Xero's invoice reminders are free and built-in. But they cap out at 5 total stages, only support email, and apply the same schedule to every client. For growing businesses, that's a problem.
Search interest for “xero invoice reminders” keeps climbing. More businesses are hitting the limits and looking for something better.
ChaseBot doesn't replace Xero. It fills the gaps Xero's reminders leave behind.
Pro plan from $29/mo. Includes 200 invoices and priority support.
When you have 5 or 10 invoices a month, Xero's built-in reminders work fine. But as your business grows, their limitations start costing you real money.
You get up to 5 reminder stages total (typically defaulting to a pre-due nudge plus overdue reminders at 14, 21, and 30 days). Each stage can have its own email template. But every client gets the same sequence, on the same schedule, with no way to assign different flows by client type, invoice size, or relationship. And there's no SMS at all.
A side-by-side look at Xero's built-in reminders vs. ChaseBot.
Xero's reminders are included free and work for basic use. ChaseBot adds the channels, flexibility, and automation that businesses need as they scale. Learn more about invoice reminder software.
Ready to try the simpler approach?
Connect your Xero, freeThese aren't edge cases. These are the frustrations real Xero users run into every week.
“Xero's reminder stages are limited to 5”
- User on r/Xero
Xero gives you a maximum of 5 reminder stages. You can customize the timing and email template for each stage, but 5 is the hard cap. For businesses with a longer collection cycle or complex escalation needs, that runs out fast.
ChaseBot: Unlimited reminder stages per flow. Build sequences that run as long as you need without any manual intervention.
“You cannot set up different reminder flows for different client groups.”
- User on r/Xero
Xero lets you customize the email template for each stage, which is useful. But every client gets the exact same sequence on the exact same schedule. A $200 invoice to a regular monthly client follows the same path as a $15,000 invoice to a new customer. You can toggle reminders off per client or per invoice, but you can't assign different flows to different segments.
ChaseBot: Create multiple reminder flows and assign them per client. Use the visual flow builder to craft different sequences for different situations.
Xero only sends email reminders. Email invoice reminders average a 20% open rate. That means 4 out of 5 clients never see your reminder. SMS gets a 98% open rate and is read within 3 minutes on average.
ChaseBot: SMS + email in a single flow. Start with email, escalate to SMS. Or lead with a text. Your choice. Learn more about SMS invoice reminders.
“Chasing late invoices... eats up a huge amount of time”
- User on r/Xero
Xero does stop reminders once an invoice is marked as paid. But that only happens after bank reconciliation. If a customer pays on Monday and you reconcile on Thursday, a reminder can still go out in between. That's embarrassing and damages trust.
ChaseBot: Real-time Xero sync via webhooks. The moment a payment is recorded in Xero, ChaseBot detects it and cancels any pending reminders for that invoice. No reconciliation lag.
Xero doesn't tell you which reminders are working. You can't see open rates, response rates, or how long it takes clients to pay after a reminder. You're flying blind.
ChaseBot: Full analytics dashboard showing reminder performance, average days to payment, and which flows are driving the fastest collections.
Running into issues with your current setup? Check our troubleshooting guide: Xero invoice reminders not working.
Credit where it's due. Xero's built-in reminders have some real advantages.
Included with every Xero subscription at no extra cost. You don't pay anything more to enable reminders.
No third-party app to set up, no OAuth flow, no extra login. Reminders are right there inside Xero's settings.
Xero lets you send reminders before an invoice is due. A useful nudge that many businesses overlook.
Each reminder stage gets its own editable email with customizable subject lines, body text, and dynamic placeholders like contact name and invoice details.
You can turn off reminders for a specific client or a specific invoice. Handy if you've agreed on a payment plan or want to exclude small accounts.
Xero lets you skip reminders for invoices under a certain dollar amount. Saves you from chasing tiny balances that aren't worth the follow-up.
Option to attach the invoice as a PDF directly to the reminder email. Some clients prefer this over clicking a link.
If you only need basic email reminders on a fixed schedule, Xero's setup is straightforward. Toggle it on, set your days, done.
For a deeper walkthrough of setting up Xero's native reminders, see our guide on how to automate invoice reminders in Xero.
ChaseBot doesn't replace Xero. You keep Xero for invoicing, payments, and accounting. ChaseBot handles the one thing Xero doesn't do well: getting invoices paid on time.
One-click OAuth. Your outstanding invoices sync instantly. No CSV imports, no manual entry.
Use the visual flow builder to create reminder sequences. Mix SMS and email. Set timing per stage.
Different clients get different flows. High-value clients get a personal touch. Small invoices get a quick nudge.
Reminders go out on schedule. Payments are detected in real-time. You focus on your actual work.
Want the full picture on Xero invoice reminders? We cover everything from setup to advanced automation.
Let's do the math. ChaseBot's paid plan is $29/month. Is that worth it?
You have a single $5,000 invoice that typically gets paid 30 days late. ChaseBot's SMS reminders + smart scheduling get it paid just 2 weeks faster.
That $5,000 hits your account 14 days earlier. If you're carrying a line of credit at 8% interest, that's ~$15 saved per invoice in financing costs alone. Plus the time you didn't spend chasing it manually.
Even one invoice paid faster each month pays for ChaseBot. And most businesses have dozens of outstanding invoices, not one. At $29/month, the ROI is almost immediate.
And you can start free.
ChaseBot's free tier covers 5 invoices per month with full SMS and email support. Test the impact on your collection speed before committing to the paid plan. No credit card required.
Xero handles your invoicing. ChaseBot handles getting them paid. Connect in 30 seconds, start your free plan, and see the difference SMS and smart scheduling make.
Try ChaseBot free