Payhawk vs Pleo (2026): Pricing, Features & Verdict
Payhawk is our pick, scoring 7.1/10 against 6.8/10 for Pleo on our Finance Software criteria. Its biggest advantage: higher Scalability score (8/10 vs 6/10). For 10 users, Pleo costs about £80/mo, against £149/mo for Payhawk; neither Payhawk nor Pleo lists a free plan.
Last updated: November 2026
Payhawk
7.1/10
Payhawk is a modular spend management platform combining Visa corporate cards, expense claims, accounts payable, procurement and travel booking for mid-sized and multi-entity companies.
Pleo
6.8/10
Pleo is a European spend management platform that gives small and mid-sized businesses company cards, receipt capture, reimbursements and supplier invoice payments.
Feature-by-Feature Comparison
| Feature | | |
|---|---|---|
| Scores | ||
| Overall Rating | 7.1/10 | 6.8/10 |
| Scalability | 8/10 | 6/10 |
| Analytics | 5/10 | 6/10 |
| Compliance | 8/10 | 7/10 |
| Integration | 9/10 | 7/10 |
| Security | 8/10 | 7/10 |
| Support | 5/10 | 5/10 |
| Cost | 4/10 | 6/10 |
| Customization | 7/10 | 6/10 |
| Ease of Use | 8/10 | 9/10 |
| Pricing | ||
| Free plan | No | No |
| Cheapest paid plan | £149/mo Growth programme (UK/EEA) | £8/user/mo Start |
| Estimated cost for 10 users | £149/mo Growth programme (UK/EEA) | £80/mo Start |
| Features | ||
| Accounts Payable | ||
| Corporate Cards | ||
| Expense Management | ||
| Multi-currency | ||
| Accountant Access | Not listed | |
| Budgeting and Forecasting | Not listed | |
| General Ledger | Not listed | |
| Multi-entity Consolidation | Not listed | |
| Payroll | ||
| Tax Compliance | Not listed | |
Payhawk vs Pleo cost by team size
Pleo costs less up to 10 users.
| Team size | Payhawk | Pleo |
|---|---|---|
| 1 user | £149/moGrowth programme (UK/EEA) | £8/moStart |
| 5 users | £149/moGrowth programme (UK/EEA) | £40/moStart |
| 10 users | £149/moGrowth programme (UK/EEA) | £80/moStart |
| 25 users | $299/moTravel | £200/moStart |
| 50 users | $299/moTravel | £400/moStart |
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 Payhawk and Pleo suit
Payhawk fits enterprise and mid-market better; Pleo fits small business and startups better.
| Audience | Payhawk | Pleo |
|---|---|---|
| Small Business | 4/10There is a discounted Growth programme for UK and EEA firms under 10 staff, but it is capped and reviewers say the cost is high for small companies. | 9/10Low per-user pricing and simple card and receipt workflows are built for SMBs. |
| Enterprise | 7/10It offers SAP, Oracle and Workday connectors, SSO, and PO matching, but very large enterprises may still need deeper procurement suites. | 4/10It is aimed at SMBs and the mid-market, and credit limits top out at £100,000. |
| Startups | 5/10The Growth plan and unlimited employee seats help, but annual contracts and the price floor are less startup-friendly than freemium rivals. | 8/10Start has a one-user minimum and offers quick card issuing. |
| Mid-Market | 9/10Module pricing from several hundred dollars a month, plus multi-entity add-ons, targets companies that have outgrown simple expense apps. | 7/10Optimise adds budgets, HRIS sync, NetSuite and advanced approvals, but multi-entity support is not well documented. |
| Finance Teams | 9/10It is built for controllers and CFO teams that need card controls, AP approvals and ERP sync in one place. | 8/10Automated categorisation and accounting exports reduce the work of month-end expense processing. |
Which One Should You Choose?
Why choose Payhawk
- Higher Scalability score (8/10 vs 6/10)
- Higher Integration score (9/10 vs 7/10)
- Better fit for enterprise (7/10 vs 4/10)
- Better fit for mid-market (9/10 vs 7/10)
Why choose Pleo
- Lower estimated cost for 10 users: £80/mo vs £149/mo
- Higher Cost score (6/10 vs 4/10)
- Higher Analytics score (6/10 vs 5/10)
- Better fit for small business (9/10 vs 4/10)
- Better fit for startups (8/10 vs 5/10)
Pros & Cons
Payhawk
Pros
- Unlimited employee seats, card transactions and document processing in every module, so costs do not scale per employee.
- Very broad native integration list, covering NetSuite, Sage Intacct, SAP, Dynamics, Xero, QuickBooks, DATEV and 30+ HR systems, plus a partner API and MCP connector.
- Strong for multi-entity European groups, with regulated card issuing entities in the EEA, UK and US and balances in six currencies.
- AP module includes 2- and 3-way PO matching, segregation-of-duties controls, and e-invoicing support for Peppol, KSeF, SDI and Finvoice.
- Reviewers often say employees find receipt capture and expense submission in the mobile app quick and easy.
Cons
- Trustpilot (2.8/5) and some G2 reviews describe mid-contract price increases, automatic renewals and difficult cancellations.
- Several reviewers report slow or AI-first support, with replies taking days or weeks.
- Annual pricing, unit fees for admin seats and cards, and add-on prices are not published, so you have to get a quote.
- Initial setup of workflows, custom fields and integrations is described as complex, and some reviewers note sync errors with Xero and with foreign currency refunds.
- It is not a general ledger or payroll system, so it needs a separate ERP or accounting package.
Pleo
Pros
- G2 reviewers praise the card and receipt-capture app as easy for employees to use, and Pleo holds a 4.7 rating across roughly 1,400 G2 reviews.
- Per-user list prices are published, starting at £8 per user per month.
- Native accounting integrations cover Xero, QuickBooks, NetSuite, FreeAgent, Xledger and Twinfield.
- SAML SSO is included even on the entry Start plan.
- The UK entity is authorised by the FCA, and cards are issued under a Mastercard licence.
Cons
- Build and Optimise are billed yearly and require at least three users.
- Transaction charges such as FX fees of up to 2 percent and per-payment fees add to the subscription cost.
- Live chat support is only included on Optimise, and Trustpilot reviewers complain about slow support.
- Some reviewers report weak coverage and support in the US.
- It is not an accounting system and has no general ledger, customer invoicing or payroll.
Not sold on either?
Frequently Asked Questions
Payhawk scores higher on our Finance Software criteria: 7.1/10 against 6.8/10 for Pleo. The largest gap is in Cost: 4/10 for Payhawk and 6/10 for Pleo.
Pleo costs less for 10 users: about £80/mo on its Start plan, against about £149/mo on its Growth programme (UK/EEA) plan for Payhawk, billed monthly.
No, neither Payhawk nor Pleo lists a free plan.
Pleo is the better fit for small business: we rate it 9/10 for them, against 4/10 for Payhawk.
