Softwr

Accounting · head to head

Polar vs Soldo

Polar logo

Polar

Accounting

Billing and revenue platform for AI and infrastructure companies

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Soldo logo

Soldo

Accounting

Prepaid company card and spend control platform for European businesses

From
£21/month
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Polar has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Polar percentage-based fees higher than some specialized processors for high-volume transactions; Soldo cards are prepaid, so if the central wallet runs low the cards decline in front of a supplier, and treasury has to keep an idle float funded rather than using a credit line.
  • They diverge on capability: Polar covers Usage Billing, Soldo covers Prepaid company cards.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Polar and Soldo actually diverge.

Attributes where Polar and Soldo differ
AttributePolarSoldo
Starting priceFree£21/month
Pricing modelPercentage of transaction plus per-transaction feePer user per month
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWeb, APIWeb, iOS, Android

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 Polar

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

Only in Soldo

  • Prepaid company cards
  • Card-level budgets
  • Receipt capture
  • Accounting export
  • Multi-currency wallets
  • Approval workflows

What people use each for

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

Polar

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

Soldo

  • A construction firm giving site managers fuel and materials cards with hard per-card limitsnot Polar
  • A marketing team issuing virtual cards per subscription so a cancelled tool cannot keep billingnot Polar
  • A UK company that cannot get approved for a credit-based corporate card programmenot Polar
  • A multi-entity European business needing EUR and GBP wallets without conversion on every purchasenot Polar

Where each one falls short

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

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

Soldo

  • Cards are prepaid, so if the central wallet runs low the cards decline in front of a supplier, and treasury has to keep an idle float funded rather than using a credit line.
  • The plan fee covers only three users, and per-user charges plus physical card fees mean the real monthly cost is several times the advertised headline for a team of twenty.
  • It does not extend credit, so it gives no working capital benefit and no card rewards of the kind US charge card issuers use to offset their cost.
  • Sole traders and some business types are not accepted, which catches out small consultancies expecting to sign up online.
  • Coverage is European; a company with US or Asian subsidiaries will need a second card programme and a second expense workflow for them.

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Soldo

£21/month
  • Standard$21/month
    • Three users included
    • Around £7 per additional user per month
    • Physical card issuance fee around £5, virtual around £1
  • Plus$33/month
    • Three users included
    • Around £11 per additional user per month
    • Advanced approval and multi-currency features
  • Enterprise$undefined/month
    • Quoted pricing
    • Custom card volumes and entity structures
    • Dedicated account management

Which should you pick?

Choose Polar if

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

Choose Soldo if

  • You need prepaid company cards.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want card-level budgets.
Soldo review

Questions people ask

Is Polar or Soldo better?
Neither clearly leads. Polar starts at Free and Soldo at £21/month, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Polar or Soldo?
Polar has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Polar and £21/month for Soldo.
Does Polar or Soldo run on more platforms?
Polar runs on Web, API. Soldo runs on Web, iOS, Android.
Can I use Polar for free?
Yes. Polar has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Soldo starts at £21/month.
What is Polar best used for?
Polar is most often used for billing for token and api call consumption by llm applications, managing tiered pricing for infrastructure usage-based services, handling subscription and usage hybrid models, monetizing ai apis with usage metering and credits. Of those, billing for token and api call consumption by llm applications and managing tiered pricing for infrastructure usage-based services are not what Soldo is typically brought in for.
What can Polar do that Soldo cannot?
Polar covers Usage Billing, Subscriptions, Seat Management, Prepaid Credits. Soldo covers Prepaid company cards, Card-level budgets, Receipt capture, Accounting export.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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
Soldo: Is Soldo a credit card?

No. It is prepaid electronic money. You fund a wallet and cards spend from it, so there is no credit line and no interest-free period.

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
Soldo: What licence does Soldo hold?

Soldo is authorised as an electronic money institution, including UK, Irish and Italian entities, which is why it can issue cards without a sponsor bank in those markets.

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
Soldo: What does it really cost for twenty users?

Take the plan fee, add the per-user rate for the seventeen users beyond the included three, then add card issuance fees per physical card.

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