APIs · head to head
Basis Theory vs Thredd
Basis Theory
APIs
Developer tokenisation platform that holds card and sensitive data inside a PCI Level 1 environment you do not operate
- From
- $995/month
- Rated
- -
Thredd
APIs
Issuer processing platform for fintechs and digital banks, formerly Global Processing Services
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Each has a real cost: Basis Theory the Starter plan is 995 US dollars a month before any volume, which is a real floor for an early stage company and puts the product out of reach of teams tokenising a few thousand records.; Thredd pricing is entirely unpublished, so cost comparison against competing processors requires a sales process.
- They diverge on capability: Basis Theory covers Tokenisation API, Thredd covers Issuer processing.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Basis Theory and Thredd actually diverge.
| Attribute | Basis Theory | Thredd |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | $995/month | On request |
| Pricing model | Per month by token volume | quote |
| Platforms | Web, iOS, Android, Linux | Web, API |
Identical on both: 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 Basis Theory
- Tokenisation API
- Hosted elements
- Outbound proxy
- PCI attestation of compliance
- Processor portability
- Reactors
- Access controls and audit
- PII and PHI options
Only in Thredd
- Issuer processing
- Multi-country reach
- Scheme certification
- Programme support across verticals
- High platform availability
- Global office footprint
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Basis Theory
- A payments company that wants card on file without bringing its own infrastructure into PCI scope and paying for the assessment that followsnot Thredd
- A merchant locked into a processor by that processor vault that wants to hold its own tokens and route to more than one acquirernot Thredd
- A fintech collecting bank account and identity data that needs it isolated from its application database before an enterprise security reviewnot Thredd
- A team that needs to send stored card data to a third party for a one-off integration without that data traversing its own serversnot Thredd
Thredd
- A digital bank or fintech needing issuer processing across many countries under one contractnot Basis Theory
- A BNPL, lending or crypto product needing certified card processing behind its own brandnot Basis Theory
- A company that finds outdated Global Processing Services (GPS) material and needs to confirm it is now Threddnot Basis Theory
- An embedded finance platform wanting a processor already integrated with core banking systems such as Mambunot Basis Theory
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Basis Theory
- The Starter plan is 995 US dollars a month before any volume, which is a real floor for an early stage company and puts the product out of reach of teams tokenising a few thousand records.
- Starter is limited to the US region, so a company with European data residency requirements is pushed into a quoted Scale or Enterprise agreement immediately.
- Log retention on Starter is 24 hours, which is well below what most security teams expect for a system holding cardholder data and forces an upgrade for reasons unrelated to volume.
- Migrating away means moving card data out of the vault, which requires processor and assessor involvement and is slow, so the portability argument that attracts buyers cuts against them at exit.
- An attestation of compliance covers the vendor environment, not your assessment; your assessor still decides what is in scope, and buyers occasionally discover their integration pattern pulled systems back into scope anyway.
Thredd
- Pricing is entirely unpublished, so cost comparison against competing processors requires a sales process.
- The 2023 rebrand from GPS to Thredd means research under either name alone can miss relevant material, and partner or press references before 2023 will still say GPS.
- Issuer processing does not include the banking licence itself, so a fintech still needs a separate BIN sponsor or bank partner, adding a second relationship to manage.
- As shared infrastructure behind many fintech brands, an outage or processing delay at Thredd becomes a simultaneous incident for every programme running on it, with limited visibility for any single customer into root cause.
- Its verticals span crypto, BNPL and remittance broadly, so depth of specialist support in any one vertical may be thinner than a processor focused narrowly on that niche.
Pricing, plan by plan
Basis Theory
$995/month- Starter$995/month
- 20,000 tokens included
- Production PCI Level 1 environment
- US region only
- Scale$undefined/month
- Quoted
- Higher token volumes
- Additional regions
- Enterprise$undefined/month
- Quoted
- Additional compliance options for PII and PHI
- Responses for 95 percent of PCI SAQ D
Thredd
On request- Thredd$undefined/year
- Volume and programme-based pricing, not published
- Custom quote required via sales
Which should you pick?
Choose Basis Theory if
- You need tokenisation api.
- You work on Web, iOS, Android, Linux.
- You also want hosted elements.
Choose Thredd if
- You need issuer processing.
- You work on Web, API.
- You also want multi-country reach.
Questions people ask
- Is Basis Theory or Thredd better?
- Neither clearly leads. Basis Theory starts at $995/month and Thredd at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Basis Theory or Thredd?
- Basis Theory starts at $995/month and Thredd at On request.
- Does Basis Theory or Thredd run on more platforms?
- Basis Theory runs on Web, iOS, Android, Linux. Thredd runs on Web, API.
- What is Basis Theory best used for?
- Basis Theory is most often used for a payments company that wants card on file without bringing its own infrastructure into pci scope and paying for the assessment that follows, a merchant locked into a processor by that processor vault that wants to hold its own tokens and route to more than one acquirer, a fintech collecting bank account and identity data that needs it isolated from its application database before an enterprise security review, a team that needs to send stored card data to a third party for a one-off integration without that data traversing its own servers. Of those, a payments company that wants card on file without bringing its own infrastructure into pci scope and paying for the assessment that follows and a merchant locked into a processor by that processor vault that wants to hold its own tokens and route to more than one acquirer are not what Thredd is typically brought in for.
- What can Basis Theory do that Thredd cannot?
- Basis Theory covers Tokenisation API, Hosted elements, Outbound proxy, PCI attestation of compliance. Thredd covers Issuer processing, Multi-country reach, Scheme certification, Programme support across verticals.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Basis Theory: Does this make us PCI compliant?
It removes cardholder data from your systems and gives you an AOC plus documented responses for most of a SAQ D. Your assessor still determines your scope, and a careless integration can pull systems back in.
Thredd: Is Thredd the same company as Global Processing Services?
Yes, GPS rebranded as Thredd in 2023; it is the same company and platform.
Basis Theory: What does it cost to start?
995 US dollars a month on Starter, including 20,000 tokens, a production PCI Level 1 environment and US hosting. Higher tiers are quoted.
Thredd: Does it hold the banking licence for programmes it processes?
No, Thredd is the issuer processor; a separate bank or BIN sponsor holds the actual issuing licence.
Basis Theory: Can we switch payment processors without re-collecting cards?
Yes, that is the main non-compliance reason to buy it. You hold the tokens and detokenise into whichever processor you route to.
Thredd: Is pricing published?
No, it requires a sales conversation.
Basis Theory: Is data stored outside the United States?
Not on Starter, which is US only. Other regions require a Scale or Enterprise agreement.
Related pages
More on Basis Theory
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