Brex vs. Divvy

Startups and small businesses looking into expense management cards often find Brex and Divvy right off the bat (thanks to Google’s advertising algorithms, no doubt). But when it comes down to choosing between the two, there is no Brex vs. Divvy: The two look nearly identical  to the untrained eye.

Believe it or not, that’s a good thing for buyers—it means that the industry is maturing rapidly and settling on core features that deliver the most value.

But knowing that doesn’t help you actually choose a card.

That’s where we can help. Although Quolum offers an expense management card as well, ours is focused almost exclusively on managing SaaS software. That means we don’t compete with these other cards. (Truth is, we’ve used one of these cards ourselves at the startup phase!) 

But, as a fintech company, we have insight into what makes for a good expense card.

Here’s our take on Brex vs. Divvy.

Expense Cards Are Becoming Full Financial Solutions

Many expense management cards have been morphing into full financial management solutions over the past few years. 

The underlying idea is to provide a suite of tools along with the cards themselves. These companies have been targeting smaller businesses and startups who might not have sophisticated expense management processes in place already—those looking for an easy, turnkey solution.

For example, Brex now markets itself as a “business account, credit card, and spend management software—in one refreshingly easy solution.” A big part of that is the bill pay service they offer, which automates invoicing and payments. It also connects with several online platforms for quick payment (think Amazon, Paypal, Shopify, Square, etc.). That plays well when you’re just getting your first online store up and running.

That’s not to say that Divvy does not have similar tools: It does. But given how Brex puts these features front and center, it’s clear to us that this company doesn’t want to be just an expense card…Brex wants to be a full-service financial partner.

By contrast, Divvy emphasizes expenses management and easy access to business credit. (As one online review puts it, “[Divvy] is more well suited for micromanaging organizational spend.”) Then again, there’s probably a good reason that Bill.com acquired Divvy back in June, and that both have SMBs in their sights. We fully expect that Divvy/Bill.com will become a more full service fintech service.

So What Are the Main Differentiators for Brex vs. Divvy?

An important thing to keep in mind is that both of these cards, by themselves, are charge cards—meaning that, unlike a credit card, you have to pay off the balance every month. From there, the biggest differences between these two are 1) the requirements needed to obtain an account/card, and 2) the fees that they charge.

Brex vs. Divvy Requirements

This already tells us a lot: Brex cares about how much money is sitting in your bank account at any moment, while Divvy wants to see consistent cash flow.

That can make a big difference in which you choose. For example, if you are a startup with a mountain of recently raised capital, but still building your sales pipeline, a Brex card makes a lot more sense. But if you are an SMB that can demonstrate a consistent cash flow, Divvy will be an attractive option for managing expenses in a detailed way.

Brex vs. Divvy Fees

Again, since these are charge cards, the balance needs to be paid off every month. (Divvy does advertise business credit, but this is an added extra—the card itself is a charge card.) So, while there is no interest charged (and hence no APR), there are other fees to keep in mind. 

For example, if you want to use the Brex system (let’s face it, it’s more than a card), the first five cards are free, but then you will pay roughly $5 per user per month beyond that initial five. However, with Brex there are no foreign transaction fees, late fees, or overdraft fees.

Divvy is free and does not charge any upfront fees or subscription fees. It does, however, charge late fees and foreign transaction fees.

What About All Those Tools?

As we said above, more and more of these expense cards are coming packaged with the same basic set of expense management tools.Things like bookkeeping software integration, payment services, expense management tools, and receipt scanning are becoming table stakes.

While tech writers love to stir up excitement with phrases like “The corporate spend market mints unicorns,” let’s face it: These are not unique, one-of-a-kind creatures. That’s why you’re here, reading a review, right? Because the differences are not obvious.

So, while we recommend you definitely check out those tools and see what works for you, we can’t help but feel that the differences between these two are more in the mechanics of how they determine your credit/spend limit, and what kinds of fees they charge. And though those might change with time, they will always reflect the underlying business model and philosophy of each card.

Brex vs. Divvy

Feature Comparison

Final Decision on Brex vs. Divvy

Are you a startup with a pile of cash and a lot of things you need to buy without hassle? Go with Brex. (But take a look at Ramp, too.)

Are you an SMB with a consistent cash flow that just wants to get its arms around its expenses? Go with Divvy.

(And if you are looking to manage SaaS software expenses across your organization, that’s our deal—we have an expenses card that focuses on SaaS purchases.)