Comparison · Light vs Pleo
Light vs Pleo
Pleo is excellent at company cards and expenses, but it sits on top of your accounting system rather than being one, so the ledger, the consolidation and the ERP bill all stay where they were. Light is the agentic ERP that IS your system of record: spend, AP/AR, and multi-entity accounting in one platform. Switching does not mean reissuing cards: keep your Pleo cards and bring their transactions into Light.
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Light and Pleo, compared
| Feature | Light | Pleo |
|---|---|---|
| General ledger and accounting system of recordPleo: syncs into your accounting system (Xero, e-conomic, Fortnox, DATEV, Business Central and others) | Yes | No |
| Multi-entity accounting and consolidationPleo: entity-level spend; consolidation runs in your accounting system | Yes | No |
| Financial statements (P&L, balance sheet)Pleo: produced from your connected accounting system, not Pleo | Yes | No |
| Corporate and virtual cards + spend managementPleo: Pleo's core strength | Yes | Yes |
| Accounts payable / bill payPleo: Pleo Invoices | Yes | Yes |
| Accounts receivable / invoicingPleo: not an accounts receivable tool | Yes | No |
| One system for both spend and the ledgerPleo: two systems by design | Yes | No |
4 week implementation
KPMG global partnership
Remove 4+ tools
700+ apps
The world's most demanding finance teams run on Light.
Go beyond the spend tool
Pleo manages cards and expenses, then connects to your accounting system. Light includes the ledger alongside spend and payments.
- 01
Keep each receipt with its entry
Capture receipts in Slack, Teams or email. Light keeps card transactions, coding and postings together for your team to review.
- 02
See the consolidated group
Pleo supports spend across entities. Light also consolidates their accounts, including currency translation and intercompany eliminations.
When to choose Light
- 01
The ledger is included
Light is the system of record: spend, AP, AR and the general ledger in one platform, with no ERP decision left open.
- 02
The close happens in one place
The card transaction, the receipt and the ledger entry are one record, so there is nothing to match across systems.
- 03
Group accounts, not a dashboard
Consolidated financial statements come from the ledger itself, across every entity and currency.
Trusted by the world's
fastest growing companies
See how finance teams run lean and global on Light.
Read customer stories-
“We evaluated several vendors. Light won because it covers our full finance stack, revenue, AR, AP, expenses, and consolidation, without stitching together a patchwork of point solutions.”
Tanja, Director of FinanceOmnea -
“Even though we’re three entities, it’s like I’m running a finance department for one entity.”
Thobias, Finance ManagerAlva Labs -
“I really like that Light’s AI already gives me suggestions, GL accounts, cost centers, tax codes. I don’t have to start from scratch.”
Cédric, Finance ManagerOper Credits -
“Nine times out of ten the AI matches everything and posts it to the right account. One click and you’re done.”
Jeppe, CFOKeyShot
Built for the daily work
Bills through to payment
Capture invoices, route approvals and pay vendors from the same system.
Room to grow
One ledger built to handle billions of transactions across your business.
Trace every number
Open a report and drill straight into the transactions behind it.
Spending, under control
Expenses, vendors and cards connected to your ledger.
Expenses
Collect receipts, approve expenses and track spend as it happens.
Vendors
Keep supplier details, bills and approvals together. Apply your purchasing rules as work moves through.
Cards
Issue cards for employees and vendors. Pay with Apple Pay or Google Pay. Send receipts through Slack, Teams or email.
Frequently asked questions
Can Light replace Pleo and our accounting system?
Yes. Light includes cards, expenses, the ledger, AP, AR and reporting.
Do we have to replace our Pleo cards?
No. Add your Pleo cards to Light as an external card account and bring the transactions in by CSV upload or a continuous push through the Light API. From there the transactions are handled like Light card spend: cardholders are asked for receipts, AI matches and codes each transaction, and it posts to the ledger. Your cards and your plan stay with Pleo. If you later move to Light cards, the card transaction and the ledger entry become one record.
Does Light support virtual cards?
Yes, alongside corporate cards with Apple Pay and Google Pay.
When does Pleo still fit?
When you want a spend tool and plan to keep your existing accounting system.
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