Airbase Reviews: 4.8/5 — Highly Rated
Airbase is a modern finance and expense management platform that automates and streamlines financial processes. It offers a suite of features that include virtual cards, spend management, and real-time expense tracking. Additionally, Airbase integrates with various other business tools such as payroll, accounting, and invoicing systems, making it a one-stop-shop for all finance needs.
| Capabilities |
API
|
|---|---|
| Segment |
Small Business
Mid Market
Enterprise
|
| Deployment | Cloud / SaaS / Web-Based, Mobile Android, Mobile iPad, Mobile iPhone |
| Training | Documentation |
| Languages | English |
Airbase is now Airbase by Paylocity, and airbase.com/pricing redirects to Paylocity’s pricing page. Paylocity completed the $325 million acquisition on 1 October 2024, and the product has been absorbed into its HCM platform. That single fact matters more than any feature comparison, because virtually every review you will find describes a standalone company that no longer sells to you on its own terms.
- What it is: A spend management platform covering corporate cards, bill pay, expense management, and procurement, now part of Paylocity.
- Best for: Mid-market companies that also want Paylocity’s payroll and HR, so spend and payroll sit on one platform.
- Pricing: No longer published separately. Airbase’s pricing page now serves Paylocity’s, which is quote-only via a demo request form.
- The honest catch: Older reviews, comparisons, and pricing guides describe pre-acquisition Airbase and should not be relied on.
What Happened to Airbase
Paylocity announced its agreement to acquire Airbase on 4 September 2024 and completed the deal on 1 October 2024 for approximately $325 million, funded through its revolving credit facility. Both companies confirmed the completion publicly.
The strategic logic was explicit: Paylocity sells HR and payroll, Airbase sold spend management, and the combination lets a company manage payroll and non-payroll spend on one platform. Paylocity described the goal as a single pane of glass across all company spending, with real-time visibility and a faster financial close.
The practical consequences for a buyer in 2026 are concrete. The airbase.com homepage now identifies the product as “Airbase by Paylocity”. The pricing page redirects to paylocity.com. And Paylocity does not publish prices — its pricing page is a demo request form asking for your employee count, job title, and business zip code.
The product has not been discontinued. But it is no longer a standalone purchase in the way it was, and the evaluation you run should be an evaluation of Paylocity.
What Airbase Does
The underlying capability is well regarded and was the reason for the acquisition price:
- Corporate cards with policy controls applied at the point of purchase.
- Bill pay and AP automation, which was Airbase’s strongest area and a genuine differentiator against card-first competitors.
- Expense management with receipt capture, coding, and reimbursement.
- Procurement and intake, covering purchase requests and approvals before spend happens.
- Approval workflows across all of the above, which is what distinguished it from simpler card products.
- Accounting integration for close automation.
That combination — cards plus AP plus procurement in one approval framework — is what mid-market finance teams valued, and it remains the substance of what Paylocity now sells under the Airbase name.
Airbase Pricing
There is no published Airbase pricing to report. Its pricing URL serves Paylocity’s page, which offers “Request Pricing with a Free Demo” and collects your details rather than displaying rates.
This is a meaningful downgrade in transparency for evaluation purposes. Pre-acquisition, Airbase published tiered plans. Now:
- Every price is quoted. You cannot compare Airbase against Ramp or Brex without a sales conversation, and both of those publish or offer free entry tiers.
- Pricing is likely bundled with Paylocity. The commercial logic of the acquisition is cross-selling into HCM customers, so quotes may be structured around the wider platform rather than spend management alone.
- Your negotiating position is weaker. With no list price and no comparable public figures, you have no anchor.
- Ask directly whether Airbase can be bought standalone, and on what terms, before investing time in a demo. That is the question the website no longer answers.
Who Should Use Airbase Now
- Existing Paylocity customers. The clearest case by a distance. If your payroll and HR already run on Paylocity, adding spend management on the same platform is exactly the integration the acquisition was built to deliver.
- Companies evaluating Paylocity anyway. Bundling spend management into that decision may produce a better commercial outcome than buying separately.
- Mid-market finance teams needing AP depth. Airbase’s bill pay and procurement capability genuinely exceeds what card-first competitors offer.
It fits poorly for companies that want spend management alone, where Ramp and Brex are simpler to buy and publish more; for startups, where both of those have free entry tiers; and for anyone unwilling to enter a sales process to learn a price.
Honest Pros and Cons
Strengths
- Genuinely strong AP and procurement. The deepest part of the product and the reason it commanded $325 million.
- Unified approval workflows. Cards, bills, and purchase requests under one policy framework.
- Now integrated with payroll. A real advantage if you run Paylocity, and the whole point of the deal.
- Backed by a larger company. Paylocity brings scale and stability a standalone spend startup could not.
- Mid-market fit. Built for companies with real finance processes rather than a founder with a card.
Limitations
- No published pricing at all. Quote-only through Paylocity’s demo form.
- No longer straightforward to buy standalone. The commercial model now points toward the HCM platform.
- Existing reviews are out of date. Almost everything written about Airbase predates the acquisition.
- Competitors are free at entry. Ramp and Brex both offer $0 tiers; Airbase does not.
- Integration is still settling. Product direction under new ownership takes time to become clear.
Airbase Alternatives and How It Compares
- Ramp is the leading independent alternative, free at entry, with strong AP capability and a savings-oriented positioning.
- Brex is free at entry too, though it was itself acquired by Capital One in April 2026 — worth knowing that both major alternatives now sit inside larger financial institutions.
- Bill.com focuses specifically on accounts payable, which was Airbase’s strongest area, and is often the closest functional match.
- SAP Concur is the enterprise incumbent for expense and travel, heavier and more expensive.
- Zoho Expense is dramatically cheaper for expense reporting alone, with published pricing.
- Rippling offers a comparable payroll-plus-spend combination if the unified platform is what appeals.
For a broader survey, browse our expense management directory.
The Verdict
Airbase was a good product and remains one, but in 2026 the question is not whether Airbase is worth buying — it is whether Paylocity is. The acquisition completed on 1 October 2024, the pricing page now belongs to Paylocity, and the commercial model has shifted from a standalone spend management purchase to a module within an HCM platform. Evaluate it on that basis and you will not be surprised later.
For existing Paylocity customers this is straightforwardly good news. Spend management on the same platform as payroll is a genuine operational advantage, the AP and procurement capability is stronger than most card-first competitors offer, and the integration is precisely what the $325 million was spent to achieve. If Paylocity already runs your payroll, this should be on your shortlist and may well win.
For everyone else, be deliberate. Ramp and Brex are both free at entry and considerably easier to evaluate, and Bill.com covers the AP strength that was Airbase’s best feature. The absence of any published pricing means you cannot compare without a sales process, which is a real cost in itself. Before booking a demo, ask directly whether Airbase can still be purchased standalone and on what terms — that is the question the website no longer answers, and the answer determines whether this is a shortlist candidate or a Paylocity upsell.
One practical caution that applies to research rather than the product: treat any Airbase review, comparison, or pricing guide that does not mention Paylocity as out of date. A great deal of what is published still describes the independent company and its former published plans, and none of that is what you would be buying.
FAQ
Was Airbase acquired?
Yes. Paylocity announced a definitive agreement on 4 September 2024 and completed the acquisition on 1 October 2024 for approximately $325 million, funded through its revolving credit facility. Both companies confirmed completion publicly. The product now trades as “Airbase by Paylocity” and its pricing page redirects to Paylocity’s website.
How much does Airbase cost?
There is no published price. Airbase’s pricing URL now serves Paylocity’s pricing page, which is a demo request form collecting your business email, employee count, and job title rather than displaying rates. Pre-acquisition Airbase published tiered plans, but those figures no longer reflect what is on offer, and any current cost has to be obtained through a sales conversation.
Is Airbase still available as a standalone product?
It has not been discontinued, and the capability still exists under the Airbase name. But the commercial model now runs through Paylocity, whose strategic rationale for the purchase was combining payroll and non-payroll spend on one platform. Whether a standalone purchase remains straightforward is a question worth asking Paylocity directly before beginning an evaluation.
What are the best alternatives to Airbase?
Ramp and Brex are the leading independent alternatives, both free at entry and much easier to evaluate without a sales process — though Brex was itself acquired by Capital One in April 2026. Bill.com is the closest match for Airbase’s accounts payable strength. Zoho Expense is far cheaper for expense reporting alone, and SAP Concur is the enterprise option.
Should I trust older Airbase reviews?
Treat them with caution. Most published reviews, comparisons, and pricing guides describe the independent company as it operated before October 2024, including plan structures and prices that no longer apply. If a review does not mention Paylocity, it predates the acquisition and does not describe what you would actually be buying today.
Compare Airbase with other popular tools in the same category.
Integrating all non-payroll spend into one platform has made my life so much easier. The workflow for bill payments is so simple and allows users to easily come into the platform, review, and approve. It also has made payment approvals so simple. I doubt I would be able to manage my workload without airbase.
It would be nice for users who have physical cards that they need to not only upload receipts for their transactions but also fill in a category and purpose. Many of the employees think that all they need to do is just upload a receipt for their company card.
It's solving so many problems for us. Specifically, we used to manually key in our ACH payments through our bank but now that is all automated through Airbase along with the necessary approvals of the payments.
Minimized expense management. Automated reconciliation. Blended functionality, automation and operations into a single platform
The mobile app is not as nice as the web
We are spending less time closing the books. Has helped us spend less money on unnecessary expenses
The platform is easy to navigate. This is the first time I have worked for a company that uses a service like this. I have used SAP Concur in the past and this platform is much easier to use. The customer service is also really responsive.
I don't currently have any dislikes. I would recommend this service to small start-up companies that have employees that submit monthly expenses and need a platform to use.
I work for a fully distributed company. This allows us to submit expenses monthly in a simple easy format. We can submit receipts for work-related purchases easily and we are given credit cards that can be used anywhere.
Extremely easy to use, low friction......
Pre-loaded cash should earn interest....
Organizing spend management, billpay, reimbursement. Major benefit is ease of use, low friciton for employee onboarding. Someone even said it was fun to use!
I like how easy it is to use! Our team uses it for things like spend management and AP automation and it makes our lives super simple!
Nothing- it is super easy to use! I really enjoy Airbase.
As an employee, I mainly use Airbase to get expenses approved and it is such a simple tool to use from an employee's perspective! Super easy to submit for approvals.
As a new employee to my organization and new to Airbase, it was one of the easiest onboarding steps! One of the biggest headaches in previous jobs was the dreaded reimbursement process. I love being able to use the app to scan and uploads receipts directly to my supervisor so I never have to keep track of paper copies again!
I haven't been using this tool long enough to catch anything I dislike yet. I love how intuitive it is to use and everything has worked seamlessly when using either the website or the app on my phone. Great job!
In an increasingly paperless office world, I constantly lose paper copies of literally everything- including reimbursement receipts. I never again have to keep track of paper receipts or walk, mail, copy, etc them down to a central office again! Great job!
As an end-user of Airbase and the Airbase app, I can say that it's the easiest I've ever used at handling expenses, mileage, and onboarding/paying vendors. As a consultant who travels constantly and works with many vendors from many sectors, I have used many different platforms, often multiples to achieve what Airbase can do inside a single platform. The vendors also love it, because it's incredibly easy to use and allows them to receive payment faster than traditional methods.
The ONLY negative I've experienced was a glitch on the web-based version which prevented me from entering expenses. I jumped to the app, and voila, it worked. Then, Airbase fixed the web-based issue within a few days. I LOVE the constant improvements and iterations of this platform. I've had zero problems since.
Beyond just the simplicity and ease of use, our organization has solved many problems related to POs and quick, efficient payment. The use of "virtual" credit cards with our vendors is probably my favorite aspect. After many conversations with my coworkers, we unanimously love that all our financial needs happen inside a singular platform with an easy-to-use app. It has literally zero learning curve. In today's largely remote workforce, an attribute like that is invaluable.
I can see the data budget per credit card. The left side menu is clean and organised. credit card transactions I said like submitting the receipts and tickets to be reimbursed
i do not know who the account owner is. For now, I enjoy it using airbase for all my transactions. It can provide a list of admin users I would like to see another font grey colour - bolder.
To avoid having multiple credit cards in users' hands. It saves me from seeing what's are the actual transactions. Yes. Yes, it is easier to use and faster to submit receipts and reimbursement.
How easy to submit expenses and have them approved!
Not much- there could be more detail on the transaction history such as invoice numbers.
Being able to submit expenses for my team in real-time without having to create monthly reports. It ensures we can track expenses quickly and mitigate lost documentation.
Instant notifications of transactions prompt you to immediately photo the receipt. Often find it prepopulates fields based on receipt data which is very helpful
It might just be that I have an older version of the card, but it would be really helpful to have contactless. I'm sure its either a feature now or coming, but I really wish my card had that.
Corporate spending. I travel a lot, entertain partners and team members a lot so it good to have it all tied to the corporate account rather than managing my own personal credit or debit card.
Getting a new card issued is very easy, tracking expenses across cards and categorizing spending As a user, the interface is straightforward and easy to use. It's not a struggle to find what I'm looking for and the UI feels modern and fresh.
Hard to find a dislike, would be nice to have the option for Canadian billing addresses on cards. This may be something that has been addressed already, but it's a very minor complaint and hasn't caused me any issues.
Expense reimbursement is a thing of the past, now we can get a pre-authorized card for our expenses before we even make them. Getting these cards is also much faster than our previous post-expense system.
I think the ease of use is the most differentiating component of the product, I used to dread submitting expense reports because it was so time-consuming. The UI is intuitive for employees and admins, making everyone's life a little easier.
The one component I would like to see added is the ability to upload a folder of receipt images and tag them individually. Sometimes when there are many receipts it can be difficult to organize yourself on which images have been uploaded and which haven't.
We've solved the ease of use problem with Airbase and we have seen a seamless expense management process with the implementation. Our employees and admins are happy with the product.
How easy it is to submit receipts of your purchases. I have used other systems in the past and the receipt review process can be challenging but not for Airbase!
The renewal date can be a little confusing but not an issue!
It makes using our stipend for business expenses incredibly easy.
The ability to consolidate all AP activities into one single platform. It makes day to day work much easier to have one login and synchronized platform for everything.
Some of the features might be a little raw and unfinished but there are still plenty of features we've never had in a system before. There are some challenges with platform speed at times but it still helps incredibly with our ability to process transactions.
Ability to quickly process and analyze spend occurring across the company each month. Controls are also crucial to maintain company assets.
Airbase is very easy to use and incredibly easy to collaborate across teams and different departments. It's very easy to visualize and manage my entire team's spending.
I wish that it was easier to export the data from Airbase and there weren't restrictions on how long ago you can go back for the export. I also wish it was easier to explore and understand what category an expense should go under.
We are managing our company's expenses through Airbase as well as being able to offer virtual cards. It is very easy to issue POs, track spend, and pull reports.
It's super simple to track spending and also see the status of pending approvals across multiple managers
At times the receipt submission doesn't pick up on keywords
Getting all expenses in one place and being able to see get clear insight into what is approvable and not is extremely helpful
I use a company credit card and it's awesome to see a card connected to spend management software so seemlessly
The mobile app for uploading expenditures could be a little more user friendly, it's good but there are times when it feels a little janky
Mostly spend management
Approval flows are great to be able to keep people accountable for spend. It also gives warnings when spending grows too quickly or when a vendor is coming up for renewal.
The interface can sometimes be difficult or slow to use, especially on the mobile version of the website (not app). When uploading invoices it takes a few seconds to process the information as well.
We're looking to control spend, have signoffs on different spend providers, and be able to easily sync it into our ledger. It makes accounting very easy. Also great to find duplicates.
Airbase simplifies the whole process of submitting invoices and expense reports, from uploading receipts to coding expenses. The user experience is well thought out and easy to navigate. Our company also uses the virtual card feature which allows us so much more flexibility in making purchases without having the spend come out of the employee's pocket first. I also appreciate the slack integration that provides me updates on the approval process.
Not much! I haven't run into any issues using the platform myself and have found it easy and seamless to use. Compared to other tools and platforms I've used at other companies I've been employed at, Airbase is a dream.
As an event marketer, I am constantly making purchases and submitting invoices related to the activities we are organizing. Submitting and managing expense reports can be a total time-suck, but not with Airbase.
Easy to request payments (cards) for different people within the teams, manage multiple virtual cards, and expenses on those cards. Simple and effective reporting.
There isn't really anything I dislike so far.
Managing multiple payments for different tools used within the company. Managing benefit payments and spending.
It's simple. As a user that travels and works on projects galore, I don't want to spend a lot of time on POs and Invoices from clients. I love how I can login on my IOS device, find what I need, enter in minimal data points, take a pic of a receipt and hit submit.
Sometimes the receipts do not upload and it does not tell me that I do not have a connection.. I'm guessing that is what that is about... A note to tell me that ahead of time would be nice.
Problems: The never-ending list of receipts at the end of a trip. And the pain to remember it all. Benefits: Quick App. Also a quick website if I choose not to use the app. Easy login as it integrates with Google Apps. I like how the app reminds me via Slack to submit my receipts ASAP.
I use Airbase mostly for Virtual Cards. It is easy to use, and I like the tracking/reporting that is included.
It would be nice to have an Airbase phone application that could be used on the go. It is sometimes difficult/cumbersome to log into the web portal on my phone.
Airbase has been great for each employee's monthly lunch stipend. It is essentially set it and forget it; no hassles have arisen for us. It can also be used for expenses outside of the virtual cards, which is simply done.
Airbase has provided us with a robust platform for spend management, allowing our company to track and manage finances across all the launch companies. This is vital in startup world, where finance is a scare resource that we must be the best stewards of.
Airbase could benefit from more integrations with third party tools. While some software are supported out-the-box, our company has turned to alternative solutions (such as Quickbooks, Melio, etc.) for some specific use cases around A/P and A/R.
- Employee reimbursements: Airbase's software is super intuitive to use. I was able to submit receipts for expense with just a few clicks. - Company spend management: With Airbase, our FP&A team can track how much every company spends on software.
Corporate cards management, cashback, modern design
If the bill sits in the approval queue, the following approver can not see that the bill sits in her/his approval queue until it's approved by former approvers
Having one tool for AP and employee expense management. Simplified AP management by automatically assigning policies to vendors
Easy to use, the website is very straight forward there is nothing confusing about it
Nothing- I have no problems with airbase it is super convenient and easy
Business needs
Ease of use of your platform. The approval process and status is communicated well.
Would love to do multiple receipts at once
Airbase allows me to get receipts in very easily and track the process for approval.
The interface is easy to use and learn quickly. The ability to get questions answered by support quickly and seamlessly is also one of my favorite parts of the product.
There has not been too much to dislike. I had an issue with linking a bank account, but it was resolved very quickly by your team.
The ease at which our employees can book business related expenses and get refunded. Not only has it helped this move much faster, it also has eliminated time our internal team has to spend on these things.
I love the ease of using Airbase for bill paying, team and company purchases as well as the user-friendly and navigation!
Nothing comes to mind around things I dislike about the tool.
Vendor management, expense management and invoice payments.
Intuitive interface that simplifies user training/onboarding. Great cash back and the product is continually being updated with new features. Airbase has made it incredibly easy for our finance & accounting teams to manage cash outflow in one place.
The system can be slow at tims. For those who pay vendors via. check, delivery times can be long w/o the ability to expedite. Features on some modules are still early-stage but updates are made frequently.
We wanted to consolidate our company's spend under one system which we have been able to do with Airbase. No more bridging reports from multiple tools and the data flows into our ERP seamlessly.
Great product, love the virtual cards, PO and intelligent tagging of expenses.
Nothing, very easy to use, great integration with NetSuite. We love it!
We are solving all AP, reimbursements, credit card and PO requests. We run all of our payables through this system and its been phenomenal.