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Head to head · Spend transactions · October 2026 research run

Payhawk API + MCP vs Pleo API + MCP

Pleo API + MCP scores 62.9 (B) on agent readiness against Payhawk API + MCP's 57.1 (C), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Both do spend transactions.

Payhawk API + MCPPayhawk Limited · HTTP API C57.1/100#561 of 841 Pleo API + MCPPleo Technologies A/S · HTTP API B62.9/100#376 of 841

Which one, for what

Payhawk API + MCP C

Good for A finance team already on Payhawk that wants an ERP or accounting sync, master data kept in step, purchase orders raised from another system, or an assistant that answers spend questions and prepares approvals.

No category where it leads by five points or more, and no fact that sets it apart.

Watch for

No self-serve route. The API needs a Payhawk customer account, and a development sandbox is requested through a form

Pleo API + MCP B

Good for An agent that completes, codes, reviews and queues expenses for a Pleo customer on the Optimise plan, or for a bookkeeping integration that exports accounting entries and syncs tags, tax codes, accounts and vendors.

Ahead on

  • Reliability, 71 against 58
  • Schema & documentation, 82 against 71
  • Maintenance & community, 64 against 53

Watch for

The pricing page lists MCP on the Optimise plan only (£18 per user per month, three users minimum, sold through a demo)

Score by category

CategoryWeight this runPayhawk API + MCPPleo API + MCPEdge
Reliability16%205871Pleo API + MCP +13
Performance10%pendingpendingpendingnot scored in this run
Schema & documentation13%16.27182Pleo API + MCP +11
Agent ergonomics13%16.25255Pleo API + MCP +3
Security & auth14%17.57171even
Payments & pricing10%12.51315Pleo API + MCP +2
Task success10%pendingpendingpendingnot scored in this run
Maintenance & community7%8.85364Pleo API + MCP +11
Transparency & trust7%8.87875Payhawk API + MCP +3
Negative events≤1500
Total57.1 · C62.9 · B

Facts side by side

FactPayhawk API + MCPPleo API + MCP
KindHTTP APIHTTP API
VendorPayhawk LimitedPleo Technologies A/S
Hosted endpointhttps://api.payhawk.comhttps://external.pleo.io
TransportsHTTPHTTP, Streamable HTTP
AuthOAuth or keyOAuth or key
PricingPaidPaid
x402nono
LicenceProprietary service under Payhawk's general terms and conditionsProprietary service under Pleo's Master Service Agreement, API Terms of Service and AI Access Terms
Tools exposed82none
Read-only variant documentedyesno
llms.txtyesyes
Last release2026-10-082026-10-02
Terms last updated2025-12-09no date given
Privacy policy last updated2026-06-29
Customer content may train modelsnot found in the textnot found in the text
Terms restrict automated accessnot found in the textnot found in the text
Terms restrict benchmarkingnot found in the textnot found in the text
Terms or service can change without noticenot found in the textnot found in the text
Arbitration or class-action waivernot found in the textnot found in the text

Verdicts

Payhawk API + MCP

The Developer API has a public OpenAPI 3.1 definition with 179 operations, read-only or full-access keys and a published limit of 15 requests a second. It needs a Payhawk customer account, no official SDK or API changelog was found, and the 82-tool MCP server is added by hand because it is not yet in the assistant directories.

Pleo API + MCP

The hosted MCP server acts with the connecting user's own Pleo permissions, is off until an admin enables it per entity, and can't move money, change cards or alter limits. It is listed only on the Optimise plan, its tool definitions aren't published, API keys need enabling by Pleo support, and no official SDK or SLA was found.

Before you call either

Payhawk API + MCP

  1. Send the key in X-Payhawk-ApiKey or as a Bearer token to https://api.payhawk.com/api/v3. A read-only key returns 403 on writes
  2. Page lists with $skip and $take. The help centre gives 1,000 a page and the definition a maximum of 10,000, so count what comes back
  3. Pass $filter as URL-encoded JSON, for example {"status":{"$equal":"draft"}}. Date filters compare the date part only
  4. Keep to 15 requests a second and wait for Retry-After on a 429. Do not send Idempotency-Key when creating a per diem expense, which returns 400
  5. Use a group-level key and the /groups/{groupId} paths for master data in a multi-entity group. Expenses and payments stay on account paths

Pleo API + MCP

  1. Ask a company admin to enable Pleo MCP access under Settings, General, Pleo AI for each entity before connecting. It is off by default
  2. Name the entity in every request when working outside the default one. Each MCP request targets one entity and the choice doesn't persist
  3. Set the AI client to require approval for Pleo write tools. Pleo leaves confirmation to the client and doesn't enforce it server-side
  4. Send API keys as the Basic auth username with an empty password to external.pleo.io. Legacy tokens for openapi.pleo.io don't work there
  5. Budget every endpoint against one bucket of 600 requests a minute per credential, and on 429 wait for Retry-After or back off from one second
  6. Swap mcp.staging.pleo.io for mcp.pleo.io in the Claude Code command when moving from staging to production. Each needs its own OAuth sign-in

Questions

Which is better for AI agents, Payhawk API + MCP or Pleo API + MCP?

Pleo API + MCP scores 62.9 (B) on agent readiness against Payhawk API + MCP's 57.1 (C), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories.

Do Payhawk API + MCP and Pleo API + MCP need an API key?

Both take an API key or an OAuth sign-in.

Can an agent call Payhawk API + MCP and Pleo API + MCP without installing anything?

Yes. Payhawk API + MCP has a hosted endpoint at https://api.payhawk.com and Pleo API + MCP at https://external.pleo.io.

Other comparisons with Payhawk API + MCP or Pleo API + MCP

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