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APIs · head to head

Increase vs Stainless

Increase logo

Increase

APIs

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

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Stainless logo

Stainless

APIs

Generates client SDKs, API docs, and MCP servers from an OpenAPI spec

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Stainless has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • 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.; Stainless starter and Pro plan prices are not published and require contacting the company.
  • They diverge on capability: Increase covers ACH origination and receipt, Stainless covers SDK generation.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Increase and Stainless actually diverge.

Attributes where Increase and Stainless differ
AttributeIncreaseStainless
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelquotefreemium
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsAPI, Webweb, api

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 Increase

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

Only in Stainless

  • SDK generation
  • MCP server generation
  • Docs site generation
  • Webhooks and streaming support
  • Automated unit tests
  • Git integration

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

Stainless

  • Generating typed SDKs for a public APInot Increase
  • Producing an MCP server from an existing OpenAPI specnot Increase
  • Building an API documentation site alongside client librariesnot Increase
  • Giving open-source APIs a free SDK generation pathnot 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.

Stainless

  • Starter and Pro plan prices are not published and require contacting the company.
  • The free plan caps APIs at 25 endpoints, which excludes larger production APIs.
  • Overage charges apply per SDK/endpoint/month once limits are exceeded, which can make costs unpredictable at scale.

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

Stainless

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Up to 5 generators (SDKs, docs, or MCP servers)
    • 5 seats
    • APIs with 25 or fewer endpoints
  • Starter$undefined/mo
    • Unlimited generators
    • Expanded seats
    • Private SDKs of any size
  • Pro$undefined/mo
    • Custom enterprise features and pricing
  • Enterprise$undefined/mo
    • Dedicated support
    • SOC 2 compliance reports
    • Purchase order/invoicing with negotiable terms

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 Stainless if

  • You need sdk generation.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on web, api.
  • You also want mcp server generation.
Stainless review

Questions people ask

Is Increase or Stainless better?
Neither clearly leads. Increase starts at On request and Stainless at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Increase or Stainless?
Stainless has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Increase and Free for Stainless.
Does Increase or Stainless run on more platforms?
Increase runs on API, Web. Stainless runs on web, api.
Can I use Stainless for free?
Yes. Stainless has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Increase starts at On request.
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 Stainless is typically brought in for.
What can Increase do that Stainless cannot?
Increase covers ACH origination and receipt, Domestic wires, Real-time payments, Bank accounts. Stainless covers SDK generation, MCP server generation, Docs site generation, Webhooks and streaming support.

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.

Stainless: Is there a free plan, and what are its limits?

Yes. The Free plan supports up to 5 generators, 5 seats, APIs with 25 or fewer endpoints, and 100 preview builds per month, with email support.

Source
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.

Stainless: Who owns the generated SDK code?

The generated SDK code is owned by the customer and published by Stainless under the Apache 2.0 license.

Source
Increase: Is it international?

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

Stainless: What happens if I exceed my plan's endpoint limit?

Customers exceeding their endpoint limits are billed per SDK, per endpoint, per month for the overage.

Source
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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