Softwr

APIs · head to head

Increase vs Lithic

Increase logo

Increase

APIs

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

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Lithic logo

Lithic

APIs

API-first card issuing platform with direct Visa, Mastercard and Amex network connections

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: 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.; Lithic pricing is entirely undisclosed, so a company cannot compare total cost against Marqeta, Galileo or Highnote without a sales conversation.
  • They diverge on capability: Increase covers ACH origination and receipt, Lithic covers Direct network connections.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Increase and Lithic actually diverge.

Attributes where Increase and Lithic differ
AttributeIncreaseLithic
PlatformsAPI, WebWeb, API

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 Increase

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

Only in Lithic

  • Direct network connections
  • Processor Client mode
  • Lithic Program Management
  • Card lifecycle APIs
  • Sandbox environment
  • Real-time authorization controls

What people use each for

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

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 Lithic
  • A marketplace that must hold seller balances in ledgered accounts with real account and routing numbersnot Lithic
  • A fintech that wants FedNow and RTP payouts so recipients are paid outside banking hoursnot Lithic
  • An engineering team that needs the underlying return codes and settlement timing visible in order to build correct reconciliation and retry logicnot Lithic

Lithic

  • A fintech wanting direct Visa or Mastercard network access rather than routing through a third-party processornot Increase
  • A company that already holds its own issuing licence and wants API access without full programme managementnot Increase
  • A neobank or expense platform wanting Lithic to manage bank and network relationships end to endnot Increase
  • A product team prototyping a card programme in sandbox before committing to a launchnot Increase

Where each one falls short

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

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.

Lithic

  • Pricing is entirely undisclosed, so a company cannot compare total cost against Marqeta, Galileo or Highnote without a sales conversation.
  • Choosing Processor Client mode still leaves the company responsible for holding its own issuing licence and managing the regulatory relationship, which is a substantial undertaking many teams underestimate.
  • As with any card infrastructure provider, an outage or network issue at Lithic becomes a direct outage for every card programme built on it, and a customer has limited visibility into root cause during an incident.
  • Building a card programme on API infrastructure requires real engineering investment; it is not a plug-and-play product for a non-technical team.
  • Switching card infrastructure providers after launch is a major undertaking involving card reissuance and programme migration, so the initial choice carries lasting lock-in.

Pricing, plan by plan

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

Lithic

On request
  • Lithic$undefined/year
    • Volume and interchange-based pricing, not published
    • Separate Processor Client and Program Management pricing tracks
    • Custom quote required via sales

Which should you pick?

Choose Increase if

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

Choose Lithic if

  • You need direct network connections.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want processor client mode.
Lithic review

Questions people ask

Is Increase or Lithic better?
Neither clearly leads. Increase starts at On request and Lithic at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Increase or Lithic?
Increase starts at On request and Lithic at On request.
Does Increase or Lithic run on more platforms?
Increase runs on API, Web. Lithic runs on Web, API.
What is Increase best used for?
Increase is most often used for a payroll or treasury product that needs to originate same-day ach and wires under its own control rather than through a payment processor, a marketplace that must hold seller balances in ledgered accounts with real account and routing numbers, a fintech that wants fednow and rtp payouts so recipients are paid outside banking hours, an engineering team that needs the underlying return codes and settlement timing visible in order to build correct reconciliation and retry logic. Of those, a payroll or treasury product that needs to originate same-day ach and wires under its own control rather than through a payment processor and a marketplace that must hold seller balances in ledgered accounts with real account and routing numbers are not what Lithic is typically brought in for.
What can Increase do that Lithic cannot?
Increase covers ACH origination and receipt, Domestic wires, Real-time payments, Bank accounts. Lithic covers Direct network connections, Processor Client mode, Lithic Program Management, Card lifecycle APIs.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

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.

Lithic: Does Lithic publish pricing?

No, pricing is volume-based and requires a sales conversation.

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.

Lithic: What is the difference between Processor Client and Program Management?

Processor Client suits companies with their own issuing licence and bank relationships; Program Management is for companies wanting Lithic to coordinate those relationships on their behalf.

Increase: Is it international?

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

Lithic: Which networks does it connect to?

Visa, Mastercard and American Express directly.

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.

Share

Related pages

More on Increase

More on Lithic

Keep looking

Other head to heads