Softwr

Accounting · head to head

Happay vs Polar

Happay logo

Happay

Accounting

Indian travel, expense and corporate card platform, now owned by MakeMyTrip

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Polar logo

Polar

Accounting

Billing and revenue platform for AI and infrastructure companies

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Polar has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Happay the platform has changed owner twice since 2021, from founders to CRED to MakeMyTrip, and each transition has meant leadership churn and roadmap reprioritisation.; Polar percentage-based fees higher than some specialized processors for high-volume transactions
  • They diverge on capability: Happay covers GST-aware capture, Polar covers Usage Billing.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Happay and Polar actually diverge.

Attributes where Happay and Polar differ
AttributeHappayPolar
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelquotePercentage of transaction plus per-transaction fee
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidWeb, API

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 Happay

  • GST-aware capture
  • Corporate cards
  • Self-booking travel
  • Cash advances
  • Approval matrix
  • Analytics

Only in Polar

  • Usage Billing
  • Subscriptions
  • Seat Management
  • Prepaid Credits
  • Hosted Checkout
  • Cost Insights
  • Merchant of Record

What people use each for

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

Happay

  • An Indian enterprise needing GST input credit fields captured at the point of expense submissionnot Polar
  • A company with field sales staff needing rupee prepaid cards with merchant category limitsnot Polar
  • A finance team replacing a spreadsheet-and-email cash advance process with a tracked workflownot Polar
  • An Indian group wanting travel booking and expense from one supplier with domestic content depthnot Polar

Polar

  • Billing for token and API call consumption by LLM applicationsnot Happay
  • Managing tiered pricing for infrastructure usage-based servicesnot Happay
  • Handling subscription and usage hybrid modelsnot Happay
  • Monetizing AI APIs with usage metering and creditsnot Happay

Where each one falls short

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

Happay

  • The platform has changed owner twice since 2021, from founders to CRED to MakeMyTrip, and each transition has meant leadership churn and roadmap reprioritisation.
  • It is now owned by an online travel agency, so the incentive is to grow travel bookings, and expense-only customers are not the strategic centre of the product.
  • Card issuance depends on partner bank relationships, so limits, approval times and product features are constrained by a bank the customer does not choose.
  • Coverage is overwhelmingly India-specific, which makes it unsuitable as a group-wide platform for companies with foreign subsidiaries.
  • Integration depth outside common Indian ERP and accounting systems is thin, and connecting a global SAP instance usually needs bespoke work.

Polar

  • Percentage-based fees higher than some specialized processors for high-volume transactions
  • Merchant of record model may not suit companies preferring direct payment control
  • Free Starter tier limited with 5% fees reducing appeal for production use
  • Setup and integration effort required despite API simplicity

Pricing, plan by plan

Happay

On request
  • Happay$undefined/year
    • Quoted per-user or per-transaction subscription
    • Card programme terms set with the partner bank
    • Travel booking fees separate from expense subscription

Polar

Free
  • StarterFree
    • 5% + $0.50 per transaction
    • Free tier for testing
    • Basic features
  • Pro$20/month
    • 3.8% + $0.40 per transaction
    • Full platform access
    • Cost insights
  • Growth$100/month
    • 3.6% + $0.35 per transaction
    • Priority support
    • Volume benefits
  • Scale$400/month
    • 3.4% + $0.30 per transaction
    • Dedicated support
    • Custom integration

Which should you pick?

Choose Happay if

  • You need gst-aware capture.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want corporate cards.
Happay review

Choose Polar if

  • You need usage billing.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want subscriptions.
Polar review

Questions people ask

Is Happay or Polar better?
Neither clearly leads. Happay starts at On request and Polar at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Happay or Polar?
Polar has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Happay and Free for Polar.
Does Happay or Polar run on more platforms?
Happay runs on Web, iOS, Android. Polar runs on Web, API.
Can I use Polar for free?
Yes. Polar has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Happay starts at On request.
What is Happay best used for?
Happay is most often used for an indian enterprise needing gst input credit fields captured at the point of expense submission, a company with field sales staff needing rupee prepaid cards with merchant category limits, a finance team replacing a spreadsheet-and-email cash advance process with a tracked workflow, an indian group wanting travel booking and expense from one supplier with domestic content depth. Of those, an indian enterprise needing gst input credit fields captured at the point of expense submission and a company with field sales staff needing rupee prepaid cards with merchant category limits are not what Polar is typically brought in for.
What can Happay do that Polar cannot?
Happay covers GST-aware capture, Corporate cards, Self-booking travel, Cash advances. Polar covers Usage Billing, Subscriptions, Seat Management, Prepaid Credits.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Happay: Who owns Happay now?

MakeMyTrip. It agreed in November 2024 to acquire the expense management platform, brand and team from CRED, which had bought Happay in 2021.

Polar: Do you handle international payments and taxes?

Yes, Polar acts as merchant of record in 100+ markets, handling payment processing, tax collection, and compliance automatically.

Source
Happay: Can it be used outside India?

It books international travel for Indian entities, but the expense and card sides are built for Indian tax and banking and do not serve foreign entities well.

Polar: Is there a free tier?

Yes, the Starter plan is free and charges 5% + $0.50 per transaction, ideal for testing and early-stage development.

Source
Happay: Does Happay issue its own cards?

It issues cards through partner banks rather than under its own banking licence, so card terms follow the partner.

Polar: Do you offer discounts for startups?

Yes, the Startup Program provides the Scale plan free for 12 months for early-stage AI companies.

Source
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