Bonsai vs Expensify
Bonsai and Expensify are both accounting & finance tools. Bonsai is aimed at freelancers and agencies, while Expensify is aimed at small businesses and enterprise. Expensify costs less, from $5/mo versus $15/mo for Bonsai. Only Expensify has a free plan.
Contracts, proposals, invoices and time tracking for freelancers
Receipt scanning, expense reports and corporate cards for SMBs
| Pricing | Paid · $15 | Freemium · $5 |
| Starting price | $15/mo | $5/mo |
| Free plan | No | Yes |
| Free trial | 7 days | — |
| Built for | Freelancers, Agencies | Small businesses, Enterprise, Freelancers |
| Platforms | web, ios, android | web, ios, android |
| Country | US · 2016 | US · 2008 |
| Rating | — | — |
Choose Bonsai if
Freelancers and small agencies.
- All-in-one for freelancers
- Professional templates
- Integrated payments
Look elsewhere if: Larger agencies needing PSA depth.
Choose Expensify if
Small and mid-size companies that reimburse employee spending and want proven receipt scanning with low per-member pricing.
- Collect at $5 per member is cheap and needs no annual commitment
- Control pay-per-use bills only members active that month
- SmartScan and the mobile app are fast and well proven
Look elsewhere if: US companies wanting free card-led spend management or very simple bookkeeping (Ramp, Brex or QuickBooks fit better).
Bonsai vs Expensify pricing
Bonsai
- Basic$15/user/mo$9/mo billed annually; time tracking, tasks, CRM
- Essentials$25/user/mo$19/mo billed annually; invoices, proposals, contracts, portal
- Premium$39/user/mo$29/mo billed annually; Gantt, workload, reports, integrations
- Elite$59/user/mo$49/mo billed annually; 3 users minimum, custom permissions
Expensify
- Submit$0Free for individuals submitting expenses to an approver
- Collect$5/member/moPay-per-use only; approvals, reimbursements, QuickBooks and Xero
- Control (Annual)$18/member/moAs low as $9 with the Expensify Card; 12-month commitment
- Control (Pay-per-use)$36/member/moNo commitment; billed per active member each month
Bonsai · Key features
- Proposals and contracts
- E-signature
- Projects and tasks
- Time tracking
- Invoices and payments
- Client portal and accounting
Cons
- Jack of all trades
- Accounting basic
- Team features on higher tiers
Expensify · Key features
- SmartScan receipt capture that reads merchant, date and amount from photos
- Expensify Card with automatic transaction matching and real-time limits
- Multi-level approval workflows and rule-based policy enforcement
- Next-day and global reimbursements to employee bank accounts
- Mileage, distance and per diem tracking in the mobile app
- Built-in travel booking tied to expense policies
Cons
- Control pricing mixes annual sizes, pay-per-use and card discounts
- Annual subscription size can only be reduced at renewal
- Recent app redesign moved familiar features around
Bonsai vs Expensify: FAQ
Which is cheaper, Bonsai or Expensify?
Expensify starts at $5/mo and Bonsai at $15/mo. Both prices are checked on the vendors' own pricing pages.
Do Bonsai and Expensify have a free plan?
Bonsai has no free plan, a 7-day free trial. Expensify has a free plan.
Which is better for small businesses, Bonsai or Expensify?
Expensify lists small businesses as a core audience, while Bonsai is aimed more at freelancers and agencies.