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Accounting · head to head

Spendbase vs Workiva

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
Workiva logo

Workiva

Accounting

Connected reporting platform for SEC filings, iXBRL tagging, SOX and sustainability disclosure

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Spendbase has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: 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.; Workiva pricing is quoted per solution and per user and is not published, and because moving a filing cycle off the platform carries deadline risk, renewal negotiations favour the vendor heavily.
  • They diverge on capability: Spendbase covers Subscription visibility, Workiva covers Linked data.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Spendbase and Workiva actually diverge.

Attributes where Spendbase and Workiva differ
AttributeSpendbaseWorkiva
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelFree card tier, plus a share of savings on the managed planquote
Free tierYesNo

Identical on both: platforms (Web), 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 Spendbase

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

Only in Workiva

  • Linked data
  • Inline XBRL tagging
  • SEC filing
  • SOX and controls
  • Sustainability reporting
  • Audit trail
  • Collaboration
  • Data connectors

What people use each for

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

Spendbase

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

Workiva

  • A newly public company facing its first 10-K where the tie-out process in Word and Excel is not survivable at the deadlinenot Spendbase
  • A European group preparing CSRD sustainability disclosure that must be assurance-ready rather than a marketing documentnot Spendbase
  • A finance team whose auditors keep raising review points about version control and unsupported changes in the reporting packnot Spendbase
  • A group with several statutory filers that wants one set of numbers feeding many jurisdictional reportsnot Spendbase

Where each one falls short

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

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.

Workiva

  • Pricing is quoted per solution and per user and is not published, and because moving a filing cycle off the platform carries deadline risk, renewal negotiations favour the vendor heavily.
  • Cost is difficult to justify for smaller filers whose reporting burden is a single 10-K a year, where an outsourced financial printer is cheaper.
  • Getting the initial linked-data structure right is a substantial project, and companies that rush the first cycle end up with links that break and a manual tie-out anyway.
  • The spreadsheet interface is deliberately not Excel and finance teams accustomed to Excel keyboard behaviour and modelling features find it slower for anything analytical.
  • ESG and sustainability modules were added later than the financial reporting core and buyers report them as less mature, so a company buying primarily for CSRD is buying the newer and weaker half of the product.

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Workiva

On request
  • Workiva Platform$undefined/year
    • Linked data across documents and spreadsheets
    • SEC and ESEF filing with iXBRL tagging
    • SOX, internal audit and statutory reporting modules

Which should you pick?

Choose Spendbase if

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

Choose Workiva if

  • You need linked data.
  • You also want inline xbrl tagging.
Workiva review

Questions people ask

Is Spendbase or Workiva better?
Neither clearly leads. Spendbase starts at Free and Workiva at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Spendbase or Workiva?
Spendbase has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Spendbase and On request for Workiva.
Does Spendbase or Workiva run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
Can I use Spendbase for free?
Yes. Spendbase has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Workiva starts at On request.
What is Spendbase best used for?
Spendbase is most often used for a startup with no procurement function that wants renewal dates and subscription owners in one place, a company with heavy azure or cloud spend that can use pre-negotiated credit allocations, issuing virtual cards per subscription so a forgotten trial cannot renew silently, a finance lead who wants software cost reduction without hiring anyone to do it. Of those, a startup with no procurement function that wants renewal dates and subscription owners in one place and a company with heavy azure or cloud spend that can use pre-negotiated credit allocations are not what Workiva is typically brought in for.
What can Spendbase do that Workiva cannot?
Spendbase covers Subscription visibility, Discount marketplace, Virtual cards, Cashback. Workiva covers Linked data, Inline XBRL tagging, SEC filing, SOX and controls.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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.

Workiva: Does Workiva do the XBRL tagging for me?

The platform provides tagging tools and validation, and Workiva offers services, but the tagging judgement remains the filer's responsibility.

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.

Workiva: Is it only for US SEC filers?

No. It supports European ESEF filings, statutory reporting in several jurisdictions and sustainability frameworks such as CSRD and ISSB.

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.

Workiva: What does it cost?

Not published. Expect tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars a year depending on solutions and user count.

Spendbase: Is it suitable for an enterprise?

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

Workiva: Can it replace our consolidation system?

No. It reports on consolidated numbers and connects to ERP and consolidation tools, but it does not perform the consolidation.

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