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Accounting · head to head

Lago vs Airwallex

Lago logo

Lago

Accounting

Open-source billing infrastructure for usage-based models

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Airwallex logo

Airwallex

Accounting

Global business accounts and payments

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Lago free tier limited to 10,000 entities per month with 5M event cap; Airwallex international card payments carry a $0.30 fee per transaction on top of FX charges, separate from the free tier

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Lago and Airwallex actually diverge.

Attributes where Lago and Airwallex differ
AttributeLagoAirwallex
Pricing modelFreemium with optional paid tiersfreemium
PlatformsWeb, Cloud, Self-hosted, On-premise, VPCWeb

Identical on both: starting price (Free), free tier (Yes), 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 Lago

  • Real-time usage metering
  • Multiple pricing models
  • Automated invoicing
  • Prepaid credits
  • Entitlements
  • Multi-currency support
  • Payment orchestration
  • Revenue analytics

Only in Airwallex

Nothing recorded that Lago does not also cover.

What people use each for

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

Lago

  • Building usage-based billing for high-volume APIs and infrastructurenot Airwallex
  • Implementing metered billing for AI and tokenized servicesnot Airwallex
  • Creating subscription and hybrid pricing modelsnot Airwallex
  • Managing multi-currency billing for global companiesnot Airwallex
  • Maintaining billing infrastructure without vendor lock-innot Airwallex

Airwallex

  • Global payment collection accepting multiple currencies like local paymentsnot Lago
  • International money transfers to 200+ countries at interbank ratesnot Lago
  • Corporate expense management with multi-currency cards and trackingnot Lago
  • Automating recurring revenue and subscription billing globallynot Lago
  • Opening business accounts in 20+ currencies with local bank detailsnot Lago
  • Platform monetization through embedded finance and Banking as a Servicenot Lago

Where each one falls short

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

Lago

  • Free tier limited to 10,000 entities per month with 5M event cap
  • No specific pricing published for Pro annual plan or Scale plan
  • Self-hosted and on-premise deployments require engineering resources
  • Community support only on free tier
  • Scale plan requires annual contracts and sales engagement

Airwallex

  • International card payments carry a $0.30 fee per transaction on top of FX charges, separate from the free tier

Pricing, plan by plan

Lago

Free
  • Build (Free)Free
    • 10,000 managed entities per month
    • 5M usage events per month
    • 1K events per second rate limit
  • Pro$399/month
    • 10,000 entities included (graduated pricing to 100K)
    • 25M usage events included (to 500M with graduated rates)
    • 10K events per second (upgradeable to 100K)
  • Scale$null/custom
    • Custom entity and event volumes
    • 50K events per second (upgradeable to 100K)
    • RBAC and SSO (SAML)

Airwallex

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the Airwallex review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Lago if

  • You need real-time usage metering.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Cloud, Self-hosted, On-premise, VPC.
  • You also want multiple pricing models.
Lago review

Choose Airwallex if

  • You want to start without paying.
Airwallex review

Questions people ask

Is Lago or Airwallex better?
Neither clearly leads. Lago starts at Free and Airwallex at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Lago or Airwallex?
Lago starts at Free and Airwallex at Free.
Does Lago or Airwallex run on more platforms?
Lago runs on Web, Cloud, Self-hosted, On-premise, VPC. Airwallex runs on Web.
Can I use Lago for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Lago best used for?
Lago is most often used for building usage-based billing for high-volume apis and infrastructure, implementing metered billing for ai and tokenized services, creating subscription and hybrid pricing models, managing multi-currency billing for global companies. Of those, building usage-based billing for high-volume apis and infrastructure and implementing metered billing for ai and tokenized services are not what Airwallex is typically brought in for.
What can Lago do that Airwallex cannot?
Lago covers Real-time usage metering, Multiple pricing models, Automated invoicing, Prepaid credits.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Lago: Can I use Lago open-source for free?

Yes, Lago is open-source under the AGPLv3 license and can be self-hosted. The cloud-based Build plan is also free with limits of 10,000 entities and 5M events per month.

Source
Airwallex: Does Airwallex publish pricing?

Airwallex does not publish specific pricing details on their main website. Pricing and demo information are available through their sales team or dedicated pricing page at help.airwallex.com.

Source
Lago: What payment providers does Lago integrate with?

Lago integrates with Stripe and Adyen for payment processing. It is not a payment processor itself but orchestrates payments through these providers.

Source
Airwallex: What cost savings can Airwallex provide?

Customer testimonials report $40,000 annual savings in collections costs, at least 5% savings per dollar transferred versus traditional banks, and up to 80% savings in conversion fees.

Source
Lago: Does Lago support multiple currencies?

Yes, Lago supports multi-currency billing with automatic currency conversion for global businesses.

Source
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