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APIs · head to head

Column vs Tink

Column logo

Column

APIs

A nationally chartered US bank that ships its own API, with no middleware in between

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Tink logo

Tink

APIs

European open banking platform for account data and payment initiation

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Column column publishes no pricing whatsoever, so there is no way to model cost before a sales process, and terms are negotiated per programme which favours larger, more sophisticated buyers.; Tink visa owns Tink, and pay-by-bank exists to move payments off card rails, so the roadmap and pricing of the product you are using to reduce interchange are set by the company that earns the interchange.
  • They diverge on capability: Column covers National bank charter, Tink covers Account data access.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Column and Tink actually diverge.

Attributes where Column and Tink differ
AttributeColumnTink
PlatformsWeb, APIAPI, 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 Column

  • National bank charter
  • Direct Federal Reserve access
  • Ledger and accounts
  • International wires
  • Real-time payments
  • Lending
  • Cheque handling
  • Correspondent banking

Only in Tink

  • Account data access
  • Payment initiation
  • EEA passporting
  • Categorisation
  • Account verification
  • Risk and affordability signals
  • Variable recurring payments support
  • Consent management

What people use each for

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

Column

  • A fintech that has been burned by a middleware provider failing and wants its deposits held by the same entity that provides the APInot Tink
  • A payments company needing direct Fedwire and Swift access rather than routing through a correspondent it cannot seenot Tink
  • A lender that wants origination, funding and deposit accounts from one chartered institution instead of three counterpartiesnot Tink
  • A payroll or treasury platform where same-day settlement certainty matters more than fast onboardingnot Tink

Tink

  • A European lender that needs verified income and expense data from a borrower bank account across several EEA markets under one licencenot Column
  • A merchant offering pay-by-bank at checkout to avoid card acceptance costs on high value basketsnot Column
  • A fintech that does not hold its own PSD2 licence and needs to operate under an authorised provider passported across the EEAnot Column
  • A bank building an account aggregation view of a customer external accounts without negotiating with each institution individuallynot Column

Where each one falls short

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

Column

  • Column publishes no pricing whatsoever, so there is no way to model cost before a sales process, and terms are negotiated per programme which favours larger, more sophisticated buyers.
  • Onboarding is bank diligence rather than vendor sign-up, and programmes routinely spend several months on compliance review, flow of funds documentation and volume forecasting before the first live transaction.
  • Column selects its customers and declines many, so the charter advantage is only available to programmes it considers acceptable risk, which excludes most early-stage teams.
  • It is United States only, so any programme with international account or local payment needs must add a second banking relationship and reconcile across both.
  • Being the bank means Column also carries the bank's regulatory constraints, so product changes that affect risk, such as new customer segments or higher-risk flows, need approval rather than a configuration change.

Tink

  • Visa owns Tink, and pay-by-bank exists to move payments off card rails, so the roadmap and pricing of the product you are using to reduce interchange are set by the company that earns the interchange.
  • Coverage is Europe only, so a product serving both European and United States users runs a second aggregator with a different data model and a separate contract.
  • PSD2 connection quality varies sharply by bank, and headline connection counts hide wide differences in success rate, consent lifetime and re-authentication frequency that determine what users actually experience.
  • Consent under PSD2 expires and requires periodic re-authentication, so any product depending on continuous data access has a recurring user friction it cannot design away, and drop-off at re-consent is a real product problem.
  • Pricing is quoted with data access and payment initiation priced separately, and there is no published rate card, so small merchants cannot compare pay-by-bank economics against card acceptance without a sales process.

Pricing, plan by plan

Column

On request
  • Column Bank Platform$undefined/year
    • Deposit accounts and ledger
    • ACH, wire, RTP and cheque rails
    • International wires over Swift

Tink

On request
  • Tink Platform$undefined/year
    • Priced by product, market and volume
    • Data access and payment initiation priced separately
    • Annual commitments typical for enterprise agreements

Which should you pick?

Choose Column if

  • You need national bank charter.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want direct federal reserve access.
Column review

Choose Tink if

  • You need account data access.
  • You work on API, Web.
  • You also want payment initiation.
Tink review

Questions people ask

Is Column or Tink better?
Neither clearly leads. Column starts at On request and Tink at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Column or Tink?
Column starts at On request and Tink at On request.
Does Column or Tink run on more platforms?
Column runs on Web, API. Tink runs on API, Web.
What is Column best used for?
Column is most often used for a fintech that has been burned by a middleware provider failing and wants its deposits held by the same entity that provides the api, a payments company needing direct fedwire and swift access rather than routing through a correspondent it cannot see, a lender that wants origination, funding and deposit accounts from one chartered institution instead of three counterparties, a payroll or treasury platform where same-day settlement certainty matters more than fast onboarding. Of those, a fintech that has been burned by a middleware provider failing and wants its deposits held by the same entity that provides the api and a payments company needing direct fedwire and swift access rather than routing through a correspondent it cannot see are not what Tink is typically brought in for.
What can Column do that Tink cannot?
Column covers National bank charter, Direct Federal Reserve access, Ledger and accounts, International wires. Tink covers Account data access, Payment initiation, EEA passporting, Categorisation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Column: Is Column actually a bank?

Yes. It is a nationally chartered, FDIC-insured bank, which is why there is no sponsor bank behind it.

Tink: Who owns Tink?

Visa, since 2022. That is directly relevant if you are adopting pay-by-bank specifically to reduce card costs.

Column: How is that different from Synctera or Unit?

Those are technology providers that connect you to a separate sponsor bank. With Column the API provider and the depository institution are the same company.

Tink: Do I need my own PSD2 licence?

No. Tink holds AIS and PIS licences from the Swedish FSA passported across the EEA, and customers can operate as its agent rather than obtaining their own authorisation.

Column: What does Column cost?

Nothing is published. Pricing is negotiated per programme.

Tink: Does Tink cover the United States?

No. It is a European platform. US coverage requires a separate provider.

Column: How long does onboarding take?

Expect months. This is bank-grade diligence on your compliance programme, not a vendor sign-up.

Tink: How reliable are the bank connections?

It varies by institution far more than the headline count of roughly 6,000 connections suggests. Ask for per market and per bank success rates and consent lifetimes for the banks your users actually hold accounts with.

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