Certify vs. Concur: In-Depth Comparison

Introduction

Emburse Certify Expense and SAP Concur are prominent names in travel and expense (T&E) management solutions. They offer organizations the tools and resources to enhance their expense management processes. If you are choosing between the two, we are here to make it easier for you.

In this in-depth comparison between Certify vs. Concur, we look at both platforms’ essential features, functionalities, and advantages. We will also look at if there is a better alternative to Certify and Concur. Together, it will provide you with a comprehensive assessment in making an informed choice that aligns with your business needs.

Must Read: 10 Best Expense Management Software and Tools

Why Compare Certify vs. Concur?

Comparing Certify vs. Concur is crucial for organizations seeking an optimal travel expense management solution. These travel accounting software platforms help address business travel’s complex expense management needs. The decision to compare these spend management solutions is also critical from a financial efficiency and compliance perspective. 

Conducting a comprehensive evaluation of the features and functionalities will help you make an informed decision that aligns with your specific requirements. The Certify vs. Concur comparison will help you understand the relative advantages of each platform and identify the best fit for your business objectives.

Read More: What Is Spend Management: The Comprehensive Guide

Certify vs. Concur: Head-to-Head Comparison

Here’s a quick comparison between Certify vs. Concur based on the essential information available at G2.

	Features	Star Rating	Pricing	Free Trial	Ease of Implementation	Ease of Use	Product Satisfaction	Support
Emburse Certify Expense	Robust integrations Pre-approval feature	4	$8/month	Yes	4	4	4	4
SAP Concur	Expedited travel expense reporting Instant travel expense analysis	4	$9/report average price*	Yes	4	4	4	4

What is Emburse Certify Expense?

Emburse Certify Expense is a prominent component of the Emburse suite of travel and expense management solutions. It helps organizations exercise precise control over their travel expenditures. Consolidating many functions within a single, robust application helps Emburse streamline the expense management process for travelers. 

The platform’s integrated travel message center enhances convenience, ensuring travelers’ safety and keeping them informed. Furthermore, the introduction of Emburse Cards provides travelers with the flexibility of virtual corporate cards accessible on various mobile devices. These include Apple Watch, iOS, and Android platforms, which you can configure to function within specified parameters. It helps minimize the risk of fraudulent transactions. 

Additionally, Emburse T&E products simplify the cumbersome task of entering hotel folio information. It adds to the platform’s convenience and utility for organizations seeking efficient travel expense management solutions.

TOP features of Emburse Certify Expense

Emburse Certify Expense distinguishes itself with the following features designed to enhance travel expense management for organizations. 

1. Robust integrations

These allow seamless connectivity to critical systems like enterprise resource planning (ERP), passenger name record (PNR), and travel management company (TMC), among others. These integrations streamline data flow and provide a comprehensive view of travel expenses. It helps simplify the expense tracking and management across the organization.

2. Pre-approval feature

It is a vital feature in optimizing the travel process. The feature eliminates the need for post-trip reimbursement decisions by allowing you to establish pre-approvals for travel expenses. Implementing pre-approval workflows helps proactively manage expenses to ensure expenditures align with budgets and corporate policies. It streamlines the expense process and provides greater control over travel costs.

3. Automation of corporate travel policies

Incorporating these policies into the platform enables employees to make travel-related decisions compliant with the company’s regulations. Automation ensures employees adhere to corporate policies and reduces the likelihood of non-compliant expenses. The result is enhanced financial control.

4. Data management

It facilitates the combination, categorization, and centralized travel and expense data access. The robust data management capability simplifies reporting, analysis, and decision-making by providing a structured view of travel and expense information. The feature is essential for organizations seeking greater insight into expenditure patterns and financial efficiency.

Pros and cons of Emburse Certify Expense

Here are some pros and cons of Emburse Certify Expense based on reviews on GetApp.

Pros	Cons
The seamless integration within this software is a plus point. It excels at itemizing all receipts.	Labeling aspects can be perplexing, like determining whether to generate an expense or a receipt, which can pose a challenge.
The tracking and approval monitoring capabilities can help finance teams do their job much better.	Rectifying errors can be a somewhat challenging task within the system.

Emburse Certify Expense Pricing Structure

Emburse Certify Expense offers a versatile pricing structure tailored to various organizations’ needs. Here’s a breakdown of the pricing options.

1. Certify Now

Designed for 1-25 employees

For small businesses seeking an efficient expense management solution, Certify Now offers a cost-effective choice at $12 per user per month. The package is ideal for organizations with a smaller workforce. Certify Now allows businesses to start promptly with a self-service, online setup. It is a convenient option for small enterprises looking to streamline their expense reporting processes efficiently.

2. Professional

Suitable for small and medium-sized organizations

For small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) needing comprehensive expense management, Certify Expense offers flexible pricing options under the professional package. These options ensure organizations can tailor their expense management to their specific requirements. The Professional package provides highly integrated expense management capabilities. 

Moreover, it offers the flexibility to choose the level of implementation support required. It ensures businesses have the resources and guidance they need to optimize the system based on their needs effectively. Customization and support make Certify Expense’s Professional package a valuable choice for SMEs seeking top-tier expense management solutions.

User reviews of Emburse Certify Expense

Here are some user experiences of Emburse Certify Expense based on the information available at G2.

1. User-friendliness and support

The software’s user-friendliness and adaptability are notable. The process of raising a support ticket and obtaining a solution is straightforward. The support agents consistently commit to exploring potential resolutions for queries before concluding that a particular objective might not be immediately feasible.

2. Expense submission and reporting creation

What truly stands out is the system’s simplicity and the variety of options available for receipt submission, including the ability to take photos, send receipts via email, or scan them. Expense report creation is equally convenient. There are intuitive tools for assigning GL codes, specifying departments, and adding comments.

3. System configuration

Despite the system’s configurability, it is challenging for non-technical administrators. It is mainly for those working in Accounting or HR. Performing bulk updates may necessitate a level of HTML-like coding, and the back-end configuration might benefit from greater accessibility.

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What is SAP Concur?

SAP Concur is a comprehensive, integrated solution for managing business travel and expenses. It offers organizations a helpful tool to optimize control, compliance, and leverage. At the same time, it ensures an enhanced travel experience for their personnel. As a leading name in business travel booking and expense integration, SAP Concur has earned global trust for simplifying and improving travel and expense management. 

Travelers can effortlessly handle travel bookings and expense claims through a single login, resulting in streamlined administrative tasks. The platform ensures data integrity by capturing itineraries and e-receipts directly from suppliers. It also monitors corporate credit card transactions and manages cash advances. 

This information can help analyze and optimize the organization’s travel and expense management program. Organizations can also make comparisons of budgets to actual expenses and evaluate vendor compliance. Beyond expense management, SAP Concur’s business travel booking functionality offers several other travel choices to simplify searching for the best travel options.

Read More: 5 Best SAP Concur Alternatives and Competitors

TOP features of SAP Concur

SAP Concur expense offers the following features that enhance travel management for organizations. 

1. Expedite travel expense reporting

With Concur Travel & Expense, the submission of travel expense reports is seamless. Users can create custom reports directly from their travel itinerary. The platform can automatically incorporate expenses paid for with company-issued credit cards and those incurred through e-receipt providers. The feature saves time and ensures you can record and account all expenses accurately.

2. Robust integration 

The platform integrates the organization’s travel policy into its online booking tool. Aligning with the company’s travel policies helps Concur assist employees in adhering to established guidelines. It further facilitates sound decision-making during travel planning and expense management. These aspects ensure compliance and help make cost-effective travel choices to benefit the organization’s financial efficiency.

3. Instant travel expense analysis

It helps organizations gain comprehensive oversight of their business travel expenses. The platform provides a detailed overview of expenses incurred by all employees. It uses advanced reporting tools to assess travel-related expenditures and other associated costs quickly. Dashboards within Concur deliver an “at-a-glance” view of travel and expense spending, whether for a specific department or the entire organization. It also provides the requisite visibility for users and management to manage resources effectively.

Read About: 10 Best Expense Reporting Software and Tools

Pros and cons of Concur

Here are some pros and cons of SAP Concur based on reviews on GetApp.

Pros	Cons
The remote review and approval help users receive emailed receipts. They can effortlessly associate them with each corresponding expense.	The interface can appear dated and disorganized to some users. The process of adding images and receipts can be cumbersome.
The software has excellent user-friendliness. It can benefit those seeking to save time and money on travel and expense management.	Navigating the software can be perplexing. This is because the interface presents overwhelming information on a single screen.

SAP Concur Pricing Structure

SAP Concur offers a flexible pricing structure tailored to accommodate diverse business budgets. Request a quote to determine the most suitable pricing option for your organization.

User reviews of SAP Concur

Here are some user reviews of SAP Concurbased on the information available at G2.

1. User-friendliness and automation

SAP Concur significantly impacts reimbursement and travel expense procedures. It creates a streamlined process that transforms employees’ handling of expenses during business travel. Its user-friendly interface and automation capabilities have simplified expense management to save time and elevate organizational efficiency.

2. Configuration, reporting, and support

SAP Concur has reliable automation features, configuration options, intelligent reporting tools, and consultative services. Dedicated client success managers have been instrumental in consolidating overwhelming workloads into a seamless process. It ensures organizations have the data necessary for informed decision-making.

3. Interface and personalized reports

While SAP Concur offers many advantages, there is room for improvement in the interface’s clarity and user-friendliness. Customizability for individual users could enhance the service experience. Additionally, the system cannot currently create personalized transaction reports for each user, which could be a valuable addition. Furthermore, some challenges exist in the customer service department, notably extended wait times, which warrant attention.

Read More: SAP Concur Reviews: Pricing and Features

Happay vs. Certify vs. Concur

Here’s a quick comparison between Happay vs. Certify vs. Concur.

	Features	Star Rating	Pricing	Ease of Use	Product Direction	Ease of Booking	Mobile Functionality
Happay	Self-booking tool Integration of multiple suppliers	5	Contact for pricing	5	5	5	5
Emburse Certify Expense	Robust integrations Pre-approval feature	4.5	$8/month	4	4	4	4
SAP Concur	Expedited travel expense reporting Instant travel expense analysis	4	$9/report average price*	4	3	4	4

Why is Happay better than Certify and Concur?

Happay has emerged as a noteworthy choice for organizations seeking an efficient SaaS-based travel and expense management solution. It surpasses Certify and Concur in several critical aspects. 

1. Ease of use 

Happay excels in the ease-of-use ratings with an overall rating of 9.0, matching Certify but surpassing Concur’s score of 7.9. The distinction highlights Happay’s commitment to providing an intuitive, user-friendly platform simplifying user expense management.

2. Product direction 

Happay’s rating of 9.3 outshines Certify’s score of 8.7 and Concur’s rating of 7.1. It demonstrates Happay’s dedication to continuous improvement and innovation to ensure its product aligns with the evolving needs of businesses.

3. Ease of booking

Happay’s ratings, at 9.0, outperform Certify (8.9) and Concur (8.1), highlighting its ability to streamline the travel booking process for users.

4. Mobile functionality 

Happay’s ratings at 8.7 highlight its commitment to providing a seamless mobile experience. It surpasses Certify’s score of 8.5 and Concur’s rating of 8.6. Superior mobile functionality ensures users can efficiently manage expenses on the go.

Read More: 10 Best Expense Claim Software for Enterprises

Essential tips to know when choosing between Certify vs. Concur?

When choosing between Certify vs. Concur for your organization’s travel and expense management, it’s essential to consider the following factors.

1. Business needs

Consider the size of your company, the complexity of your expense management processes, and specific goals. For example, you may want a cloud-based solution with advanced integration capabilities. Clarity will help you align your choice with your business needs.

2. Budget considerations

Analyze the pricing structures of both Certify and Concur and assess how they align with your budget. Request quotes and compare the implementation costs, ongoing usage, and potential customization.

3. Ease of use

Consider the ease of onboarding, the intuitiveness of the interfaces, and the extent to which they match your employees’ technical proficiency.

4. Features and customization

Scrutinize the features offered by each platform and assess their alignment with your requirements. Pay attention to customization options. Tailoring the system to your needs is crucial for efficient expense management.

5. Integration capabilities

The ability to seamlessly connect with your existing software systems, like ERP or accounting tools, can significantly impact efficiency.

6. Compliance and policy enforcement

Examine how well each platform supports your company’s travel and expense policies. Enforcing compliance with your established guidelines is vital in preventing overspending and ensuring adherence to your financial standards.

7. Support and training

Evaluate the quality of customer support and training options provided by both platforms. The availability of support, especially during implementation and ongoing usage, is critical for a smooth experience.

8. Mobile functionality

Consider the mobile functionality of each platform. Ensure it aligns with employee needs.

9. Scalability

Think about your organization’s growth potential. Select a platform that can quickly scale with your business to accommodate future expansion and evolving needs.

10. Recommendations

Research user reviews and testimonials. Real-world experiences can offer insights into the strengths of each platform.

Read More: Expensify vs. Concur: A Comparative Analysis

Making your decision

Making an informed decision between Certify and Concur for your organization’s travel and expense management is a strategic process. Here’s a professional approach to guide you through the decision-making steps.

1. Setting up a trial or demo

A crucial initial step is requesting a trial or demo of both Certify and Concur. The hands-on experience will allow you to explore the platforms’ features, interfaces, and functionalities. It is an opportunity to assess whether the systems align with your organization’s needs and identify potential pain points.

2. Gathering feedback from users

Engage your employees or end-users in the evaluation process. Gather feedback from those using the chosen system day in and day out. Their insights can provide valuable perspectives on user-friendliness and the efficiency of various features.

3. Consulting with your finance and IT teams

Consult your finance team to ensure the chosen platform seamlessly integrates with your financial processes and policies. Your IT team can assess the technical aspects, like system compatibility, data security, and implementation requirements. Their input will help in making an informed choice.

4. Finalizing the choice

Consider budget constraints, customization options, card integration capabilities, and scalability. Weigh the pros and cons of Certify and Concur against your organization’s unique needs, keeping in mind your long-term goals. After thoroughly evaluating these aspects, select the platform that best aligns with your travel and expense management objectives.

Certify vs. Concur: Bottom line

While Certify and Concur remain prominent contenders, Happay stands out as a worthy alternative. Happay’s superior ratings in ease of use, product direction, ease of booking, and mobile functionality highlight its excellence in providing a user-friendly experience. It is an innovative and efficient travel and expense management solution you would want to take advantage of. Weighing these factors and considering your organization’s requirements will help you choose the best platform for your objectives.

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