Softwr

Accounting & Finance · head to head

Airbase vs CharlieHR

Airbase logo

Airbase

Accounting & Finance

The first all-in-one spend management platform

From
$29/month
Rated
-
CharlieHR logo

CharlieHR

HR & Recruiting

HR software built for small businesses

From
£5/month
Rated
-

The short version

  • 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.; CharlieHR limited payroll integration capabilities compared to dedicated payroll platforms
  • They diverge on capability: Airbase covers Corporate cards, CharlieHR covers Employee Database.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Airbase and CharlieHR actually diverge.

Attributes where Airbase and CharlieHR differ
AttributeAirbaseCharlieHR
Starting price$29/month£5/month
Pricing modelsubscriptionUnknown
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb, Mobile (iOS/Android)
CategoryAccounting & FinanceHR & Recruiting
Founded20172015

Identical on both: free tier (No), 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 CharlieHR

  • Employee Database
  • Time Off Management
  • Onboarding
  • Performance Reviews
  • Team Engagement
  • Company Directory
  • Google Workspace
  • Microsoft 365

Both cover

  • Slack
  • Web support
  • Ios support
  • Android support

What people use each for

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

Airbase

  • Spend managementnot CharlieHR
  • Expense reportingnot CharlieHR
  • Vendor paymentsnot CharlieHR

CharlieHR

No use cases recorded yet. See the CharlieHR review.

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.

CharlieHR

  • Limited payroll integration capabilities compared to dedicated payroll platforms
  • Pricing structure geared toward UK and Europe, with limited localization for other regions
  • Add-on services like Charlie Recruit and Charlie Advice incur additional costs
  • Smaller employee base (approximately 30 people) compared to enterprise HR competitors

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

CharlieHR

£5/month
  • Core HR (Teams 1-4)$5/month
    • Employee onboarding
    • Time off management
    • Document storage

Which should you pick?

Choose Airbase if

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

Choose CharlieHR if

  • You need employee database.
  • You work on Web, Mobile (iOS/Android).
  • You also want time off management.

Questions people ask

Is Airbase or CharlieHR better?
Neither clearly leads. Airbase starts at $29/month and CharlieHR at £5/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Airbase or CharlieHR?
Airbase starts at $29/month and CharlieHR at £5/month.
Does Airbase or CharlieHR run on more platforms?
Airbase runs on Web, Ios, Android. CharlieHR runs on Web, Mobile (iOS/Android).
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 CharlieHR is typically brought in for.
What can Airbase do that CharlieHR cannot?
Airbase covers Corporate cards, Bill payments, Expense management, Procurement. CharlieHR covers Employee Database, Time Off Management, Onboarding, Performance Reviews. Both handle Slack, Web support, Ios support, Android support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

CharlieHR: Does CharlieHR offer a free plan?

CharlieHR does not have a free plan, but offers a 7-day free trial without requiring a credit card. Pricing starts at £5/month for teams of 1-4 employees.

Source
CharlieHR: What are CharlieHR's core features?

Core features include employee onboarding, time off tracking, performance reviews, document storage, employee engagement tools, and benefits management with access to 30,000+ discounts.

Source
CharlieHR: Does CharlieHR integrate with payroll systems?

CharlieHR integrates with major HR tech stacks and offers add-on services like Charlie Recruit for hiring automation. Payroll integration capabilities depend on the specific payroll provider you use.

Source
CharlieHR: Is CharlieHR GDPR compliant?

Yes. CharlieHR is GDPR-compliant and ISO 27001-certified, providing strong data security and privacy compliance for European businesses.

Source
CharlieHR: Does CharlieHR support multi-currency?

CharlieHR's pricing is primarily in GBP (British Pounds). International users can access the platform but currency and localization options may be limited.

Source

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