Top 5 Pleo alternatives: compare fees, features & benefits

By David BeachPublished on 30 January 20255 minutes
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Top 5 Pleo alternatives: compare fees, features & benefits
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Looking for a different approach to managing your business expenses? 

While Pleo offers comprehensive spend management features, several alternatives provide unique strengths – from integrated tax tools to international payment capabilities.

In this article, we'll compare five leading platforms to help you find the solution that best matches your business requirements, whether you're focused on domestic operations or expanding globally.

What is Pleo?

Pleo is a cloud-based spend management platform that streamlines the way businesses handle corporate expenses through smart company cards and automated expense reporting.

Founded in Copenhagen in 2015 by financial technology veterans Jeppe Rindom and Niccolo Perra, Pleo has grown to serve over 37,000 customers across Europe.

While initially targeting startups and small businesses seeking to modernise their expense processes, Pleo now serves companies of all sizes, from professional services firms to fast-growing brands like HelloFresh and Soho House.

The top 5 alternatives to Pleo

Here are the top alternatives for Pleo.

Airwallex

Airwallex is a global financial platform that combines expense management with international payment capabilities. Built for businesses with global ambitions, it offers multi-currency accounts, competitive FX rates and comprehensive spend controls across 180+ countries. Its integrated approach is valuable for growing companies managing international operations and cross-border payments.

ANNA

ANNA is an AI-powered business account and tax app designed specifically for UK small businesses. Supporting over 100,000 businesses, it stands out by combining expense management with automated bookkeeping and tax calculations. Following its recent acquisition of GetCape, ANNA is expanding internationally to serve Australia's 2.5 million small businesses, particularly in technology, healthcare, professional services and e-commerce sectors.

Payhawk

Payhawk offers an all-in-one spend management solution that combines corporate cards, expense management and accounts payable. Operating in over 32 countries, it serves businesses looking to streamline their financial operations across Europe, the US and the UK. Its platform is particularly strong for companies needing sophisticated approval workflows and real-time spending visibility.

Soldo

Soldo is a spend control platform that streamlines expense management for businesses of all sizes. Founded in London in 2014, it helps companies manage their entire business expense cycle through smart company cards, automated expense tracking and multi-currency support. Organisations like Sony and Age UK trust it for its robust spend control features.

Tide

Tide is a comprehensive business banking platform serving over 10% of UK SMEs. While primarily known for its business banking services in the UK, Tide offers expense management features including employee cards, automated receipt capture and integrated accounting tools. It's particularly suited for small businesses and freelancers seeking a combined banking and expense management solution.

Find out how Airwallex compares to Pleo.

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Compare the top 5 alternatives to Pleo

 

Type

Payment methods

Cost

Airwallex

Global financial platform to collect, hold, convert, and send multi-currency payments. Additional features include spend management tools.

160+ payment methods available, accepted in 180+ countries, in 130+ currencies. Payout to 150+ countries, 120+ using local low-cost payment networks (90% arrive same day)

Explore: £0* or £19

Grow: £49

Accelerate: £999.

1.3% + 20p to collect UK card payments. Currency conversions at 0.5-1%

 

ANNA

AI-powered business account and tax app with integrated expense management.

Pay via physical or virtual ANNA cards, Apple Pay or Google Pay across all currencies supported by Mastercard. Accept cash, payment links, Direct Debit, standing orders, IBAN1.

Free plan available, then starts from £14.90 p/m +VAT. Optional tax add-on at £24 P/M +VAT. Currency conversions at 1%2.

Payhawk

Expense management platform with advanced corporate card solutions.

Spend via physical or virtual cards in 32 countries. Send international bank transfers in 50+ currencies across 160+ countries.3

Contact vendor for pricing. Cashback available on all payments.

Soldo

Spend control platform designed to streamline expense management for businesses of all sizes.

Pay via physical or virtual Soldo cards, Apple Pay or Google Pay across all currencies supported by Mastercard4.

Plans start at £21 p/m +VAT, scaling to custom solutions. 0% domestic transaction fee. Currency conversions at 1%5.

Tide

Business banking platform with integrated expense management features.

Accept payments via links, VISA, Mastercard6, cheque and via contactless payments with Adyen partnership7. Pay via physical or virtual expense cards.8

Free account available then £12.49 p/m +VAT9. 20p per transfer on free plan. Currency conversions at 1.75% on free plan (0% on others)10.

Why choose Airwallex over Pleo?

Use our comparison table to see how Pleo measures up against Airwallex on fees, features and benefits.

Spend essentials

Pleo

Airwallex

Expense submission

Multi-layer custom approval flows

❌ Starter & Essential

✅ Advanced & Beyond

Card controls

Spend reporting

Advanced spend capabilities

Pleo

Airwallex

Domestic reimbursements

International reimbursements

(employee swallows the FX fee)

Budgets

❌ Starter & Essential

✅ Advanced & Beyond

Multi-entity management

❌ Starter & Essential

✅ Advanced & Beyond

Bill Pay

Core finance

Pleo

Airwallex

Business accounts

✅ 23+ currencies

Domestic transfers

only for paying invoices 

✅ Free

international transfers

50+ currencies supported

60+ trade currencies supported at interbank rate 100+ currencies supported at live spot rate

FX

2.5% 

0.5% - 1% above interbank rate

Payment acceptance (checkout, plugins, payment links)

✅ 180 currencies

Domestic cards

✅ Prepaid Mastercard

✅ Visa debit

International cards

✅ Prepaid Mastercard

✅ Visa debit

Pricing (fixed monthly)

Pleo

Airwallex

Plans (per month)

Starter: £0 up to 2 users

Essential: £39

Advanced: £89

Beyond: £179

Explore: £0* or £19

Grow: £49

Accelerate: £999

Core features

Essential plan: £39 per month

Grow plan: £49

Reimbursements + advanced control

Essential plan: £39 per month

Grow plan: £49

APIs, Netsuite, account management

Beyond plan: £179 per month

Accelerate plan: £999

Per transaction fee

Invoice payments from £0.95 + 1.49-2.49% FX fee Card payments FX fee from 1.49-2.49%

Free

Per international transaction

FX fee from 1.49-2.49%

0.5-1%

Per active spend user

£9.50-£17.50

£6-12

Cashback

Available

Available

Other

Pleo

Airwallex

Account manager

✅ On Beyond plan

✅ On Accelerate plan

Xero integration

NetSuite integration

✅ On Essential, Advanced and Beyond plans

On Accelerate plan from £999

Easy to use API

✅ On Advanced & Beyond plans

*£0/month if you deposit at least £10k per month or hold a minimum balance of £10k. For more information, see here.

What questions should I ask when choosing alternative providers to Pleo?

When evaluating expense management solutions to replace Pleo, ask these essential questions to ensure you find the right fit for your business needs:

  1. What are the total costs, including monthly fees, card charges and currency conversion rates?

  2. Can I issue both physical and virtual cards, and how many can I have on each plan?

  3. How granular are the spend controls and approval workflows?

  4. How does the platform handle receipt capture, categorisation and reconciliation?

  5. What integrations are available with accounting software and other business tools?

  6. How extensive is the international coverage and what are the foreign transaction fees?

  7. What reporting and analytics capabilities are offered to track expenses?

  8. What level of customer support is provided and in which time zones?

  9. Are there any minimum contract terms or set up fees?

  10. What security features and compliance standards are in place?

Discover how an all-in-one global financial platform like Airwallex could transform your business

If you’re a fast-growing global business, chances are you’re handling international payments, holding multiple currencies, accepting payments from customers worldwide and managing employee expenses. While Pleo excels at spend management, it covers only one piece of your financial needs.

Airwallex combines expense controls with the ability to collect, manage and move money globally on a single platform that helps businesses expand without juggling multiple providers.

Is it time to find out how a unified financial platform could work for your business?

Smarter spend, faster payments, powered by AI

Disclaimer: We wrote this article in Q1 2025. The information was based on our own online research and we were not able to manually test each tool or provider. The information is provided for educational purposes only and a reader should consider the specific requirements of their business when evaluating providers. This research is reviewed every six months. If you would like to request an update, feel free to contact us at [email protected].

Sources

For more information on Airwallex, visit Airwallex Business Account and Airwallex pricing.

  1. https://anna.money/

  2. https://anna.money/pricing/

  3. https://payhawk.com/blog/cross-border-payments-for-b2b

  4. https://www.soldo.com/en-gb/applepay/

  5. https://www.soldo.com/en-gb/pricing/

  6. https://www.tide.co/features/card-payments-links/?srsltid=AfmBOoo4FSyfaMr-HB4Olm84FjSUTVE8fpHPz92nThEX1txBTa0agso_

  7. https://www.tide.co/features/tap-to-pay-on-iphone/

  8. https://www.tide.co/features/expense-cards/

  9. https://www.tide.co/business-current-account/smart/

  10. https://www.tide.co/business-current-account/

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David Beach
Senior Content Marketing Manager - EMEA

David manages the content for Airwallex. He specialises in content that helps EMEA businesses navigate global and local payments and banking.

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