BILL vs Brex
We give BILL a 2.6 GPA and Brex a 3.6, out of 4.0. Brex grades higher on value for money and the free plan. They get the same grade on features, ease of use and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
BILL
Bill pay, invoicing and free company cards for small businesses
Brex
Corporate cards, expenses, bill pay and travel for growing companies
How we grade them
| 2.6GPABILLGood | 3.6GPABrexExcellent | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | DGraded against its bill pay alternatives. A ten-person company paying 20 supplier bills by ACH pays $60.80 a month on Essentials: $49 for one user plus $11.80 in fees at $0.59 each. Nickel, Ramp and Brex send ACH free, and two-way QuickBooks or Xero sync needs Team at $65. | AFree and substantial. A ten-person company pays $0 a month on Essentials, and Brex charges no fee of its own for ACH, check or wire bill payments. Premium is $12 a user, and the pricing page doesn't say if that's monthly or yearly billing. |
| Free plan and trial | CSpend & Expense is free: Divvy cards, budgets, receipts and reimbursements, though card and payment fees still apply. Bill pay and invoicing, the main job, need a paid plan, and the trial is offered in most cases with no length given. | AEssentials is free with unlimited global cards, AI spending rules, up to two entities, bill pay, reimbursements, travel booking, accounting sync and the API. No user cap is listed. |
| Features | BThe whole job: a bills inbox with approval rules, payments by ACH, check or card, local-currency transfers to 130+ countries, invoices with auto-pay, Divvy cards with budgets, AI bill coding from Team and purchase orders on Corporate. | BThe whole job: cards, expense policies, reimbursements, bill pay by ACH, check or wire, travel, a business account and accounting sync. Multiple policies and approval chains wait for Premium, but the core work is all there. |
| Ease of use | A4.86 from 48,758 App Store ratings, the top band. There are approval rules and an accounting link to set up first, but people clearly get on with it once that's done. | A4.84 from 8,836 App Store ratings, the top band. The AI rules check spending against your policy for you, so there's less chasing to do. |
| Platforms and integrations | BWeb, iPhone and Android, syncing with QuickBooks Online, Xero, NetSuite, Sage Intacct, Dynamics and Acumatica, with an API. No desktop app is listed, and Essentials swaps data with QuickBooks and Xero by CSV only. | BWeb, iPhone and Android, with QuickBooks Online, Xero, NetSuite, Sage Intacct, Dynamics 365, Workday, Rippling and Slack, and an API on every plan. No desktop app is listed. |
| Best for | bill pay with approvals and free company cards | free global cards and expenses for startups |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: BILL and Brex. How we grade
Price against what you get
BILL starts at $49 a month for each person and scores 3.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Brex starts at $12 a month for each person and scores 3.3.
They score the same, and Brex starts $37 a month lower. Of the other spend and bill pay tools on the chart, none scores higher than BILL for less, and none scores higher than Brex for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- BILL starts at $49 per user / month for AP & AR, billing term not stated. Brex starts at $12 per user / month, billing term not stated.
- BILL also covers invoicing.
- Brex also covers reports.
At a glance
| BILL | Brex | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $49 per user / month for AP & AR, billing term not stated | $12 per user / month, billing term not stated |
| Free plan | BILL Spend & Expense: corporate cards, budgets, expense tracking and reimbursements with no subscription or per-user fee. Card and payment fees still apply. | Essentials: unlimited global cards, one local card program, AI spending rules, up to two entities, bill pay, reimbursements, travel booking, accounting integrations and API access. |
| Free trial | Free trial of the AP & AR plans "in most cases"; length not stated | None listed |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | BILL Operations, LLC | Brex LLC |
| Price read from | bill.com | brex.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Oct 18, 2026 |
Who each one suits
BILL
- Small businesses that pay many supplier bills by ACH or check
- Accounting firms running bill pay for several clients
- Teams that want free company cards next to their bill pay
Brex
- Startups that want corporate cards and expenses at no software cost
- Companies with entities in several countries
- Finance teams that want spend policies enforced before money goes out
Worth knowing
BILL
- Payments carry fees on every plan: $0.59 per ACH payment, $1.99 per mailed check, $19.99 per USD wire abroad, and 2.9% to pay a bill by card.
- The Essentials plan exchanges data with QuickBooks and Xero only by CSV file; automatic two-way sync starts on Team, and NetSuite or Sage Intacct needs Enterprise.
- Spend & Expense is provided by Divvy Pay LLC, the Divvy Card is issued by its bank partners, and credit lines depend on approval.
- Every Essentials and Team user pays the full seat price; cheaper approver-only seats come with Corporate and Enterprise.
Brex
- Card purchases that need a currency conversion carry an FX markup of up to 3%; Brex charges no fee of its own for ACH, checks or wires.
- Brex LLC is owned by Capital One, N.A.; checking is provided by Column N.A., and the cards are issued by Emigrant Bank, Fifth Third Bank or Sutton Bank.
- Essentials allows up to two entities; multiple expense policies, approval chains and custom ERP or HR integrations need Premium.
- All users on an account must be on the same plan, and the pricing page does not say whether Premium is billed monthly or yearly.
Key features
BILL
- Accounts payable
- Bills arrive in one inbox, are routed through approval rules and are paid by ACH, check, virtual card or card, with W-9s collected by an agent.
- Invoices and receivables
- Send one-off or recurring invoices, chase them with automatic reminders, and get paid by ACH or card with auto-charge and auto-pay.
- Spend & Expense with the Divvy Card
- Corporate cards with budgets and spending rules. Receipts are captured by photo or text message and matched to transactions.
- International payments
- Pay suppliers in more than 130 countries, in their local currency with no BILL fee beyond the exchange rate, or by USD wire.
- AI bill coding
- From the Team plan, the Invoice Coding Agent fills in line-by-line accounting codes on incoming bills.
- Procurement
- Purchase requests, purchase orders, tolerance rules and 2-way matching, included on Corporate and an add-on below it.
Brex
- Corporate cards
- Unlimited cards accepted in 210+ countries and territories, with local-currency cards and billing in 50+ countries on higher plans.
- Expense policies
- AI-powered rules check spending; Premium adds category rules, role-based exceptions, auto-approval and audit detection.
- Bill pay
- Automated bill pay by ACH, check, domestic wire or international wire in local currency or US dollars, with no Brex fee per payment.
- Travel booking
- Book business travel inside Brex, free on Essentials, with group travel and advanced travel rules on Premium.
- Business account
- Checking provided by Column N.A., plus Treasury and Vault cash management run by Brex Treasury LLC.
- Accounting and API
- Transactions sync to QuickBooks, Xero, NetSuite, Sage Intacct and Dynamics 365, and an API is included on every plan.
Plans
BILL
Spend & Expense$0
BILL Divvy Card, budgets, receipt capture, reimbursements and credit lines from $1,000 to $5M, subject to approval.
Essentials$49
per user / month, billing term not stated
Bill entry and approvals, payments by ACH, card or check, invoicing, W-9 collection. Syncs with accounting software by CSV only.
Team$65
per user / month, billing term not stated
Adds automatic two-way sync with QuickBooks and Xero, AI bill coding, custom user roles and cash flow forecasting.
Corporate$89
per user / month, billing term not stated
Adds custom approval policies, purchase orders and requests, cheaper approver-only users, single sign-on and multi-entity books.
EnterpriseCustom
Adds sync with NetSuite, Sage Intacct, Dynamics and QuickBooks Enterprise, 2- and 3-way matching, dual control and premium phone support.
Brex
Essentials$0
For startups: global cards, AI custom rules, up to two entities (one global), bill pay, reimbursements, free travel booking and real-time reports.
Premium$12
per user / month, billing term not stated
Adds multiple expense policies, review and approval chains, AI audit checks, US and international entities, ERP and HR integrations, VAT documents and live budgets.
EnterpriseCustom
Unlimited entities, local card issuing, collections and reimbursements in other countries, an admin center and a named account manager.
