Softwr

Payroll · head to head

Extend vs Medius

Extend logo

Extend

Payroll

Virtual card issuing and spend controls layered onto existing business credit cards

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Medius logo

Medius

Accounting

Accounts payable automation and supplier payments for mid-market finance teams, Marlin Equity owned

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Extend has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Extend it depends on an existing business credit card relationship, so a company without a qualifying Amex, Visa or Mastercard business card cannot use it as a standalone card issuer.; Medius the sourcing, contract and procurement modules are considerably less developed than the AP core, so buying Medius as a full source-to-pay suite means accepting weak upstream tooling.
  • They diverge on capability: Extend covers Virtual card issuing, Medius covers Invoice capture and coding.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Extend and Medius actually diverge.

Attributes where Extend and Medius differ
AttributeExtendMedius
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelPer user per month, free starter tierquote
Free tierYesNo
CategoryPayrollAccounting

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

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 Extend

  • Virtual card issuing
  • Per-card spend controls
  • Approval workflows
  • Receipt auto-matching
  • ERP integrations
  • API access

Only in Medius

  • Invoice capture and coding
  • Matching and exception handling
  • Fraud and anomaly detection
  • Supplier payments
  • Approval workflow
  • ERP integration

What people use each for

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

Extend

  • A small business wanting free vendor-level virtual card controls without opening a new card programmenot Medius
  • A company with an existing Amex or bank business card wanting tighter per-vendor spend limitsnot Medius
  • A finance team wanting predictable per-user pricing rather than a private quote for spend managementnot Medius
  • A larger business wanting API-driven automated card issuance tied to its existing card relationshipnot Medius

Medius

  • A mid-market finance team where most spend arrives as an invoice with no purchase order to match againstnot Extend
  • A group with several legal entities on different ERPs that wants one AP process across all of themnot Extend
  • Reducing invoice fraud exposure with automated detection of supplier bank detail changesnot Extend
  • Replacing a scanning bureau and a shared AP inbox with automated capture and exception-based reviewnot Extend

Where each one falls short

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

Extend

  • It depends on an existing business credit card relationship, so a company without a qualifying Amex, Visa or Mastercard business card cannot use it as a standalone card issuer.
  • The free Starter plan is capped at five users and 100 cards a month, which small but growing teams will outgrow quickly and need to upgrade past.
  • The Pro plan enforces a ten-user minimum, so a company with only two or three people who need virtual cards pays for unused seats.
  • Rewards, credit terms and dispute resolution still run through the underlying card issuer, so Extend cannot improve or change those terms; it only adds a control layer on top.
  • Deeper ERP integrations such as NetSuite and Dynamics 365 are reserved for the custom-quoted Enterprise tier, so companies needing them lose the pricing transparency of the published Starter and Pro plans.

Medius

  • The sourcing, contract and procurement modules are considerably less developed than the AP core, so buying Medius as a full source-to-pay suite means accepting weak upstream tooling.
  • Pricing is quote-only and driven by invoice volume, so a business with many low-value invoices pays disproportionately relative to the spend being controlled.
  • Payments are billed on transaction volume separately from the AP subscription, which is easy to omit from a cost comparison against a licence-only AP tool.
  • Private equity ownership since 2017 has produced an acquisition-driven product line, so payments and adjacent capability come from bought-in technology rather than the original platform.
  • ERP integration depth varies sharply by system, and organisations on less common or heavily customised ERPs face integration work that lengthens the implementation.

Pricing, plan by plan

Extend

Free
  • StarterFree
    • Up to 5 users and 10 guests
    • Up to 100 virtual cards per month
    • One expense category
  • Pro$11.99/month
    • 10 user minimum
    • Up to 500 virtual cards per month
    • Custom approval workflows and QuickBooks Online integration
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Unlimited users and virtual cards
    • API access for automated card issuance
    • NetSuite and Dynamics 365 integration, dedicated account manager

Medius

On request
  • Medius AP Automation$undefined/year
    • Two packaged AP automation tiers
    • Priced by invoice volume and entity count
    • Sourcing, contracts and procurement modules sold separately

Which should you pick?

Choose Extend if

  • You need virtual card issuing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want per-card spend controls.
Extend review

Choose Medius if

  • You need invoice capture and coding.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want matching and exception handling.
Medius review

Questions people ask

Is Extend or Medius better?
Neither clearly leads. Extend starts at Free and Medius at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Extend or Medius?
Extend has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Extend and On request for Medius.
Does Extend or Medius run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, iOS, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Extend for free?
Yes. Extend has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Medius starts at On request.
What is Extend best used for?
Extend is most often used for a small business wanting free vendor-level virtual card controls without opening a new card programme, a company with an existing amex or bank business card wanting tighter per-vendor spend limits, a finance team wanting predictable per-user pricing rather than a private quote for spend management, a larger business wanting api-driven automated card issuance tied to its existing card relationship. Of those, a small business wanting free vendor-level virtual card controls without opening a new card programme and a company with an existing amex or bank business card wanting tighter per-vendor spend limits are not what Medius is typically brought in for.
What can Extend do that Medius cannot?
Extend covers Virtual card issuing, Per-card spend controls, Approval workflows, Receipt auto-matching. Medius covers Invoice capture and coding, Matching and exception handling, Fraud and anomaly detection, Supplier payments.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Extend: Does Extend replace our business credit card?

No, it issues virtual cards against an existing American Express, Visa or Mastercard business credit line rather than opening a new card programme.

Medius: Is Medius a procurement suite or an AP tool?

Primarily an AP automation platform with procurement modules attached. If sourcing is your main requirement, look elsewhere.

Extend: Is there really a free plan?

Yes, the Starter plan is free for up to five users, ten guests and 100 virtual cards a month.

Medius: Who owns Medius?

Marlin Equity Partners, which acquired it in 2017 and has funded several bolt-on acquisitions since.

Extend: What does Pro cost?

11.99 dollars per user per month billed annually, or 12 dollars monthly, with a ten-user minimum.

Medius: How is it priced?

By quote, driven by invoice volume and entity count, with payments billed separately on transaction volume.

Medius: Does it replace our ERP?

No. It sits alongside the ERP and posts approved invoices into it.

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