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APIs · head to head

Backbase vs Increase

Backbase logo

Backbase

APIs

Digital and AI-native engagement banking platform for customer-facing banking experiences

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Increase logo

Increase

APIs

Direct banking API for ACH, wires, real-time payments, accounts and cards

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Backbase pricing scales with assets under management and AI API calls, meaning cost grows as the bank itself grows and adopts more AI features, which is a less predictable cost curve than a flat per-seat model.; Increase the published per transaction rates exclude a monthly platform fee that Increase states varies by use case, so the transparent price page cannot produce a total cost and the material part of the deal is still negotiated privately.
  • They diverge on capability: Backbase covers Digital banking front end, Increase covers ACH origination and receipt.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Backbase and Increase actually diverge.

Attributes where Backbase and Increase differ
AttributeBackbaseIncrease
PlatformsWeb, iOS, AndroidAPI, Web

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (APIs).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Backbase

  • Digital banking front end
  • Digital onboarding
  • Customer engagement workflows
  • AI-native banking OS positioning
  • Core-agnostic integration
  • Small business banking modules

Only in Increase

  • ACH origination and receipt
  • Domestic wires
  • Real-time payments
  • Bank accounts
  • Cards
  • Cheques
  • Sandbox and simulations
  • Audit and reconciliation data

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Backbase

  • An established bank wanting to modernise its digital customer experience without replacing its core banking systemnot Increase
  • A credit union wanting purpose-built digital onboarding and servicing workflowsnot Increase
  • A newer bank wanting an engagement layer built for AI-driven interaction from the outsetnot Increase
  • A bank consolidating several separate digital banking front ends into one platform across retail and business bankingnot Increase

Increase

  • A payroll or treasury product that needs to originate same-day ACH and wires under its own control rather than through a payment processornot Backbase
  • A marketplace that must hold seller balances in ledgered accounts with real account and routing numbersnot Backbase
  • A fintech that wants FedNow and RTP payouts so recipients are paid outside banking hoursnot Backbase
  • An engineering team that needs the underlying return codes and settlement timing visible in order to build correct reconciliation and retry logicnot Backbase

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Backbase

  • Pricing scales with assets under management and AI API calls, meaning cost grows as the bank itself grows and adopts more AI features, which is a less predictable cost curve than a flat per-seat model.
  • It sits above, not instead of, a core banking system, so adopting it does not reduce a bank's overall vendor count or technology complexity; it adds a specialised layer.
  • As with any customer-facing banking platform, an outage or performance issue directly affects the bank's customers, so the operational stakes of vendor reliability are high.
  • Implementation for a large bank spans multiple modules and integration points, and realistic timelines run well beyond a simple software rollout.
  • Pricing opacity means a bank cannot benchmark Backbase against competing engagement banking platforms without engaging each vendor's own sales process separately.

Increase

  • The published per transaction rates exclude a monthly platform fee that Increase states varies by use case, so the transparent price page cannot produce a total cost and the material part of the deal is still negotiated privately.
  • Free allowances are deliberately small at ten account numbers and five physical cards, so any programme issuing accounts or cards at volume moves to quoted pricing almost immediately.
  • Banking is provided through partner banks, so programme approval, compliance obligations and the ability to launch at all depend on a bank relationship you do not control, and post-Synapse bank risk appetite has tightened considerably.
  • The API deliberately exposes payment rail mechanics rather than smoothing them, which is correct engineering but means a team without payments expertise will build reconciliation and return handling wrongly and only discover it when funds go astray.
  • Coverage is United States only, so a company with international payout needs runs a second provider and reconciles two ledgers, and the single API argument disappears at the first cross border customer.

Pricing, plan by plan

Backbase

On request
  • Backbase$undefined/year
    • Pricing scales with users, modules, assets under management and AI API calls
    • Custom quote required, not published

Increase

On request
  • Increase Platform$undefined/month
    • Monthly fee quoted by use case and not published
    • Next-day ACH origination listed at 0.50 US dollars per transaction
    • Same-day ACH origination listed at 2.00 per transaction

Which should you pick?

Choose Backbase if

  • You need digital banking front end.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want digital onboarding.
Backbase review

Choose Increase if

  • You need ach origination and receipt.
  • You work on API, Web.
  • You also want domestic wires.
Increase review

Questions people ask

Is Backbase or Increase better?
Neither clearly leads. Backbase starts at On request and Increase at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Backbase or Increase?
Backbase starts at On request and Increase at On request.
Does Backbase or Increase run on more platforms?
Backbase runs on Web, iOS, Android. Increase runs on API, Web.
What is Backbase best used for?
Backbase is most often used for an established bank wanting to modernise its digital customer experience without replacing its core banking system, a credit union wanting purpose-built digital onboarding and servicing workflows, a newer bank wanting an engagement layer built for ai-driven interaction from the outset, a bank consolidating several separate digital banking front ends into one platform across retail and business banking. Of those, an established bank wanting to modernise its digital customer experience without replacing its core banking system and a credit union wanting purpose-built digital onboarding and servicing workflows are not what Increase is typically brought in for.
What can Backbase do that Increase cannot?
Backbase covers Digital banking front end, Digital onboarding, Customer engagement workflows, AI-native banking OS positioning. Increase covers ACH origination and receipt, Domestic wires, Real-time payments, Bank accounts.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Backbase: Does Backbase replace our core banking system?

No, it is a customer engagement layer that sits above and integrates with an existing core banking system.

Increase: Does Increase publish its pricing?

Partly. Per transaction fees for ACH, wires, RTP, FedNow and cards are listed publicly. The monthly platform fee is not, and it is described only as varying by use case.

Backbase: How does pricing work?

It scales with factors including number of users, modules implemented, assets under management and AI API calls; exact numbers require a quote.

Increase: Who holds the deposits?

Partner banks, not Increase itself. That relationship determines your programme approval, your compliance obligations and your risk if the bank changes appetite.

Backbase: Is it suited to business as well as retail banking?

Yes, it includes modules specifically for small business banking engagement alongside retail.

Increase: Is it international?

No. Increase covers United States rails only, so cross border payouts require a second provider.

Increase: How is it different from a middleware BaaS platform?

It exposes the rails rather than abstracting them, showing real return codes and settlement timing. That suits teams who understand payments and punishes teams who do not.

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