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Accounting · head to head

Circula vs Invoicely

Circula logo

Circula

Accounting

Expense, travel and employee benefit management for German speaking finance teams

From
€15/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Invoicely logo

Invoicely

Accounting

Web-based invoicing app with a free plan for freelancers

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Invoicely has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Circula the module pricing stacks: expenses at fifteen euro per licence plus ninety nine euro for cards plus a hundred and forty nine euro for accounts payable means a fifty person company pays well over a thousand euro a month before add ons.; Invoicely free plan is limited to just 5 invoices and 3 clients per month, and PayPal-only payments.
  • They diverge on capability: Circula covers German per diem engine, Invoicely covers Invoice creation.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Circula and Invoicely actually diverge.

Attributes where Circula and Invoicely differ
AttributeCirculaInvoicely
Starting price€15/monthFree
Pricing modelPer user per monthfreemium
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, iOS, Androidweb

Identical on both: 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 Circula

  • German per diem engine
  • Receipt capture and OCR
  • Corporate credit cards
  • Employee benefits
  • Accounts payable
  • Mileage and travel
  • DATEV and ERP export
  • Approval workflows

Only in Invoicely

  • Invoice creation
  • Recurring invoices
  • Time, expense, and mileage tracking
  • Multi-currency support
  • Team member access
  • Credit card payments

What people use each for

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

Circula

  • A German company that must apply statutory per diem rates and meal deductions correctly to avoid payroll tax exposurenot Invoicely
  • A finance team wanting card spend, expense claims and benefits in one DATEV exportnot Invoicely
  • An employer offering the tax free monthly benefit allowance and needing auditable records of itnot Invoicely
  • A mid sized business replacing spreadsheet mileage claims with rule enforced distance calculationsnot Invoicely

Invoicely

  • Freelancers sending a small number of invoices for freenot Circula
  • Small businesses needing recurring billing and time trackingnot Circula
  • Multi-currency invoicing for international clientsnot Circula
  • Teams needing shared access to client invoicingnot Circula

Where each one falls short

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

Circula

  • The module pricing stacks: expenses at fifteen euro per licence plus ninety nine euro for cards plus a hundred and forty nine euro for accounts payable means a fifty person company pays well over a thousand euro a month before add ons.
  • A minimum of ten licences excludes small teams, and the flexible licensing model for occasional claimants makes monthly cost harder to forecast than a flat per seat price.
  • Strength is in German tax rules, so companies with significant operations outside the DACH region gain little from the feature that justifies the price.
  • The accounts payable module includes only a hundred invoices per month, so invoice heavy businesses face metered overage on top of the platform fee.
  • Card issuing carries a per card transaction ceiling and depends on partner issuing, so high value procurement spend can hit limits that a bank issued corporate card would not.

Invoicely

  • Free plan is limited to just 5 invoices and 3 clients per month, and PayPal-only payments.
  • No native mobile app mentioned, limiting on-the-go invoicing.
  • Team member limits on lower tiers can be restrictive for growing businesses.
  • No listed integrations with accounting platforms like QuickBooks or Xero.

Pricing, plan by plan

Circula

€15/month
  • Employee and Travel Expenses$15/month
    • Per licence, billed annually
    • Minimum 10 licences
    • OCR receipt capture
  • Credit Cards$99/month
    • Platform fee, unlimited cards
    • Per card spend limits
    • Transaction limit of EUR 750,000 per card
  • Accounts Payable$149/month
    • Platform fee
    • Includes 100 invoices per month
    • Supplier invoice capture and approval
  • Benefits$1/month
    • Per licence
    • Tax free benefit allowances
    • Mobility and meal benefits

Invoicely

Free
  • FreeFree
    • 5 monthly invoices
    • 3 saved clients
    • PayPal payments only
  • Basic$9.99/month
    • 100 monthly invoices
    • 25 saved clients
    • Up to 2 team members
  • Professional$19.99/month
    • 250 monthly invoices
    • 100 saved clients
    • Up to 10 team members
  • Enterprise$29.99/month
    • Unlimited monthly invoices
    • Unlimited saved clients
    • Up to 25 team members

Which should you pick?

Choose Circula if

  • You need german per diem engine.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want receipt capture and ocr.
Circula review

Choose Invoicely if

  • You need invoice creation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web.
  • You also want recurring invoices.
Invoicely review

Questions people ask

Is Circula or Invoicely better?
Neither clearly leads. Circula starts at €15/month and Invoicely at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Circula or Invoicely?
Invoicely has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at €15/month for Circula and Free for Invoicely.
Does Circula or Invoicely run on more platforms?
Circula runs on Web, iOS, Android. Invoicely runs on web.
Can I use Invoicely for free?
Yes. Invoicely has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Circula starts at €15/month.
What is Circula best used for?
Circula is most often used for a german company that must apply statutory per diem rates and meal deductions correctly to avoid payroll tax exposure, a finance team wanting card spend, expense claims and benefits in one datev export, an employer offering the tax free monthly benefit allowance and needing auditable records of it, a mid sized business replacing spreadsheet mileage claims with rule enforced distance calculations. Of those, a german company that must apply statutory per diem rates and meal deductions correctly to avoid payroll tax exposure and a finance team wanting card spend, expense claims and benefits in one datev export are not what Invoicely is typically brought in for.
What can Circula do that Invoicely cannot?
Circula covers German per diem engine, Receipt capture and OCR, Corporate credit cards, Employee benefits. Invoicely covers Invoice creation, Recurring invoices, Time, expense, and mileage tracking, Multi-currency support.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Circula: Does Circula calculate German per diems automatically?

Yes, by destination country and trip duration, including meal and accommodation deductions, which is the main reason DACH finance teams buy it.

Invoicely: Is there a free plan, and what are its limits?

Yes, the Free plan allows up to 5 monthly invoices and 3 saved clients, with PayPal-only payments and no team members, and requires no credit card.

Source
Circula: What does it actually cost for fifty employees?

Roughly seven hundred and fifty euro a month for expense licences alone at the fifteen euro rate, before the ninety nine euro card platform fee and any accounts payable module.

Invoicely: What does Invoicely cost?

Paid plans start at Basic for $9.99/month, Professional at $19.99/month, and Enterprise at $29.99/month, each raising invoice, client, and team member limits.

Source
Circula: Is there a minimum commitment?

Yes. A minimum of ten licences and annual billing on the published rates.

Invoicely: Can I change or cancel my plan?

Yes, Invoicely allows customers to upgrade or downgrade their subscription level at any time.

Source
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