Brex vs Mercury (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Brex grades higher than Mercury: 3.6 against 3.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 13, 2026 by ToolGPA
Brex grades higher on value for money and ease of use. They get the same grade on the free plan, features and platforms.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Brex
Corporate cards, expenses, bill pay and travel for growing companies
Mercury
Business banking with cards, expenses, bill pay and invoicing
Which one is for you
Pick Brex if
- Fits if you're a startup that wants cards and expenses with no software bill
- Works for developers who want an API on the free plan
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you need several expense policies or approval chains without paying $12 a user
- Pricey if your team buys a lot in foreign currencies, with an FX markup of up to 3% on card purchases
- Not for you if you only want some users on Premium, since everyone must be on the same plan
- Tight if you run more than two entities, as Essentials stops there and the rest needs Premium
- Watch out: the pricing page doesn't say whether Premium's $12 is billed monthly or yearly
Pick Mercury if
- Fits if you run a startup and want cards, bill pay and invoicing on a $0 account
- Works for companies that send USD payments and sync to QuickBooks or Xero
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you use Android, as only web and iPhone are listed
- Pricey if you want ACH debit invoicing at $0 or a relationship manager, which sit on Pro at $299 a month
- Watch out: Mercury isn't an FDIC-insured bank, as banking comes from Choice Financial Group and Column N.A.
- Watch out: non-USD international wires carry a 1% exchange fee and non-USD card transactions 3%
- Watch out: Books is $35 a month and Payroll $100 plus $50 a person, both waived only until 31 December 2026
How we grade them
| 3.6GPABrexExcellent | 3.0GPAMercuryVery good | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | 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. | BThe Mercury plan is $0, with Plus at $29.90 a month and Pro at $299 on yearly billing. The core is free, so the paid plans are optional. |
| Free plan and trial | 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. | AThe $0 plan has no monthly fee or minimum balance, with cards, expense management, invoicing and bill pay. A 30-day free trial of Plus is offered. |
| Features | 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. | BCompany cards, expense management, bill pay and payments, invoicing and accounting integrations on the free plan. Nothing in the listing shows a gap in the core work. |
| Ease of use | 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. | CNo store rating on record. You open a business bank account, which takes setup and verification. |
| Platforms and integrations | 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. | BWeb and iPhone, with QuickBooks, Xero and NetSuite. No Android or desktop app listed. |
| Best for | free global cards and expenses for startups | online business banking 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: Brex and Mercury. How we grade
Price against what you get
Brex starts at $12 a month for each person and scores 3.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Mercury starts at $29.90 a month and scores 2.7.
Brex scores higher and starts $17.90 a month lower. Of the other spend and bill pay tools on the chart, none scores higher than Brex for less, and 7 score higher than Mercury 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
- Brex also covers reports.
- Mercury also covers invoicing, bookkeeping and payroll.
At a glance
| Brex | Mercury | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $12 per user / month, billing term not stated | $29.90 per month, billed annually |
| Free plan | 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. | The Mercury plan is $0 a month with checking and savings, cards, expense management, invoicing and bill pay. |
| Free trial | None listed | 30-day free trial of Mercury Plus |
| Web | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Brex LLC | Mercury |
| Price read from | brex.com | mercury.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Nov 13, 2026 |
Worth knowing
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.
Mercury
- Mercury is not an FDIC-insured bank; banking is provided through Choice Financial Group and Column N.A., Members FDIC.
- Non-USD international wires carry a 1% currency exchange fee, and non-USD card transactions carry 3%.
- Mercury Books is $35 a month and Mercury Payroll is $100 a month plus $50 per person paid, both waived until Dec 31, 2026.
- Treasury, which pays up to 4.21% yield, is available only with a $250K Mercury balance, and Stripe fees apply to credit card invoice payments.
Key features
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.
Mercury
- Company cards
- Virtual and physical debit and credit cards, with custom spend limits, merchant-locked cards and duplicate subscription detection. Corporate credit cards earn 1.5% cashback.
- Expense management
- Employee cards with limits, automatic receipt matching for card transactions, custom categories and reimbursements, including mileage.
- Bill pay and payments
- Free domestic ACH, wires, real-time payments and checks in USD, plus payment by ACH debit or wire drawdown.
- Invoicing
- Unlimited invoices that accept card, Apple Pay, Google Pay, wire and ACH, with recurring invoices on paid plans.
- Accounting integrations
- Syncs with accounting tools such as QuickBooks, Xero and NetSuite.
Plans
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.
Mercury
Mercury$0
No monthly fees or minimum balance. Includes company cards, expense management, bill pay, invoicing and free USD ACH, wires and real-time payments.
Mercury Plus$29.90
per month, billed annually
Adds recurring invoices, ACH debit invoicing at $1 per transaction, unlimited 1099 filings, priority support and 6 months of free Xero.
Mercury Pro$299
per month, billed annually
Adds a relationship manager, ACH debit invoicing at $0 per transaction and NetSuite categorizations on top of what Plus has.
Ways to pay less
Brex
No public discounts listed.
Mercury
- Annual discount
15% off with annual billing
The pricing page toggle reads Annual Pricing (15% off), and was on by default when read. The monthly-billed price is not shown.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Brex or Mercury?
As of Nov 13, 2026, Brex starts at $12 per user / month, billing term not stated, and Mercury starts at $29.90 per month, billed annually. One is priced for each person and the other is not, so which costs less depends on how many of you use it.
Which has a free plan, Brex or Mercury?
As of Nov 13, 2026, both Brex and Mercury have a free plan.
Which platforms do Brex and Mercury run on?
As of Nov 13, 2026, only Brex lists an Android app. Both list a web app and an iOS app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.