The top 5 Rippling alternatives for expense management

Rippling is a human resources information system (HRIS) that combines HR, IT, payroll, and expense management solutions into a single platform. With an overall score of 4.8 out of 5 stars on the software review website G2, it’s a popular choice for small and mid-sized businesses looking for the convenience of an all-in-one solution.

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Despite its best efforts to consolidate so many tools into one piece of software, most customers still use Rippling primarily as an HR platform. You may find Rippling lacking if you need a solution with strong, comprehensive expense management features. In particular, some reviewers note that Rippling's workflow automation and advanced financial reporting features cost extra.

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Many Rippling competitors offer these features for free. If you’re looking for a Rippling alternative to handle your expense management needs, we’ve pulled together a list of today’s best options:

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1. Ramp
2. Brex
3. Airbase
4. Rho
5. PayEm

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We chose these tools based on feedback from actual users, as well as the public reviews and ratings shared on G2. Coupled with our own research into each platform’s features, we’ve narrowed down our list to the five Rippling competitors we cover below.

The best overall Rippling alternative: Ramp

Ramp is a complete finance operations platform that’s purpose-built to save businesses time and money. Our software combines expense management, corporate cards, travel booking, accounts payable (AP) automation, and procurement to help companies streamline their operations and make better financial decisions.

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We have to admit we’re a bit biased when it comes to how we view Ramp as a Rippling competitor. Luckily, you don’t have to take our word for it: Ramp has a rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars on G2 based on more than 2,000 verified reviews. And in a head-to-head matchup, Ramp beats Rippling in four out of seven rating categories and ties in two:

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9.5

Meets Requirements

9.4

9.5

Ease of Use

9.5

9.0

Ease of Setup

9.3

9.0

Ease of Admin

9.4

9.2

Quality of Support

9.2

8.9

Good Partner

9.5

9.2

Product Direction

9.7

Source: G2 ratings

Key features

• All-in-one finance platform: Ramp consolidates data and workflows between accounts payable, travel and expense management, procurement, accounting, and more.
• Built-in travel booking: Unlike Rippling, Ramp offers a complete travel booking system out of the box. Ramp Travel automatically enforces your T&E policy and offers a huge inventory of flights and accommodations thanks to our partnership with Priceline.
• Corporate cards you control: Select which spending categories are allowed or blocked on corporate cards across more than 40 categories—including SaaS, flights, taxi fares, and merchandise
• Real-time spend visibility and reporting: Get full visibility into all your business expenses on one intuitive platform. Ramp offers granular financial reporting across departments and categories, and our AI even recommends new ways for you to save.
• Integrates with your tech stack: Ramp is designed to work with the tools you already use. We offer seamless integrations with leading accounting software, collaboration tools, and HRIS platforms, allowing you to sync employee data across systems.

Why customers choose Ramp vs. Rippling

• Process more bills with higher accuracy: Ramp uses AI to automatically extract key details from invoices and remembers how you code, streamlining your AP workflow
• Minimize the risk of fraud and errors: Ramp Bill Pay identifies duplicate invoices, three-way matches to purchase orders and receipts, and routes bills for approval based on your rules and requirements
• Consolidate all your payment methods in a single platform: Pay domestic and global vendors by check, card, ACH, or international wire—all from Ramp

Pricing

You can use the majority of Ramp’s features for free, including expense management, travel booking, bill pay, and more. If you need additional control and customizations, you can upgrade to Ramp Plus for $15 per user per month. We also offer enterprise pricing on request—just reach out.

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Brex

Brex has a well-known corporate card that’s especially popular among startups and small businesses. It also offers expense management, travel booking, and bill pay features. As a Rippling alternative, Brex is rated slightly lower at 4.7 out of 5 on G2, but the two tools match up pretty evenly nonetheless:

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9.5

Meets Requirements

9.3

9.5

Ease of Use

9.5

9.0

Ease of Setup

9.2

9.0

Ease of Admin

9.2

9.2

Quality of Support

9.2

8.9

Good Partner

9.2

9.2

Product Direction

8.8

Source: G2 ratings

Key features

• Automated expense reconciliation with custom category mapping
• Unlimited physical and virtual corporate cards issued by Mastercard
• Built-in expense policies that are automatically enforced at the point of sale
• Vendor onboarding and bill pay with automated two-way matching
• Integrates with HRIS platforms for spend authorization at the employee level

Why customers choose Brex vs. Rippling

At least one Rippling reviewer openly questioned why they’d use Rippling instead of a dedicated expense management solution like Brex. Moreover, reviewers found Brex easier to set up and administer overall.

Pricing 

Brex has an Essentials tier that offers basic expense management features for free. Premium pricing starts at $15 per user per month, and enterprise pricing is available by quote.

Airbase

Airbase is a procurement solution that offers expense management, AP automation, and corporate cards. It was recently acquired by Paylocity, a Rippling competitor on the HRIS and payroll side of the house. Airbase’s 4.7 rating on G2 is slightly lower than Rippling’s, but the two tools match up pretty evenly at the category level:

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9.5

Meets Requirements

9.4

9.5

Ease of Use

9.4

9.0

Ease of Setup

9.0

9.0

Ease of Admin

9.1

9.2

Quality of Support

9.4

8.9

Good Partner

9.4

9.2

Product Direction

9.0

Source: G2 ratings

Key features

• Guided procurement and vendor onboarding workflows
• Automation features for expense reporting, reconciliation, transaction coding, and more
• OCR-powered receipt scanning, with a dedicated email for expense submissions
• Real-time spend visibility and financial reporting

Why customers choose Airbase vs. Rippling

One G2 reviewer uses Rippling and Airbase in tandem, and they appreciated that they were able to integrate the two platforms. In general, customers rated Airbase’s customer support capabilities more highly than Rippling’s. 

Pricing 

Airbase offers Standard, Premium, and Enterprise plans, but you’ll need to reach out to sales for pricing.

Rho

Rho is a financial operations platform that offers business banking services as well as corporate credit cards, expense management, and bill pay. Rho has a strong 4.8 rating on G2, but it’s based on a small sample size of just over 100 reviews. It ties or outranks Rippling in six out of seven rating categories:

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9.5

Meets Requirements

9.4

9.5

Ease of Use

9.5

9.0

Ease of Setup

9.7

9.0

Ease of Admin

9.6

9.2

Quality of Support

9.7

8.9

Good Partner

9.6

9.2

Product Direction

9.6

Source: G2 ratings

Key features

• Business checking and savings accounts with no fees for ACH payments or wire transfers
• Treasury management services that allow businesses to invest excess cash in treasury bills
• Custom spending limits and restrictions at the card level
• Option to add your logo to Rho’s physical business credit cards

Why customers choose Rho vs. Rippling

No customers mentioned Rippling in any G2 reviews. On the whole, reviewers find Rho to be much easier to set up and administer, and they especially appreciate Rho’s 24/7 customer support.

Pricing 

Rho’s business banking accounts, corporate cards, and expense management platform are free to use. The company earns the bulk of its revenue from interchange fees.

PayEm

PayEm is an expense management platform that offers automated invoice processing, PO creation, and budgeting tools. It currently has a G2 score of 4.7 out of 5 stars based on around 150 reviews. Rho beats Rippling in three rating categories and ties in one:

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9.5

Meets Requirements

9.3

9.5

Ease of Use

9.3

9.0

Ease of Setup

9.0

9.0

Ease of Admin

9.3

9.2

Quality of Support

9.3

8.9

Good Partner

9.5

9.2

Product Direction

9.0

Source: G2 ratings

Key features

• Corporate cards with custom controls and spending limits, including category restrictions
• Generate purchase orders and process invoices from the same platform
• Bill pay automation with the option to schedule payments via card, ACH, wire, or check
• Built-in audit trail that tracks financial events like budget requests, purchase orders, and expense reimbursements

Why customers choose PayEm vs. Rippling

Reviewers rated PayEm’s expense management features more highly than Rippling’s, and they generally found PayEm to be a better business partner overall. Many customers note PayEm’s ease of use as a highlight.

Pricing 

PayEm doesn’t publicize any of its pricing info, so you’ll need to reach out for a quote. The price depends on your business size and how many users will need access to the platform.

Choose the best Rippling alternative for expense management

When it comes to your expense management needs, it pays to pick a specialized solution. Ramp’s modern finance platform is purpose-built to save you time and money, helping you simplify every aspect of the expense management process.

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Tens of thousands of businesses choose Ramp to improve their finance workflows, increase efficiency, and grow their business. Watch our demo video and learn why Ramp customers save an average of 5% a year.