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Airbase vs Outlook Calendar

Airbase logo

Airbase

Software

The first all-in-one spend management platform

From
$29/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Outlook Calendar logo

Outlook Calendar

Software

Professional calendar management for Microsoft 365

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Outlook Calendar 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.; Outlook Calendar offline support limited to only past 30 days of events, older events unavailable
  • They diverge on capability: Airbase covers Corporate cards, Outlook Calendar covers Meeting scheduling.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Airbase and Outlook Calendar actually diverge.

Attributes where Airbase and Outlook Calendar differ
AttributeAirbaseOutlook Calendar
Starting price$29/monthFree
Pricing modelsubscriptionUnknown
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android
Founded20171975

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

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 Outlook Calendar

  • Meeting scheduling
  • Shared calendars
  • Room booking
  • Availability sharing
  • Recurring events
  • Microsoft Teams
  • OneDrive
  • SharePoint

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 Outlook Calendar
  • Expense reportingnot Outlook Calendar
  • Vendor paymentsnot Outlook Calendar

Outlook Calendar

  • Schedulingnot Airbase
  • Appointment bookingnot Airbase
  • Time trackingnot Airbase
  • Resource managementnot Airbase
  • Team coordinationnot 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.

Outlook Calendar

  • Offline support limited to only past 30 days of events, older events unavailable
  • Shared calendars and group calendars not available offline
  • Cached Exchange Mode issues can limit available offline data
  • Occasional sync conflicts when coming back online

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

Outlook Calendar

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Outlook.com email and calendar
    • 50MB attachment limit
    • 1GB cloud storage
  • Microsoft 365 Basic$19.99/year
    • Outlook with limited features
    • Cloud storage
  • Microsoft 365 Personal$99.99/year
    • Premium Outlook
    • Ad-free email
    • 100GB mailbox storage
  • Microsoft 365 Business Basic$6/month
    • Business-class email
    • 1TB cloud storage
    • Microsoft Teams

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 Outlook Calendar if

  • You need meeting scheduling.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android.
  • You also want shared calendars.
Outlook Calendar review

Questions people ask

Is Airbase or Outlook Calendar better?
Neither clearly leads. Airbase starts at $29/month and Outlook Calendar at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Airbase or Outlook Calendar?
Outlook Calendar has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at $29/month for Airbase and Free for Outlook Calendar.
Does Airbase or Outlook Calendar run on more platforms?
Airbase runs on Web, Ios, Android. Outlook Calendar runs on Web, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android.
Can I use Outlook Calendar for free?
Yes. Outlook Calendar 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 Outlook Calendar is typically brought in for.
What can Airbase do that Outlook Calendar cannot?
Airbase covers Corporate cards, Bill payments, Expense management, Procurement. Outlook Calendar covers Meeting scheduling, Shared calendars, Room booking, Availability sharing. Both handle Slack, Web support, Ios support, Android support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Outlook Calendar: Is Outlook Calendar free?

Outlook.com with calendar is free via a Microsoft account. Outlook Calendar also comes with Microsoft 365 Personal ($99.99/year), Family ($129.99/year), or Business plans starting at $6/user/month.

Source
Outlook Calendar: Does Outlook Calendar work offline?

Outlook Calendar has limited offline support. New Outlook caches only the past 30 days of calendar items. Shared calendars and group calendars are not supported offline. Changes sync when you reconnect.

Source
Outlook Calendar: What platforms does Outlook Calendar support?

Outlook Calendar is available on Windows (desktop and web), macOS (desktop and web), iOS, and Android. Real-time synchronization works across all devices.

Source
Outlook Calendar: Does Outlook Calendar integrate with Slack?

Yes. Outlook Calendar integrates with Slack to sync your status and receive meeting notifications. You can RSVP to invites directly in Slack and join Microsoft Teams meetings from Slack reminders.

Source
Outlook Calendar: Can you share calendars and set delegate permissions?

Yes. Outlook Calendar supports calendar sharing with delegate permissions, color categories for organization, and the Scheduling Assistant to view attendee availability for meeting times.

Source
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Related pages

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