# Payhawk API + MCP vs Spendesk API + MCP

> Spendesk API + MCP scores 62.3 (B) on agent readiness against Payhawk API + MCP's 57.1 (C), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Payhawk API + MCP leads on payments & pricing. Both do spend transactions. Category scores, facts, verdicts and agent notes side by side.

- Canonical: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/payhawk-vs-spendesk
- Markdown: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/payhawk-vs-spendesk.md (~2,250 tokens)
- Slim: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/payhawk-vs-spendesk.min.md (~730 tokens, same facts, less prose, for token-sensitive contexts)
- JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/payhawk-vs-spendesk.json (this page as data, same URL with Accept: application/json)
- Site index for agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt (full text: https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms-full.txt)
- API: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json
- Updated: 2026-10-09

Spendesk API + MCP scores 62.3 (B) on agent readiness against Payhawk API + MCP's 57.1 (C), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Payhawk API + MCP leads on payments & pricing. Both do spend transactions.

- Payhawk API + MCP: grade C, 57.1/100, rank #561 of 842. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/payhawk.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/payhawk.json
- Spendesk API + MCP: grade B, 62.3/100, rank #395 of 842. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/spendesk.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/spendesk.json

## 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.

Ahead on:
- Payments & pricing, 13 against 0

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

### Spendesk API + MCP (B)

Good for: A finance team already on Spendesk that wants an assistant to analyse spend, follow invoices and prepare the accounting close, or an ERP sync reading payables and settlements.

Ahead on:
- Schema & documentation, 87 against 71
- Agent ergonomics, 62 against 52
- Security & auth, 86 against 71

Watch for: No public price, free tier or self-serve signup. API access and demo credentials are requested from a Spendesk representative


## Score by category

| Category | Weight | Payhawk API + MCP | Spendesk API + MCP | Edge |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 58 | 55 | Payhawk API + MCP +3 |
| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Schema & documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 71 | 87 | Spendesk API + MCP +16 |
| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 52 | 62 | Spendesk API + MCP +10 |
| Security & auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 71 | 86 | Spendesk API + MCP +15 |
| Payments & pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 13 | 0 | Payhawk API + MCP +13 |
| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |
| Maintenance & community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 53 | 57 | Spendesk API + MCP +4 |
| Transparency & trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 78 | 80 | Spendesk API + MCP +2 |
| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | |
| **Total** | | **57.1 · C** | **62.3 · B** | |

## Facts side by side

| Fact | Payhawk API + MCP | Spendesk API + MCP |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Kind | HTTP API | HTTP API |
| Vendor | Payhawk Limited | Spendesk SAS |
| Hosted endpoint | `https://api.payhawk.com` | `https://public-api.spendesk.com` |
| Transports | HTTP | HTTP |
| Auth | OAuth or key | OAuth or key |
| Pricing | Paid | Paid |
| x402 | no | no |
| Licence | Proprietary service under Payhawk's general terms and conditions | Proprietary service under Spendesk's terms and conditions and a separate Spendesk API agreement |
| Tools exposed | 82 | 62 |
| Read-only variant documented | yes | no |
| llms.txt | yes | yes |
| Last release | 2026-10-08 | 2026-09-29 |
| Terms last updated | 2025-12-09 | couldn't be read |
| Privacy policy last updated | 2026-06-29 | 2025-03-01 |
| Customer content may train models | not found in the text | couldn't be read |
| Terms restrict automated access | not found in the text | couldn't be read |
| Terms restrict benchmarking | not found in the text | couldn't be read |
| Terms or service can change without notice | not found in the text | couldn't be read |
| Arbitration or class-action waiver | not found in the text | couldn't be read |

## 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.

**Spendesk API + MCP.** Scoped credentials, MCP write permissions that are off by default, an action log and published guidance on prompt injection suit delegated finance work. Access needs a paying customer and a request to Spendesk, most write endpoints are experimental, no official SDK was found, and the status page lists three critical incidents between 2 and 29 September 2026.

## 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

### Spendesk API + MCP

1. Request a token at POST /v1/auth/token with HTTP Basic (client ID and secret). It lasts 3,600 seconds, so renew on a 401
2. Stop paging at the last page calculated from `total` and `pageSize` (maximum 30). A page past the end returns 404, not an empty list
3. With an organisation-level token, send `X-Company-Id` on every v1 call or expect a 400
4. The MCP server refuses API keys. Connect with OAuth authorisation code and PKCE, and treat `Tool not found` (-32601) as a missing permission
5. After an unclear write result, read the object again before retrying. Creating a purchase order or supplier twice creates two

## Questions

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

Spendesk API + MCP scores 62.3 (B) on agent readiness against Payhawk API + MCP's 57.1 (C), and leads in 5 of 7 scored categories. Payhawk API + MCP leads on payments & pricing.

### Do Payhawk API + MCP and Spendesk API + MCP need an API key?

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

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

Yes. Payhawk API + MCP has a hosted endpoint at https://api.payhawk.com and Spendesk API + MCP at https://public-api.spendesk.com.


## For agents

- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/payhawk-vs-spendesk.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/payhawk-vs-spendesk.min.md
- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {"a": "payhawk", "b": "spendesk"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare payhawk spendesk`
- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/payhawk.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/spendesk.json

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