Certify Reveals Most Common Business Expenses from 2013

The travel and expense management leader’s latest SpendSmart report also highlights business spending trends from Q4 of last year.

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Leading cloud-based travel and expense management software provider Certify announced its 2013 year-end review of business expense trends and the results of its latest business spending report, covering the fourth quarter of 2013.

For 2013, the top vendors in terms of percentage of receipts include Starbucks, Delta Air Lines, Avis and Marriott. Those vendors top-rated in terms of business traveler satisfaction don’t correlate, however: they include Chick-fil-A, Residence Inn, Southwest Airlines and Enterprise. From 2012 to 2013, the top categories as relates to percentage of T&E budgets remained the same: meals took the largest chunk, followed by airfare, miscellaneous (such as groceries and personal items) and hotel.

Top-expensed vendors for Q4 include Starbucks, McDonald’s, Marriott, Hampton Inn, Delta, United, National and Avis. The biggest gainers for expensed items were Dunkin’ Donuts, which moved up from sixth-most expensed restaurant to fifth-most expensed restaurants from Q3 to Q4; US Airways, which moved from fourth to third-most expensed airline and American Airlines which moved from fifth to fourth-most expensed airline in the last quarter. Southwest Airlines dropped from third place in Q3 to fifth place in Q4.

The quarterly Certify SpendSmart™ Report analyzes vendors, expense amounts and satisfaction rating data on business expenses collected directly from end users. Certify SpendSmart reports on millions of receipts and expenses, delivering valuable insights to Certify clients and the business travel and expense industry at large. Certify has been tracking corporate travel and expense data since 2009 and uniquely offers integrated travel booking, travel and expense management and reimbursement in one system.

“Our results from 2013 indicate that employees and companies continually favor price-competitive products and services that are easily found in major cities,” says Robert Neveu, CEO of Certify. “This is why vendors with broad national coverage such as Starbucks, McDonald’s, Delta, United and Marriott continually rise to the top of receipts. The SpendSmart Report is also a valuable report for companies to plan ahead and determine which vendors offer the best value and the best prices.”


2013 Most Expensed Vendors
For the full year of 2013, these are the top vendors by major spending category:
Hotels
Most-Expensed: Marriott, average receipt, $225.43
Top Rated: Residence Inn
*2012 Most-Expensed Hotel was Hilton, averaging $270.55

Restaurants
Most-Expensed: Starbucks, average receipt, $9.58
Top Rated: Chick-fil-A
*2012 Most-Expensed Restaurant was Starbucks, averaging $7.54

Car Rentals
Most-Expensed: Avis, average receipt, $171.22
Top Rated: Enterprise
*2012 Most-Expensed Rental Company was National, averaging $182.71


Airlines
Most-Expensed: Delta, average receipt, $390.72
Top Rated Airline: Southwest
*2012 Most-Expensed Airline was Delta, averaging $474.25


Percentage of T&E Budget Spent by Category in 2013
Meals 22.5%
Airfare 15.71%
Misc. 14.92%
Hotel 14.9%
Fuel 12.33%
Cell Phone 5.63%
Car Rental 5.24%
Taxi 3.16%
Shipping 2.36%
Parking 1.63%

To compare budget percentages for 2012, click here.

Q4 Highlights:

Most-Expensed Restaurants:
Starbucks: 4.98% of expenses, averaging $10.26 per receipt
McDonalds’s: 2.97%, averaging $7.57
Subway: 1.73%, averaging $14.65
Panera Bread: 1.68%, averaging $37.00
Dunkin’ Donuts: 1.27%, averaging $10.84 [moved up 1 spot from Q3]


Most Expensed Restaurants by Meal

• Breakfast: Starbucks, 13.91%
• Lunch: McDonalds, 3.03%
• Dinner: McDonalds, 1.55%


Top Rated Restaurants

Chick-Fil-A 4.3
Chipotle 4.3
Panera Bread 4.1
Jimmy John’s 4.1
Dunkin Donuts 4.1


Most-Expensed Hotels

Marriott: 9.27% of expenses, averaging $225.96
Hampton Inn: 7.45%, averaging $195.88
Courtyard by Marriott: 6.28%, averaging $170.52
Hilton: 4.68%, averaging $189.71
Holiday Inn: 4.26%, averaging $148.42


Top Rated Hotels

Residence Inn 4.5 [moved up 1 spot from Q3]
Westin Hotel 4.3
Marriott 4.2
Courtyard By Marriott 4.1
Embassy Suites 4.1


Most Expensed Airlines

Delta: 19.77% of expenses, averaging $408.14
United: 14.08%, averaging $419.29
US Airways: 9.7%, averaging $291.78 [moved up 1 spot from Q3]
American: 9.53%, averaging $352.20 [moved up 1 spot from Q3]
Southwest: 8.92%, averaging $297.94


Top Rated Airlines

Southwest 4.2
Delta 4.0
Alaska Airline 3.8
American Airlines 3.7
US Airways 3.7
[United no longer in top 5]


Most Expensed Car-Rental Services

National: 18.2%, averaging $166.67
Avis: 16.18% of expenses, averaging $173.83
Hertz: 14.72%, averaging $226.80
Enterprise: 12.59%, averaging $182.86
Budget: 4.14%, averaging $186.09


Top Rated Car-Rental Services

Avis 4.2
National 4.1
Enterprise 4.0
Hertz 3.8
Budget Car Rental 3.6