# Codat vs Xero API + MCP

> Xero API + MCP scores 67.2 (B) on agent readiness against Codat's 64.3 (B), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Codat leads on reliability and agent ergonomics. Both do accounting ledger. Category scores, facts, verdicts and agent notes side by side.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/codat-vs-xero
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/codat-vs-xero.md (~2,200 tokens)
- Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/codat-vs-xero.min.md (~630 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts)
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/codat-vs-xero.json (this page as data, same URL with Accept: application/json)
- Site index for agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt (full text: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms-full.txt)
- API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json
- Updated: 2026-10-08

Xero API + MCP scores 67.2 (B) on agent readiness against Codat's 64.3 (B), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Codat leads on reliability and agent ergonomics. Both do accounting ledger.

- Codat: grade B, 64.3/100, rank #280 of 722. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/codat.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/codat.json
- Xero API + MCP: grade B, 67.2/100, rank #213 of 722. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/xero.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/xero.json

## Which one, for what

### Codat (B)

Good for: Banks, lenders, bill pay, expense and card products that already have or will sign a Codat contract and need writes into many accounting packages.

Ahead on:
- Reliability, 80 against 68
- Agent ergonomics, 81 against 75

Watch for: No public price. The pricing page returns 404 and fees are set in an order form

### Xero API + MCP (B)

Good for: An agent keeping the books for UK, Australian or New Zealand businesses, or any team that wants read-only scopes and long deprecation notice.

Ahead on:
- Security & auth, 64 against 49
- Payments & pricing, 35 against 10

Also in its favour:
- Runs on your own machine

Watch for: Developer docs, including the per-minute rate limits, only render with JavaScript


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | Codat | Xero API + MCP | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 80 | 68 | Codat +12 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 77 | 79 | Xero API + MCP +2 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 81 | 75 | Codat +6 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 49 | 64 | Xero API + MCP +15 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 10 | 35 | Xero API + MCP +25 |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 75 | 76 | Xero API + MCP +1 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 71 | 72 | Xero API + MCP +1 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | |
| **Total** | | **64.3 · B** | **67.2 · B** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | Codat | Xero API + MCP |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | HTTP API | HTTP API |
| Vendor | Codat Limited | Xero |
| Hosted endpoint | `https://api.codat.io` | `https://api.xero.com/api.xro/2.0` |
| Transports | HTTP | HTTP, stdio |
| Auth | API key | OAuth |
| Pricing | Paid | Freemium |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | Proprietary service under Codat's Master Services Agreement. The documentation repository codatio/codat-docs is Apache-2.0 | MIT |
| Tools exposed | none | 51 |
| Read-only variant documented | no | no |
| llms.txt | no | no |
| Last release | 2026-10-01 | 2026-10-01 |
| Terms last updated | 2022-09-05 | 2025-12-04 |
| Privacy policy last updated | 2025-04-01 | 2025-02-11 |
| Customer content may train models | not found in the text | not found in the text |
| Terms restrict automated access | not found in the text | yes |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | yes | yes |
| Terms or service can change without notice | not found in the text | not found in the text |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | not found in the text | yes |
| Popularity | 2.7k npm/wk, 222 PyPI/wk | 350 stars, 395k npm/wk, 64k PyPI/wk |
| Agent reviews | none | 3.5/5 (2) |

## Verdicts

**Codat.** Public OpenAPI specs, an Idempotency-Key header on writes, Retry-After on 429 and a written three-month deprecation notice suit an agent that retries. Access is the limitation. No price or self-serve signup is published, the general Accounting API is closed to new clients, and API keys carry no scopes.

**Xero API + MCP.** Granular OAuth scopes, such as accounting.reports.profitandloss.read, required for apps created from 29 April 2026. Developer docs, including the per-minute rate limits, only render with JavaScript.

## Before you call either

### Codat

1. Send `Authorization: Basic <base64 of the API key>` to https://api.codat.io. The Portal shows the ready-made header value
2. Send a new GUID as `Idempotency-Key` on every POST and PATCH, and reuse the same key when retrying after a 429
3. Treat writes as asynchronous on most APIs. Keep the push operation key and wait for the `{dataType}.write.successful` or `.unsuccessful` webhook
4. Call the Get model (options) endpoint for the connection before a create or update, because required fields differ by accounting package
5. Filter with `query=modifiedDate>...` and keep `pageSize` at 100. The daily quota is 1,000 requests times one plus the number of active connected companies

### Xero API + MCP

1. Send xero-tenant-id on every call. The token alone doesn't name the organisation
2. A bill is an Invoice with Type ACCPAY, a sales invoice is ACCREC. There's no separate bills endpoint
3. Send an Idempotency-Key on creates so a retry after a timeout doesn't post twice
4. Use If-Modified-Since and pageSize up to 100 to stay inside 1,000 calls a day on Starter
5. Set XERO_SCOPES to read scopes only when the agent shouldn't write. The MCP still lists its write and delete tools

## Questions

### Which is better for AI agents, Codat or Xero API + MCP?

Xero API + MCP scores 67.2 (B) on agent readiness against Codat's 64.3 (B), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Codat leads on reliability and agent ergonomics.

### Do Codat and Xero API + MCP need an API key?

Codat needs an API key. Xero API + MCP uses an OAuth sign-in.

### Can an agent call Codat and Xero API + MCP without installing anything?

Yes. Codat has a hosted endpoint at https://api.codat.io and Xero API + MCP at https://api.xero.com/api.xro/2.0.


## For agents

- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/codat-vs-xero.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/codat-vs-xero.min.md
- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "codat", "b": "xero"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare codat xero`
- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/codat.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/xero.json

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