Comparison · 2026 edition
Airwallex vs Spendesk: spend management compared 2026.
Airwallex and Spendesk side by side in the Expense Cards and Spend Management Index 2026: scores, evidence, published facts and awards.
WhatsApp and Telegram +44 7563 115980
[email protected]
Airwallex and Spendesk 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 3.9 (78), ranking 1 and 5 of 12. Airwallex also scores higher in every segment.
Overall and segment scores out of 100, and the score out of 5.
| Score | Airwallex | Spendesk |
|---|---|---|
| Score out of 5 | 4.8 | 3.9 |
| Score out of 100 | 97 | 78 |
| Overall rank | 1 of 12 | 5 of 12 |
| For startups and small firms (out of 100) | 97, rank 1 | 71, rank 7 |
| For mid-market and multi-country groups (out of 100) | 96, rank 1 | 78, rank 4 |
| For regulated financial firms (out of 100) | 97, rank 1 | 85, rank 4 |
| Type | Spend management and global business account | Spend management platform |
Each score with the evidence behind it.
| Criterion | Airwallex | Spendesk |
|---|---|---|
| Product coverage | 4/5 Cards, reimbursements, bill pay and procurement published; no travel booking. | 4/5 Cards, reimbursements, bill pay and procurement published; no travel booking. |
| Published pricing | 5/5 Monthly plan prices and per-user fees published for two plans. | 1/5 Pricing model described with no figures. |
| Global reach | 5/5 Card issuing in 40+ markets published. | 3/5 35+ countries served; local issuing in Europe and the US. |
| Integration | 5/5 NetSuite and Business Central plus a published API. | 5/5 Accounting, ERP and HRIS connections and an open API published. |
| Regulatory standing | 5/5 Own FCA e-money licence with FRN, and SOC 2. | 5/5 Own ACPR licence with number, named partners and ISO 27001:2022. |
| Spend controls | 5/5 Card limits, approvals and automatic receipt matching published. | 5/5 Card types, receipt rules, budgets and approval workflows published. |
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 | Spendesk |
|---|---|---|
| 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. | Unlimited physical, single-use and recurring virtual cards; "Reimburse and track expenses in one place"; Procurement and Accounts Payable add-ons. |
| 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. | "Fixed monthly subscription fee" plus "variable pricing based on the number of transactions"; "Card orders are free of charge"; "We do not charge active user fees". No figures; "Request a free quote". |
| Global reach | "Issue cards instantly in 40+ markets and spend from balances in 10+ currencies"; payouts to 150+ countries. | "Finance teams across 35+ countries rely on Spendesk"; cards issued in the EEA, UK and US. |
| Integration | Xero and QuickBooks on all plans; NetSuite and Dynamics 365 Business Central on Accelerate; "Core API access". | Xero, QuickBooks and Datev; "40+ HRIS tools, ERP and travel systems" add-on; "Spendesk's open API". |
| 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". | "Spendesk Financial Services is a French payment institution licensed by the ACPR under number 17518"; UK cards by Adyen (FCA 779800); US by Sutton Bank. "Spendesk also holds the ISO 27001:2022 certification." |
| Spend controls | "Card controls to limit spend and freeze/cancel cards"; "Customisable, multi-conditional approvals"; "AI receipt matching with email forwarding". | Custom rules for receipt collection with reminders; OCR receipt extraction; real-time budgets; dynamic approver roles and multi-condition workflows (add-on). |
| 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 Spendesk: nothing in this profile is marked as not published or not stated.
Facts read on 26 October 2026 from: airwallex.com/uk/pricing, airwallex.com/uk/spend-management; and spendesk.com/en/pricing, spendesk.com/en, spendesk.com/en/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.
European firms wanting unlimited users and their own regulated card issuer.
Tell us what you need and where you operate.