Whether you call it cost control, spend management, expense management, or something else, figuring out how to streamline spending and expenses in your company is vital to your bottom line.
However, fragmented processes, lack of communication across departments, approval bottlenecks, and policy enforcement stand in the way. The only true solution is to find a spend management software that uses features to alleviate these issues.
You might find just that in Brex.
Brex combines business credit cards, banking, bill pay, travel booking, and AI-powered spend management all in one place. By eliminating a fragmented stack of vendors, businesses have total control over their finances without stress or hassle.
In this Brex review, we’ll discuss Brex’s best features, pricing, alternatives, and more. Armed with this research, you can decide whether or not Brex is the best platform for your company’s needs.
Hailed as one of the top fintech and business spend management companies, Brex has plenty for business owners to get excited about. Let’s take a glance at the top features that make Brex stand out from the competition.
The Brex card is arguably the best business credit/charge card in the fintech industry today. Geared toward growing businesses, the Mastercard-branded Brex card works anywhere around the globe.
But perhaps its most telling feature lies in its rewards. Every time you make a purchase with the Brex card, you’re rewarded:
When you accumulate points, you can spend them on a variety of options, including:
Beyond its elite banking system, Brex also understands the importance of streamlined travel booking to your business. Combining travel, event management, and spend management, you can ensure your employees are comfortable and have money to spend when they’re out of town.
Brex Travel offers a multitude of planning and budgeting options, such as:
Dubbing itself the “future of spend management,” Brex’s expense management software is a powerhouse. With its AI-powered software, users can control every aspect of company and employee spending with ease.
One of the most intriguing aspects is the built-in controls. Each Brex card can have individual limits and policies, block or require approval on certain purchases, and expense rules accessible at the time of purchase. The Brex Live Budgets feature adds another level of control, setting budgets, distributing them to decision-makers, and tracking expenses in real time.
Formerly known as Brex Cash, Brex Business Banking is an FDIC-insured online bank with a plethora of outstanding features. It comes with a standard checking account, but you can also increase your cash flow by investing some of your money in a treasury account that bears over 4% interest as of this writing.
Brex banking comes with automated bill pay, branded invoicing, and unlimited same-day ACH payments. You can also make payments and expense reimbursements in more than 60 currencies in more than 200 countries and territories.
Aside from the monthly subscription fee, Brex has no additional costs. Whether you’re sending a wire or an ACH, you won’t pay anything extra. Brex also has no minimum balance requirements for its checking account, so you never have to stress about depositing money at the end of the month or after a large purchase.
High spending limits and credit limits are a necessity for expanding businesses. However, some banks require high credit scores to achieve them, but not with Brex. Brex’s acceptance methodology uses your business’s balance sheet and liquidity to determine your credit limits — never your credit history or a personal guarantee.
Business owners who have poor or mediocre credit from past indiscretions won’t have to worry about this issue. As long as your business succeeds, Brex rewards you with credit and spending limits that suit your business goals.
Price is always a concern for any organization. Thankfully, Brex offers three subscription plans to suit your business needs.
Perfect for startups and growing companies, the Brex Essentials plan is $0 per user each month — and you can’t beat free. It also comes with a lengthy list of features, including:
If you’re a midsize company aiming to scale your operations, the Premium plan is just what you need. For $12 per user each month, it includes everything in the Essentials plan, plus:
For companies with global reach, the Brex Enterprise plan offers comprehensive solutions for banking and spend management. Prices vary depending on which features you want, but the Enterprise plan includes everything in the Premium package, as well as:
Brex has a host of great features, but proper research dictates you take the good with the bad. In this case, Brex has some issues you should be aware of, so let’s dive into some of the drawbacks in this Brex review.
One problematic part of Brex is its lack of in-person banking capabilities. Unlike traditional banks, Brex isn’t connected to an ATM network and has no banking facilities. As a result, you can’t deposit cash or checks into your account. Though this isn’t necessarily a deal breaker, having to transfer money digitally can be an issue for cash-heavy businesses.
Although some small businesses can access Brex.com for their spend management, not all can. Sole proprietorships and partnerships — essentially any unincorporated business — are ineligible to become Brex customers. Brex also limits membership only to venture-backed startups or businesses doing at least $400,000 in monthly revenue, making it inaccessible for many small businesses.
Brex business accounts have charge cards, but they inexplicably don’t have debit cards tied to their checking accounts. Brex’s bill pay feature for both the website and mobile app can simplify this issue by allowing you to pay your Brex card directly, but a debit card to curb spending is something overlooked.
Whenever you’re deciding on your business finances, you want to ensure you have an open-minded approach. Brex has many characteristics and features that could make it a complementary option, but other companies could also fill the void, depending on your needs. Let’s take a look at some alternatives to make this a complete Brex review.
Keeping track of a corporate credit card and ensuring employees don’t overspend is a challenging task. Even long-time workers tend to make imprudent purchases or buy something that isn’t necessarily qualified. To make sure employees spend only earmarked funds at the correct businesses, Hoppier is a superb Brex alternative.
Hoppier is a digital gift card business, specializing in the procurement of cards for all your business needs. Rather than a credit card, Hoppier allows users to purchase multiple gift cards, select the denomination and vendors, and send them to employees with ease.
The process is amazingly simple. Start a program and name it — client spending, corporate supplies, or whatever you see fit. Select your brand colors for the card and add a logo. Then, choose a denomination, start date, end date, and where the card can be spent. Upload a CSV file of your employees’ emails, send the virtual cards directly to their inbox, and they’re ready to spend.
Once employees have the cards, you can track spending in real-time so you’re always on budget and compliant with company policies. To keep your budget on track, any leftover money goes right back into your account. It’s quick, easy, and ideal for cash management, rewards programs, perks, stipends, corporate spending, and small businesses.
Expensify is a fintech company centered on expense management, travel booking, expense reports, and employee reimbursement. Started in 2009, Expensify serves over 15 million customers worldwide, including 650,000 paid customers — a testament to its easy-to-use interface and zero transaction fees.
Known for its SmartScan technology, the company allows users to upload receipts, keeping your budget and spending on track. You can also use these receipts to automate ACH payments to your employees, reimbursing them as soon as possible.
Whether you’re an early-stage or well-established company, Expensify’s virtual or physical cards — both debit cards and American Express cash-back credit cards — allow you to spend from an expense or business bank account with ease. From spending to managing funds, Expensify is a viable alternative to Brex.
Ramp is a unified platform that combines banking, corporate credit cards, accounts payable, and expense management in one place. While most of Ramp’s offerings mirror Brex, it has a few features that make it an excellent choice for startups to large, established businesses.
Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of Ramp compared to Brex is its procurement tools. The Ramp platform lets users create purchase orders (PO) from virtual requests, and Ramp’s PO matching ensures your orders are always correct. In addition, it boasts industry-specific expense and account management, making it one of the only providers with such characteristics.
However, it lacks in other areas. Ramp doesn’t have the global reach and multi-currency usage that Brex has, nor the award-winning NetSuite integration. Still, it’s a solid entrant mixed with functionality in the spend management world, and may be the right choice for certain customers.
With a host of stellar features, Brex is an excellent spend and expense management platform for all types of business owners. While it has some shortfalls, the good tends to outweigh the bad. Make sure you check out a demo and check the alternatives. Hopefully, you can find a solution to your spend management needs.
Ready to 2x your global engagement at your next event, with Ox stress?
Make Hoppier your unfair advantage today, schedule a demo
Ready to 2x your global engagement at your next event, with Ox stress?
Make Hoppier your unfair advantage today, schedule a demo
Ready to 2x your global engagement at your next event, with Ox stress?
Make Hoppier your unfair advantage today, schedule a demo
Ready to 2x your global engagement at your next event, with Ox stress?
Make Hoppier your unfair advantage today, schedule a demo
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