Softwr

Accounting · head to head

Mercury vs Spendbase

Mercury logo

Mercury

Accounting

Banking for startups

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Spendbase logo

Spendbase

Accounting

SaaS and cloud spend management that charges a share of the savings it finds rather than a licence

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Mercury treasury access requires a $250,000 balance held with Mercury; Spendbase charging a share of savings gives the vendor an interest in defining savings generously, and the customer cannot verify a counterfactual price it never saw.
  • They diverge on capability: Mercury covers Business checking, Spendbase covers Subscription visibility.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Mercury and Spendbase actually diverge.

Attributes where Mercury and Spendbase differ
AttributeMercurySpendbase
Pricing modelfreemiumFree card tier, plus a share of savings on the managed plan
PlatformsWeb, Ios, AndroidWeb
Founded2019Unknown

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 Mercury

  • Business checking
  • Savings accounts
  • Team management
  • API access
  • QuickBooks
  • Xero
  • Stripe
  • FDIC insured

Only in Spendbase

  • Subscription visibility
  • Discount marketplace
  • Cashback
  • Renewal management
  • Savings-share billing

Both cover

  • Virtual cards

What people use each for

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

Mercury

  • Business banking and payments for startupsnot Spendbase
  • Managing treasury, invoicing and corporate cards from one accountnot Spendbase

Spendbase

  • A startup with no procurement function that wants renewal dates and subscription owners in one placenot Mercury
  • A company with heavy Azure or cloud spend that can use pre-negotiated credit allocationsnot Mercury
  • Issuing virtual cards per subscription so a forgotten trial cannot renew silentlynot Mercury
  • A finance lead who wants software cost reduction without hiring anyone to do itnot Mercury

Where each one falls short

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

Mercury

  • Treasury access requires a $250,000 balance held with Mercury
  • Non USD international wires carry a 1% conversion fee
  • Choosing OUR wire coding, which covers intermediary bank charges, costs $15 per wire
  • ACH invoicing is $1 per transaction on Mercury Plus and only free on the $299 a month Pro plan
  • Advanced and recurring invoicing require Mercury Plus at $29.90 a month

Spendbase

  • Charging a share of savings gives the vendor an interest in defining savings generously, and the customer cannot verify a counterfactual price it never saw.
  • The savings share is reported at around 25 percent but is not published on the pricing page, so the actual commercial terms only appear in a contract.
  • Spendbase is both a banking provider and your software negotiator, so a company using both concentrates operating cash and vendor relationships in one small, young company.
  • Banking is delivered through partners rather than held directly, meaning deposit protection and service continuity depend on those partners rather than on Spendbase.
  • It is scoped for startups and small companies, so organisations needing approval workflows, purchase orders or ERP integration will find it thin against a real procurement platform.

Pricing, plan by plan

Mercury

Free
  • Mercury (Free)Free
    • ACH payments
    • Domestic wires
    • Real-time payments
  • Mercury Plus$29.9/month
    • Invoice ACH debits
    • Recurring invoices
    • Invoicing API (500/month)
  • Mercury Pro$299/month
    • All Plus features
    • Relationship manager
    • Free ACH invoice debits

Spendbase

Free
  • Digital bankingFree
    • No monthly fee per user
    • Up to 100 virtual cards
    • EUR and GBP account details
  • Spend management$undefined/year
    • Everything in the free tier
    • Reported share of roughly 25 percent of savings achieved
    • 200 percent return guarantee against a deposit

Which should you pick?

Choose Mercury if

  • You need business checking.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want savings accounts.
Mercury review

Choose Spendbase if

  • You need subscription visibility.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You also want discount marketplace.
Spendbase review

Questions people ask

Is Mercury or Spendbase better?
Neither clearly leads. Mercury starts at Free and Spendbase at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Mercury or Spendbase?
Mercury starts at Free and Spendbase at Free.
Does Mercury or Spendbase run on more platforms?
Mercury runs on Web, Ios, Android. Spendbase runs on Web.
Can I use Mercury for free?
Both have a free tier, so you can try either at no cost before committing.
What is Mercury best used for?
Mercury is most often used for business banking and payments for startups, managing treasury, invoicing and corporate cards from one account. Of those, business banking and payments for startups and managing treasury, invoicing and corporate cards from one account are not what Spendbase is typically brought in for.
What can Mercury do that Spendbase cannot?
Mercury covers Business checking, Savings accounts, Team management, API access. Spendbase covers Subscription visibility, Discount marketplace, Cashback, Renewal management. Both handle Virtual cards.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Mercury: Is Mercury business banking free?

Mercury's base banking tier is free and includes ACH payments, domestic wire transfers, real-time payments, Bill Pay, and QuickBooks/Xero automations at no monthly cost.

Source
Spendbase: Is Spendbase free?

The card and banking tier is genuinely free with no per-user fee. The spend management service is paid from a share of the savings it finds, reported at around 25 percent.

Mercury: What does Mercury Plus add beyond the free tier?

Mercury Plus costs $29.90 per month and adds invoice ACH debits, recurring invoice capabilities, invoicing API with 500 calls per month, unlimited 1099 filings, and access to partner benefits.

Source
Spendbase: How is a saving calculated?

The methodology is not published. Agree the baseline, the measurement period and what counts as a saving in writing before signing.

Mercury: Does Mercury charge monthly account fees?

No, Mercury states there are no minimum account balance requirements, overdraft fees, required monthly fees, or account opening fees. The free tier includes essential business banking, with paid tiers available for additional features.

Source
Spendbase: Does Spendbase hold my money?

Banking is provided through regulated partners including Moorwand in the UK and EEA and Sutton Bank in the US, with Mastercard issuing the cards.

Spendbase: Is it suitable for an enterprise?

No. There are no purchase orders, approval hierarchies or ERP integration; it is built for startups.

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