new offering expands the accounting software group's reach as it looks to serve companies with more complex finance needs without pushing them towards traditional enterprise resource planning systems.

Priced at AUD $500 a month including GST, Ultra is aimed at businesses that have outgrown standard small business software but want to avoid the cost and disruption of larger finance platforms.

The plan includes advanced reporting through Syft, including multi-entity consolidated reporting, scenario modelling, AI-powered insights and four-way cash flow forecasting. Customers will also get faster access to support specialists, including onboarding and migration help, as well as a service to restore specific data errors without rolling back an entire file.

The launch adds a higher-tier product to Xero's line-up as it broadens its position beyond its traditional small business accounting base. It also follows the company's announcement of an integration with Microsoft 365 that brings its AI tool, Just Ask Xero, into Microsoft's software environment.

Target market

Xero is pitching Ultra at businesses handling larger transaction volumes, multiple entities and greater governance demands. Flexible user permissions will be added shortly after launch to help finance teams separate duties and strengthen internal controls.

Users will also have access to Just Ask Xero, or JAX, which Xero describes as an AI financial assistant for routine workflows and business insights. Ultra customers can also connect to Xero's wider app marketplace, which includes more than 1,000 integrations across payroll, payments, inventory and operations.

The product has already been used by companies in a beta programme. One participant, Trainwest, said it adopted the software as its finance operations became more sophisticated.

"Australia's scaling businesses are a vital part of this economy, and their needs are genuinely different. Xero has always grown alongside its customers. Ultra is the next step in that strategy, serving a segment that's complex enough to need more, but still desire simplicity," said Angad Soin, Managing Director, Australia and New Zealand, and Global Chief Strategy Officer at Xero.

Soin said Xero had adapted its platform for businesses whose needs change as they expand.

"These businesses hit a point where their tools stop growing with them. We have made improvements to Xero's platform to help support businesses as they scale. More entities, more complexity, more transactions, more control and insights required. Ultra fills that gap, on a platform finance teams and their advisors already know and trust, without sacrificing simplicity, flexibility or a lengthy implementation process typical with an ERP," he said.

Advisor role

Xero is also positioning the new plan as a way for accountants and bookkeepers to keep larger clients on its platform rather than moving them to specialist ERP systems. That could help advisory firms maintain client relationships as those businesses become more operationally complex.

The plan gives advisors access to more sophisticated reporting and multi-entity support while allowing them to work within software they already use with smaller clients.

"As the business has matured, the Xero platform has continued to meet our needs without creating friction or requiring significant process changes. At no point have I felt like we've outgrown Xero. It has scaled effectively alongside the business, which is not always the case with financial systems," said Damien Wragg, Director and Owner, Trainwest.

Soin said accountants and bookkeepers remain central to how businesses manage new stages of growth.

"Accountants and bookkeepers play a critical role in helping businesses navigate new growth stages," he said.

"Xero Ultra helps give advisors greater capability to support ambitious clients on Xero - more sophisticated reporting, multi-entity support, better visibility. All on a platform they already know deeply," he said.