Xero for Tradies: A Practical Setup Guide for Australian Trade Businesses

and does not constitute financial, tax or legal advice. Always consult a

Xero is the most widely used accounting software for Australian small

businesses, and for good reason -- it's well-designed, integrates with

almost everything, and handles all the ATO compliance requirements for

Australian businesses including BAS, STP payroll, and TPAR reporting.

But getting it set up correctly from the start makes a significant

difference to how useful it is.

This guide is a practical walkthrough of how to set up Xero for a trade

business in Australia, covering the key configuration steps, the

settings that many tradies miss, and how to connect the tools that make

it genuinely useful on a day-to-day basis.

Step 1: Choose the Right Xero Plan

Xero offers multiple plans. For most active sole trader tradies, the

Growing plan (which has unlimited invoicing and bank reconciliation) is

appropriate. If you have employees, you'll need a plan that includes

payroll -- check Xero's current plan structure as it changes

periodically.

New Xero subscribers often get access to a discount for the first 6

months. If you're signing up through your accountant, ask whether they

have an Xero partner discount available -- accountants on Xero's advisor

programme often have access to discounted rates for their clients.

Step 2: Set Up Your Business Details

In Xero's settings, complete your business information fully: legal

business name (matching your ABN registration), trading name if

different, ABN, tax registration details (GST registration, BAS

lodgement frequency, tax basis), and financial year settings. In

Australia, the financial year runs 1 July to 30 June.

Set your default payment terms (how many days after invoice is payment

due) and your invoice prefix/numbering. These details appear on every

invoice you send, so get them right before generating your first

invoice.

Step 3: Connect Your Bank Account

This is one of the most important setup steps. Xero connects directly to

most Australian business bank accounts via a bank feed, importing

transactions automatically daily. Go to Accounting > Bank Accounts > Add

Bank Account and search for your bank.

Once connected, transactions from your business account will appear in

Xero daily and can be matched to invoices and bills, or manually coded

to the correct account category. Reconciling your bank in Xero regularly

(weekly or fortnightly) is the core of good bookkeeping. It takes 10-20

minutes when done regularly; hours when left for months.

Step 4: Set Up Your Chart of Accounts

Xero comes with a default chart of accounts that's reasonable but often

needs adjustment for a trade business. Review the default accounts and

add or modify categories specific to your trade:

• Vehicle costs -- fuel, maintenance, registration, insurance

• Tools and equipment -- purchases under and over the write-off

threshold

• Trade-specific materials -- separate from general supplies if your

trade has distinct material categories

• Subcontractor costs -- a separate account makes TPAR reporting easier

• Licensing and compliance -- trade licences, certification fees

Having the right account categories makes your financial reports

meaningful and makes BAS preparation and tax time significantly easier.

Step 5: Set Up GST and BAS Settings

In Xero, go to Accounting > Advanced Settings and confirm your GST

settings: your GST registration date, your BAS lodgement frequency

(monthly or quarterly), and whether you use cash or accrual accounting

for GST. Most small trade businesses use quarterly BAS and cash

accounting for GST -- check with your accountant what's right for your

situation.

Xero's BAS report generates automatically from your coded transactions.

When BAS time comes, you run the report, review it, and either lodge

directly through Xero's ATO connection (if you have the relevant Xero

plan) or give it to your accountant or BAS agent to review and lodge.

Step 6: Connect Your Job Management App

If you use ServiceM8, Tradify, Fergus, or another job management

platform, set up the Xero integration. This pushes invoices created in

your field app directly into Xero, eliminating manual re-entry. Go to

your app's settings, find the Xero integration section, and follow the

connection steps -- typically a straightforward OAuth authorisation

process.

Test the integration with one real invoice before relying on it. Confirm

that the invoice appears in Xero with the correct client, amount, and

account coding. Check that GST is being coded correctly (10% GST, not

tax-exempt).

Step 7: Set Up Invoice Templates

In Xero, customise your invoice template to include your business logo,

contact details, ABN, bank account details (BSB and account number) for

direct payment, and your payment terms. A professional invoice template

creates the right impression and removes any excuse for a client not

knowing how to pay.

Add a standard message at the bottom of every invoice -- something like

"Thank you for your business. Payment by bank transfer to the details

above is appreciated within [X] days." Clear, professional, and

functional.

Step 8: Set Up TPAR Reporting (If Required)

If you engage subcontractors (which most tradies in construction and

related trades do), you're required to lodge a Taxable Payments Annual

Report with the ATO by 28 August each year. Xero handles TPAR, but you

need to mark your subcontractor contacts correctly.

In Xero, go to each subcontractor's contact record and check the "Report

payment to ATO (TPAR)" checkbox. Then when you record payments to that

subcontractor throughout the year, Xero tracks them automatically and

generates the TPAR report when you need it.

Step 9: Set Up Payroll (If You Have Employees)

If you have employees or apprentices, set up Xero Payroll before their

first pay day. Add each employee's details including tax file number,

superannuation fund, and pay rate. Xero's payroll module handles Single

Touch Payroll (STP) reporting to the ATO automatically when you process

each pay run.

For super payments, connect Xero to the ATO's Small Business

Superannuation Clearing House (free for businesses with under 19

employees) or use Xero's integrated superannuation payment feature.

Making super payments on time -- at least quarterly -- is a legal

obligation.

Getting the Most from Xero

Once set up, the habits that keep Xero useful are: reconcile the bank

weekly, review outstanding invoices fortnightly and chase overdue

accounts, run a profit and loss report monthly to check your business

performance, and prepare and review BAS with your accountant quarterly.

Xero is only as useful as the data in it. A well-maintained Xero file

gives you real-time visibility on how your business is performing. A

neglected one creates year-end chaos. The investment of 30 minutes a

week in regular maintenance is repaid many times over.

## Setting Up Job Costing and Project Tracking in Xero For tradies, knowing exactly how much each job costs is the difference between profit and loss. Xero's tracking categories feature is built for this, but most tradies set it up wrong initially. Here's the practical approach: Create a tracking category called "Job Reference" or "Project Code." When you invoice a client, tag it with a unique code—something simple like "Johnson Kitchen Reno" or "Smith Bathroom." This isn't just for invoicing; every expense related to that job should be tagged the same way. For materials, use a second tracking category called "Trade Type" or "Cost Centre." Tag expenses as Plumbing, Carpentry, Electrical, or whatever applies to your business. This gives you two layers of visibility: how much specific jobs cost, and how much each trade discipline costs across all jobs. When setting up your chart of accounts, create separate expense accounts for each major cost type: - Materials (broken down by trade if you're large enough) - Labour (payroll goes here, not as an expense) - Plant and equipment hire - Vehicle expenses (fuel, maintenance, registration) - Subcontractor payments - Tools and consumables The magic happens in Xero's Reports section. Run a Profit & Loss report filtered by your Job Reference tracking category, and you'll see exactly which jobs were profitable. Run it by Trade Type, and you'll know which services make you the most margin. Most tradies do this quarterly and adjust their pricing accordingly. One critical point: if you're using Tradify or similar job management software, it can integrate with Xero to pull invoicing data automatically. This saves hours and eliminates double-entry errors. ## Maximising Deductions: Vehicle, Tools, and Home Office Setup Australian tax law is generous with tradies, but only if you document properly. Xero won't automatically find deductions for you—you need to log them correctly. **Vehicle expenses** are the biggest deduction opportunity. The ATO allows 88c per kilometre for work-related driving. Keep a logbook for four weeks when you start using a vehicle for work, then use that pattern for the full year. In Xero, create a vehicle expense account and tag every fuel receipt, service, registration, and insurance payment. At tax time, your accountant can calculate the kilometre deduction and claim it against the actual expenses you've logged—whichever is higher. **Tools and equipment under $20,000** can be instantly written off until 30 June 2026, so keep those receipts. If you buy a $15,000 compressor or a $8,000 drill rig, log it as an expense in Xero under "Tools & Equipment" (not as an asset), and claim the full amount this financial year. Once that threshold passes, you'll need to depreciate larger purchases. **Home office** is where many tradies miss out. If you run your business from home—quoting jobs, managing invoices, ordering supplies—you can claim a percentage of your rent or mortgage interest, utilities, and internet. The ATO uses a $17.50 per hour rule for simplified claims, or you can calculate actual expenses. If your office is 10% of your home and you spend 20 hours a week there managing the business, that's legitimate. Create a "Home Office" expense account in Xero and split bills accordingly. **Superannuation contributions** are deductible and often overlooked by sole traders. The current superannuation guarantee is 11.5% of employee wages. If you're employing yourself or staff, ensure these are logged correctly in Xero's payroll. Any additional contributions you make (up to $27,500 combined with employer contributions for 2024–25) are also deductible. Here's what deductions look like in practice: | Expense Type | How to Log It | ATO Position | Xero Setup | |---|---|---|---| | Vehicle fuel & maintenance | Tag by vehicle, use 88c/km or actual expenses (whichever is higher) | Fully deductible if work-related | Create vehicle sub-account; attach logbook evidence | | Tools under $20k | Log as immediate expense | Instant write-off until 30 June 2026 | Expense account, not asset account | | Home office (actual method) | Calculate square meterage and apportion utilities | Deductible if genuine work space | Split utility bills across "Home Office" account monthly | | Home office (simplified) | $17.50 per hour worked | Easier to justify in audit | Time-tracking note in Xero; claim lump sum at tax time | | Subscriptions (software, memberships) | Monthly or annual subscription expense | Deductible if directly work-related | Create "Software & Subscriptions" account | | Meals on job site | Meal expenses while travelling for work | Only if away from usual workplace overnight; day-to-day meals are not deductible | Separate account to avoid confusion with entertainment (non-deductible) | | Professional development (courses, licenses) | Invoice to "Training & Professional Dev" | Deductible if maintaining/improving existing skills | Keep certificates as evidence | | Work-related phone/internet | Percentage of bill corresponding to work use | Must be apportioned; not fully deductible for personal use | Allocate percentage monthly to avoid ATO challenges | ## Frequently Asked Questions