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Accounting · head to head

Basware vs Expensify

Basware logo

Basware

Accounting

Invoice automation and e-invoicing compliance across a large number of national mandates

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Expensify logo

Expensify

Accounting

Expense management for receipts, bills & more

From
$5/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Basware the e-invoicing compliance breadth that justifies the price is worthless to a company operating in a single country, where cheaper AP automation tools will do the same work.; Expensify minimal offline expense entry capabilities hamper use in areas with unstable internet
  • They diverge on capability: Basware covers Invoice capture, Expensify covers SmartScan receipts.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Basware and Expensify actually diverge.

Attributes where Basware and Expensify differ
AttributeBaswareExpensify
Starting priceOn request$5/month
Pricing modelquoteUnknown
FoundedUnknown2008

Identical on both: free tier (No), platforms (Web, iOS, Android), 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 Basware

  • Invoice capture
  • Matching
  • Approval workflow
  • E-invoicing compliance
  • Supplier network
  • Payment execution
  • Spend analytics
  • ERP integration

Only in Expensify

  • SmartScan receipts
  • Expense reports
  • Corporate cards
  • Reimbursements
  • Travel booking
  • Mileage tracking
  • Multi-currency
  • Real-time syncing

What people use each for

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

Basware

  • A multinational needing compliant electronic invoicing across Italy, Poland, France and Mexico without building each mandate itselfnot Expensify
  • A shared service centre processing hundreds of thousands of invoices a year that needs touchless processing rates measured and improvednot Expensify
  • A group standardising accounts payable across subsidiaries running different ERP systemsnot Expensify
  • A finance function trying to capture early payment discounts that are currently lost to slow approval cyclesnot Expensify

Expensify

  • Expense reportingnot Basware
  • Receipt managementnot Basware
  • Travel expensesnot Basware
  • Corporate card managementnot Basware
  • Reimbursementsnot Basware

Where each one falls short

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

Basware

  • The e-invoicing compliance breadth that justifies the price is worthless to a company operating in a single country, where cheaper AP automation tools will do the same work.
  • Implementation is a substantial integration project involving ERP connectors, supplier onboarding and country-by-country compliance configuration, and it is priced and timed accordingly.
  • The user interface is dated next to newer accounts payable products, and approvers outside finance find it unintuitive, which slows the very cycle times the system is bought to improve.
  • Supplier onboarding onto the network is the hidden effort: the touchless processing rate depends on how many suppliers actually send electronic invoices, and that is a change management programme, not a software setting.
  • Growth by acquisition, including Glantus, has left overlapping analytics capability and integration work still in progress, so buyers should check which components share a data model today.

Expensify

  • Minimal offline expense entry capabilities hamper use in areas with unstable internet
  • OCR receipt data extraction requires manual review and correction for accuracy
  • Per-user pricing model increases costs for larger organizations

Pricing, plan by plan

Basware

On request
  • Basware$undefined/year
    • Invoice automation, matching and approval
    • E-invoicing compliance across national mandates
    • Supplier network connectivity

Expensify

$5/month

No published plan breakdown. See the Expensify review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Basware if

  • You need invoice capture.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want matching.
Basware review

Choose Expensify if

  • You need smartscan receipts.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want expense reports.
Expensify review

Questions people ask

Is Basware or Expensify better?
Neither clearly leads. Basware starts at On request and Expensify at $5/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Basware or Expensify?
Basware starts at On request and Expensify at $5/month.
Does Basware or Expensify run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, iOS, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is Basware best used for?
Basware is most often used for a multinational needing compliant electronic invoicing across italy, poland, france and mexico without building each mandate itself, a shared service centre processing hundreds of thousands of invoices a year that needs touchless processing rates measured and improved, a group standardising accounts payable across subsidiaries running different erp systems, a finance function trying to capture early payment discounts that are currently lost to slow approval cycles. Of those, a multinational needing compliant electronic invoicing across italy, poland, france and mexico without building each mandate itself and a shared service centre processing hundreds of thousands of invoices a year that needs touchless processing rates measured and improved are not what Expensify is typically brought in for.
What can Basware do that Expensify cannot?
Basware covers Invoice capture, Matching, Approval workflow, E-invoicing compliance. Expensify covers SmartScan receipts, Expense reports, Corporate cards, Reimbursements.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Basware: Should we buy Basware if we only operate in one country?

Probably not. Its main advantage is multi-country e-invoicing compliance. In a single jurisdiction, cheaper AP automation gives you the same result.

Expensify: How does Expensify capture receipts?

Expensify uses SmartScan technology with OCR to automatically extract data from receipt images, reducing manual data entry. Users can photograph receipts with their phone to quickly create expense entries.

Source
Basware: Does it handle mandatory e-invoicing regimes?

Yes, and that is the core reason to choose it. It covers a wide set of national mandates as a service rather than an integration project you run yourself.

Expensify: What reimbursement methods does Expensify support?

Expensify supports ACH reimbursement via direct deposit after setting up a direct deposit account. Next-day reimbursement is available, or standard processing takes 3-5 business days.

Source
Basware: What drives the price?

Invoice volume, number of countries and modules. It is quoted, and implementation with ERP connectors and supplier onboarding is separate.

Expensify: How does Expensify offline mode work?

Expensify has limited offline capabilities. Users can capture receipts offline, but data syncs when internet connectivity is restored. Full functionality requires online access.

Source
Basware: What determines the return?

The share of invoices arriving electronically. Touchless rates depend on supplier adoption, so budget for a supplier onboarding programme, not just the software.

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