Softwr

Accounting · head to head

Airbase vs Medusa

Airbase logo

Airbase

Accounting

The first all-in-one spend management platform

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Medusa logo

Medusa

E-Commerce

Open source Shopify alternative

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

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.; Medusa the managed cloud meters four separate resources: edge requests, emails, compute hours and database storage
  • They diverge on capability: Airbase covers Corporate cards, Medusa covers Open source.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Airbase and Medusa actually diverge.

Attributes where Airbase and Medusa differ
AttributeAirbaseMedusa
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb
CategoryAccountingE-Commerce
Founded20172020

Identical on both: starting price ($29/month), pricing model (subscription), 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 Medusa

  • Open source
  • Modular architecture
  • Multi-region support
  • Plugin system
  • Admin dashboard
  • Order management
  • Inventory tracking
  • Payment integrations

What people use each for

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

Airbase

  • Spend managementnot Medusa
  • Expense reportingnot Medusa
  • Vendor paymentsnot Medusa

Medusa

  • Building a custom ecommerce backend on an open source headless platformnot Airbase
  • Running a self hosted or managed commerce API with a custom storefrontnot 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.

Medusa

  • The managed cloud meters four separate resources: edge requests, emails, compute hours and database storage
  • The Develop plan at $29 a month applies a hard limit of 1,000 emails, so it stops rather than bills
  • Compute hours are capped at 600 on Develop and 800 on Launch
  • Edge request overage is $0.3 per million and storage $0.5 per GB month above the plan allowance
  • Background workers and priority support require the Scale plan at $299 a month

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

Medusa

$29/month
  • Develop$29/month
    • Base cloud hosting
    • Commerce features included
    • No GMV-tax
  • Launch$99/month
    • Enhanced features
    • No GMV-tax
  • Scale$299/month
    • Advanced features
    • No GMV-tax
  • Enterprise$null/custom
    • Custom configuration

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 Medusa if

  • You need open source.
  • You also want modular architecture.
Medusa review

Questions people ask

Is Airbase or Medusa better?
Neither clearly leads. Airbase starts at $29/month and Medusa at $29/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Airbase or Medusa?
Airbase starts at $29/month and Medusa at $29/month.
Does Airbase or Medusa run on more platforms?
Airbase runs on Web, Ios, Android. Medusa runs on Web.
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 Medusa is typically brought in for.
What can Airbase do that Medusa cannot?
Airbase covers Corporate cards, Bill payments, Expense management, Procurement. Medusa covers Open source, Modular architecture, Multi-region support, Plugin system.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Airbase: What is Airbase and why is no pricing published on its website?

Airbase is a Paylocity Company offering unified expense management across finance, HR, and IT functions. Pricing is not published on the Airbase website and customers must contact Paylocity directly for a quote.

Source
Medusa: What does Medusa charge for additional team members?

Additional seats on the Medusa Cloud development platform cost $30 per seat per month. Unlimited users can access the Medusa Admin Dashboard at no additional cost for commerce operations.

Source
Airbase: Does Airbase integrate with Paylocity?

Yes, Airbase is owned by Paylocity and integrates with Paylocity's human resources and payroll systems for unified financial management.

Source
Medusa: Are there usage-based charges beyond the base Medusa plan price?

Yes. Beyond base plan costs, Medusa charges for edge request overages at $0.30 per 1M requests, email overages at $0.70 per 1,000 emails, data transfer at $0.125 per GB, and database storage at $0.50 per GB-month.

Source
Airbase: How do I get pricing information and schedule a demo for Airbase?

Airbase directs customers to contact Paylocity or explore interactive product tours, but specific pricing rates must be obtained directly from the sales team. The company does not publish rate information publicly.

Source
Medusa: Can I cancel my Medusa subscription at any time?

Yes, users can cancel their Medusa subscription anytime. Plans are billed monthly in advance, with flex usage charges from the previous month added to the next invoice.

Source
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