Airbase by Paylocity

Airbase by Paylocity is an AI-powered spend management platform that unifies expense management, accounts payable automation, corporate cards, and guided procurement into a single system. Originally launched in 2019 as an independent spend management company, Airbase was acquired by Paylocity in 2024 and has since been integrated into Paylocity for Finance, a broader suite that connects non-payroll spend directly to the employee record alongside payroll and HR data.

The platform uses machine learning and generative AI to automate the entire expense lifecycle: capturing receipts, categorizing transactions, applying company policy, routing approvals, and reimbursing employees, largely without manual data entry. On the accounts payable side, Touchless AP handles vendor onboarding, invoice capture, PO matching, coding, approvals, payments, and ERP reconciliation. Corporate card spending, whether on existing cards or Paylocity-issued cards, syncs automatically to the general ledger, and Guided Procurement walks employees through compliant purchase requests before money ever leaves the company.

Airbase by Paylocity is built for mid-market and enterprise finance and accounting teams, typically at companies with 100 to 5,000+ employees, who want real-time visibility into spend, stronger fraud controls, and a faster month-end close without stitching together separate point solutions. Because it now sits inside Paylocity's HCM platform, it is particularly well suited to organizations that already use or are evaluating Paylocity for payroll and HR, since spend and workforce data live in one unified system.

Fraud protection is built in throughout, with machine learning models that flag early signs of payment fraud and money laundering, real-time alerts, two-factor verification for bank account changes, and granular controls on spend limits. The platform has been recognized as a Visionary in Gartner's Magic Quadrant for Accounts Payable Invoice Automation and was named the #1 Expense Management solution for SMEs in Spend Matters' Spring 2025 SolutionMap.

Airbase by Paylocity does not publish fixed pricing tiers. Pricing is quote-based and depends on company size, which modules are selected (Expense Management, Corporate Cards, AP Automation, Guided Procurement, Headcount Planning), and negotiated terms. Since integration into Paylocity for Finance, spend management is generally billed alongside Paylocity's core per-employee-per-month (PEPM) HCM pricing, with reported PEPM rates commonly ranging from roughly $15.81 to $50 depending on modules and negotiation leverage; Paylocity's broader platform PEPM has been reported in the $22-$32 range. Modules can be adopted individually or bundled, and organizations can add modules over time as needs grow. Prospective customers must contact Paylocity sales for a custom quote; typical mid-market implementations take 5-6 months to onboard.