Softwr

Accounting · head to head

Lago vs Pleo

Lago logo

Lago

Accounting

Open-source billing infrastructure for usage-based models

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Pleo logo

Pleo

Accounting

Smart company cards for forward-thinking teams

From
£9.5/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Lago has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Lago free tier limited to 10,000 entities per month with 5M event cap; Pleo card delays and transaction limits impact usability, with limited regional acceptance in some areas
  • They diverge on capability: Lago covers Real-time usage metering, Pleo covers Company cards.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 30 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Lago and Pleo actually diverge.

Attributes where Lago and Pleo differ
AttributeLagoPleo
Starting priceFree£9.5/month
Pricing modelFreemium with optional paid tiersUnknown
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, Cloud, Self-hosted, On-premise, VPCiOS, Android, Web
FoundedUnknown2015

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 Lago

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

Only in Pleo

  • Company cards
  • Receipt capture
  • Expense categorization
  • Spend limits
  • Accounting sync
  • Xero
  • QuickBooks
  • Sage

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 Pleo
  • Implementing metered billing for AI and tokenized servicesnot Pleo
  • Creating subscription and hybrid pricing modelsnot Pleo
  • Managing multi-currency billing for global companiesnot Pleo
  • Maintaining billing infrastructure without vendor lock-innot Pleo

Pleo

  • Employee expensesnot Lago
  • Spending autonomynot Lago
  • Expense automationnot 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

Pleo

  • Card delays and transaction limits impact usability, with limited regional acceptance in some areas
  • Receipt capture OCR inaccuracies and upload lag/glitches complicate expense categorization
  • Limited expense categories and tags reduce flexibility for complex accounting structures
  • Transaction approval workflows have minimal customization options
  • Lacks in-built forecasting tools and reporting is basic, providing limited insights into trends

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)

Pleo

£9.5/month
  • Starter$9.5/month
    • Company cards
    • Real-time expense tracking
    • Automated reports
  • Essential$39/month
    • Reimbursements
    • Mileage and per diem
    • Vendor cards
  • Advanced$89/month
    • Cashback
    • Budgets
    • Multi-entity management
  • Beyond$179/month
    • Spending insights
    • Sub-wallets
    • Dedicated success manager

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 Pleo if

  • You need company cards.
  • You work on iOS, Android, Web.
  • You also want receipt capture.
Pleo review

Questions people ask

Is Lago or Pleo better?
Neither clearly leads. Lago starts at Free and Pleo at £9.5/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Lago or Pleo?
Lago has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Lago and £9.5/month for Pleo.
Does Lago or Pleo run on more platforms?
Lago runs on Web, Cloud, Self-hosted, On-premise, VPC. Pleo runs on iOS, Android, Web.
Can I use Lago for free?
Yes. Lago has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Pleo starts at £9.5/month.
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 Pleo is typically brought in for.
What can Lago do that Pleo cannot?
Lago covers Real-time usage metering, Multiple pricing models, Automated invoicing, Prepaid credits. Pleo covers Company cards, Receipt capture, Expense categorization, Spend limits.

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
Pleo: What are Pleo's pricing tiers?

Pleo offers four pricing tiers: Starter (GBP 9.50/month), Essential (GBP 39.00/month), Advanced (GBP 89.00/month), and Beyond (GBP 179.00/month). Annual billing provides equivalent of two free months.

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
Pleo: Does Pleo have a free tier?

No, Pleo does not offer a free tier or permanent free plan. All plans require payment with a free trial available for evaluation.

Source
Lago: Does Lago support multiple currencies?

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

Source
Pleo: What integrations does Pleo support for accounting?

Pleo integrates directly with Xero and QuickBooks, plus Sage 200, Sage 50, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, Datev, and Visma e-conomic. Zapier integrations are also available.

Source
Pleo: What platforms can access Pleo?

Pleo is accessible via iOS and Android mobile apps, and through a web interface. Physical and virtual cards are issued for spending.

Source
Pleo: Does Pleo support multiple currencies?

Yes, Pleo supports multi-currency spending and transactions. The platform is particularly strong for European teams with local payment methods.

Source
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