Is curl or Trustly better?

Neither clearly leads. curl starts at Free and Trustly at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.

Which is cheaper, curl or Trustly?

curl has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for curl and On request for Trustly.

Does curl or Trustly run on more platforms?

curl runs on Linux, MacOS, Windows, Unix, Mobile. Trustly runs on Web, API.

Can I use curl for free?

Yes. curl has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Trustly starts at On request.

What is curl best used for?

curl is most often used for api development, api gateway, api testing, api documentation. Of those, api development and api gateway are not what Trustly is typically brought in for.

What can curl do that Trustly cannot?

curl covers HTTP/HTTPS, FTP, Multiple protocols, Universal compatibility. Trustly covers Pay by bank checkout, Instant refunds, Verified payouts, Multi-market bank connectivity.

APIs · head to head

curl vs Trustly

curl

APIs

Command-line tool for transferring data using URLs with wide protocol support

From: Free
Rated: -

Full review Website

Trustly

APIs

Pay-by-bank payments network, majority-owned by private equity firm Nordic Capital

From: On request
Rated: -

Full review Website

The short version

Only curl has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
Each has a real cost: curl open-source with no vendor pricing: curl is free and open-source under GPL 3.0; no subscription or licensing costs apply; Trustly it is majority-owned by Nordic Capital, a private equity firm, so its long-term roadmap is ultimately oriented toward an eventual sale or IPO rather than indefinite independent operation.
They diverge on capability: curl covers HTTP/HTTPS, Trustly covers Pay by bank checkout.
Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which curl and Trustly actually diverge.

Attributes where curl and Trustly differ
Attribute	curl	Trustly
Starting price	Free	On request
Pricing model	open-source	quote
Free tier	Yes	No
Platforms	Linux, MacOS, Windows, Unix, Mobile	Web, API
Founded	1997	Unknown

Identical on both: 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 curl

HTTP/HTTPS
FTP
Multiple protocols
Universal compatibility
Scripting tools
Linux support
MacOS support
Windows support

Only in Trustly

Pay by bank checkout
Instant refunds
Verified payouts
Multi-market bank connectivity
Merchant dashboard and reconciliation
Fraud and risk tooling

What people use each for

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

curl

API Developmentnot Trustly
API Gatewaynot Trustly
API Testingnot Trustly
API Documentationnot Trustly
Microservicesnot Trustly

Trustly

An e-commerce merchant wanting a lower-cost alternative or complement to card payment acceptancenot curl
A gaming or gambling operator needing verified, instant payouts to players' bank accountsnot curl
A merchant wanting instant refunds processed directly to a customer's bank account rather than card reversal delaysnot curl
A business in a market with strong open banking adoption wanting pay-by-bank as a checkout optionnot curl

Where each one falls short

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

curl

Open-source with no vendor pricing: curl is free and open-source under GPL 3.0; no subscription or licensing costs apply
Commercial support costs hidden: site references 'commercial support available' but pricing is not detailed or accessible from homepage
No SaaS model: curl is a command-line tool and library; costs are limited to optional commercial support contracts (pricing unknown)
Self-support burden: free software means customers rely on community forums or undisclosed commercial support pricing

Trustly

It is majority-owned by Nordic Capital, a private equity firm, so its long-term roadmap is ultimately oriented toward an eventual sale or IPO rather than indefinite independent operation.
Consumer familiarity with paying by bank transfer still lags card payments in most markets, so merchants typically see it used as a secondary option rather than a full card replacement.
The 1.15 to 3.15% merchant fee range is not a single published rate, so a merchant cannot know its actual cost without a sales negotiation.
As with all open banking-dependent payment methods, reliability depends on the consistency of the underlying banks' own APIs, which Trustly does not control.
Its verified payout functionality is heavily used in gaming and gambling, a sector with additional regulatory scrutiny, which is worth factoring in when evaluating vendor risk exposure by association.

Pricing, plan by plan

curl

Free

Open SourceFree
- Full curl functionality
- Community support

Trustly

On request

Trustly$undefined/month
- Typical merchant cost of 1.15% to 3.15% depending on volume and market
- Exact rate negotiated per merchant, not published as a flat card

Which should you pick?

Choose curl if

You need http/https.
You want to start without paying.
You work on Linux, MacOS, Windows, Unix, Mobile.
You also want ftp.

curl review

Choose Trustly if

You need pay by bank checkout.
You work on Web, API.
You also want instant refunds.

Trustly review

Questions people ask

Is curl or Trustly better?: Neither clearly leads. curl starts at Free and Trustly at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, curl or Trustly?: curl has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for curl and On request for Trustly.
Does curl or Trustly run on more platforms?: curl runs on Linux, MacOS, Windows, Unix, Mobile. Trustly runs on Web, API.
Can I use curl for free?: Yes. curl has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Trustly starts at On request.
What is curl best used for?: curl is most often used for api development, api gateway, api testing, api documentation. Of those, api development and api gateway are not what Trustly is typically brought in for.
What can curl do that Trustly cannot?: curl covers HTTP/HTTPS, FTP, Multiple protocols, Universal compatibility. Trustly covers Pay by bank checkout, Instant refunds, Verified payouts, Multi-market bank connectivity.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

curl: How much does curl cost?

curl is free and open-source software under the GPL 3.0 license. There is no cost to download, use, or modify the software.

Source

Trustly: Who owns Trustly?

Nordic Capital, a private equity firm, holds a 51.1% majority stake; Alfven & Didrikson and BlackRock hold smaller stakes.

curl: Is commercial support available for curl?

Yes. The curl website references 'commercial support available,' but pricing and details are not disclosed on the homepage and require visiting the support page.

Source

Trustly: Is Trustly going public?

It has discussed an IPO but as of its most recent comments said one remained at least a year away.

curl: Can I sponsor curl financially?

Yes. The curl website offers an option to 'Sponsor curl financially.' Visitors can donate to support curl development, but the donation link must be accessed through the site's support section.

Source

Trustly: What does it typically cost a merchant?

Roughly 1.15% to 3.15% of transaction value depending on volume and market, negotiated per merchant.

curl vs Trustly

curl

Trustly

The short version

Where they differ

What each one covers

Only in curl

Only in Trustly

What people use each for

curl

Trustly

Where each one falls short

curl

Trustly

Pricing, plan by plan

curl

Trustly

Which should you pick?

Choose curl if

Choose Trustly if

Questions people ask

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Related pages

More on curl

More on Trustly

Keep looking

Other head to heads