How to get Acuity bookings into Xero now the built-in link has stopped

You take bookings in Acuity Scheduling and keep your books in Xero. You try to connect them and it won't let you. It isn't you.

Acuity's own help centre now says: "It's not possible to create new connections between Acuity and Xero." So if you didn't connect before, the built-in link isn't an option any more.

Here are the ways that still work, what each one misses, and how to pick.

What the old link didn't do anyway

Even for people who connected before the change, the built-in link had gaps. Acuity's help page lists what it doesn't support for Xero:

Package, subscription and gift certificate orders don't sync.
Invoices don't update when an appointment is cancelled or rescheduled.

So if you sell class packs, packages or gift vouchers, those were always a manual job.

Option 1: Export from Acuity and enter it in Xero

Acuity lets you download your appointments as a spreadsheet (a CSV file). Go to Reports, then Import/Export, pick your dates and click Export appointments. The file shows each appointment's price, whether it was paid, and the amount paid online.

You or your bookkeeper then enter the takings in Xero, as invoices or as a single sales total for the week or month.

Good for: small numbers of bookings, and anyone who wants no new software.

Watch out for: it's slow and easy to miss things. Acuity's export help doesn't mention packages or gift certificates, so you may need those separately. Later cancellations and reschedules need fixing by hand.

Option 2: Zapier

Zapier links apps with automations called "zaps". Acuity's help page points to it for packages, gift certificates and subscriptions: "You can create invoices for packages, gift certificates, and subscriptions using Zapier."

A typical setup is one zap that turns a New Appointment in Acuity into a sales invoice in Xero, and another that turns a New Product Order (a package or gift certificate sale) into an invoice.

Good for: people comfortable building and checking their own automations.

Watch out for:

No trigger for refunds, or for when a package or gift certificate is used. Zapier's list of Acuity triggers covers new appointments, starts, cancellations, reschedules and new product orders, and nothing else. Refunds and redemptions stay manual.
Recurring bookings can fire more than once. Zapier's help says the New Appointment trigger fires "once for each appointment scheduled", so a recurring booking can start several zaps.
One zap per event. Cancellations and reschedules each need their own zap if you want Xero to keep up.
Cost grows with use. Zapier charges by tasks. The free plan has 100 tasks a month and only two-step zaps. A busy diary, or a zap that creates an invoice and then records the payment, will usually need a paid plan.
HIPAA setting. Acuity says: "Zapier isn't compatible with Acuity's HIPAA-enabled setting." If you've turned that setting on, Zapier is out.

Option 3: Let your bookkeeper do it

You can hand the job over. Your bookkeeper takes the Acuity export (option 1) and your Stripe, Square or PayPal payouts, and matches them up in Xero each month.

Good for: anyone who already pays a bookkeeper and has a manageable number of bookings.

Watch out for: it's paid time every month, and the books are only as up to date as the last session. Ask them how they'd treat gift vouchers and packages. Selling a voucher and someone using it are two different moments in the accounts.

Option 4: Booking Sync (we made this one)

We built Booking Sync to fill this gap, so we're not neutral. Here's exactly what it does, so you can judge it against the options above.

Each booking becomes a Xero invoice, with the client added as a contact.
Payments taken in Acuity by Stripe, Square or PayPal are recorded against the invoice, into the account you pick.
Reschedules update the invoice. Cancellations void an unpaid one.
Packages and gift certificates come across too. You choose whether to count them as income when sold, or hold them in a liability account until they're used.
Refunds aren't automatic. If a paid booking is cancelled, Booking Sync flags it in its activity list and in its daily alert email, so you can add a credit note in Xero for any refund you gave.
Coded your way. You pick the sales account and VAT rate, and you can set different ones for each appointment type.
A nightly check catches anything missed if Acuity or Xero has a bad moment.

Setting up is four steps: connect Acuity, connect Xero and pick your organisation, choose your accounts and VAT rates, then press Start syncing.

The catch: it needs Acuity's Premium plan (or the older Powerhouse plan). Booking Sync uses Acuity's API, and Acuity only offers that on those plans. If you're on Starter or Standard, Booking Sync won't connect, so an export, Zapier or your bookkeeper will suit you better.

Price: £12 a month after a 14-day free trial. Cancel any time from the app.

Which should you choose?

A handful of bookings a month, no packages or vouchers: the export is fine.
You like building things, or you're not on Premium: try Zapier, and plan for refunds and redemptions by hand.
You already have a bookkeeper: ask them first. They may prefer a tool that puts clean invoices in Xero for them to check.
On Premium, selling packages or vouchers, and want it hands-off: try Booking Sync.

Whichever you pick, ask your accountant how they want packages and gift vouchers recorded before you start. It saves fixing it at year end.

FAQ

Can I still connect Acuity to Xero directly? Not as a new connection. Acuity's help centre says new connections between Acuity and Xero aren't possible.

Does Zapier sync Acuity gift certificates to Xero? It can turn a new gift certificate sale into a Xero invoice, using the New Product Order trigger. There's no trigger for when a certificate is used, or for refunds.

Which Acuity plan do I need for Booking Sync? Premium, or the older Powerhouse plan. Acuity only allows API access on those plans.

Sources

Checked 9 November 2026.