Invoice Reminders

Xero & QuickBooks Invoice Reminders: Why They Don't Work

Feb 27, 2026

13 mins read

If you're using Xero or QuickBooks, you've probably turned on the automatic invoice reminder feature.

You set it up. You felt productive.

"Great, now my overdue invoices will get paid automatically."

Except they don't.

Invoices still sit there unpaid for 30, 60, 90 days.

Clients ignore the reminders.

Nothing changes.

You start wondering:

"Am I doing something wrong? Are my settings off?"

No. The problem isn't you.

The problem is that Xero and QuickBooks reminders don't actually work.

I know that's a bold claim. So let me back it up with actual data.

I Asked 22 Business Owners: "Do Xero/QuickBooks Reminders Work?"

Over the past 3 months, I've been having conversations with business owners about invoice collection.

One question I asked all of them:

"What happens when you receive a Xero or QuickBooks reminder about an overdue invoice?"

Here are some of the actual responses:

"Are you kidding me? I just delete them."
"Haha those don't work."
"I've made it so they go straight to spam."
"If someone wants me to pay an invoice, I'll only do it if the person contacts me."
"I've got an AI monitoring my inbox, it filters out those Xero generic emails."
"I ignore them completely."
"I don't even open emails from Quickbooks anymore."

Out of 22 business owners, not a single one said they actually pay attention to these automated reminders.

Not one.

These are the people you're trying to collect payment from. And they're telling you directly: your automated reminders go straight to the bin.

Why Xero and QuickBooks Reminders Fail

Let me break down exactly why these built-in reminder systems don't work.

Problem 1: They Come From Generic Email Addresses

Xero reminders come from addresses like:

noreply@xero.com
invoices@xero.com
accounts@xero.com

QuickBooks reminders come from:

noreply@intuit.com
invoicing@quickbooks.com

Think about your own inbox. When you see "noreply@xero.com," what do you do?

You ignore it. You delete it. You don't even open it.

Now compare that to an email from Sarah, your accountant.

Or from John, the lawyer you've been working with.

You open that email. You read it. You probably respond.

That's the fundamental problem:

These Xero/Quickbooks reminders don't come from an actual human.

They come from a faceless system. And humans ignore faceless systems.

Problem 2: Everyone Knows They're Automated

When a reminder says:

"This is an automated reminder that invoice #12345 is now overdue. Please make payment at your earliest convenience."

Your client immediately knows:

Nobody actually typed this email
Nobody is actually checking if they paid
There are no real consequences for ignoring it
It's just a robot sending scheduled emails

There's no urgency. No accountability. No reason to prioritise it.

Contrast that with an email that says:

"Hi James, hope you're well! Looks like this invoice is now overdue. Would you mind giving it a quick look and letting me know? Here's the link for your convenience."

That's from a real person who's actually paying attention. That gets a response.

Problem 3: They Go to Spam (A Lot)

Generic sender addresses trigger spam filters.

I've seen this firsthand.

Business owners show me their spam folders - dozens of Xero/QuickBooks reminders sitting there, never seen.

Email providers like Gmail and Outlook have gotten smart about filtering automated messages.

If it looks like a system-generated email from a service provider, it often gets filtered out automatically.

Your client might never even see the reminder. And they'll genuinely have no idea you sent it.

Problem 4: They're One-Size-Fits-All

Xero and QuickBooks send the same generic reminder whether an invoice is:

1 day overdue or 60 days overdue
From a new client or a long-term partner
For $500 or $50,000
Already discussed via email or never mentioned

There's no context. No nuance. No adaptation to the situation.

A good follow-up system escalates progressively.

Day 7 is friendly. Day 14 is firmer. Day 21 is direct. Day 28 is your final push before escalation.

Xero and QuickBooks? Same generic reminder every time.

Problem 5: They Don't Check If You've Already Discussed It

Here's a scenario that happens constantly:

Your client calls you about the invoice
You discuss it, they promise to pay Friday
Three days later, Xero sends them another automated reminder
Now it looks like you don't trust them or aren't paying attention

The automated reminder has no idea you've already had a conversation.

It just blindly sends on schedule, potentially damaging the relationship or making you look disorganised.

Problem 6: No Human Touch = No Relationship Maintenance

Invoice follow-up isn't just about getting paid.

It's also about maintaining the business relationship.

When you personally reach out, you're:

Showing you care about the account
Opening the door for them to discuss issues
Demonstrating professionalism
Building trust for future work

When Xero sends a generic reminder, you're:

Showing you automated the follow-up (because you can't be bothered)
Creating no opportunity for dialogue
Looking impersonal and corporate
Missing a touchpoint in the relationship

Good clients appreciate professional communication from real people.

Bad clients... well, they ignore everything anyway.

What the Numbers Actually Show

Let me give you real collection rate data.

Businesses relying on Xero/QuickBooks reminders:

Collection rate: 5-10% of overdue invoices
Average days to payment: 45-60 days
Manual intervention still required for most invoices

Businesses using systematic follow-up from their actual email:

Collection rate: 55-64% of overdue invoices
Average days to payment: 14.7 days faster
Minimal manual intervention needed

That's not a small difference.

That's the difference between collecting $5,000 and collecting $32,000.

The difference between waiting 45 days and waiting 30 days for payment.

The difference between stable cash flow and whether you'll make payroll.

What Actually Works

If Xero and QuickBooks reminders don't work, what does?

Here's what actually gets invoices paid:

Option 1: Manual Follow-Up From Your Real Email

Send follow-up emails from your actual email address.

Use the templates we've provided and send them yourself.

Pros:

Comes from you, a real person
Completely customisable to each situation
Builds relationships
Actually gets responses

Cons:

Time-consuming (15-30 minutes per invoice if you're doing it manually)
Easy to forget
Inconsistent if you're busy with other work

Option 2: Automated Personal Follow-up

Use a system that:

Monitors your Xero/QuickBooks automatically
Creates intelligent email drafts based on how overdue each invoice is
Puts those drafts in your actual Gmail or Outlook (not a separate dashboard)
Sends from your real email address
Checks email history so it doesn't send redundant follow-ups

You review each draft (takes 10 seconds), maybe add a personal touch, and send.

This is what Invoice Nudge does.

It automates the tracking and draft creation, but the emails come from you. Your clients see your name, your email address, your signature.

Not noreply@xero.com.

Pros:

Looks completely personal (because it is - you're sending it)
Consistent (runs automatically every week)
Saves massive time (10 seconds per invoice vs 30 minutes)
Collection rates of 55-64%

Cons:

Costs money (but pays for itself immediately with the invoices it collects)

Option 3: Hybrid Approach

Keep Xero/QuickBooks reminders on as a baseline, but don't rely on them.

Then manually follow up from your real email for:

Invoices over $2,000
Clients who are historically slow payers
Invoices that are 21+ days overdue

Pros:

Better than nothing
Focuses your energy on high-value follow-ups

Cons:

Still inconsistent
Most invoices still don't get followed up properly
You'll forget to check regularly

The Real Comparison: Generic Reminders vs Personal Follow-Up

Let me show you the difference side by side.

Xero/QuickBooks Reminder:

From: noreply@xero.com
Subject: Invoice Overdue Reminder

"This is an automated reminder that Invoice #12345 dated 15 January 2024 for $2,500.00 is now overdue.

Please make payment at your earliest convenience to avoid late fees.

To view and pay this invoice, click here: [LINK]

This is an automated message. Please do not reply to this email.

Regards, Xero Invoicing"

What the client thinks: "Another automated email I can ignore. They're not actually checking. I'll deal with it later."

Personal Follow-Up:

From: sarah@youraccounting.com
Subject: Quick check-in on invoice

"Hi James,

Hope you're well!

This invoice is now overdue. Would you mind giving it a quick look and letting me know?

Here's the link for your convenience: [LINK]

Thank you in advance!

Sarah"

What the client thinks:

"Oh, Sarah is actually paying attention. I should respond or pay this. It's from a real person who'll follow up again if I don't."

See the difference?

One gets ignored. One gets action.

What About Other Accounting Software?

MYOB: Same problem. Generic reminders, low response rates.

FreshBooks: Slightly better customisation, but still system-generated emails.

Zoho Books: Same issue - automated reminders from Zoho email addresses.

The pattern: Every accounting software has this feature. And it doesn't work well for any of them.

Because the fundamental problem isn't the software.

It's that automated system reminders don't get the same response as personal communication from real humans.

Why Accounting Software Companies Include This Feature

If these reminders don't work, why do Xero and QuickBooks offer them?

Good question.

It's a feature checkbox.

When businesses are comparing accounting software, they see:

"Automatic invoice reminders ✓"
"Recurring invoices ✓"
"Multi-currency support ✓"

It sounds useful. It sounds like it will solve the problem of chasing invoices.

So business owners turn it on, feel productive, and assume it's working.

Meanwhile, their invoices sit unpaid because clients are ignoring the automated reminders.

Xero and QuickBooks aren't in the business of invoice collection.

They're in the business of accounting software.

Invoice reminders are a feature they include because it looks good in marketing materials.

Not because it actually solves the problem effectively.

The Case Study: Switching From Xero Reminders to Personal Follow-Up

Let me show you what happened when one of our users switched approaches.

Before (Using Xero Automatic Reminders):

11 overdue invoices totalling $18,179
Xero reminders going out on schedule
Average invoice sitting overdue for 70+ days
Collection rate: ~5% (basically nothing was getting paid)

After (Switching to Systematic Personal Follow-Up):

Same 11 invoices
Follow-up emails from their actual Gmail account
Progressive escalation (days 7, 14, 21, 28)
Week 1: 7 out of 11 invoices paid ($11,635 collected)
Collection rate: 64%

What changed?

Not the invoices. Not the clients. Not the amounts owed.

Just the follow-up method.

Personal emails from a real person.

That one change recovered $11,635 in a single week.

What to Do Right Now

If you're currently relying on Xero or QuickBooks reminders, here's what to do:

Today:

Check your overdue invoices right now in Xero/QuickBooks
How many are there? How long have they been sitting?
Those Xero reminders didn't get them paid, did they?

This Week:

Turn off the automatic reminders (or leave them on, but don't rely on them)
Start sending personal follow-up emails from your actual email address
Use our email template guide for the exact words to use

This Month:

Track your collection rate - what percentage of overdue invoices are actually getting paid?
Measure how long it takes on average to get paid
Compare those numbers before and after switching to personal follow-up

Long Term:

Decide if manual follow-up is sustainable or if you need automation
If you need automation, use a system that sends from your real email (like Invoice Nudge)
Reserve Xero/QuickBooks for what they're good at: accounting, not invoice collection

The Alternative: Automate Personal Follow-Up

Here's the problem with completely manual follow-up:

You won't do it consistently.

You'll remember some invoices. Forget others. Feel awkward about certain clients. Get busy with actual work.

This is why Invoice Nudge exists.

It automates the systematic part (monitoring overdue invoices, creating drafts, scheduling) while keeping the personal part (emails from your real address).

How it works:

Connects to your Xero or QuickBooks account
Monitors for overdue invoices automatically
Creates intelligent email drafts at days 7, 14, 21, and 28
Drafts appear in your actual Gmail or Outlook inbox
You review each draft (takes 10 seconds)
You send from your own email address

Your clients receive emails from you, not from noreply@xero.com.

The system runs every Tuesday morning, so when you start work, your invoice follow-up drafts are sitting there ready to review and send.

Users are seeing:

55-64% collection rates (vs 5-10% with Xero reminders)
14.7 days faster payment on average
10-20 hours saved per month on manual tracking

Learn more about Invoice Nudge or start your 14-day free trial.

Setup takes 3 minutes.

The Bottom Line on Xero and QuickBooks Reminders

Here's what you need to understand:

Xero and QuickBooks automatic invoice reminders don't work.

I'm not guessing. I asked 22 business owners directly. Not one of them pays attention to these automated reminders.

They delete them. They filter them to spam. They ignore them completely.

The reminders fail because:

They come from generic system email addresses
Everyone knows they're automated
They often go to spam
They're one-size-fits-all with no context
They can't check if you've already discussed the invoice
They have no human touch

What works instead:

Personal follow-up from your actual email address.

Whether you do it manually or use a system like Invoice Nudge to automate the creation of personal drafts, the key is that the email needs to come from you.

From a real person. With your name. Your email address. Your signature.

Not from noreply@xero.com.

The data doesn't lie:

Xero/QuickBooks reminders: 5-10% collection rate
Personal follow-up: 55-64% collection rate

That's the difference between collecting $5,000 and collecting $32,000 on $50,000 of overdue invoices.

Stop relying on automated system reminders.

Start sending personal follow-ups.

Get paid.

Related Resources

Want to improve your entire invoice collection process? Check out these guides:

Ready to switch from generic Xero/Quickbooks reminders to personal follow-up? Invoice Nudge automates the creation of personal email drafts that appear in your Gmail or Outlook. You review and send from your own email address - clients see you, not a system. Start your 14-day free trial - setup takes 3 minutes.