Corporate Cards vs P-Cards: Which is Best for Your Business?

P-Cards (purchase cards or procurement cards) and corporate cards serve different business functions. 

P-Cards are primarily used for procurement, enabling employees to make small, approved purchases directly from suppliers, bypassing traditional procurement processes. 

Corporate cards, on the other hand, are mainly for travel and entertainment expenses, allowing employees to charge business-related expenses like flights, hotels, or meals.

The key difference is that P-Cards simplify vendor purchasing while corporate cards focus on managing travel and day-to-day employee expenses.

Now that we understand the basics, let’s dive deeper into their differences in terms of controls, reporting, and expense management.

Overview: P-Card vs Corporate Card

Here is an overview of the differences between P-Cards and corporate cards.

What is a P-Card?

A P-Card (purchase card) is a company-issued card designed to streamline the procurement process for approved goods and services. It allows employees to make small purchases without going through a lengthy purchase order process, which is particularly useful when operational purchases need to be made quickly.

For example, a project manager needs to buy building materials or equipment on short notice to keep the project on schedule. Instead of going through a lengthy approval process, they can use a P-Card to purchase these materials directly from approved vendors.

How a P-Card Works

1. Approvals: P-Cards are pre-approved for specific departments or employees, with spending tied to pre-determined vendors or categories. This ensures that employees make purchases within the approved parameters without needing additional purchase orders each time.
2. Controls: The organization sets spending controls, including transaction and monthly limits, restricted vendors, and purchase categories. These limits are tailored to the department's needs and employee's role, minimizing the risk of overspending.
3. Recording and reconciling: Transactions are logged in real time, and data is automatically captured in procurement or accounting systems. At month-end, the data is matched with supplier invoices for reconciliation, reducing the need for manual intervention.

What is a Corporate Card?

A corporate card is a card issued to employees for business-related expenses, primarily travel and entertainment. These cards streamline the payment process, enabling employees to make necessary purchases without using personal funds and seeking reimbursement later.

Additionally, these cards offer rewards, such as points or cashback, based on spending, particularly in travel and dining categories. They also include travel-related perks, such as insurance, access to airport lounges, and travel booking discounts.

How Corporate Cards Work

• Approvals: Employees initiate a travel or expense request by submitting a form on paper or through an online system. This request includes details like the purpose of the trip, travel dates, destination, and estimated expenses (such as flights, hotels, and meals). The request is sent to the manager for initial approval, which may require further review by the finance or travel department to ensure compliance with company policies and budgetary constraints.
• Controls: Companies set spending limits on corporate cards to control expenses. These limits can be per transaction, monthly, or based on factors like the employee's position, budget, and previous spending patterns.
• Recording and reconciling: Employees must submit expense reports detailing their transactions, often using integrated expense management software to simplify this process. Corporate cards provide transaction data, which helps streamline reconciliation by matching charges with receipts.

P-Card vs Corporate Card: Which is Suitable For You?

Here's a table outlining the pros and cons of P-Cards vs corporate cards and their suitability.

Finding the Right Card for Corporate Spending

P-Cards and corporate cards are valuable solutions for managing corporate expenses — streamlining procurement and facilitating employee purchases.

P-Cards simplify small transactions, speeding up purchasing and improving spending visibility, while corporate cards are ideal for managing travel and entertainment expenses, offering convenience and rewards.

However, both options have limitations. 

P-Cards restrict vendor usage but lead to overspending without adequate controls; think of duplicate payments to a vendor. Similarly, corporate cards require extensive post-purchase reporting, which results in increased administrative burden and misuse.

Pluto Card Reimagines Corporate Spending 

Pluto card combines the best aspects of both P-Cards and corporate cards while addressing their shortcomings. 

With Pluto, you get unlimited virtual and physical cards tailored to each team member’s specific spending needs. Budgets and policies can be set for every card, ensuring granular control over how, where, and when funds are spent. 

Advanced controls enable you to dictate spending categories, freeze cards in the absence of receipts, and monitor transactions in real time through a centralized dashboard. 

Pluto further enhances expense reporting efficiency. Employees can capture receipts instantly through OCR technology, allocating multiple expenses under different GL categories in just a few clicks. This accurate data capture integrates directly into accounting platforms, ensuring up-to-date financial records.

Moreover, with upto  2% cashback on your transactions,  Pluto not only helps manage corporate spending but also adds financial value with each purchase.

Overall, Pluto doesn’t just improve upon the existing P-Card and corporate card systems—it redefines them. 

With real-time visibility, advanced reporting, and customizable controls, Pluto allows businesses to efficiently manage their expenses while maintaining full control and visibility.

For instance, DeveEnergy, previously using personal cards and complex tools like Zoho Expenses and Concur, transformed their expense management with Pluto, gaining full oversight, automated processes, and smoother accounting integration.

Read the full case study here to see how Pluto improved DeveEnergy’s expense management.