Softwr

Accounting · head to head

Airbase vs Orb

Airbase logo

Airbase

Accounting

The first all-in-one spend management platform

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Orb logo

Orb

Accounting

Revenue design platform automating usage-based billing and pricing strategy

From
On request
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.; Orb custom pricing model requires sales consultation, no transparent public pricing
  • They diverge on capability: Airbase covers Corporate cards, Orb covers Usage metering.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Airbase and Orb actually diverge.

Attributes where Airbase and Orb differ
AttributeAirbaseOrb
Starting price$29/monthOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionCustom pricing based on billing volume and events
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb, API
Founded2017Unknown

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Accounting).

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 Orb

  • Usage metering
  • Automated billing
  • Pricing modeling
  • Revenue recognition
  • Spend controls
  • Pricing calculator
  • NetSuite integration
  • Data warehouse sync

What people use each for

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

Airbase

  • Spend managementnot Orb
  • Expense reportingnot Orb
  • Vendor paymentsnot Orb

Orb

  • Implementing usage-based billing for cloud infrastructure providersnot Airbase
  • Modeling and testing multiple pricing strategies before launchnot Airbase
  • Automating revenue recognition for financial reportingnot Airbase
  • Managing complex hybrid pricing (seats plus usage) at scalenot Airbase
  • Providing customers real-time spend controls and usage visibilitynot 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.

Orb

  • Custom pricing model requires sales consultation, no transparent public pricing
  • Pricing based on both events and billing volume adds complexity to cost estimation
  • Enterprise-focused positioning may be overkill for simple subscription use cases
  • Requires integration with existing accounting systems for full value
  • Limited information on free tier or trial availability

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

Orb

On request
  • Core$undefined/custom
    • Real-time event ingestion (up to 250K+ events/second)
    • Real-time alerting
    • Hybrid and usage-based billing
  • Advanced$undefined/custom
    • All Core features
    • Data warehouse sync
    • Salesforce integration
  • Enterprise$undefined/custom
    • All Advanced features
    • Enterprise-grade SLAs
    • Dedicated support

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 Orb if

  • You need usage metering.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want automated billing.
Orb review

Questions people ask

Is Airbase or Orb better?
Neither clearly leads. Airbase starts at $29/month and Orb at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Airbase or Orb?
Airbase starts at $29/month and Orb at On request.
Does Airbase or Orb run on more platforms?
Airbase runs on Web, Ios, Android. Orb runs on Web, API.
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 Orb is typically brought in for.
What can Airbase do that Orb cannot?
Airbase covers Corporate cards, Bill payments, Expense management, Procurement. Orb covers Usage metering, Automated billing, Pricing modeling, Revenue recognition.

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
Orb: How does Orb pricing work?

Orb uses custom pricing based on your billing volume (total value of invoices) and events (raw data records ingested). Specific costs must be discussed with their sales team.

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
Orb: What is the difference between Core, Advanced, and Enterprise plans?

Core includes event ingestion and basic billing automation. Advanced adds data warehouse sync and Salesforce/NetSuite integrations. Enterprise adds SLAs, dedicated support, and mission-critical guarantees.

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
Orb: Can Orb handle hybrid pricing models?

Yes. Orb supports hybrid pricing combining seat-based, usage-based, and flat-rate components, making it suitable for complex monetization strategies.

Source
Share

Related pages

More on Airbase

More on Orb

Keep looking

Other head to heads