Comparison · 2026 edition
Airwallex vs Brex: spend management compared 2026.
Airwallex and Brex side by side in the Expense Cards and Spend Management Index 2026: scores, evidence, published facts and awards.
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Airwallex and Brex side by side in the Expense Cards and Spend Management Index 2026: scores, evidence, published facts and awards.
In the Expense Cards and Spend Management Index, Airwallex scores higher overall: 4.8 out of 5 (97 out of 100) against 4.7 (93), ranking 1 and 2 of 12. Airwallex also scores higher in every segment.
Overall and segment scores out of 100, and the score out of 5.
| Score | Airwallex | Brex |
|---|---|---|
| Score out of 5 | 4.8 | 4.7 |
| Score out of 100 | 97 | 93 |
| Overall rank | 1 of 12 | 2 of 12 |
| For startups and small firms (out of 100) | 97, rank 1 | 93, rank 2 |
| For mid-market and multi-country groups (out of 100) | 96, rank 1 | 93, rank 3 |
| For regulated financial firms (out of 100) | 97, rank 1 | 93, rank 3 |
| Type | Spend management and global business account | Corporate card and spend management platform |
Each score with the evidence behind it.
| Criterion | Airwallex | Brex |
|---|---|---|
| Product coverage | 4/5 Cards, reimbursements, bill pay and procurement published; no travel booking. | 5/5 Cards, reimbursements, bill pay, travel and a procurement card published. |
| Published pricing | 5/5 Monthly plan prices and per-user fees published for two plans. | 5/5 Per-user prices published for two plans. |
| Global reach | 5/5 Card issuing in 40+ markets published. | 5/5 Local-currency cards in 50+ countries published. |
| Integration | 5/5 NetSuite and Business Central plus a published API. | 4/5 ERP integrations and an API published; ERP systems not named on the pricing page. |
| Regulatory standing | 5/5 Own FCA e-money licence with FRN, and SOC 2. | 5/5 Named issuing banks, money transmitter licence number and SOC 2 Type II. |
| Spend controls | 5/5 Card limits, approvals and automatic receipt matching published. | 4/5 Spend limits, merchant controls and approvals published; receipt capture not confirmed on the pages read. |
Each criterion is scored 0 to 5 against the best published offer in the Expense Cards and Spend Management Index. 0 means not offered or not published. How it is scored
What each provider publishes on its own pages, read on 26 October 2026.
| Fact | Airwallex | Brex |
|---|---|---|
| Product coverage | Multi-currency company and employee cards; "Spend requests, expense management, and reimbursements"; "Domestic and international bill pay"; purchase orders and requests on the Accelerate plan. | Corporate cards, reimbursements, bill pay, travel booking ("free on Essentials") and a Smart Card "for companies that want to simplify procurement". |
| Pricing | Explore: "£0 or £19 /month", £0 with £10k monthly deposits or balance. Grow: £49/month. Additional users: "£5/additional employee card user/month" on Explore, "£12/additional active spend user/month" on Grow. Accelerate: custom. | Essentials: "$0 user/month". Premium: "$12 user/month". Enterprise and Smart Card: custom pricing. |
| Global reach | "Issue cards instantly in 40+ markets and spend from balances in 10+ currencies"; payouts to 150+ countries. | "Local-currency cards and billing in 50+ countries" (pricing page); "Issue physical and virtual cards in 60+ countries" (global page). |
| Integration | Xero and QuickBooks on all plans; NetSuite and Dynamics 365 Business Central on Accelerate; "Core API access". | Accounting integrations and "Brex API access" on Essentials; "Customizable ERP integrations and HRIS integrations" on Premium. |
| Regulatory standing | "Airwallex (UK) Limited is an authorised Electronic Money Institution and is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority ('FCA'). FRN: 900876." States "PCI DSS, SOC1, and SOC2 compliance". | Cards issued by Emigrant Bank, Fifth Third Bank N.A., Airwallex (Netherlands) B.V. and Sutton Bank; "Brex Payments LLC, a licensed money transmitter (NMLS #2035354)"; "SOC 1 Type II, SOC 2 Type II, and PCI-DSS". "Brex LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Capital One, N.A." |
| Spend controls | "Card controls to limit spend and freeze/cancel cards"; "Customisable, multi-conditional approvals"; "AI receipt matching with email forwarding". | "AI-powered custom rules"; "Advanced approvals with dynamic Spend Limit approval chains"; "Merchant card controls and custom approvals". |
| Date read | 26 October 2026 | 26 October 2026 |
Not published or not stated by Airwallex: nothing in this profile is marked as not published or not stated.
Not published or not stated by Brex: integration and spend controls.
Facts read on 26 October 2026 from: airwallex.com/uk/pricing, airwallex.com/uk/spend-management; and brex.com/pricing, brex.com/global, brex.com/security.
Awards follow from the published scores and cannot be bought.
From each provider's strongest criteria and published terms.
Multi-country firms wanting cards, bills and accounts in one place with published prices.
US and global firms wanting a free plan and local cards in many countries.
Tell us what you need and where you operate.