Who is behind them
sevdesk is a German company from Offenburg, part of the Cegid group since 2022. Its cloud accounting is aimed primarily at freelancers and small businesses.
Lexware Office is Lexware's cloud product, known as lexoffice until the rename. Lexware belongs to Haufe and also sells the classic desktop programs — those are unsuitable for a Shopify integration because they lack the interface.
That distinction matters more than it sounds: people saying „Lexware“ sometimes mean the desktop program. Everything below refers to Lexware Office, the browser product with an online login.
Pricing
Both use tiered pricing. The list prices below are net and monthly, as of September 2026 — check promotions and annual discounts directly with the vendor.
| sevdesk | Per month | For |
|---|---|---|
| Free | 0.00 € | 3 invoices a month, e-invoicing |
| Invoicing | 12.90 € | Unlimited invoices and quotes |
| Bookkeeping | 25.90 € | Annual accounts, VAT returns, receipts, banking |
| Inventory | check with vendor | Includes stock and ordering |
Lexware Office pricing
Lexware Office is tiered more finely and starts lower, but has no permanently free tier.
| Lexware Office | Per month | For |
|---|---|---|
| S | 7.90 € | Receipt capture and archive |
| M | 12.90 € | Quotes, invoices, reminders |
| L | 21.90 € | Bookkeeping, annual accounts, VAT |
| XL | 32.90 € | EU and partial invoices, API |
Where the differences actually sit
Put the feature lists side by side and the picture is monotonous: invoices, recurring invoices, credit notes, custom templates, sequential numbers, OSS, reverse charge, VAT ID checks, XRechnung, ZUGFeRD, DATEV export, iOS and Android apps, receipt recognition, bank feeds, PayPal, Stripe — a yes on both sides.
That is not a failure of the comparison, it is the result: the market is mature and both cover the core. A comparison that manufactures differences here helps nobody.
| Area | sevdesk | Lexware Office |
|---|---|---|
| Invoices, credit notes, templates | Yes | Yes |
| OSS and reverse charge | Yes | Yes |
| XRechnung and ZUGFeRD | Yes | Yes |
| DATEV export and adviser access | Yes | Yes |
| Mobile app, receipt OCR, banking | Yes | Yes |
| Entry price | 0 € (3 inv.) or 12.90 € | 7.90 € |
| Bookkeeping tier | 25.90 € | 21.90 € |
The three questions that actually decide it
- What does your tax adviser use? If your firm already runs one of the two, the decision is usually made before the feature comparison begins. A shared login saves both sides work.
- How many invoices a month? Up to three, sevdesk's free tier is enough. Above that both sit at 12.90 € in the invoicing tier, and the question shifts to the bookkeeping tier — where Lexware Office is four euros cheaper.
- Do you need stock and ordering? Then sevdesk's inventory tier is closer; Lexware Office does not cover that in the same form.
What matters additionally for Shopify merchants
Neither system knows Shopify by itself. Between store and accounting you need an integration that turns orders into documents — with the tax case, line items, shipping and discounts.
That step is independent of the tool choice, and it is often where a decision flips: if no usable integration exists for one of the two, the cheaper tier is worth little.
zrapp supports both. Setup is described in connecting Shopify to sevdesk and connecting Shopify to Lexware Office. Which criteria an integration should meet is in the criteria framework for accounting apps.
Switching is possible, but not free
Both let you export your data, and both have import paths. So it is not a one-way street.
It still costs: master data has to be checked, number ranges continued and open items carried over. Switching mid-financial-year leaves two systems in that year's records. Workable, but worth agreeing with your tax adviser — and a reason to make the decision carefully once rather than quickly twice.
