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Accounting & Finance · head to head

Airbase vs Basecamp

Airbase logo

Airbase

Accounting & Finance

The first all-in-one spend management platform

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Basecamp logo

Basecamp

All industries

Project management & team collaboration software

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Basecamp has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Airbase airbase was acquired by Paylocity; its pricing page now redirects to paylocity.com/pricing and the product is marketed as 'Airbase, a Paylocity Company' within Paylocity's HCM platform rather than as a standalone product.; Basecamp the free tier allows one project and 1 GB of storage
  • They diverge on capability: Airbase covers Corporate cards, Basecamp covers Message boards.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Airbase and Basecamp actually diverge.

Attributes where Airbase and Basecamp differ
AttributeAirbaseBasecamp
Starting price$29/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionfreemium
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb
CategoryAccounting & FinanceAll industries
Founded20172004

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Airbase

  • Corporate cards
  • Bill payments
  • Expense management
  • Procurement
  • Approvals
  • NetSuite
  • Sage Intacct
  • QuickBooks

Only in Basecamp

  • Message boards
  • To-do lists
  • Schedules
  • Documents & files
  • Group chat
  • Check-in questions
  • Hill Charts
  • Email forwards

Both cover

  • Slack

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Airbase

  • Spend managementnot Basecamp
  • Expense reportingnot Basecamp
  • Vendor paymentsnot Basecamp

Basecamp

  • Project management for a small team in one placenot Airbase
  • Message boards and chat alongside to-dosnot Airbase
  • Client collaboration, since guests are not chargednot Airbase
  • Flat-rate project management for a larger team on Pro Unlimitednot Airbase

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Airbase

  • Airbase was acquired by Paylocity; its pricing page now redirects to paylocity.com/pricing and the product is marketed as 'Airbase, a Paylocity Company' within Paylocity's HCM platform rather than as a standalone product.

Basecamp

  • The free tier allows one project and 1 GB of storage
  • Pro is $15 per user per month, so cost scales with headcount unlike the flat Pro Unlimited at $299 a month billed annually
  • Storage beyond the plan costs $50 a month per additional terabyte
  • Timesheet and the Admin Pro Pack are paid upgrades on Pro and only bundled with Pro Unlimited

Pricing, plan by plan

Airbase

$29/month
  • StandardFree
    • Corporate cards
    • Expense reports
    • Bill pay
  • Premium$10/month
    • Advanced approvals
    • NetSuite sync
    • Procurement
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Custom workflows
    • API access
    • Dedicated support

Basecamp

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Basecamp review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Airbase if

  • You need corporate cards.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want bill payments.
Airbase review

Choose Basecamp if

  • You need message boards.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want to-do lists.
Basecamp review

Questions people ask

Is Airbase or Basecamp better?
Neither clearly leads. Airbase starts at $29/month and Basecamp at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Airbase or Basecamp?
Basecamp has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $29/month for Airbase and Free for Basecamp.
Does Airbase or Basecamp run on more platforms?
Airbase runs on Web, Ios, Android. Basecamp runs on Web.
Can I use Basecamp for free?
Yes. Basecamp has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Airbase starts at $29/month.
What is Airbase best used for?
Airbase is most often used for spend management, expense reporting, vendor payments. Of those, spend management and expense reporting are not what Basecamp is typically brought in for.
What can Airbase do that Basecamp cannot?
Airbase covers Corporate cards, Bill payments, Expense management, Procurement. Basecamp covers Message boards, To-do lists, Schedules, Documents & files. Both handle Slack.
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Related pages

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