XRechnung vs ZUGFeRD: E-Invoice Formats Compared

First, what counts as an e-invoice

An e-invoice is not simply an invoice sent by email. It is an invoice in a structured electronic format that conforms to the European norm EN 16931 – meaning the invoice data is laid out so that software can read and process it directly, without a human retyping anything.

A plain PDF, even a tidy one, is therefore not an e-invoice in this sense. To a computer it is just an image. Both formats covered here, XRechnung and ZUGFeRD, meet the EN 16931 requirement. They simply package the data differently.

XRechnung: pure structured XML

XRechnung is a purely structured format. The invoice exists as an XML file – a set of clearly defined data fields for invoice number, line items, tax rates, amounts and so on. There is no page layout and nothing to “look at” in the usual sense; the file is meant to be read by software.

XRechnung originated as the standard for invoicing German public administration, where structured submission has been required for some time. It is equally usable in B2B. Because it carries only the data and no embedded image, it is lean and unambiguous – the entire content lives in defined fields.

ZUGFeRD: a hybrid of PDF and XML

ZUGFeRD takes a different route. A ZUGFeRD invoice is a PDF that a person can open and read normally – and the same invoice data is embedded inside that PDF as XML. So the file is both: a human-readable document and a machine-readable data record in one.

This hybrid design is popular in B2B. A recipient whose software reads the embedded XML can process the invoice automatically; a recipient who still works manually can simply open the PDF and read it like any other invoice. The visual layer never gets in the way of the structured data, because both describe the same invoice.

Both conform to EN 16931

One detail is easy to miss: XRechnung and ZUGFeRD are not competing standards with different data. Both implement the same European norm, EN 16931, so the structured invoice content – the fields a machine reads – is equivalent. What differs is the wrapper: XRechnung ships the XML on its own, ZUGFeRD ships it inside a PDF.

How the recipient processes each

For an XRechnung, the recipient’s software reads the XML fields directly and turns them into a bookable invoice. Because there is no embedded image, viewing the invoice as a person usually means rendering it through a viewer that displays the fields in a familiar layout.

For a ZUGFeRD invoice, software can read the embedded XML exactly as it would read an XRechnung – the structured data is processed automatically. At the same time, anyone can open the PDF and see a normal invoice. This dual nature is why ZUGFeRD is convenient when not every recipient is fully automated yet.

In both cases, the goal is the same: the invoice data flows into the recipient’s system without manual re-keying. The choice of format mainly affects whether a visible PDF accompanies the data and how the two sides have agreed to exchange invoices.

Which one is “better”?

Neither is better in the abstract – they serve slightly different needs. XRechnung is the natural choice when both sides process invoices fully automatically and the public-administration lineage matters. ZUGFeRD is convenient when some recipients still read invoices by eye, because the human-readable PDF is always there.

In short

XRechnung and ZUGFeRD are two valid implementations of the same European norm, EN 16931. XRechnung is lean, structured XML with public-administration roots; ZUGFeRD is a hybrid PDF that carries the same data embedded inside a readable document and is widely used in B2B. A plain PDF is not an e-invoice at all.

For practical purposes, the structured data is equivalent. Pick the format that fits how you and your counterpart exchange and process invoices – and learn more about the wider rules in our e-invoicing overview.