The 8 best business travel management tools in 2024

New research shows business travel is booming—and so is the cost. 

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A recent report published by the Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) revealed that 59% of travel buyers expect their companies to take more business trips this year than they did in 2023. But with inflation and remote work increasing the cost of business travel, 67% of respondents believe their company’s business travel spend will increase in 2024 as well. 

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To make the most of their travel budgets, companies need to make smarter choices in how they use those funds. This is where corporate travel management software can help. 

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Here, we’ll look at six tools businesses can use to book travel (and save some money in the process) plus what features to look for when choosing a platform for your business.

What is travel management software?

Companies use travel management software to manage corporate travel, book flights and lodging for business trips, and monitor all travel-related expenses. These tools streamline the travel booking process, rein in out-of-policy spend, and enable organizations to provide a better travel experience for their employees.

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The best travel management tools also offer powerful expense management features, like advanced reporting capabilities and automated approval workflows to keep spending compliant with your corporate travel policy.

Top travel management tools for more efficient business travel

Many business travelers prefer to book trips themselves, and it’s easy to see why: This option allows them to build their travel plans around their lifestyle, values, habits, and preferences. In the best-case scenarios, self-booking also helps employees feel satisfied and more in control of their jobs.

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On the other hand, employees who are forced to manage their own travel often spend their time stressing over itinerary details instead of completing work. Finance teams that allow employees to self-book must also deal with out-of-policy spending and a lack of control over their travel and expense (T&E) budgets. 

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To keep your employees happy and protect your bottom line, we compiled a list of today’s best travel management software with enterprise-grade controls for managing corporate travel spending:

Ramp

• G2 rating: 4.8 out of 5 stars
• Capterra rating: 4.9 out of 5 stars
• Pricing:
  • Unlimited free tier, with access to travel booking and expense management
  • $15 per user per month for Ramp Plus
  • Contact sales for Ramp Enterprise pricing
• Free trial available? Ramp offers a 30-day trial for Ramp Plus

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Ramp is an all-in-one finance operations platform with a broad range of features to help small businesses and enterprises alike with their travel and expense management needs. Sure, we may be a little biased in giving our platform the top spot in this post, but our G2 and Capterra ratings speak for themselves. And if you need more reasons to give us a try, here are a few.

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For starters, we make it easy for employees to see what flights and hotels are within policy. Ramp Travel pulls together a wide inventory of hotel accommodations and flights for employees to review and book—including deals not available elsewhere thanks to our partnership with Priceline.

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When used in tandem with Ramp’s expense management automation, finance teams can set granular controls on how employees are allowed to use company funds for business trips. Our real-time reporting capabilities also allow you to actively manage your T&E budget and prevent out-of-policy spending before it happens.

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Once travelers get back, there’s no need to play catch-up with their expenses. Ramp prompts employees to submit receipts for each transaction made with our corporate cards so they can get back to work sooner. Our AI-powered software then automatically reviews and categorizes each transaction, saving finance teams even more time on the back end.

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Ramp’s unlimited free plan comes with our signature travel management solution, but you don’t have to use both to benefit from the platform. If you already have a travel management system you’re happy with, you can still use Ramp’s full suite of financial tools on their own for easier expense management.

TravelPerk

• G2 rating: 4.6 out of 5 stars
• Capterra rating: 4.7 out of 5 stars
• Pricing:
  • $99/mo. plus 3% per booking for Premium
  • $299/mo. plus 3% per booking for Pro
  • Contact for details for enterprise pricing
• Free trial available? TravelPerk’s Starter plan comes with 5 free bookings per month

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‍TravelPerk simplifies corporate travel for mid-market and enterprise businesses by bringing a massive travel inventory into their platform. In doing so, TravelPerk reduces the hassle and headaches that often come with booking business travel under strict company guidelines.

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Employees can compare various booking options from all over the internet in real time to find a suitable choice that falls within company policy and budget. Need help booking flights, car rentals, accommodations, or meeting rooms? Users have access to 24/7 customer support and concierge services to assist with every travel need.

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TravelPerk offers companies unprecedented flexibility in travel bookings, too: With FlexiPerk, you can receive an 80% refund on any travel plans booked through the software—no matter the reason for cancellation. And if your company already uses Ramp, you can integrate the two platforms for seamless expense tracking and greater savings on business travel.

Navan (formerly TripActions)

• G2 rating: 4.7 out of 5 stars
• Capterra rating: 4.6 out of 5 stars
• Pricing:‍
  • Free for up to 5 users
  • Contact sales for additional pricing tiers
• Free trial available? Yes

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Formerly known as TripActions, Navan is another corporate travel booking tool that helps mid-market companies and enterprises manage their corporate travel plans in one place.

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Fire up Navan’s online booking tool to book trips for employees, guests, or groups of up to 50 people. Then, use the software’s automatic receipt capture and advanced reporting for easy expense management and visibility into your company’s travel spending.

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Whether your employees prefer DIY or personalized assistance, Navan offers self-serve tools and 24/7 customer support so they can easily manage their itinerary, even while on the go.

Spendesk

• G2 rating: 4.7 out of 5 stars
• Capterra rating: 4.8 out of 5 stars
• Pricing: All pricing is quote-based
• Free trial available? Yes, you can get a free trial if you contact sales for a demo

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Not all businesses will need travel management software with all the bells and whistles. Sometimes, a good expense management tool will suffice. ‍Spendesk’s expense management software is ideal for businesses of all sizes looking to monitor and control their spending.

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Its 7-in-1 solution includes company credit cards, expense reporting, invoices, approvals, accounting automation, budgets, and reporting. Together, these offerings give your finance team visibility into your business spending while giving employees the flexibility they need to do their jobs.

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You can also set up budgets and spending policies for Spendesk’s company cards beforehand, so you can control and track all employee travel expenses in real time.

BILL Spend & Expense (formerly Divvy)

• G2 rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
• Capterra rating: 4.7 out of 5 stars
• Pricing: Free, with optional paid add-ons for AP/AR automation
• Free trial available? The tool is free for all businesses

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‍BILL Spend & Expense (formerly Divvy) is another popular expense management platform used by small and mid-market businesses.

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While BILL doesn’t have a dedicated travel management tool as part of its feature set, it still helps your finance team monitor T&E expenses and automate financial operations with tools like customizable spend controls and automatic expense categorization.

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If employees make eligible purchases with BILL corporate cards, your company can also collect rewards points and redeem them for cashback, gift cards, statement credit, or travel (more on Bill alternatives here). 

Circula

• G2 rating: 4.6 out of 5 stars
• Capterra rating: 4.6 out of 5 stars
• Pricing:
  • €10 per user per month for Starter
  • €15 per user per month for Professional
  • Contact sales for Professional Plus pricing
• Free trial available? Yes

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Rounding out the expense management category is Circula, a solution that caters to an international user base. The platform’s customers range from professional service providers and tech startups to large corporations.

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Circula’s streamlined, user-friendly platform is made with business travelers in mind. Employees can take advantage of features like mobile-first UX, AI-powered receipt scanning, and Offline mode for submitting expenses without an internet connection—especially useful when employees are on the plane home.

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Alternatively, travelers can use Assistant mode to allow others in their organization to submit travel expenses on their behalf.

Other helpful travel planning tools for businesses

Managing business travel can be a headache, but it doesn’t have to be. You can use the following tools as a supplement to your travel management platform to make business travel more cost-effective for your company and more convenient for employees.

Rocketrip

• G2 rating: 4.3 out of 5 stars
• Capterra rating: Not available
• Pricing: Contact for details‍
• Free trial available? No

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You can use Rocketrip alongside your existing corporate travel platform to reduce travel spend and reward employees who save the company money when booking trips.

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Rocketrip’s algorithm uses the details of your travel program to create a “Price to Beat” and a list of cost-saving options when employees book their travel itinerary. Travelers who choose these alternatives receive 50% of the money saved for their personal use in Rocketrip’s Rewards Store, or your company’s existing incentive program.

TripIt

• G2 rating: 4.7 out of 5 stars
• Capterra rating: Not available
• Pricing: $49 per year for TripIt Pro plan
• Free trial available? Yes

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Think of TripIt as your company’s digital travel assistant. When employees send their trip confirmation emails to the platform’s designated email address, the app creates an itinerary based on the booking details. Travelers can also store PDFs, photos, QR codes, and other files in their accounts for safekeeping or easy access during business trips.

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While TripIt’s free plan makes travel planning easier for employees on the go, the paid Pro plan comes with even more convenient features, like country-specific travel tools, real-time flight alerts, terminal and gate reminders, and interactive airport maps.

Essential features of travel management software

Since every business is different, your organization’s travel management needs will look different from your competitors’. With that said, the following six features should be table stakes for the majority of businesses:

1. Centralized finance workflows

A platform that handles travel booking, expense management, accounting, accounts payable, and more simplifies the finance operations for the entire organization. Employees can use a single app to manage T&E expenses, while finance teams gain greater control and visibility over the company’s spending.

2. Easy-to-use interface

The ideal software should make it easy for administrators and business travelers to book and manage trips, with an intuitive interface and access to a wide range of transportation and accommodation options. Platforms with expense management automation features also reduce busywork for employees and finance teams alike. 

3. Travel policy compliance

Ideally, your travel expense management software should include customizable corporate travel policies and automated approval workflows to cut out-of-policy spending. Integrated corporate cards are especially helpful here so you can set custom travel budgets, spend limits, and other restrictions.

4. Granular travel expense reporting

To reduce unnecessary spending, you need to know where to look. Software with powerful reporting and analytics capabilities can help you track business expenses across your entire org so you can identify trends and discover new ways to reduce spend.

5. Integrations with your tech stack

A connected ecosystem can reveal new insights and opportunities you wouldn’t have discovered otherwise. So, look for software that integrates with your accounting provider, vendor management, HRIS, and more for better performance and greater efficiency.

6. 24/7 support for travelers

Tools with round-the-clock support help reduce the stress involved with business travel planning and booking. This feature also gives travelers and their employers peace of mind if travel plans are disrupted.

Choose Ramp for integrated travel booking and expense management

Most travel management tools focus on streamlining travel booking or controlling travel spend. With Ramp’s end-to-end travel and expense management software, you no longer have to choose one over the other.

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Because Ramp’s travel booking and expense reporting capabilities are fully integrated into one platform, managers and finance teams can easily monitor employee bookings and on-the-road expenses without switching between tools.

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Check out an interactive demo and see how your company can manage travel business expenses and bookings more efficiently with Ramp Travel.