Softwr

Travel · head to head

Bokun vs Center

Bokun logo

Bokun

Travel

Tour and activity booking platform tied to Viator distribution, from free to $499 a month

From
Free
Rated
-
Center logo

Center

Travel

Card-first travel and expense management with real-time transaction visibility

From
On request
Rated
-

The short version

  • Only Bokun has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Bokun viator bookings are exempt from the booking fee while your own direct bookings are not, so the pricing structure rewards selling through the parent marketplace rather than through your own site.; Center the product is built around its own card, so employees still using a legacy bank corporate card get the ordinary receipt-chasing experience and the real-time promise does not apply to them.
  • They diverge on capability: Bokun covers Channel manager, Center covers Center corporate card.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Bokun and Center actually diverge.

Attributes where Bokun and Center differ
AttributeBokunCenter
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelPer month plus a booking feequote
Free tierYesNo

Identical on both: platforms (Web, iOS, Android), user rating (Not yet rated), category (Travel).

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 Bokun

  • Channel manager
  • Booking widgets
  • Marketplace
  • Product and availability setup
  • Offline bookings
  • Vouchers and redemption

Only in Center

  • Center corporate card
  • Real-time expense capture
  • Travel booking
  • Insights for Travel
  • Policy automation
  • ERP sync

What people use each for

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

Bokun

  • An operator already doing significant Viator volume who wants that channel to cost nothing in software feesnot Center
  • A city tour company reselling partner products and taking commission through the Bokun marketplacenot Center
  • An operator wanting a fixed monthly subscription rather than a percentage of every booking as FareHarbor chargesnot Center
  • A business taking most bookings by phone, which incur no Bokun booking fee at allnot Center

Center

  • A US mid-market finance team that wants committed travel spend visible before the month closesnot Bokun
  • A company replacing a bank corporate card plus a separate expense tool with one suppliernot Bokun
  • A business that wants hotel spend booked directly by staff still captured in travel reportingnot Bokun
  • A NetSuite or Sage Intacct user wanting coded expenses posted without manual re-keyingnot Bokun

Where each one falls short

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

Bokun

  • Viator bookings are exempt from the booking fee while your own direct bookings are not, so the pricing structure rewards selling through the parent marketplace rather than through your own site.
  • The booking fee sits on top of the monthly subscription, so an operator on Start pays $49 plus 1.5% of direct online revenue and the plan price alone understates the cost.
  • The free plan is limited to a single user and constrained features, so any business with staff has to move to a paid tier almost immediately.
  • Adopting it deepens commercial dependence on Tripadvisor and Viator, which is uncomfortable if your strategy is reducing OTA commission exposure.
  • Reporting and back-office depth are lighter than dedicated operator platforms, so businesses with complex resource scheduling or multi-site operations often need workarounds.

Center

  • The product is built around its own card, so employees still using a legacy bank corporate card get the ordinary receipt-chasing experience and the real-time promise does not apply to them.
  • Travel booking depends on Spotnana, meaning content, service levels and roadmap for a core part of the product sit with a third party Center does not control.
  • It is a United States product, and multi-entity companies with European or Asian subsidiaries will need a separate card and expense stack for those entities.
  • Interchange on card spend is a significant part of how the vendor earns, which is why the software price looks low; a company that keeps most spend on an existing card programme is a poor fit commercially.
  • It is a smaller supplier than Brex, Ramp or SAP Concur, so integration coverage outside the main US accounting systems is thinner and custom connectors are often the answer.

Pricing, plan by plan

Bokun

Free
  • FreeFree
    • One user
    • No monthly fee
    • No Bokun booking fee
  • Start$49/month
    • Up to 5 users
    • 1.5% booking fee on direct online bookings
    • No booking fee on Viator bookings
  • Plus$149/month
    • Up to 10 users
    • 1.25% booking fee on direct online bookings
    • No Bokun fee on Viator bookings
  • Premium$499/month
    • Unlimited users
    • 1% booking fee on direct online bookings
    • No Bokun fee on Viator bookings

Center

On request
  • Center Expense and Travel$undefined/year
    • Usage-based, with no licence, deployment or support fee published
    • Flat per-booking travel fee including unlimited changes
    • Card interchange forms part of the vendor revenue

Which should you pick?

Choose Bokun if

  • You need channel manager.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want booking widgets.

Choose Center if

  • You need center corporate card.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want real-time expense capture.

Questions people ask

Is Bokun or Center better?
Neither clearly leads. Bokun starts at Free and Center at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Bokun or Center?
Bokun has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Bokun and On request for Center.
Does Bokun or Center run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, iOS, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Bokun for free?
Yes. Bokun has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Center starts at On request.
What is Bokun best used for?
Bokun is most often used for an operator already doing significant viator volume who wants that channel to cost nothing in software fees, a city tour company reselling partner products and taking commission through the bokun marketplace, an operator wanting a fixed monthly subscription rather than a percentage of every booking as fareharbor charges, a business taking most bookings by phone, which incur no bokun booking fee at all. Of those, an operator already doing significant viator volume who wants that channel to cost nothing in software fees and a city tour company reselling partner products and taking commission through the bokun marketplace are not what Center is typically brought in for.
What can Bokun do that Center cannot?
Bokun covers Channel manager, Booking widgets, Marketplace, Product and availability setup. Center covers Center corporate card, Real-time expense capture, Travel booking, Insights for Travel.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Bokun: Are Viator bookings really free of Bokun fees?

Yes on the paid plans. Direct online bookings through your own widget carry 1% to 1.5% depending on tier.

Center: Do we have to use the Center card?

Effectively yes for the core benefit. Center can ingest other card feeds, but real-time capture, controls and the pricing model all assume its own card.

Bokun: Can I pass the booking fee to customers?

Yes, on the paid plans the fee can be added to the customer price rather than absorbed.

Center: Who provides the travel booking?

Spotnana provides the underlying Travel-as-a-Service platform; Center provides the interface, policy layer and reporting.

Bokun: Who owns Bokun?

Viator, which is part of Tripadvisor.

Center: Is there a per-user licence fee?

Center markets usage-based pricing with no licence, deployment or support fees; the economics rest on card interchange and booking fees.

Bokun: Is the free plan usable in a real business?

Only for a solo operator. It is one user with limited features.

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