Discover the Top 15 Most Expensed SaaS Applications

In the world of SaaS, IT is no longer the sole buyer. Employees can purchase SaaS—and do so as easily as entering their credit card number. Today, 6.6% of employees expense software purchases. While that’s a 67% decrease from 2022, it’s still significant and poses problems for an organization. 

Shadow IT—the use of unauthorized or unmanaged SaaS applications—is a source of uncontrolled spend, SaaS sprawl, and security risks. In fact, 60.8% of expensed apps have “Poor” or “Low” security ratings via Netskope’s Cloud Confidence Index™. Expensed apps also result in nearly half a million dollars in costs per year on average per company. This spending makes up only 1% of total SaaS spending but still accounts for 45% of applications.

These applications offer convenience, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness, making them an attractive choice for employees. However, the risks of shadow IT have become a significant concern for organizations. 

Top 15 Most Expensed Apps for 2023

(by transaction volume)

Today, AI increasingly fuels employee app preferences. Last year, for the first time since Zylo started tracking this data, AI apps appeared on the list of most expensed apps. In 2024, ChatGPT landed the #2 spot, a jump from #14 in 2023.

As if managing hidden costs and risks of shadow IT weren’t hard enough, AI adds new complexities. How do you keep tabs on consumption? How do you budget appropriately? How is your data used and stored by the vendor?

Whether a regular old SaaS app or an AI-native app, you need to bring unknown expense purchases to light. While apps differ from company to company, let’s look at the ones that are most often expensed. The list below is based on Zylo’s 2025 SaaS Management Index report.

1. Udemy
2. ChatGPT
3. Canva
4. Kudoboard
5. CliftonStrengths
6. LinkedIn
7. OpenAI API
8. Grammarly
9. Adobe Acrobat
10. Kahoot
11. Coursera
12. LinkedIn Premium
13. Apple iCloud
14. Audible
15. SurveyMonkey

Breaking Down the Top 5 Most Expensed SaaS Apps

Employee software preferences continue to change. The only new app entering the Top 5 is ChatGPT, while CliftonStrengths fell from #3 to #5, allowing Canva and Kudoboard to jump ahead. And then there are apps that completely fell out of the top fifteen: Calendly, Adobe Creative Cloud, and MasterClass.

Here’s a breakdown of the five most expensed apps in 2024.

1. Udemy: A popular online learning platform offering various courses and training materials for individuals and businesses. Users can access thousands of courses in multiple categories, such as business, technology, and personal development. The platform allows learners to acquire new skills or enhance existing ones at their own pace. With more people working remotely or in a hybrid work environment, it’s no wonder online learning has grown in popularity.
2. ChatGPT: A generative AI tool where users interact with an AI bot or agent, entering prompts to create images, text, and/or video via AI. Use cases range from conducting research and content creation to data analysis and coding. As employees seek to become more efficient in their work, we’ll continue to see them expense AI apps. Governance and education will be critical to ensure data protection and proper use of AI tools.
3. Canva: A graphic design platform allowing users to create professional-looking designs for various purposes, such as social media posts, presentations, and marketing materials. The platform offers a range of images, templates, and design elements, making it easy for users to create visually appealing content without prior design experience. Democratizing design, plus the addition of AI features the last few years, has made it easier to scale creative work—especially for those without a design background.
4. Kudoboard: Moving up from last year’s #5 slot, Kudoboard is a tool for creating virtual “boards” to recognize and appreciate colleagues, team members, or employees. Users can add text, images, or videos to their boards, which can then be shared via email or social media. Kudoboards remain a fun and engaging way to celebrate successes, build team morale, and promote a positive work culture.
5. CliftonStrengths: An assessment tool that helps individuals and teams identify their strengths and improve performance. Based on the Gallup organization’s research, the tool provides users with personalized insights into their talents and helps them develop strategies to maximize their potential.

The Rising Popularity of Artificial Intelligence

As we mentioned, AI tools showed up on our most expensed apps list for the first time in 2023. It’s safe to say that they solidified their spot going into 2025. 

Specifically, ChatGPT and OpenAI API are the most popular AI-native apps—those with a core focus and designed specifically with artificial intelligence. But AI-powered features are also increasingly integrated into many of these expensed apps, such as Grammarly and Canva. This trend is not going away.

Our data shows leading indicators that AI apps are poised for growth. We found that in 2024, spending on AI-native applications rose 75%, with the highest spend on OpenAI API, Microsoft 365 Copilot, Glean, Weights & Balances, and ChatGPT.

While helpful for productivity and innovation, the unauthorized use of AI apps can lead to hidden costs and potential security risks for the organization. The unmanaged use of AI tools can lead to hidden costs, such as subscription fees or API usage charges. Additionally, using ChatGPT may introduce security risks, as employees may inadvertently share sensitive information with the tool or expose the company to potential data breaches.

Of the IT leaders we surveyed, nine in ten (89.4%) have concerns about the security risks associated with AI tools. In addition to staying on top of expensed apps (shadow IT), education on proper use of these tools and enforcement of governance policies will be critical for mitigating these risks.

For more data like these, check out our list of 111 unmissable SaaS stats, or download our SaaS Management Index.

What Can You Do About Frequently Expensed SaaS Applications?

At Zylo, we believe effective SaaS Management requires continual discovery, active monitoring, and identification of all new SaaS expense purchases. Check out some ways to create a cloud governance framework and prevent expensed SaaS applications from costing your organization.

Start with Complete and Ongoing Visibility of Your SaaS Stack

To mitigate these risks and better manage your SaaS stack, you must start with SaaS discovery. That means getting visibility into all the applications in your environment.:

• Complete and ongoing visibility of your SaaS stack: You can’t manage what you can’t see – and that includes shadow IT. Companies frequently underestimate the number of SaaS in their environment. For instance, the former Sr. Software Asset Manager at Genesys, Samantha Griffin, shared that they initially thought they had 100 apps in their environment. After going through the discovery process, they uncovered 600 – 500% more.
• Discovery drives visibility into shadow IT: By uncovering hidden SaaS applications, you can better understand your organization’s SaaS environment and identify potential risks. This information can then be used to implement appropriate security measures and control spending.
• Streamline SaaS Management and reduce costs: With a clear view of your SaaS stack, you can identify redundant or underutilized applications and consolidate licenses to save money. Additionally, you can negotiate better deals with vendors by leveraging your consolidated purchasing power.

Practice Freedom within a Framework

Today’s workers increasingly value flexibility. Allowing them to easily discover and select their preferred tools raises awareness of what software is available, increases utilization, and reduces shadow IT. Freedom within a Framework is a popular SaaS governance strategy that puts guardrails in place without hindering employee productivity. It sits between centralized and decentralized governance.

It starts by creating policies to curb rogue software purchases. Often that involves putting restrictions on expense purchases – either setting a dollar threshold for what may be expensed or banning them altogether. The route you choose depends on what makes sense for your business.

While policies get you off to a strong start, the key is in enforcing them. Visibility and education are key to making sure your policies work. 

Offering employees an enterprise software store or application catalog helps them see what apps are available to them. Typically, the apps in your catalog are vetted and standardized software titles. If a tool is not listed, you can then provide guidance on how to properly request new purchases.

Education is also critical to enforcing governance. For instance, employees need to understand why you’ve taken this stance on software purchasing and usage. Help them understand the potential risks and costs associated with unauthorized app usage, and encourage the use of approved tools and platforms. 

By addressing the underlying causes of shadow IT, businesses can ensure better control over their SaaS portfolio and maintain a secure and efficient IT environment.

Create a Software Review and Approval Process

For many organizations, introducing more rigid governance around SaaS acquisition can keep expense spending in check. Your software approval process can be as simple as a quick form submission to request a new application. 

Or, it can be as comprehensive as a software review board, involving a cross-collaborative team to review each new application request (e.g., Procurement, IT, Legal, and Accounting). While a review board may slow down the acquisition process and restrict who can acquire software, many Zylo customers say it effectively reduces shadow IT and expense spending.

Take Action on Unapproved Software

Once you have governance in place, you can begin to eliminate shadow IT. 

Start by identifying which apps you already have an enterprise agreement for. Then, check if licenses are available and migrate the user or users under that contract. Before canceling the other subscription, understand the terms and when you’re able to pull the plug.

If you don’t already have an enterprise agreement, notify end users they’ve purchased outside of policy and request they cancel the subscriptions. Next, direct them to your application catalog to select an already approved tool. If they’re unable to find a tool they need, provide direction on how to request the purchase of a new tool if that fits their needs better. 

At this point, you’ve done all this hard work, the last thing you want is for shadow IT to creep back into your environment. Make sure you have proper monitoring in place so you’re alerted when a new app or payment comes in that is against your policies. Then you can take quick action, whether asking to cancel the subscription or not reimbursing them on future payments.

Reduce the Risks of Shadow IT Today

The rise of shadow IT and the increasing use of expensed SaaS applications highlight the need for organizations to gain a comprehensive understanding of their SaaS landscape. Your organization can better manage its SaaS stack, control spending, and improve overall security by addressing the hidden costs and risks associated with these applications. You can start achieving these goals by following the steps outlined in this article.

Do you know your organization’s most expensed SaaS applications? Employees expensing SaaS leads to shadow IT. Luckily, Zylo’s AI- and Machine Learning-powered Discovery Engine is unmatched at finding 100% of your SaaS — even those expensed apps hiding in the shadows. Schedule a demo and see how Zylo can go to work for you!