Top 12 Zoho Expense Alternatives and Competitors in India(2026 Edition)

Introduction: The Scalability Wall

The corporate travel market in India is valued at $ 10.6 billion and is projected to double by FY 2030, according to a report by Deloitte. As corporate travel gains momentum post Covid, travel expenditure is fast becoming a significant part of P&L forcing the finance teams to move beyond simple tracking. 

Zoho Expense is the most sought after travel expense management tool, especially for enterprises which are just beginning their operations and need tools easy to adopt and quick to set up. This is where the businesses need Zoho Expense alternatives in India which solves more than just basic accounting and compliance. However, it fails to provide detailed expense analytics and complete control over policy enforcement and compliance management. Problems start arising when operations become complex and Zoho begins to feel like a “Day 1” solution trying to solve “Day 1,000” problems.

This is where the businesses need Zoho Expense alternatives which solves more than just basic accounting and compliance. They look for reliable expense management software which automates reconciliations, fixes mismatches and streamlines processes.

This article attempts to identify top expense management softwares Zoho Expense alternatives and Zoho Expense competitors in India, ideal for growing and expanding organisations.

As finance teams scale, many start actively evaluating Zoho Expense alternatives and Zoho Expense competitors to handle growing compliance, travel, and ERP complexity. The demand for alternatives to Zoho Expense in India has increased as organisations look for tools that go beyond basic expense tracking. This guide focuses specifically on the best Zoho Expense alternatives in India, helping CFOs compare leading Zoho Expense competitors in India based on scalability, compliance, and control.

Why Enterprises Outgrow Zoho

Zoho Expense as a tool suits organisations which are in their early stage of growth and expenses are manageable with simple checks in place. But, as enterprises grow in size, the cost of manual work, policy exceptions and compliance risks start outweighing the cost of the tool itself.

Let’s take a deeper look:

1. Compliance Starts Taking More Time

As organisations grow, their compliance work grows alongside. Large companies require alternatives that take care of the compliance in everyday procedures, rather than just as a month end job. Finance teams need tools that can:

• Validate Input Tax Credit (ITC) on every bill
• Ensure vendor compliance management  
• Implement policy-driven workflows and approvals
• Prevent frauds and leakages by eliminating loopholes

With Zoho Expense, many GST and ITC checks may still be done manually, which makes the system prone to errors and mistakes, leading to ITC loss and audit queries. Finance teams need a comprehensive system in place which auto-verifies all the details, ensures proper recording and generates GST ready reports. 

a. Travel Costs Slowly Increase

When travel costs increase, manual checks and simple procedures start becoming redundant. CFOs need extensive Zoho expense Alternatives management software that can manage costs more diligently. Without corporate travel management tools:

• Employees book flights at normal website prices
• Cancellations become more frequent and costly
• Free meals and other benefits are lost
  
  This results in extra expenditure impacting P&L. Additionally, ensuring adherence to  travel policies and approval workflow becomes challenging. These small losses do not show up immediately, but  add up over time. Thus, CFOs need specialised tools in place that provide access to corporate inventory at negotiated rates and automate the entire workflow.

b. ERP Sync Needs More Work

As organisations grow in size, they generally switch to more complex ERP systems like SAP, Oracle or NetSuite. Thus, the need for a  travel management software which offers full integration with these ERPs automatically arises. A good tool should ensure:

• Posting in the correct General Ledger (GL) and cost centres.
• Bi-directional synchronization between ERP and the expense tool
• Real-time data flow and automatic reconciliations
  
  Zoho Expense offers integrations, but deep sync with complex ERPs is limited. As a result, its functionality becomes limited when size and complexity of the business grows and finance teams need to resort back to manual checks. Thus, need for an enterprise tool that provides end-to-end integration with ERPs comes into the picture.

The CFO’s Checklist

While the need for a more comprehensive expense management system in place is evident, not every tool available in the market fits every organisation. CFOs need to carefully evaluate features offered by the tool in terms of their own scale and requirements. Thus, here’s a comprehensive checklist that CFOs should keep in mind while choosing the best expense management software for their organisation.

1. Direct Travel Inventory

CFOs should check whether the expense system provides direct access to corporate travel inventory, instead of public web rates. Travel expenses can be huge. When employees book travel on public sites, companies lose:

• Negotiated corporate fares
• Flexible cancellations
• Free meals and bundled benefits

Expense reimbursement software connected with platforms like MakeMyTrip allows policy checks at booking time. Also, the data flows directly from these portals to ERPs, which reduces exposure to fake bills and claims.

2. GST Automation

As businesses scale, GST automation becomes non-negotiable. CFOs should look for tools which offer GST compliance management by design and do not add to manual compliance burden. A good tool should also offer:

• Automatic validation of GSTIN and other details
• Clear tagging of Input Tax Credit (ITC) eligibility
• GSTR 1 and 3B filing support
• Maintenance of audit trails and related supportings
  
  When CFOs choose tools which manage compliance automatically, it brings transparency into the system and saves the organisations from additional burden of interests and penalty that may come from non compliance.

3. AI-led Auditing and Analysis

CFOs should look for tools that provide real-time data for analysis and support automated AI-led analysis. For modern organisations, CFOs are not just gatekeepers, but they are also entrusted with the responsibility of contributing to profitability. As their role evolves, CFOs need tools which facilitate data-driven decision making. Thus, a good expense management software should offer:

• Audit of 100% transactions, rather than samples
• Auto-flagging of patterns of mis-use or frauds
• Trend analytics and predictive insights into future expenses

This shifts the focus from reactive control to proactive governance. Finance teams gain strength to detect risk early and take action to control them before actual spend. 

4. Policy Enforcement

As organisations scale, enforcing policies and delegation matrix at source becomes a challenge. CFOs should evaluate whether the tool enforces policies directly into workflows so as to eliminate the risks of overspend or leakage. The right tool should enable:

• Policy configuration by role, grade and hierarchy directly into the system
• Auto-escalation of exceptions and non-approvals
• Smooth roll-out of policy changes

Weak policy enforcement makes organisations more susceptible to frauds and leakages. A travel expense management tool should act as an auto-policy enforcer reducing reliance on manual enforcement by finance and admin teams.

Top 12 Zoho Expense Alternativesand Zoho Expense Competitorsin India

1. Happay- The Definite Enterprise Upgrade

Happay is one of the most comprehensive Zoho Expense alternatives in India, offering unified travel, expense, and corporate spend management. It brings all spending into one place and tracks it from the time an expense is planned until it is paid and reported.

What Makes Happay an Ideal Zoho Expense Alternative

Happay is designed specifically to meet the expense management needs of growing companies as it offers:

1. Direct access to MakeMyTrip corporate inventory

Happay allows access to MakeMyTrip’s inventory directly enabling employees to book flights and hotels at live rates.  

2.  Automated expense capture directly from source 

Happay captures actual expenses directly from portals where they are generated (like Uber or Swiggy). This eliminates the avenue for fake invoices getting feeded into the system by employees and users.

3. AI-powered audit engine for policy enforcement

Happay’s AI-powered audit engine enforces expense policies automatically by flagging out-of-policy expenses, auto-detection of duplicate/ split claims and eliminating restricted expense categories.

4.  GST compliance and Input Tax Credit (ITC) automation

Happay simplifies GST compliances for Indian entities by automatically extracting GST details from invoices, validating vendor GSTINs, auto-detecting eligible ITC, generating GST ready reports and reducing manual tax reconciliation.

5. Real-time Analytics and Dashboards

Happay provides finance teams with dashboards that get updated in real-time and help with insights like department/ category wise spends, policy violations, top spenders and budget utilization.

2. SAP Concur

SAP Concur is widely regarded as one of the strongest Zoho Expense alternatives in India for enterprises needing GST automation and travel control. SAP Concur is often seen as the global choice for large multinational companies and is used by big brands across countries and regions. It is built to manage complex policy environments, cross-border operations and high transaction volumes, making it a preferred choice for enterprises with stringent compliance and governance needs.

Key Features for CFOs

1. Gives strong control over travel policy implementation and their compliance.
2. Scalability support for multiple entities, currencies and tax regimes.
3. Deep integration with SAP ERP and compatibility with other enterprise finance systems
4. Detailed audit trails and controls for large-scale finance operations

Pros:

• Handles complex approval workflows and regulatory environments
• Strong compliance and audit controls

Cons:

• Costly to implement compared to other mid-market tools
• Complex workflows and longer timelines for implementation

Verdict: SAP Concur works best when a company is very large and spread across many countries. For others, the cost of implementation and complexity to handle may outweigh the benefits.

3. ITILITE 

ITILITE is widely regarded as one of the Zoho Expense alternatives in India for enterprises needing GST automation and travel control. ITILITE is designed for organisations that want to control their growing travel spend without complexity. It is best suited for middle level entities where travel volumes are high but need flexible processes. Its biggest strength lies in travel booking. The interface is easy to understand and employees see the right options upfront with transparent pricing. Travel policies are enforced right at the time of booking which makes it easy for companies to control them.

Key Features for CFOs

1. Real-time visibility into travel and spending
2. Centralised dashboard for expense tracking and analysis
3. Employee-friendly user interface
4. Travel policy enforcement at the time of booking

Pros:

• Helps growing enterprises in bringing early control over travel costs
• Easy to use for employees, driving adoption

Cons:

• Reporting is basic compared to large tools
• Not suitable for very large or complex organisations
  

Verdict: It is an ideal tool for growing middle-sized organisations that want policy control over their travel spend while ensuring high user adoption with simple interface.

4. FastCollab

FastCollab is a tool focussed upon small and medium businesses offering human-assistance alongside a technology-enabled platform. Travel bookings are assisted by agency partners, which help in planning and itineraries and last-mile bookings. It is designed to support basic travel booking and expense management needs with heavy reliance on manual workflows and offers limited  ERP integration.

Key Features for CFOs

1. “Tech + Agent” hybrid booking model
2. Basic expense capture and report creation, largely dependent on manual entry
3. Simple policy rules and approval workflows designed for low-complexity use case.
4. Limited GST and tax compliance support

Pros

• Low licence cost, favorable for small businesses
• Simple workflows without getting into complexity of larger systems

Cons

• Weak GST automation and high manual compliance effort
• Lacks enterprise-grade configuration and scalability

Verdict: It is suitable for small businesses who have low travel volumes and do not want to spend heavily on its management.

5. EnKash

Enkash Is also widely regarded as Zoho Expense alternatives in India for enterprises needing GST automation and travel control. EnKash is designed for companies that want strong control on expenses before it happens. It has predefined limits and works through corporate cards. Finance teams decide who can spend, how much and where to be spent. Once these rules are set, spending automatically stays within limits. It differentiates itself from other travel expense management platforms by offering a focused control over corporate card usage, vendor payments and working capital.

EnKash is well suited for organisations with high card usage where spend discipline matters more than post-spend.

Key Features for CFOs

• Predefined spending limits set before any payment is made
• Clear control over who spends, how much & where
• Restricts spend within chosen vendors
• Vendor payments & reconciliation workflows integrated with ledger systems

Pros

• Strong pre-spend control
• Suitable for organisations with distributed card usage and vendor payments

Cons

• Expense reporting workflows are basic compared with dedicated T&E tools
• Limited GST compliance and ERP integration

Verdict: EnKash works best for companies that rely majorly on corporate cards and want controlled spending from the start.

6. Navan

Navan is built mainly for companies with global operations, especially teams based in the US and Europe. It is designed to support frequent travel across regions while keeping the experience simple for employees. Unlike other tools, Navan’s focus is on making travel workflows seamless with expenses, cards and payments integrated into it. It offers real-time control, automation and strong employee experience across booking, spending and reporting.

Key Features for CFOs

1. Unified travel, expense, and corporate card platform
2. Real-time policy enforcement at booking and card swipe
3. Global ERP and HR integrations, supporting multi-entity and cross-border setups
4. Advanced spend analytics across travel, cards, and expenses in near real time

Pros

• Strong pre-spend controls reduce policy violations and leakage
• Ideal fit for travel-heavy, fast-scaling global companies

Cons

• No deep India-specific GST automation
• Limited availability of India-native inventory

Verdict: Navan is a strong choice for global companies. It balances flexibility for employees with visibility for finance. However, it is not suited for India-first organisations wanting native travel inventory and strong control over local GST compliances.

7. Fyle

Fyle is a travel expense management software focusing upon small and medium sized businesses needing card-centric expense management. The idea is to control spend via corporate card, giving organisations the flexibility to control expenses before they happen. It offers seamless user experience, automated expense capture and two-way accounting integrations with ERPs like QuickBooks, Xero and NetSuite. However, it does not offer end-to-end travel booking and is only ideal for expense capture and management.

Key Features for CFOs

1. Real-time visibility on actual corporate card spends 
2. Auto-capture of expense receipts via email, card feeds, WhatsApp texts and uploads
3. Two-way native integrations with mid-level ERPs
4. Dedicated mileage tracking module on web and mobile

Pros

• Enforces pre-spend control for organisations dependant upon spend via cards
• Easy and user-friendly interface driving higher employee adoption

Cons

• Suitable for expense management only, not end-to-end travel booking experience
• Works best for organisations relying on existing corporate cards for spend

Verdict: Fyle is a good choice for small and medium size companies looking for better control on their corporate card spends with real-time visibility and tighter controls.

8. Zaggle

Zaggle is an end-to-end spend management platform designed for mid-market and large enterprises. It merges management of all corporate spend from a single platform, including employee benefit expenses, rewards, corporate cards, P2P payments, travel expenses and taxes. With features like real-time visibility on expenses incurred, it brings a strong grip over spends via card-led controls. 

Key Features for CFOs

1. Zaggle provides end-to-end management of all corporate spend from a single platform
2. Card-led controls with policy enforcement at the point of spend
3. India-focused compliance through BROME Tax Solutions
4. Spend analytics for expense tracking and budget utilization

Pros

• Quick implementation with DIY configuration
• Enforces policies at the point of spend, preventing leakage

Cons

• Does not specifically cater to organisations with complex, global travel requirements.
• Limited value for companies that do not use employee benefit cards

Verdict: Zaggle is suitable for mid-level companies in India who want all corporate spend management within a single platform.

The Global / Legacy Options-

9. Rydoo

Rydoo is a global expense management tool used by companies with teams working across different countries incurring expenses in multiple currencies. With a user-friendly design, Rydoo is designed as a mobile-first expense solution with global compliance capabilities. It is focused upon expense automation, rather than offering a wide stack of tools.
Rydoo supports quick expense capture and fast approvals via mobile friendly workflows. Employees can submit expenses without much effort, while finance teams receive clear, structured reports that are easy to review. 

Key Features for CFOs

1. Consistency in expense process across countries and regions
2. User-friendly interface enhancing expense submission and approval process
3. Real-time dashboards for expense visibility, cost centers and budget monitoring
4. Integration with global accounting ERPs 

Pros

• Easy for employees to use and submit expenses
• Supports expense submission and analysis in multiple currencies
• Helps maintain consistency across regions

Cons

• Less suited for enterprises seeking all in one spend management system
• Limited support for India focused compliances (GST/ TDS)
  

Verdict: Rydoo works well for global mid-level organisations supporting international transactions via card-led spend control 

10. Expensify

Expensify is an India-based spend platform mainly used by mid-market companies. Expensify strength lies in procurement, accounts payable, petty cash and asset management. Travel and expense management modules are available, but it’s not the primary focus and are usually used only by existing customers of this software.

Key Features for CFOs

1. Expensify Focused upon procurement, accounts payable, petty cash and asset management.
2. Basic travel and expense management support
3. Policy rules and approval flows are simple and designed mainly for cost control.

Pros

• Suitable for mid-market teams with procurement-led needs
• Covers multiple spend areas on one platform
• Works with major ERP and accounting systems

Cons

• The T & E module is basic and not designed for enterprise-scale needs.
• Mobile app experience feels limited and underdeveloped.
• Minimal expense capture and automation

Verdict: Expensify works well for mid-market organisations that focus mainly on procurement and spend control. For teams looking for more advanced, modern or scalable T&E capabilities, it offers limited capabilities.

11. Emburse Expense

Emburse Expense is an expense management platform under the Emburse portfolio. It focuses upon simplification of employee expense reporting and gives finance teams strong control over policy and audit compliances. It supports organisations with distributed teams and recurring employee expenses while offering smooth integration with ERPs.

Key Features for CFOs

1. Expense capture and submission supported via mobile app
2. Handles multi-currency transactions and global exchange rate conversion for distributed teams
3. Real-time visibility into spend trends, exceptions and budget status

Pros

• Strong emphasis on process control
• User friendly interface on both web and mobile
• Faster implementation compared to heavyweight enterprise systems
  

Cons

• Not suitable for large entities requiring deeper controls
• Does not support India specific compliances

Verdict: Expense is Suited for global finance teams that want structured expense governance and visibility without the implementation complexity of large, compliance-heavy enterprise systems.

12. Oracle iExpense

Oracle iExpense is part of the Oracle ERP ecosystem and is typically used by organisations that rely on Oracle for their finance operations. Its primary strength lies in its integration with accounting data and internal control frameworks.

Oracle operates directly within the ERP and finance teams benefit from strong consistency, accurate data flow and tight control. However, employees often find the system difficult to navigate. Updates or changes can be slow due to complex configurations and dependencies.

Key Features for CFOs

1. Offers flexible integration within Oracle financial systems
2. Supports global expense submission with multi-currency configuration
3. Standard reports for spend analysis, policy exceptions and audit trail
4. Designed to support large-scale finance operations
   

Pros

• Deep integration with Oracle ERP modules
• Enables centralized spend visibility and control
• Integrates directly with broader financial systems for accurate accounting

Cons

• Difficult for employees to use and navigate
• Slow change implementation and complex setup
  

Verdict: Oracle iExpense is a good fit for large enterprises already invested in Oracle ERP. 

Comparison Table

Product	GST Automation	Travel Inventory Source	Support Level	ERP Sync depth
Happay	Strong (India GST automation + reconciliation)	Corporate	SMB–Mid / India-first	Bi-sync (SAP/Oracle/NetSuite)
SAP Concur	VAT/GST (Global, India GST supported)	Corporate	Enterprise / Global	Strong Enterprise integrations
ITILITE	Strong (India GST focus)	Corporate + Web	Mid-enterprise	Medium
FastCollab	Limited	Corporate / Agency-led	Mid–Enterprise	API/Enterprise integrations
EnKash	Limited / Not core	N/A	SMB–Mid	Strong (Tally/SAP/Zoho)
Navan	VAT/GST (Global)	Corporate + Web	Mid–Enterprise	Medium (varies by stack)
Fyle	Limited / Not core	N/A	SMB–Mid	Strong (NetSuite + others)
Zaggle	Limited / Not clear	N/A	Mid market (India)	Moderate / project dependent
Rydoo	VAT/GST (Global)	N/A	Mid–Enterprise	Strong (SAP/NetSuite)
Expensify	VAT/GST (Global)	N/A	SMB–Mid	Strong (NetSuite etc.)
Emburse	VAT/GST (Global)	N/A (travel optional modules)	Mid–Enterprise	Strong (SAP/NetSuite/Dynamics)
Oracle iExpense	Depends on Oracle tax engine	N/A	Enterprise (Oracle ecosystem)	Deep-native (Oracle ERP)

Implementation Guide: Moving from Zoho Expense to an Enterprise Tool

Moving away from Zoho Expense to an enterprise tool takes more than just a software transition. It requires moving data from one system to another without disturbing current flows. Here’s an implementation guide that finance teams should keep in mind while planning this transition.

1. Plan a Smooth Data Migration

The first step is to ensure that data moves correctly from old to new software. This may be a time-taking process but is critical to ensure smooth working post migration. Both the master data and actual historic data needs to be transferred in entirety for the new platform to work systematically. Additionally, the new tool may require access to additional databases for new features to perform. This entire process needs to be carried out carefully as it forms the basis for future functionality. 

Thus, here is what finance teams should consider while planning data migration:

1. Defining scope of migration: Deciding upon what needs to be moved and when to be moved 
2. Reconciliation of open items: Reconciling open balances within existing tool and ERP first, and then planning transfer.
3. Post-Migration Validation: Performing post-migration checks like tallying of totals within old and new system

2. Alignment with ERP and Other Tools

The new expense system may require additional access and plug-ins for all it’s features to work smoothly. This may require connecting it with additional platforms like banking channels, travel platforms and filing portals, which involves:

• Mapping of existing datasets to the new platform’s data structure
• Validating connections with ERP systems and other platforms 
• Trial runs to test end-to-end workflows
  

If mapping is incorrect, finance teams will end up fixing entries manually during every close. Thus, it is important to test connections before going fully live.

3. Change Management for Employees

Implementing change within the organisation is often the most crucial and difficult step. As employees are accustomed to old workflows and interfaces, they need to be given clarity and hand-holding before moving to new systems. Thus, finance teams should plan for:

• Expert-led training sessions for introduction to new tool
• Circulation of SOPs and demo videos for clarity
• Conducting parallel runs for one cycle to reduce anxiety

Short training sessions and simple instructions work better than long manuals. Many companies roll out the new system to a small group first and then expand it to the rest of the organisation to avoid hiccups at the time of mass implementation.

Conclusion: The Final Verdict

While there is no one tool that fits all kinds of businesses, Happay and SAP Concur come out to be clear winners. 

Happay works best for organisations looking for travel booking, expense management and GST automation within a single platform. Happay syncs bi-directionally with ERP systems and ensures smooth flow of data, eliminating the need for manual checks and systems. It also facilitates finance teams with real-time visibility on actual data supported with AI-led analytics for better decision making.

For large organisations with multiple locations and sub-entities, SAP Concur may prove to be more useful as it offers workflows which are more suitable for complex structures. 

However, these tools are quite expensive and thus, all the decisions should be taken keeping in mind the costs and benefits.

FAQ’s