Spendesk vs Payhawk

Neither company prints a price you can add up, but the way they bundle cards and expenses differs. Spendesk puts unlimited users and unlimited cards into one base package, with a fixed monthly platform fee plus a variable fee on each transaction. Payhawk splits its platform into four modules (Travel, Cards and Expenses, Accounts Payable, Procurement) and shows no amounts at all, only a demo request. Spendesk adds procurement and payables as add-ons, while Payhawk sells them as modules. Spendesk lists its Paris headquarters, and Payhawk states UK registration with cards issued through three regulated entities.

Vendors can pay for more visibility on this website, for example a higher place in a ranking or more room on a page. Commercial relationships can also affect which products we feature and how prominently. Every vendor link is marked the same, whatever the arrangement behind it. How that works.

Both are reviewed in full in our spend management software ranking: Spendesk and Payhawk.

1. 01

   One base package versus four modules

   Spendesk's Foundations package bundles unlimited physical cards, single-use and recurring virtual cards, OCR receipts, reimbursements, budgets, SSO and Slack, and the pricing page says users are unlimited. Procurement, Accounts Payable, advanced workflows and multi-entity management are listed as add-ons. Payhawk's pricing page shows four modules, Travel, Cards and Expenses, Accounts Payable and Procurement, plus add-ons and platform features. Spendesk gives a clearer starting bundle, while Payhawk lets you pick modules separately but shows no total.

   Edge: Spendesk

2. 02

   Fixed fee plus transactions, or a quote per module

   Spendesk describes a fixed monthly platform fee with unlimited users, plus variable fees per transaction on card purchases, invoice payments and expense claims, and the path ends at a free quote request. Payhawk's pricing page shows no amounts and offers a demo request. Both therefore need a sales conversation. Spendesk at least tells you the shape of the bill, a fixed part and a part that follows volume, whereas the pages we read for Payhawk do not show a billing basis.

   Edge: Spendesk

3. 03

   Approval before the card exists

   Spendesk's own fit notes describe budget owners approving a request first, with virtual cards issued against it and reconciliation following. Its package lists budgets and a Slack link, and it also lists advanced workflows and policies as a paid add-on. Payhawk lists budget management as an add-on and purchase requests for employees inside its Procurement module. The pages we read for either vendor do not spell out the approval steps in full, so this round has no clear winner on documented facts.

   Depends on the buyer

4. 04

   Invoices, purchase orders and matching

   Payhawk's Procurement module lists purchase order management, purchase requests for employees, and two-way and three-way matching. Its Accounts Payable module covers end-to-end invoice management and global invoice payments, with a 0.3% FX margin for ten major currencies. Spendesk lists Procurement and Accounts Payable only as add-ons, with no matching detail or FX margin shown for them in what we read. For a controller who has to match orders, receipts and supplier invoices, Payhawk documents noticeably more of it.

   Edge: Payhawk

5. 05

   Accounting links and extra entities

   Spendesk lists HR and ERP integrations and advanced multi-entity management as add-ons, so both cost extra beyond the base package. Payhawk lists multi-entity, SSO/SAML and 50+ HRIS integrations on the platform itself, with advanced HR integrations as the paid extra. The pages we read do not name the accounting systems either vendor connects to, so we cannot compare month-end sync directly. On what is printed, Payhawk includes multi-entity in the platform and Spendesk charges for it.

   Edge: Payhawk

6. 06

   Where the company sits and who issues the cards

   Spendesk's contact page gives its headquarters as 7 Rue de Madrid in Paris, France. Payhawk's footer says Payhawk Limited is registered in England under company number 11747263 at Chancery House, London, with cards issued by Payhawk Financial Services UAB (EEA), Payhawk Financial Services Limited (UK) and Cross River Bank (US). Spendesk's pages we read name no card issuer. Payhawk is more open about the regulated entities behind its cards, while Spendesk is plainly a French company.

   Depends on the buyer

Can a finance controller see a total price before booking a call?

No. Spendesk describes a fixed monthly platform fee plus variable fees per transaction and sends you to a free quote request. Payhawk's pricing page shows no amounts and offers a demo instead.

Do I pay per employee with either tool?

The pages we read suggest not. Spendesk says its platform fee comes with unlimited users, and Payhawk lists unlimited employees, card transactions and processed documents. What you pay for is Spendesk's per-transaction fees and add-ons, or Payhawk's chosen modules and add-ons.

Which one covers three-way matching and supplier payments in other currencies?

Payhawk documents both. Its Procurement module lists two-way and three-way matching, and its Accounts Payable module lists global invoice payments with a 0.3% FX margin for ten major currencies.

Spendesk lists Accounts Payable and Procurement as add-ons, with no matching or FX detail in what we read.

• Spendesk pricing page: fixed fee, per-transaction fees, Foundations contents and the add-on list.
• Spendesk contact page: Paris headquarters at 7 Rue de Madrid.
• Payhawk pricing page: the four modules, matching, 0.3% FX margin, platform features and add-ons, and the footer with registration and card issuers.