Advisor, head to head

Briefi vs Xplan

Xplan and Briefi sit at different points in an adviser’s week, and a practice could run both. Xplan is the platform Iress sells to run an advice business, hosted by Iress and configured by you. Briefi is built around the conversation with the client: the meeting, the annual review, the ongoing fee consent and the signature. Briefi does not write the Statement of Advice or model a client’s position, so it does not stand in for Xplan. If you need the system of record for advice, look at Xplan first. If your pain is the meeting and the paperwork that follows it, start with Briefi.

ReviewedLast reviewed 16 October 2026. Xplan (Iress) facts checked 16 October 2026

Choose Xplan (Iress) if

You want a configurable advice platform that Iress hosts and updates for you1
You want a client portal that is a module of the same system as your client file3
You want a large partner directory switched on from site settings2

Choose Briefi if

You want each review meeting prepared before it and written up straight after
You want the follow-up drafted in Briefi and sent from your own mailbox
You want the fee consent signed online, with a certificate page on the PDF

At a glance

Briefi Advisor and Xplan, side by side

Each line about Xplan comes from an Iress page and links back to it. Where Iress’s pages say nothing, the row says so and goes no further.

Briefi Advisor compared with Xplan (Iress), by feature group
Meetings
	Briefi AdvisorPlans from A$49 a month	Xplan (Iress)
Meeting notesCapture, summary and follow-up	Briefi AdvisorBuilt inBriefi joins on Zoom, Teams or Google Meet, or records in the browser or face to face, then writes the recap and drafts the follow-up	Xplan (Iress)Through partnersThe integrations page says partner tools can sync meeting notes to the client file. A 2024 Iress release describes an AI assistant that makes transcripts and summaries, but it is written for UK customers2 6
Clients
Client portal	Briefi AdvisorAdvisor plansOff until a workspace switches it on	Xplan (Iress)Yes, as a moduleSecure messaging, notifications, document sharing and signatures, available through Xplan and Xplan Mortgage3
Online signing	Briefi AdvisorBuilt inDrawn or typed signature, co-signing on each partner’s own link, and a certificate page on the signed PDF	Xplan (Iress)Portal and partnersThe portal lists signatures, and Annature sends documents for signing from Xplan and files the finished PDF back. Partner tools carry their own subscription3 2
Advice and connections
Advice workflows and templates	Briefi AdvisorJourneys and reviewsBriefi lays out review steps and document requests. It does not write the Statement of Advice	Xplan (Iress)YesStandard valuation and review templates, plus best-practice workflows from onboarding to reviews1
Connections to other tools	Briefi AdvisorCRMs and calendars todayPushes to GoHighLevel, HubSpot, Monday, Pipedrive, Close, Copper, ActiveCampaign, Salesforce, Zoho CRM and Dynamics 365. Calendars are Google, Microsoft 365 and CalDAV. More connections are rolling out progressively	Xplan (Iress)Iress Open partnersAn administrator switches on standard partners from site settings, and each partner tool needs its own subscription2
Data
Where your data is held	Briefi AdvisorStored in SydneySome processing uses providers overseas. The Security page lists them	Xplan (Iress)AWS in Australia, statedIress says customer data is hosted by AWS in Australia for customers based there5

Yes, todayPartly, or on another planNoNot stated

Xplan runs the advice practice. Briefi runs the conversation around it. Iress publishes no price for Xplan and names no Statement of Advice feature on the pages we read, so neither appears as a row.

One client, start to finish

An adviser has an annual review booked with a long-standing couple whose fee consent is coming round. Xplan’s side is taken from Iress’s pages as they stood on 16 October 2026.

1
Get the couple ready
Xplan (Iress)
The client portal offers secure messaging, notifications and document sharing, and its data sits in the Iress system with the client file.3
Briefi
A document request goes to the couple’s own address and they upload through a link. Before the meeting Briefi assembles a brief from the earlier meetings and open actions.
2
Sit down with them
Xplan (Iress)
Meeting notes reach the client file through partner tools. A July 2024 Iress release describes an AI assistant for transcripts, but it is written for UK customers and we found nothing placing it in Australia.2 6
Briefi
Briefi joins the call on Zoom, Teams or Google Meet, or records in the browser or face to face. The recap names decisions and actions, each with an owner.
3
Write the advice
Xplan (Iress)
Iress lists standard valuation and review templates and best-practice advice workflows, and its roadmap hub mentions AI-enabled enhancements without detail.1 4
Briefi
This is where Briefi stops. The Statement of Advice is written in your advice platform, and Briefi can hold a step in the journey for presenting it.
4
Collect the signatures
Xplan (Iress)
Annature sends documents for signing from Xplan and archives the finished PDFs on the client record, and the portal lists signatures. Partner subscriptions are held directly with the provider.2 3
Briefi
The fee consent goes out for signing online. Each partner signs on their own link, and the signed PDF carries a certificate page with the digest, device and time.
5
Send the follow-up and plan the year
Xplan (Iress)
Iress lists regulatory and legislative updates and workflow templates from onboarding through reviews.1
Briefi
The follow-up is drafted in Briefi for you to check, then sent from your own mailbox. The fee register shows when the next consent window opens.

Where Xplan (Iress) wins

When Xplan is the better choice

Where one of these settles it for your practice, Xplan is the better fit today.

Fit

Packages from a small firm to a large one

Iress describes a starter set of tools, an Advice Toolkit as a standard solution, and a configurable option for medium to large firms. Briefi is not advice software and does not come in those sizes.1

Hosting

Hosting you do not run, with the region in writing

Iress hosts and maintains the servers and applies updates automatically, and its data-protection page names AWS in Australia for customers based here.1 5

Portal

A portal that lives in your client file

Iress says the portal’s data and documents stay in the same Iress system as the rest of the client record. Briefi’s portal is its own, and your team records fees and policies in Briefi.3

Partners

A deep partner directory

The integrations page lists partners for notes, signatures and estate records that flow into the client file. Briefi connects to CRMs and calendars today.2

Where Briefi is different

The review meeting and the fee consent, on one record.

Briefi is for practices that sit down with the same households year after year, and it leaves advice production to the platform you already use.

A brief before the meeting, a recap after itMeetings
Briefi pulls together what you know about the household before you meet. Afterwards the recap follows the language the meeting was held in, and the actions land with a named owner.
The consent date worked out for youAdvisor
Each ongoing fee carries its reference day, and Briefi reads the consents on file to show whether the next one is current, open, due or lapsed for Australian workspaces.
Fee agreements and consents signed onlineSign
Templates carry the fee schedule inside the signed digest. Each partner signs on their own link, and a co-signer confirms a code by email and text.

Briefi does not write the Statement of Advice, does no cash flow modelling and does not take payments from your clients today. The app and its built-in forms are English only, and identity checks are not available yet.

How the whole record fits together is on the Advisor page.

Pricing

Pricing compared

Briefi publishes a monthly price for each plan, with allowances beside it. Iress publishes no figure for Xplan on the pages we read.

Advisor Solo

From A$49 a month

100 form requests per user each month
8 capture hours each month
Monthly or annual billing

Figures from Briefi’s live price list

Xplan (Iress)

From Not published

Iress’s Xplan page says only that it is competitively priced
Partner tools are bought separately, from the partner

Checked on 16 October 2026. Source 1 2

Briefi prices are in AUD and are read from the same price list as the pricing page, so they change when it does.

Questions

Briefi and Xplan, asked often

Is Briefi a replacement for Xplan?

No. Xplan is an advice platform and Briefi is not one. Briefi covers the meeting, the review, the fee consent and the signature, and it leaves the Statement of Advice and modelling to your platform.

Does Xplan record and summarise meetings?

On the pages we read, Iress describes meeting notes arriving through partner tools. Its 2024 PlannerPal release describes transcripts and summaries, but the wording is aimed at UK customers, so check with Iress what is offered to your site.

How do signed documents get from Briefi to Xplan?

Today Briefi connects to ten CRMs and to Google, Microsoft 365 and CalDAV calendars, with more connections rolling out progressively. The signed PDF can be downloaded and filed wherever you keep client records.

Where does each one keep my clients’ data?

Iress’s data-protection page says customer data is hosted by AWS in Australia for customers based there. Briefi stores its app and database in Sydney, uses some overseas providers for processing, and encrypts sensitive content under a key held for each workspace.

What does Briefi cost compared with Xplan?

Briefi’s plans are priced on its pricing page. Iress publishes no figure for Xplan, so the only honest comparison is to ask Iress for a quote that includes the portal and any partner subscriptions you would need.

Try it

Run next month’s review meeting in Briefi and see what the paperwork looks like after.

Start free trial Advisor Solo from A$49 a month

Sources and review

Last reviewed 16 October 2026. Facts about Xplan (Iress) come from its own published pages on the dates shown. Each product named here is a trademark of its owner, and Briefi is not affiliated with them.

How we checked

9 sources cited, and 6 competitor pages read. Next review due 15 January 2027.

Seen something out of date? Write to support@briefi.sh and we will check it.

1Iress, Xplan. https://www.iress.com/software/financial-advice/xplan/ Checked 16 October 2026.
2Iress, Xplan integrations. https://www.iress.com/software/financial-advice/xplan-integrations/ Checked 16 October 2026.
3Iress, Client Portal. https://www.iress.com/software/financial-advice/client-portal/ Checked 16 October 2026.
4Iress, Xplan roadmap hub. https://www.iress.com/software/financial-advice/xplan-roadmap-hub/ Checked 16 October 2026.
5Iress, data protection for financial advice. https://www.iress.com/resources/legal/data-protection/financial-advice/ Checked 16 October 2026.
6Iress, PlannerPal release (July 2024). https://www.iress.com/support/media-centre-old/2024/07/iress-adds-ai-advice-assistant-plannerpal-to-the-list-of-xplan-integrations/ Checked 16 October 2026.

Briefi’s own pages

B1briefi.sh/advisor. https://briefi.sh/advisor
B2briefi.sh/for/financial-advisers. https://briefi.sh/for/financial-advisers
B3briefi.sh/security. https://briefi.sh/security