How could Xero improve the homepage?

Thanks Kelly for this update - I appreciate the effort towards providing a solution, but based on my limited understanding of what you're describing, I feel that tying the saved layout to each device/display misses the mark for two reasons:

1. Most fundamentally, on any given display, I might use Xero at a range of browser widths (namely, half-screen or full-screen), and I'd like to see the same column layout in each of those widths.
2. Even when moving between a large display and a small display (e.g. external monitor to laptop), I still want to see the same column layout, regardless of the size of my browser window on either device (half-screen or full-screen) - and if the "saved layout" for that device is tied to the (scalable) number of columns that fit in a window, I'm going to see a different number of columns regardless.

To put it most simply: ***my eyes are trained to look for any given account widget in the same place on the homepage*** regardless of the display or browser window size - and without fixing the number of columns, that becomes impossible.

Forcing your users to memorize the locations of several (nearly-identical) widgets, on multiple homepage layouts, across the many multiple Xero organizations we manage, is frankly an insane UX decision!

I hope that I haven't fully understood the proposed solution, and that the updated instructions will clarify things further - but just in case, I wanted to add this feedback. Thanks!

I use Xero every day on my 4 entities. I rely on the widgets staying in one place so I can see at a glance what my bills vs cash/invoiced work is to ensure I keep on top of my cash flow. Now that they have moved to an HTML flow (no doubt to save having to produce different code for different devices), they just move of their own accord as screen size is increased and decreased so there is no familiarity.

A huge step backwards and one that will make me seriously consider moving all my entities to another platform after 15 years of being happy with Xero

Please stop changing the layouts, it makes using Xero inefficient as we have to relearn the new layouts and it slows us down.

This is an accounting platform. I want it to deliver quietly in the background. I don't want ideas or new releases, I just want it to work and not go backwards. This new homepage is a massive step backwards

Allow me to place widgets on a page rather than put them in an order that flows from one line to another. The new layout is completely unusable.

I use Xero for 4 entities at the moment and have done for about 15 years and this one "feature" is enough to make me seriously consider moving all of them to a different accounting platform with all the pain that would involve and all the loss of history.

It is THAT AWFUL

Andrew G, thanks for the CSS override info. It works beautifully!

This is probably due to window resizing. I've made a separate post about this. (https://productideas.xero.com/forums/966063-new-homepage/suggestions/50901080-widgets-jump-around-on-the-new-homepage-when-the-w)

My ability to navigate efficiently in Xero depends on the homepage widgets being in a predictable place. If I open Xero in a tab of a browser window that has a different width to the one in which I last opened Xero, everything is in a different place and I'm immediately disorientated.

This is particularly bad for me because I have a lot of bank accounts (chequing, credit card, PayPal in multiple currencies, Wise in multiple currencies, cash in several currencies) so I have a lot of widgets. It was difficult to get them where I wanted when editing the homepage immediately after I was switched to it, and now they won't stay where I want them. My preference is to have the bank accounts in a single column on the left, in a set order that I can choose, and all the other widgets (invoices, bills, etc.) in a single column on the right. Currently, it's impossible to achieve this. If the window is only slightly wider than normal, several of the bank accounts move to a third column on the right.

Edit: this has been extensively discussed in another post (https://productideas.xero.com/forums/966063-new-homepage/suggestions/50789081-homepage-ability-to-cap-fix-the-number-of-colu).

I organised the new homepage exactly how I wanted it. Today I've logged in an everything has moved and I can't get the widgets to go back to where they were. Not impressed.

Really dislike the new home page - everytime i log it moves around depending on how big my browser window is. It is HORRID.
Please keep the original page - this is NOT an improvement

I work from two offices - one has a 4k screen and the other doesn't. The one with the 4k screen shows 4 columns but the other only shows 3. Every time I move between offices, the auto arranging homepage throws out the layout. It's very annoying.

Automatic rearranging of widgets when browser window is resized moves them about too much, changing my priority based layout. Achieving a compact geometry looks pretty but breaks the relative ordering of widgets. Please just leave the layout unchanged and allow me scroll the homepage with the browser scrollbars.

I understand the new homepage could be powerful. However moving different items around is painful. It seems you can only order items in a left to right method...

I would much rather columns to be the primary way to order. At the moment I can get it to a way where it's almost how I like it, but then you move something, and it reorders things in a left to right fashion first, putting things into columns I don't want them to be in.

It does also look more cluttered, however I guess we'll get used to it, and it's not what's making it unusable.

Yes, I would like to have th ability to place each box where I want it rather than it effectively being a list that shifts across the columns when I move something.

A grid based system would help this so widgets can be placed in column and row position which could then translate easier to other screen sizes (eg i dont need to see column 3 if there is only space to view two)

Movable homepage widgets reduce usability and layout consistency

The current behaviour of movable and responsive homepage widgets makes the interface harder to use rather than easier. When the screen size changes (for example, switching to split screen) widgets move into different positions. The same happens when logging in on a different laptop or monitor.

This behaviour is particularly problematic when working with multiple bank accounts. Trying to keep four or five bank account widgets aligned on the left-hand side is not reliable, as their positions change depending on screen size or device.

As a result, the homepage cannot act as a consistent starting point or reference for work in Xero. The way widgets currently move is frustrating and disrupts routine workflows.

Widget layouts should remain fixed regardless of screen size or device, or users should be given an option to disable movable widgets entirely.

You're AI is hallucinating and creating solutions to problems that dont exist in the real world.

Need to be able to select the amount of columns on your homepage.
4 columns wide is too many

I agree with Heather's comments - I customised my homepage on a 3-wide monitor, and I'm now looking at it on a 4-wide monitor which I use once per week and it is completely different and nowhere near organised the way I originally intended.

The ability to either set a column, or 'lock' a homepage view once you have set it up (eg within my own file, having a locked view for '3 column' and '4 column' so that I can set each separately or stick to 3 column only if preferred) would be fantastic.

I find the new interface very overwhelming compared to the previous two-column layout.

In our business we manage a large number of bank accounts and credit cards, and the new design displays everything in a very dense, visually busy way. This makes it harder to scan and understand at a glance, and honestly creates visual discomfort for me (similar to trypophobia triggered by dense, repetitive layouts).

The old two-column layout was much calmer, clearer, and more usable for accounts-heavy setups. It allowed faster comprehension and reduced cognitive load.

I would strongly appreciate:

An option to switch back to the classic two-column layout, or

More spacing, grouping, or collapsible sections to reduce visual density, or a choice of number of columns we want to have.

Xero has always stood out for clarity and usability — I hope future updates keep that strength in mind, especially for users with complex account structures.

Agree with this - I've posted a comment on a similar issue/topic, but the problem comes from the fact it's ordering horizontally left-to-right.

What needs to happen is that when a widget is placed in a column it stays in that column. That widgets in that column move up/down based on where a new widget is being inserted or removed - but widgets should never move sideways between columns.

The whole horizontal ordering issue is not intuitive, and it also breaks when the number of columns change (e.g. from 3 to 4), widgets in the left-most column can suddenly move into the right-hand column.

Technically, this is because they've implemented the design using a grid layout that wraps/flows as a single unit. What should happen is that each column flows as a single unit in their own right, and the columns then flowed side-by-side so the widgets always remain in the column in which they are placed. The technical solution is just bad implementation design and needs to be fixed so the dashboard and customisation of the dashboard is usable, and for the solution implementation to take appropriate account of human/computer interaction and psychology.

If we could just be allowed to assign widgets to columns instead of in side by side order that would be much more beneficial. So then we can keep the 2 wide look or upgrade to 3 or 4 wide if wanted. Right now it operates like an old simple Iphone app organizer where you can only move something in the order as is assigned 1-10 and not put it in the place you want it. Some of us don't want the columns to change dynamically based on screen size. This disorients the file and makes no consistency if you use different screens or devices.