Overview

Cleo Pay is accounts-payable software for small and mid-sized businesses, with a particular fit for hospitality and service operators handling recurring vendor bills. Its strongest case is a single workflow from invoice capture through approval and ACH payment, tied to QuickBooks Online; the trade-off is a monthly payment quota on every outbound-payment plan.

Businesses can invite vendors to onboard and receive payment through a web link, without an app download or vendor account fee. A REST API also exposes payables, contacts, bank accounts, and payments.

Key features

Invoice capture and accounting

Invoices can be forwarded by email or uploaded as photos. AI extracts vendor, amount, and line-item details, then maps expenses to QuickBooks accounts. The two-way QuickBooks Online connection syncs vendor records, invoices, bills, payments, and chart-of-accounts data. That makes Cleo Pay a more natural fit for businesses already operating in QuickBooks Online than for teams seeking a broad choice of accounting integrations.

Vendor onboarding and approvals

Vendors receive an invitation link to submit W-9 information and connect a bank account through Plaid for ACH payments. Cleo Pay says it verifies TINs; vendors can complete the process without installing an app or paying account fees. Approval chains can be set by amount, GL code, or vendor, with approvals available by email or mobile. Those rules can accommodate different spending controls, though the plan seat limits matter when several staff members need access.

Payments and safeguards

Businesses can send ACH payments, schedule them for later, and track each transfer as scheduled, processing, paid, or error. The company says Plaid connections use OAuth, bank credentials do not touch Cleo Pay servers, and sensitive data is encrypted in transit and at rest. Audit trails add a record to the payment workflow. Support is by email, with a personalized 15-minute onboarding call for setup help and payment issues.

Pricing

The free Get Paid plan is for vendors and contractors: it has one user seat and unlimited incoming payments, but includes no outbound payments. It is useful for receiving payments, not for a business that needs to pay its own vendors.

Basic costs $99.00 USD per month, billed $99/mo. It includes one seat and 15 payments per month, then charges $3 per additional payment. This is the entry point for independent business operators, but the single seat and relatively small allowance make it a narrow fit for teams or higher-volume payables.

Venues & Promoters Plus costs $199.00 USD per month, billed $199/mo. Its 50 monthly payments, $2.50 additional-payment charge, and three seats suit venues and promotion companies with moderate volume and more than one approver. Pro costs $299.00 USD per month, billed $299/mo, and includes 100 payments, ten seats, $2 per additional payment, and dedicated support. It is the more appropriate tier for larger teams or heavier payment runs; its higher monthly commitment only makes sense if those added seats and allowance are useful.

All paid plans charge for payments above their allowance, so expected monthly volume should guide the choice as much as the seat count.

Platforms

Cleo Pay supports Android, iOS, web, and API access. Scheduled payments, tax-form support, contractor self-service, and accounting integrations are included in its capabilities.

Who it's for

Cleo Pay is best suited to restaurants, hotels, event production companies, and other service businesses that want invoice handling, vendor onboarding, approvals, and ACH payment tracking connected to QuickBooks Online. It is less suitable for businesses needing outbound payments on a free plan, substantially more than 100 payments per month without overage charges, or a non-QuickBooks accounting connection.

Pros and cons

Pros: Email and photo invoice intake feed AI extraction and QuickBooks account mapping, reducing the gap between receipt and coding.
Pros: Vendor onboarding combines W-9 collection, TIN verification, and Plaid bank connection, while vendors can use a link without app installation or fees.
Pros: Approval rules can be based on amount, GL code, or vendor, and approvers can respond by email or mobile.
Cons: The free plan cannot send outbound payments, so businesses must move to a paid tier to pay vendors.
Cons: Paid plans cap monthly payments and charge per extra payment, adding cost uncertainty for variable or high-volume months.
Cons: Basic has one seat, and even Pro tops out at ten, which may constrain larger approval teams.

Alternatives

For contractor-payment and payroll needs beyond Cleo Pay's accounts-payable focus, compare the Contractor Payment Software category.

Zoho Payroll is worth considering when payroll is the priority: its free plan covers up to 10 employees with basic payroll and email support, and it also has a paid annual-billing option.

PayWow may suit teams paying contractors by check: its free Basic plan allows unlimited contractors but has limited reports, while its Pro plan is $9.00 USD per month.

BuildFair is an alternative for construction project participants; its free Owner plan gives invited owners project access.

Payoneer Payer is another option for businesses with higher payment volumes, with custom pricing and fees that vary by method and location.

Petl Pay is an alternative in the contractor-payment space.

OnPay is a payroll alternative with a $49.00 USD per month base fee plus $6 per worker per month; it includes unlimited pay runs and schedules, W-2s, 1099s, and year-end filings.

Plane Contractor Management is worth considering for contractor and employee administration, with a free HRIS plan that includes hiring and onboarding tasks, a directory, custom reports, holidays, and time tracking.

IRIS Practice Engine is another paid alternative.

Verdict

Choose Cleo Pay if your hospitality or service business runs vendor payables through QuickBooks Online and needs invoice capture, configurable approvals, and scheduled ACH in one workflow. Its vendor self-service and accounting sync are compelling; look elsewhere if you need free outbound payments, higher payment volume without per-payment overages, or more seats than Pro provides.

	Cleo Pay	Zoho Payroll
Free plan	Yes	Yes
Free trial		Yes
Paid from	$99/mo	₹1,000/mo
Platforms	Android, api, iOS, Web	Android, iOS, Web
Free plan	Yes	Yes
Payment schedules	scheduled	scheduled
Payout country coverage	single-country	single-country
Tax form support	Yes	Yes
Contractor self-service	Yes	Yes
Accounting integrations	Yes	Yes

Cleo Pay vs Zoho Payroll

Cleo Pay

Zoho Payroll