Melio vs BILL: free against $45 a user, and approvals decide it
Melio starts free with five ACH transfers a month and prices per account. BILL starts around $45 per user and prices per seat. The split is approval depth against cost at low volume.
Verdict
Melio is free at low volume and prices per account. BILL starts around $45 per user and prices per seat. Choose BILL only if you need layered approval workflows, which is the one thing Melio does not match.
At a glance
| Criterion | MelioBest at low volume | BILLBest for approvals |
|---|---|---|
| Entry price | $0, permanently | About $45/user/mo |
| Priced by | Account | User seat |
| Free ACH allowance | 5/mo on free, up to unlimited on $80 tier | None, $0.59 each |
| ACH beyond allowance | $0.50 | $0.59 |
| Card payments | Flat 2.9% | 2.9% |
| Mailed check | $1.50 | $1.99 |
| Approval workflows | Basic | Layered and configurable |
| Full review | Read the Melio review | Read the BILL review |
What the winner gets right, and where it falls short
What works
- Melio free tier means testing bill payment automation costs nothing at all
- Melio per-account pricing does not punish adding a second approver
- BILL approval routing genuinely separates authorisation from payment, which matters for internal control
What does not
- BILL per-user pricing scales badly for a small team that just wants payments automated
- Melio approval depth is thin if several people authorise under different rules
- Both charge 2.9 percent on card payments, which dwarfs either subscription at volume
The split in one line#
Per account against per seat
The structural difference
Melio does not charge more when a second person approves. BILL does.
Melio prices the account. Five free ACH transfers a month on the free tier, and adding an approver costs nothing.
BILL prices the seat. About $45 per user a month, so every person who touches the system adds to the bill.
For a two-person business that wants supplier payments automated, that is $0 against roughly $90.
Where BILL earns the difference#
Approval workflows, and specifically layered ones.
Rules that route a bill to a different approver depending on amount, department, or vendor. A structure that separates who authorises a payment from who releases it.
That separation is a real internal control requirement in some businesses, and it is the thing worth paying per seat for. Melio approvals exist but are simpler.
The fees, side by side#
Neither subscription is the real cost.
| Melio | BILL | |
|---|---|---|
| ACH | $0 within allowance, then $0.50 | About $0.59 |
| Mailed check | $1.50 | $1.99 |
| Card | Flat 2.9% | 2.9% |
| International | $20 flat ACH | About $19.99 wire |
There is a legitimate use for it: paying a supplier by card while they receive a bank transfer keeps your cash for another cycle. That is a financing decision with a 2.9 percent price attached, not a default.
The Melio tier arithmetic#
Melio tiers are ACH allowances rather than feature tiers:
| Plan | Cost | Free ACH |
|---|---|---|
| Go | Free | 5 |
| Core | About $25 | 20 |
| Boost | About $55 | 50 |
| Unlimited | About $80 | Unlimited |
Overages are $0.50, which is cheap enough that staying low and paying them often beats upgrading. At 30 payments a month, Core plus overages is about $30 against $55 for Boost.
Choosing in one line#
A handful of supplier payments, one or two people → Melio free. There is no reason to pay anything.
Regular payables, still a small team → Melio Core or Boost, whichever the overage maths favours.
Layered approval rules are a genuine requirement → BILL, and price it on the seats you actually need rather than the ones you might want.
You pay mostly by card → neither subscription is your problem. Move suppliers to bank transfer first, which we work through in QuickBooks payment processing fees.
Full detail on each is in our Melio review and BILL review.
Tool by tool
Melio
Best at low volumeThe free Go plan includes five ACH transfers a month permanently, and pricing is per account rather than per seat, so extra approvers cost nothing.
- Starting price
- Free, then $25/mo
- Best for
- A small business paying a handful of suppliers by bank transfer
BILL
Best for approvalsApproval routing separating who authorises from who pays, with rules deep enough for internal control requirements. That depth is what the per-seat price buys.
- Starting price
- About $45/user/mo
- Best for
- A business with layered approval rules and real bill volume
Frequently asked questions
- Is Melio cheaper than BILL?
- Substantially, at small volume. Melio starts free with five ACH transfers a month and prices per account. BILL starts around $45 per user and prices per seat. A two-person business wanting payments automated pays nothing on Melio and about $90 on BILL.
- What does BILL do that Melio does not?
- Layered approval workflows. BILL lets you build rules that route bills to different approvers by amount, department, or vendor, and separate who authorises a payment from who releases it. Melio approvals are simpler. If internal control is the requirement, that gap is the whole comparison.
- Do both charge fees on top of the subscription?
- Yes, and on both the fees usually exceed the subscription. Melio charges $0.50 per ACH beyond allowance, $1.50 per mailed check, and a flat 2.9 percent on cards. BILL charges about $0.59 per ACH, $1.99 per check, and 2.9 percent on cards. Payment method matters more than plan.
- Which should a small business choose?
- Melio, in most cases. Start on the free tier, which costs nothing to test at real volume. Move to BILL only when approval rules become a genuine requirement rather than a preference, because that is the only thing worth about $45 per user for.
Written by
Tashawar Awais
Researcher and editor
Tashawar handles verification and editing. Every figure in a review is checked a second time before it goes out, and anything that cannot be traced to a vendor page or a documented source is either qualified or cut. Where pricing is genuinely unclear, as it is with Canva team plans or Close CRM tiers, the article says so and tells the reader to confirm directly instead of quoting a number with false confidence.
- Second check on every published figure
- Removes claims the sources do not support
- Flags pricing that changes without notice