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Accounting · head to head

Melio vs Zoho Expense

Melio logo

Melio

Accounting

Simple business payments

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Zoho Expense logo

Zoho Expense

Accounting

Expense reporting and travel management at three dollars per user per month

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Melio card payments incur flat 2.9% fee on all plans; Zoho Expense aI receipt scans are metered per user per month rather than unlimited, so heavy claimants exhaust the allowance and either scan manually or push the organisation to a higher tier.
  • They diverge on capability: Melio covers Vendor payments, Zoho Expense covers Receipt OCR.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Melio and Zoho Expense actually diverge.

Attributes where Melio and Zoho Expense differ
AttributeMelioZoho Expense
Pricing modelfreemiumPer user per month
PlatformsWeb, Mobile appWeb, iOS, Android
Founded2018Unknown

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 Melio

  • Vendor payments
  • Card to check
  • Payment scheduling
  • QuickBooks sync
  • QuickBooks
  • Xero
  • FreshBooks
  • SOC 2

Only in Zoho Expense

  • Receipt OCR
  • Corporate card reconciliation
  • Per diem and mileage
  • Travel requests and booking
  • Policy engine
  • Multi currency and multi entity
  • Accounting integration

Both cover

  • Approval workflows

What people use each for

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

Melio

  • Accounts payable automationnot Zoho Expense
  • Bill management and payment schedulingnot Zoho Expense
  • Multi-vendor payment processingnot Zoho Expense
  • Invoice receivables and payment collectionnot Zoho Expense

Zoho Expense

  • A mid market company replacing spreadsheet expense claims without a five figure annual software budgetnot Melio
  • An existing Zoho One customer extending the suite so expense data lands in Zoho Books without integration worknot Melio
  • A business with staff travelling across several currencies that needs automatic exchange rate handling on claimsnot Melio
  • A services firm rebilling project expenses to clients and needing them coded to projects at the point of claimnot Melio

Where each one falls short

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

Melio

  • Card payments incur flat 2.9% fee on all plans
  • International payments charged $20 flat fee or 2.9% conversion rate plus international fees
  • Paper checks cost $1.50 per check
  • Wire transfers cost $10 standard or up to 1% plus $10 for same-day processing
  • Core and Boost plans charged $10/month per additional user beyond base

Zoho Expense

  • AI receipt scans are metered per user per month rather than unlimited, so heavy claimants exhaust the allowance and either scan manually or push the organisation to a higher tier.
  • Zoho Expense does not issue cards, so policy enforcement is retrospective and out of policy spend is caught after the money has left rather than declined at the terminal.
  • Additional users who create expenses are billed at the monthly rate rather than the annual rate, which makes a large population of occasional claimants more expensive than the headline three dollars implies.
  • Support quality is the recurring complaint across Zoho products, and at three dollars a seat there is no commercial room for the account management that mid market finance teams expect at renewal or during an audit.
  • Deep configuration such as complex approval matrices and custom fields is workable but fiddly, and there is no meaningful professional services organisation to hand implementation to.

Pricing, plan by plan

Melio

Free
  • GoFree
    • 5 free ACH payments per month
    • Pay by card, wire, or check
    • Basic invoicing
  • Core$25/month
    • 20 free ACH payments per month
    • $20/month with annual billing
    • QuickBooks Online and Xero sync
  • Boost$55/month
    • 50 free ACH payments per month
    • $44/month with annual billing
    • QuickBooks Desktop sync
  • Unlimited$80/month
    • Unlimited free ACH payments
    • $64/month with annual billing
    • NetSuite sync

Zoho Expense

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Up to 3 users
    • Receipt capture with limited AI scans
    • Basic expense reports
  • Standard$3/month
    • Billed annually, minimum 3 users
    • Corporate card reconciliation
    • Approval workflows
  • Premium$5/month
    • Billed annually
    • Travel requests and self booking
    • Advanced approvals and policy rules

Which should you pick?

Choose Melio if

  • You need vendor payments.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Mobile app.
  • You also want card to check.
Melio review

Choose Zoho Expense if

  • You need receipt ocr.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want corporate card reconciliation.
Zoho Expense review

Questions people ask

Is Melio or Zoho Expense better?
Neither clearly leads. Melio starts at Free and Zoho Expense at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Melio or Zoho Expense?
Melio starts at Free and Zoho Expense at Free.
Does Melio or Zoho Expense run on more platforms?
Melio runs on Web, Mobile app. Zoho Expense runs on Web, iOS, Android.
Can I use Melio for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Melio best used for?
Melio is most often used for accounts payable automation, bill management and payment scheduling, multi-vendor payment processing, invoice receivables and payment collection. Of those, accounts payable automation and bill management and payment scheduling are not what Zoho Expense is typically brought in for.
What can Melio do that Zoho Expense cannot?
Melio covers Vendor payments, Card to check, Payment scheduling, QuickBooks sync. Zoho Expense covers Receipt OCR, Corporate card reconciliation, Per diem and mileage, Travel requests and booking. Both handle Approval workflows.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Melio: What does Melio charge for ACH payments?

Melio's free Go tier includes 5 free ACH payments per month. Core tier provides 20 free ACH payments per month at $25/month. Boost offers 50 free ACH payments at $55/month. Unlimited tier at $80/month includes unlimited free ACH payments.

Source
Zoho Expense: Is the free plan usable in production?

Only for three users. Beyond that you move to Standard, which has a three user minimum anyway.

Melio: Does Melio charge fees for card payments?

Yes, Melio charges a flat 2.9% fee on all card payments. International card payments also include currency conversion charges and international fees beyond the base 2.9%.

Source
Zoho Expense: Does Zoho Expense issue corporate cards?

No. It reconciles card feeds but does not issue cards, so you need a card programme elsewhere if you want spend blocked before it happens.

Melio: Can I use Melio for free?

Yes, Melio's free Go tier allows 5 free ACH payments per month with no subscription cost. Users can pay by card, wire, or check and access basic invoicing and payment link features.

Source
Zoho Expense: What is the real cost for a hundred users?

Around three thousand six hundred dollars a year on Standard annual billing, plus higher monthly rates for any additional occasional claimants beyond your licensed count.

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