Brex vs Wise Business (2026): Pricing, Features & Verdict
Brex is our pick, scoring 7.5/10 against 6.3/10 for Wise Business on our Finance Software criteria. Its biggest advantage: higher Analytics score (6/10 vs 3/10). For 10 users, Brex and Wise Business are both free; only Brex has a free plan.
Last updated: November 2026
Brex
7.5/10
Brex is a corporate card, expense management, bill pay and business banking platform for startups, mid-sized companies and global enterprises, and is now owned by Capital One.
Wise Business
6.3/10
Wise Business is a multi-currency business account for sending, receiving, holding and converting money internationally, with team cards, batch payments and invoicing.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Feature | | |
|---|---|---|
| Scores | ||
| Overall Rating | 7.5/10 | 6.3/10 |
| Scalability | 8/10 | 6/10 |
| Analytics | 6/10 | 3/10 |
| Compliance | 7/10 | 6/10 |
| Integration | 8/10 | 6/10 |
| Security | 8/10 | 7/10 |
| Support | 6/10 | 5/10 |
| Cost | 8/10 | 8/10 |
| Customization | 7/10 | 4/10 |
| Ease of Use | 8/10 | 8/10 |
| Pricing | ||
| Free plan | Yes | No |
| Cheapest paid plan | $12/user/mo Premium | Contact for pricing |
| Estimated cost for 10 users | Free Essentials | Free Wise Business (US) |
| Features | ||
| Corporate Cards | ||
| Multi-currency | ||
| Accountant Access | Not listed | |
| Accounts Payable | Not listed | |
| Audit Trail | Not listed | |
| Expense Management | Not listed | |
| Financial Reporting | Not listed | |
| General Ledger | ||
| Invoicing | Not listed | |
| Multi-entity Consolidation | Not listed | |
| Online Payments | Not listed | |
| Payroll | Not listed | |
Brex vs Wise Business cost by team size
Brex and Wise Business cost the same at every team size we checked.
| Team size | Brex | Wise Business |
|---|---|---|
| 1 user | FreeEssentials | FreeWise Business (US) |
| 5 users | FreeEssentials | FreeWise Business (US) |
| 10 users | FreeEssentials | FreeWise Business (US) |
| 25 users | FreeEssentials | FreeWise Business (US) |
| 50 users | FreeEssentials | FreeWise Business (US) |
The plan that fits each team size, billed monthly, before add-ons and usage charges. Each cost opens that tool's pricing calculator for the team size.
Who Brex and Wise Business suit
Brex fits enterprise better than Wise Business.
| Audience | Brex | Wise Business |
|---|---|---|
| Enterprise | 7/10Enterprise offers unlimited global entities, local card issuance and a named account manager, and Brex has focused on enterprise customers since 2022. | 4/10It lacks credit, treasury depth and an accounting suite. |
| Startups | 9/10The free Essentials tier and card underwriting based on cash balance, with no personal guarantee, are aimed at venture-backed startups. | 8/10A low setup cost, team cards and an API fit early-stage companies that work internationally. |
| E-commerce | Not rated | 6/10Useful for receiving marketplace payouts in many currencies, but it is not a full payment processor. |
| Finance Teams | 8/10AI expense coding, ERP validation rules and journal export features are built to cut month-end close work. | Not rated |
| Freelancers | Not rated | 8/10There is no monthly fee, and local receiving details let freelancers get paid by foreign clients cheaply. |
| Mid-Market | 8/10Premium adds multi-entity support, custom ERP and HRIS integrations, advanced approvals and live budgets for mid-sized companies. | Not rated |
| Remote Teams | Not rated | 9/10Batch payments to up to 1,000 recipients suit paying contractors in many countries. |
| SaaS Companies | 8/10Card rewards multipliers on software and ads spend, plus the startup-focused underwriting, fit tech companies. | Not rated |
| Small Business | 4/10Brex exited the small-business market in 2022, and reviewers report account closures for businesses below revenue thresholds. | Not rated |
Which One Should You Choose?
Why choose Brex
- Has a free plan (Wise Business does not)
- Higher Analytics score (6/10 vs 3/10)
- Higher Customization score (7/10 vs 4/10)
- Better fit for enterprise (7/10 vs 4/10)
Why choose Wise Business
Our data shows no clear advantage over Brex.
Pros & Cons
Brex
Pros
- The Essentials tier is free and includes cards, bill pay, reimbursements, travel booking, API access and accounting integrations.
- Card limits are underwritten on cash balance and revenue rather than a founder's personal guarantee, which helps startups without a credit history.
- Direct ERP syncs cover NetSuite, QuickBooks Online, Xero, Sage Intacct, Business Central and newer AI-native ERPs such as Rillet and Campfire, and a two-way Accounting API launched in January 2026.
- Brex holds SOC 1 Type II and SOC 2 Type II attestations, is PCI-DSS compliant and supports SAML or OIDC single sign-on.
- Brex releases updates often. The September 2026 release alone added more than 30 features, including passkeys, p-card policy rules and access to Brex data from ChatGPT, Claude and Slack.
- Pricing is published at 12 USD per user per month for Premium, and G2 reviewers rate the product highly, at about 4.8 out of 5.
Cons
- Brex has a history of abrupt account closures and eligibility changes, and it left the small-business market in 2022.
- Credit limits move with the company's cash balance, which some reviewers find unpredictable.
- Card purchases that need currency conversion carry an FX markup of up to 3 percent, built into the exchange rate.
- It is not a general ledger. Bookkeeping and financial statements still need a separate ERP or accounting system.
- Some support and setup experiences are poor, including a clunky HRIS integration setup reported on Gartner Peer Insights.
- The Capital One acquisition could slow feature shipping during integration, according to industry commentary.
Wise Business
Pros
- Conversions use the mid-market rate with fees from 0.23%, often cheaper than banks for international payments.
- There is no monthly fee, only a one-time setup fee of 31 USD in the US.
- Batch payments can pay up to 1,000 recipients in one action, which helps companies paying contractors abroad.
- Local receiving details in 22 currencies let foreign clients pay domestically.
- Team cards come with custom spending permissions.
Cons
- It is not an accounting system and has no ledger, payroll or financial statements.
- Wise is not a bank: it offers no loans, and balances are safeguarded rather than deposit-insured by default.
- Users report delayed or frozen transactions and support that can be slow or hard to reach.
- Incoming SWIFT payments in USD, GBP and EUR carry per-payment fees.
- Feature availability, including cards, varies by country.
Not sold on either?
Frequently Asked Questions
Brex scores higher on our Finance Software criteria: 7.5/10 against 6.3/10 for Wise Business. The largest gap is in Analytics: 6/10 for Brex and 3/10 for Wise Business.
Both are free for 10 users.
Brex has a free plan; Wise Business does not list one.
Brex is the better fit for enterprise: we rate it 7/10 for them, against 4/10 for Wise Business.
