Certify SpendSmart™ Report Q1 2013

Back to Current SpendSmart Report >> SpendSmart Report Q1, 2013

Certify SpendSmart™ Report

How business travelers are spending the corporate dime while on the road

The Certify SpendSmart™ quarterly report analyzes the most recent business expense transactions and vendor ratings data to provide valuable insights to Certify clients and the corporate T&E industry at large.

First Quarter, 2013

January 1, 2013 - March 31, 2013

Restaurant Summary

The restaurant summary is a snapshot of all meal expenses including breakfast, lunch and dinner. This data indicates which vendor is most frequently expensed, the average expense amount and the average satisfaction rating.

Most Expensed Restaurants

Vendor Name Expense Percentage* Average Amount
Starbucks 5.05% $9.03
McDonald's 2.85% $8.03
Subway 1.64% $14.01
Panera Bread 1.43% $35.99
HMS Host 1.33% $14.62
Dunkin' Donuts 1.04% $10.48
Chili's 0.74% $30.27
Wendy's 0.72% $9.15
Chick-Fil-A 0.71% $22.42
Burger King 0.70% $10.56
Miscellaneous* 83.79% NA
*Expense Percentage represents the number of expenses divided by the total number of expenses for the expense type.
*Miscellaneous is compiled of all remaining restaurants expensed with a total expensed percentage less than 0.69%.

Top Rated Restaurants

Vendor Name Average Rating*
Chick-Fil-A 4.4
Panera Bread 4.2
Buffalo Wild Wings 4.2
Jimmy John's 4.1
Starbucks 4.0
Dunkin' Donuts 4.0
Jason's Deli 4.0
Outback Steakhouse 3.9
Cracker Barrel 3.9
Pizza Hut 3.9
*Average Rating represents the average 1 through 5 star rating for all expenses for each vendor, with 5 stars being the highest rating and 1 being the lowest.

Most Expensed Restaurant by Meal

Breakfast Starbucks 14.14%
Lunch Subway 3.11%
Dinner McDonald's 1.74%

Lodging Summary

The lodging summary is a snapshot of all lodging expenses. This data indicates which vendor is most frequently expensed, the average amount per expense and the average satisfaction rating.

Most Expensed Hotel

Vendor Name Expense Percentage* Average Amount
Marriott 8.95% $238.29
Hampton Inn 6.4% $198.70
Courtyard by Marriott 6.2% $153.80
Holiday Inn 4.53% $149.99
Hilton 4.47% $177.80
Hilton Garden Inn 3.37% $165.27
DoubleTree 3.08% $168.57
Holiday Inn Express 2.89% $185.10
Hyatt 2.44% $174.19
Sheraton 1.78% $198.10
Miscellaneous* 55.89% NA
*Expense Percentage represents the number of expenses divided by the total number of expenses within the expense type.
*Miscellaneous is compiled of all remaining lodging vendors expensed with a total expensed percentage less than 1.70%.
Vendor Name Average Rating*
Westin Hotels 4.4
Residence Inn 4.3
Marriott 4.2
Hilton Garden Inn 4.2
Hilton 4.1
Hyatt 4.1
Renaissance 4.1
Hampton Inn 4.0
Courtyard by Marriott 4.0
Sheraton 4.0
*Average Rating represents the average 1 through 5 star rating for all expenses for each vendor, with 5 stars being the highest rating and 1 being the lowest.

Rental Car Summary

The rental car summary is a snapshot of all of the rental car expenses. This data indicates which vendor is most frequently expensed, the average amount per expense and the average satisfaction rating.

Most Expensed Rental Car Companies

Vendor Name Expense Percentage* Average Amount
Avis Car Rental 17.40% $170.84
National Car Rental 15.61% $177.86
Hertz 14.24% $243.84
Enterprise Rent-A-Car 9.03% $193.02
Budget Car Rental 3.96% $172.60
Miscellaneous* 39.75% NA
*Expense Percentage represents the number of expenses divided by the total number of expenses within the expense type.
*Miscellaneous is compiled of all remaining rental car vendors expensed with a total expensed percentage less than 4%.

Top Rated Rental Car Companies

Vendor Name Average Rating*
Enterprise Rent-A-Car 4.3
Avis Car Rental 3.9
National Car Rental 3.9
Hertz 3.7
Budget Car Rental 3.7
*Average Rating represents the average 1 through 5 star rating for all expenses for each vendor, with 5 stars being the highest rating and 1 being the lowest.

Airline Summary

The airline summary is a snapshot of all airfare expenses. This data indicates which vendor is most frequently expensed, the average expense amount and the average satisfaction rating.

Most Expensed Airlines

Vendor Name Expense Percentage* Average Amount
Delta 20.83% $373.80
United Airlines 13.02% $452.56
Southwest Airlines 9.04% $289.44
American Airlines 8.99% $355.54
US Airways 8.85% $268.02
Miscellaneous* 39.27% NA
*Expense Percentage represents the number of expenses divided by the total number of expenses within the expense type.
*Miscellaneous is compiled of all remaining air line vendors expensed with a total expensed percentage less than 1%.

Top Rated Airlines

Vendor Name Average Rating*
Southwest Airlines 4.3
Alaska Airlines 4.3
Delta 4.0
United Airlines 3.6
American Airlines 3.6
*Average Rating represents the average 1 through 5 star rating for all expenses for each vendor, with 5 stars being the highest rating and 1 being the lowest.

Regional Highlights

Atlanta
Chick-Fil-A beats McDonald’s as most expensed restaurant in Atlanta with 2.01% of meals compared to McDonald’s 1.85%.
Boston
In Boston, Dunkin' Donuts approaches the popularity of Starbucks with 4.5% of meals, compared to Starbucks at 6.92%. Legal Seafoods takes third place with 3.5% of meals, averaging $67.59 per receipt.
Chicago
Zip Car ranks as #6 rental car provider in Chicago, just after Enterprise, with 4.6% of rentals.
Dallas
Starbucks beats McDonald’s in Dallas by more than double, with 8.98% of meals expenses compared to McDonald’s 3.27%. Starbucks was also rated higher with 4.2 stars compared to McDonald’s 4.0.
Los Angeles
Boingo Wireless claims 3.79% of general expenses in Los Angeles, the second highest vendor among general expenses.
New York
Seamless claims most expensed restaurant in New York with 8.07% of all meals, with average expense amount of $29.27.
Just behind Seamless, Starbucks claims second most expensed vendor for meals and takes the spot for highest rated vendor with a perfect 5 out of 5 stars.
San Francisco
Square Inc. is reported as a vendor so many times in San Francisco that it claims top spot in the general category with 8.85% of general expenses.

About This Report: The Certify SpendSmart™ Report provides a snapshot of the current spend trends of business travelers in North America with all data compiled from actual expense data from submitted expense reports.

For all media inquires please contact Kevin Wolf of TGPR, kevin@tgprllc.com or (650) 327-1641.

Archived SpendSmart™ Reports

  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Fourth Quarter Report, 2018 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Third Quarter Report, 2018 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Second Quarter Report, 2018 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - First Quarter Report, 2018 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Fourth Quarter Report, 2017 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Third Quarter Report, 2017 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Second Quarter Report, 2017 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - First Quarter Report, 2017 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Fourth Quarter Report, 2016 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Third Quarter Report, 2016 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Second Quarter Report, 2016 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - First Quarter Report, 2016 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Fourth Quarter Report, 2015 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Third Quarter Report, 2015 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Second Quarter Report, 2015 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - First Quarter Report, 2015 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Fourth Quarter Report, 2014 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Third Quarter Report, 2014 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Second Quarter Report, 2014 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - First Quarter Report, 2014 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Fourth Quarter Report, 2013 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Third Quarter Report, 2013 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - Second Quarter Report, 2013 View Report
  • Certify SpendSmart™ Report - First Quarter Report, 2013 View Report
see more