Ramp vs. SAP Concur comparison: Which spend management platform is right for your business (2025)?

Key takeaways

• Ramp targets US-based finance teams, emphasizing automation and spend control; however, its multi-currency wallet/local account features are limited.

• SAP Concur supports enterprise-level travel, expense, and invoice workflows, with extensive configurability that can add complexity.

• Airwallex provides a comprehensive global infrastructure. You get built-in cards, bill pay, FX, and real-time spend visibility across currencies, entities, and teams.

You’re trying to modernize how you manage company spend. But do you go with Ramp’s automation and no-fee card model, or SAP Concur’s deep integration with ERP and travel systems? Both promise visibility and control, but their approaches and limitations differ significantly.

Ramp is favored by lean finance teams seeking to streamline manual work and accelerate their pace. SAP Concur, on the other hand, has long been the enterprise standard for expense and travel management, with the kind of compliance tooling that global businesses depend on.

In this guide, we’ll compare Ramp and SAP Concur side by side. You’ll see how they differ in features, pricing, workflows, and ideal use cases.

We’ll also look at a third option. Airwallex is viewed as a top choice for modern finance teams that need to manage business expenses, pay vendors, and operate globally without patching together multiple systems.

What is Ramp?

Ramp is a US-based spend management platform founded in 2019. It began as a corporate card provider and quickly evolved into a broader financial operations tool for growing businesses.

The platform focuses on automation, speed, and control. It’s used by startups and mid-sized companies seeking a straightforward way to manage cards, track expenses, and minimize manual administration. While it offers good value for domestic teams, Ramp’s global capabilities are limited, which can be a barrier for businesses operating across borders.

What is SAP Concur?

SAP Concur was originally launched as Concur Technologies in 1993 and acquired by SAP in 2014. Today, it supports over 92 million users and is widely used by global enterprises to manage employee expenses.

Rather than a single product, SAP Concur offers a modular ecosystem of more than 50 tools. These cover everything from travel booking and expense reporting to invoice automation, mileage tracking, VAT recovery, audit support, and more. Businesses can also choose from different support tiers, partner integrations, mobile apps, and ERP connectors.

The platform is especially popular with large, multi-entity organizations that require stringent policy controls, regional tax compliance, and deep integration with systems such as SAP and Oracle. However, that level of flexibility introduces added complexity. Implementation often requires IT support, and getting full value from the platform can take time. For smaller or fast-growing teams, it may offer more than is needed.

Ramp vs SAP Concur: a head-to-head comparison

Comparison table

Ramp vs SAP Concur: pricing and fees comparison

Ramp fees explained

Ramp offers a free plan that includes unlimited cards, expense tracking, bill pay, and access to its core dashboard. You won’t pay platform or user fees unless you choose Ramp Plus, which unlocks additional features like local reimbursements, multi-entity support, and procurement tools. Ramp Plus is priced at $15 per user per month, with a 20% discount for annual contracts. Extra charges include $10 for same-day ACH payments and $20 for each international vendor payment.

SAP Concur fees explained

SAP Concur does not disclose its pricing. It will vary widely depending on your business size and setup. Basic per-user pricing starts at approximately $8 per user per month, but this only covers entry-level functionality, such as expense capture and policy enforcement.²⁵ For enterprise-grade deployments, market data suggests average annual costs hover around $110,000.²⁶ These deployments often include multiple modules, ERP integrations, and higher user volumes.

What makes Concur’s pricing more complex is the additional layers it incorporates. Implementation and training can easily exceed six figures. There are also hidden costs associated with advanced reporting, travel booking, and premium support.

Ramp vs SAP Concur: features and services comparisons

Ramp focuses on simplicity. It provides you with unlimited cards featuring preset limits, receipt capture via mobile or email, and AI tools to flag spending that exceeds policy. Real-time dashboards show you what’s happening as it happens, and all core features come included in the free plan. You can automate approval flows, control spend by vendor or category, and reconcile transactions directly with your accounting platform.

SAP Concur takes a more comprehensive approach. The platform comprises more than 50 different modules, covering travel booking, invoice management, reimbursement, tax recovery, mileage tracking, and additional features. It supports multi-layer approval workflows, centralizes policy enforcement, and integrates with ERP tools, including SAP, Oracle, and NetSuite. Its mobile app supports mileage logging via GPS, receipt scanning, and itinerary management. 

Where Ramp prioritizes usability, Concur leans into enterprise flexibility. You can tailor every part of the platform to your business, from approval routing to audit rules. But that flexibility adds complexity. Ramp is quick to roll out and easy for smaller teams to manage. SAP Concur, by contrast, will require IT and finance resources to fully leverage its capabilities.

Ramp vs SAP Concur: ideal use cases

Who is Ramp best for?

Ramp is a good fit for US-based startups and mid-sized businesses that want to modernize spend management without adding complexity. If your priority is automation, visibility, and tight control over day-to-day spending, Ramp’s no-cost model and real-time tracking tools offer a strong starting point. It’s especially useful for lean finance teams that want to move quickly without a lengthy setup cycle or multiple system integrations.

Who is SAP Concur best for?

SAP Concur is built for large or global organizations with complex spend workflows and strict policy requirements. It works best for businesses that already rely on ERP tools like SAP or Oracle, and that need deep travel integration, tax compliance, and customizable reporting across multiple entities or regions. Concur is especially suited for companies that want a single system to manage everything from receipts and invoices to bookings and budgets, and that have the resources to support a complex implementation.

Beyond the basics: key differences between Ramp and SAP Concur

Ramp and SAP Concur approach spend management from completely different angles. Ramp is designed for speed, automation, and ease of use. SAP Concur is a sprawling enterprise platform built for global complexity, with the setup requirements to match.

Ramp gives you a spend toolkit in one place, featuring cards, bill pay, receipt capture, approvals, and reporting, all designed to help you control spend without slowing down. The platform flags duplicate subscriptions, vendor waste, and spending that is out of policy. Teams can get set up quickly, issue cards instantly, and manage approvals without a tangle of workflows. Ramp’s design is intentionally simple. It prioritizes automation through intuitive UX rather than relying on developers to plug in APIs.

SAP Concur is more like a buffet. It offers over 50 modules covering everything from travel booking and mileage tracking to VAT recovery and audit trails. That flexibility is powerful if your business runs across multiple entities or regions, but it comes with significant overhead. You won’t find built-in corporate cards here, unlike most modern spend platforms. Concur requires you to integrate cards from your bank or another provider. Implementation is rarely fast. Many teams need IT support just to get started.²⁷ Reviewers frequently cite clunky mobile apps, dated UI, and slow booking processes as daily pain points.²⁸ Still, for enterprises already tied into SAP, or those in sectors like healthcare or construction, Concur’s policy depth and ERP integrations may be worth the trade-off.

There are trade-offs on both sides. Ramp receives praise for its clean interface and automation; however, users have raised concerns about receipt timing, reimbursement tracking, and delays in customer support. SAP Concur offers configurability and control at scale, but often at the cost of speed and usability. Which one fits best depends on how much complexity your team is willing or able to absorb.

Why Airwallex is a powerful alternative (and how we compare)

Ramp is fast and easy to use. SAP Concur offers deep control and compliance features. However, if your team operates across borders, manages multiple currencies, or requires a single platform that consolidates all these elements, you may find both options limiting.

Airwallex gives you global reach and real-time control in one system. You can open Global Accounts with local details in over 20 currencies and collect funds locally in more than 60 countries/regions. Funds land instantly in your Wallet and can be held, converted, or sent to more than 120 countries using local rails. Interbank FX rates and margins as low as 0.3% help you save on every transfer.

Every core financial tool is built in. You can issue Corporate Cards across 40+ markets, automate approvals, manage reimbursements, and track spend by team, entity, or region. There’s no need to patch together separate systems for cards, FX, and bill payments. Everything connects directly to your accounting platform, featuring built-in automation that minimizes manual work and reduces errors.

Airwallex is built for modern finance teams. You get flexible onboarding and dedicated support, so you can move quickly and scale without the headaches of legacy systems. Whether you’re expanding into new markets or simply want more control, Airwallex helps you stay one step ahead.

Consider Airwallex if:

• You collect or pay in multiple currencies and want to cut FX costs

• You want to issue multi-currency cards instantly across 40+ markets

• You’re managing complex team or entity structures

• You’re tired of juggling multiple tools for cards, bills, FX, and reimbursements

• You want one Spend Management platform built for global scale

Final verdict: choosing the right solution for your business

If you’re weighing up Ramp and SAP Concur, the best choice depends on how your team operates today and where you plan to grow next. Ramp is built for speed and simplicity, but its scope is limited if you’re working across borders. SAP Concur gives you depth and control, though getting up and running can be a project in itself.

Think about how you manage spend now. Are you trying to tighten controls, automate approvals, or manage costs across multiple markets? What works for a lean, local team may not hold up once you’re scaling, hiring globally, or reconciling transactions in multiple currencies.

The right platform should not only solve today’s problems but also facilitate tomorrow’s growth. Airwallex does exactly that.

FAQs

What’s the main difference between Ramp and SAP Concur?

Ramp is built for speed, automation, and control, with built-in cards and a free core plan. SAP Concur, by contrast, offers a comprehensive suite of modules focused on enterprise travel, expense, and invoice management; however, implementation can be complex, and it lacks built-in cards.

Does SAP Concur offer corporate cards?

No. Unlike most modern expense management platforms, SAP Concur does not offer its own corporate cards. You’ll need to integrate external cards from your bank or a third-party provider to track and manage spend.

Is Ramp suitable for international businesses?

Ramp works well for US-based businesses, especially startups and mid-market teams. However, it does not support multi-currency wallets or local accounts, which can be limiting for businesses with global operations.

What makes Airwallex different from Ramp and SAP Concur?

Airwallex combines global payments, multi-currency accounts, corporate cards, and spend management into a single system. It’s designed for businesses operating across markets, helping you manage costs, automate approvals, and scale with fewer tools.

Sources

1.  https://ramp.com/corporate-cards

2.  https://www.concur.com/en-us/invoice-management

3.  https://ramp.com/corporate-cards

4.  https://www.concur.com/receipt-management-app

5.  https://ramp.com/corporate-cards

6.  https://support.ramp.com/hc/en-us/articles/33312797133203-Purchases-orders-in-Ramp

7.  https://www.concur.com/en-us/purchase-request

8.  https://ramp.com/corporate-cards

9.  https://www.concur.com/en-us/mobile

10.  https://ramp.com/corporate-cards

11.  https://www.concur.com/blog/article/sap-concur-and-ai-supercharge-your-automated-spend-management

12.  https://support.ramp.com/hc/en-us/articles/20843280013459-Setting-up-spend-request-approvals

13.  https://www.concur.com/en-us/invoice-approval

14.  https://support.ramp.com/hc/en-us/articles/20843280013459-Setting-up-spend-request-approvals

15.  https://www.concur.com/control-cost-and-compliance

16.  https://ramp.com/pricing

17.  https://www.concur.com/en-us/analytics

18.  https://ramp.com/pricing

19.  https://www.concur.com/integrations

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21.  https://www.concur.com/en-us/data-security

22.  https://support.ramp.com/hc/en-us

23.  https://www.concur.com/en-us/support

24.  https://ramp.com/pricing

25.  https://www.spendflo.com/vendors/sap-concur

26.  https://www.vendr.com/buyer-guides/concur

27.  https://www.softwareadvice.com/accounting/sap-concur-profile/reviews/

28.  https://fibery.io/openion/sap-concur-93/user-experience-crisis-sap-concur-app-criticisms-284185