Bexio - The Leading Cloud ERP for Swiss SMEs

Bexio is the most widely used Cloud ERP solution for Swiss SMEs with over 80,000 active customers. The software combines accounting, CRM, order processing, e-banking, and payroll in a single, web-based platform – specifically developed for the Swiss market.

What is Bexio?

Bexio is a 100% Swiss business software founded in 2013 and is now the market leader in the Cloud ERP segment for SMEs. The platform primarily targets:

Sole proprietorships & startups (1-5 employees)
Small and medium-sized enterprises (5-50 employees)
Fiduciary offices (managing multiple clients)
Freelancers & self-employed (coaching, consulting, trades)

Core Functions

Accounting (FIBU)
- Double-entry accounting according to Swiss chart of accounts (KMU, Käfer)
- VAT-compliant billing (old & new VAT rates)
- Automatic VAT reporting (quarterly)
- Year-end export for fiduciaries
Order Processing
- Quotes, order confirmations, delivery notes
- Invoices with QR code (Swiss QR Bill from 2020)
- Automatic payment reminders & dunning letters
- Recurring invoices (subscriptions, retainers)
E-Banking Integration
- Automatic payment reconciliation (all Swiss banks)
- PostFinance, UBS, Credit Suisse, Raiffeisen, ZKB
- Camt.054 import (Swiss banking standard)
- QR invoice scanning via mobile app
CRM & Contact Management
- Customer database with sales opportunities
- Sales pipeline
- Tasks & appointments
- Email templates
Project Time Tracking
- Hourly billing per project
- Timer function (desktop & mobile)
- Project profitability reports
- Hourly rate management
Payroll
- Swiss payroll (AHV, BVG, withholding tax)
- Salary statements (up to 10 employees in Pro package)
- Swissdec export for social insurance
- 13th month salary, overtime, expenses

Pricing & Packages

| Package | Price | Users | Ideal for | Highlights | |---------|-------|-------|-----------|-----------| | Starter | CHF 30/month | 1 | Sole proprietorships, freelancers | Accounting, invoices, VAT | | Standard | CHF 55/month | 3 | Small teams (3-10 people) | + Inventory, projects, API | | Pro | CHF 125/month | 10+ | Growing SMEs | + Payroll (10 employees), unlimited API |

Additional Costs:

E-banking module: CHF 15/month (automatic payment reconciliation)
Additional payroll module: CHF 6/month per employee (from 11th employee)
API calls: Unlimited in Pro package, otherwise CHF 0.02/call (from 100/day)

30 days free trial (no credit card required)

Advantages of Bexio

✅ Swiss Compliance

VAT-compliant: All Swiss VAT rates (7.7%, 3.7%, 2.5%, 0%)
QR invoice: Full support since 2020
E-banking: Integration with all Swiss banks
Swissdec: Payroll data export for AHV, BVG, withholding tax
Chart of accounts: Swiss SME chart of accounts & Käfer

✅ User-Friendliness

Intuitive interface: No accounting knowledge required
Quick setup: Ready to use in 1-2 hours
Wizard-guided: Quote, invoice, and reminder assistants
Mobile apps: iOS & Android (scanner, timer, expenses)

✅ Automation

Automatic payment reconciliation: E-banking data → invoices
Recurring invoices: Automatic sending (subscriptions)
Quarterly VAT reporting: Automatic calculation
Dunning system: Automatic payment reminders
API & Webhooks: n8n, Zapier, Make integrations

✅ Support & Community

Swiss support: Phone hotline (DE/FR/IT)
80,000+ customers: Largest Bexio community
Fiduciary network: 2,000+ partner fiduciaries
Free webinars: Weekly training sessions

Disadvantages / Limitations

⚠️ Limitations

Cloud only: No on-premise installation possible
Switzerland only: No multi-country support (only CHF/EUR)
Inventory management: Very basic (no barcode scanner)
Project management: No Gantt charts, resource planning
API limits: Standard package only 100 API calls/day

⚠️ Not suitable for:

Large enterprises (50+ employees → Abacus, SAP)
Complex inventory management (→ SAP, Odoo)
Multi-entity groups (→ Abacus, NetSuite)
International expansion (→ Xero, QuickBooks)

Bexio vs. Competition

| Feature | Bexio | Abacus | Sage 50 | Run my Accounts | |---------|-------|--------|---------|-----------------| | Price | CHF 30-125/month | CHF 200+/month | CHF 50-150/month | CHF 29-59/month | | User-friendliness | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | | Feature scope | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐ | | Swiss compliance | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | | API & Automation | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐ | | Cloud-first | ✅ Yes | ❌ No | ⚠️ Hybrid | ✅ Yes | | SME market share | 🏆 #1 (80k) | #2 (40k) | #3 (20k) | #4 (10k) |

Conclusion: Bexio is the best choice for Swiss SMEs up to 20 employees looking for a simple, cloud-based complete solution. For larger companies (20+), we recommend Abacus (more features, higher complexity).

API & Automation

Bexio offers a REST API with over 50 endpoints for:

Available API Endpoints

Contacts: CRUD (customers, suppliers, partners)
Invoices: Create, send, reminders
Accounting: Postings, accounts, VAT
Projects: Time tracking, project budgets
Articles: Products, services, inventory
Banking: Payments, account statements (Camt.054)

Popular Integrations

n8n (Open-Source Automation)
- 150+ pre-built Bexio workflows
- See: Bexio n8n Automation Guide
Zapier (No-Code Automation)
- 500+ app connections
- Bexio → Slack, Gmail, Trello, etc.
Make (formerly Integromat)
- Visual workflow builder
- Bexio → Google Sheets, Airtable, etc.

API Limits

Standard package: 100 API calls/day (then CHF 0.02/call)
Pro package: Unlimited API calls included
Rate limit: 300 requests/minute

Who Uses Bexio?

Typical Customer Profiles

Sole proprietorships (40%)
- Coaching, consulting, design
- CHF 30/month (Starter package)
- Focus: Invoices, VAT
Trade businesses (25%)
- Plumbing, electrical, painting
- CHF 55/month (Standard package)
- Focus: Orders, inventory, hours
SME service providers (20%)
- Marketing agencies, IT companies
- CHF 125/month (Pro package)
- Focus: Projects, CRM, API
Fiduciary offices (15%)
- Managing 5-50 clients
- Multiple Pro packages
- Focus: FIBU, VAT, payroll

Migration & Onboarding

Switching from Other Software

Bexio offers free migration from:

Excel/Word: Import of customer master data
Sage 50: Data export → Bexio import
Banana Accounting: Take over chart of accounts
Abacus: Migration support via partner fiduciaries

Typical Setup Time

Basic setup: 1-2 hours (company, chart of accounts, master data)
Full configuration: 1-2 days (e-banking, payroll, projects)
Training: 2-3 days (for 3-5 employees)

Recommended Onboarding Process

Week 1: Import master data (customers, suppliers, articles)
Week 2: Connect e-banking + test invoices
Week 3: Configure accounting & VAT
Week 4: Train team + go live

Support & Training

Available Support Channels

Phone hotline: Mon-Fri 08:00-18:00 (DE/FR/IT)
Live chat: Mon-Fri 08:00-18:00
Email support: Response within 4h (business hours)
Knowledge base: 500+ help articles
YouTube channel: 200+ tutorial videos

Free Training

Webinars: Weekly (accounting, VAT, payroll)
Onboarding session: 1:1 with Bexio expert (CHF 0)
Community forum: 5,000+ active users

Conclusion & Recommendation

✅ Bexio is ideal for:

Swiss SMEs with 1-20 employees
Companies that value ease of use over feature richness
Businesses without IT department (cloud, no setup required)
Users who need Swiss compliance (VAT, QR, e-banking)

❌ Bexio is NOT suitable for:

Large enterprises (20+ employees → Abacus)
Complex inventory management (barcode, batches → SAP)
International expansion (multi-currency → Xero)
On-premise requirements (data on-site → Abacus)

🏆 Our Rating (9.5/10)

User-friendliness: 10/10
Swiss compliance: 10/10
Price-performance: 9/10
Feature scope: 8/10
API & Automation: 9/10

Recommendation: Bexio is the best Cloud ERP solution for Swiss SMEs and clear market leader in the segment up to 20 employees. For larger companies or specific requirements (e.g., complex inventory), we recommend Abacus or SAP Business One.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Is Bexio VAT-compliant? ✅ Yes, Bexio is fully VAT-compliant and supports all Swiss VAT rates (7.7%, 3.7%, 2.5%, 0%). Quarterly VAT reporting is automatic.

Can I connect Bexio to my bank? ✅ Yes, Bexio supports all Swiss banks (PostFinance, UBS, CS, Raiffeisen, ZKB) via Camt.054 import and automatic payment reconciliation.

Does Bexio work with QR invoices? ✅ Yes, Bexio has fully supported Swiss QR invoices since 2020 (QR code generation + scanning via mobile app).

Can I manage multiple companies with one Bexio account? ❌ No, each company requires a separate Bexio subscription. Fiduciary offices typically use multiple accounts (with client discount).

Does Bexio offer an API for automation? ✅ Yes, Bexio offers a REST API with 50+ endpoints. API calls are unlimited in the Pro package, 100/day free in Standard.

Is Bexio also suitable for fiduciary offices? ✅ Yes, over 2,000 Swiss fiduciary offices use Bexio to manage their clients (separate accounts per client with fiduciary access).

Can I migrate from Sage 50 to Bexio? ✅ Yes, Bexio offers free migration from Sage 50, Excel, and other systems (support available via partner fiduciaries).

Is my accounting safe in Bexio? ✅ Yes, Bexio hosts all data in Switzerland (ISO 27001 certified), uses 256-bit encryption, and offers daily backups.

Further Resources

Official comparison: Bexio vs. Abacus
Automation guide: 150+ Bexio n8n Workflows
Setup instructions: Set up Bexio in 2 hours
Swiss ERP comparison: The 10 Best ERP Systems for Swiss SMEs

Last updated: November 17, 2025 | Review: Lukas Huber, Fiduciary Expert

Bexio - Swiss Cloud ERP for SMEs