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Payroll · head to head

OnPay vs Payactiv

OnPay logo

OnPay

Payroll

Single-plan United States payroll with unlimited pay runs and support for awkward tax situations other providers avoid

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Payactiv logo

Payactiv

Payroll

Earned wage access and financial wellness benefit, free to employers and free for standard transfers

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Payactiv has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: OnPay onPay operates only in the United States, so the first international hire means a second payroll vendor and a separate compliance model.; Payactiv heavy repeat use of wage advances by an employee is a sign that base pay does not cover living costs, and offering the benefit does not address that underlying compensation problem.
  • They diverge on capability: OnPay covers Single plan, Payactiv covers Earned wage access.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which OnPay and Payactiv actually diverge.

Attributes where OnPay and Payactiv differ
AttributeOnPayPayactiv
Starting priceOn requestFree
Pricing modelquoteFree for employers, fees apply only to expedited transfers
Free tierNoYes
PlatformsWebWeb, iOS, Android

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (Payroll).

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 OnPay

  • Single plan
  • Tax filing and payment
  • Vertical payroll support
  • Benefits brokerage
  • Workers compensation
  • Contractor payments
  • Basic HR tools
  • Accounting integrations

Only in Payactiv

  • Earned wage access
  • Payactiv Card
  • Free standard transfers
  • Bill pay and marketplace
  • Financial wellness tools
  • Broad HCM integration

What people use each for

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

OnPay

  • A farm running agricultural payroll that needs Form 943 rather than the standard quarterly filingnot Payactiv
  • A church or nonprofit with clergy compensation rules that mainstream providers decline to handlenot Payactiv
  • A restaurant group needing tip credit and minimum wage make-up calculated correctly each pay periodnot Payactiv
  • A small business that wants one price for payroll rather than a tiered plan it has to keep upgradingnot Payactiv

Payactiv

  • A hourly-wage employer in retail, healthcare or hospitality wanting to reduce payday-loan reliance among staffnot OnPay
  • An HR team wanting earned wage access with no employer subscription feenot OnPay
  • A company already on ADP, Paychex or another supported HCM system wanting minimal integration effortnot OnPay
  • An employer wanting bundled financial wellness and bill pay features alongside wage advancesnot OnPay

Where each one falls short

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

OnPay

  • OnPay operates only in the United States, so the first international hire means a second payroll vendor and a separate compliance model.
  • There is no native mobile application, only a responsive web interface, which employers with field or shift-based staff notice immediately.
  • The HR functionality is administrative and does not replace an HRIS, so performance, learning and any real workflow automation need another product.
  • Time and attendance is handled through integrations rather than natively, meaning hours arrive from a third-party system that has to be reconciled when it disagrees with payroll.
  • Reporting is functional but limited, and companies that want cost analysis by department, project or location generally export to a spreadsheet rather than build it in the product.

Payactiv

  • Heavy repeat use of wage advances by an employee is a sign that base pay does not cover living costs, and offering the benefit does not address that underlying compensation problem.
  • The product depends entirely on accurate, timely data from the employer's time-and-attendance and payroll systems, so errors upstream translate directly into wrong advance calculations for employees.
  • Free tiers apply to standard delivery only, and employees who need funds immediately outside the free instant-transfer conditions pay expedited fees that are easy to trigger without realising it.
  • Employer coverage and card acceptance skew toward the United States, so it does not serve multinational workforces without a country-specific alternative.
  • As an intermediary sitting between payroll and the employee, it introduces another vendor with access to sensitive payroll and time data, which adds a data governance and vendor risk conversation many employers underestimate before rollout.

Pricing, plan by plan

OnPay

On request
  • OnPay$undefined/month
    • One published plan combining a flat monthly base fee with a per person charge
    • No feature tiers, upgrades or add-on modules
    • Unlimited pay runs and multi-state filing included

Payactiv

Free
  • PayactivFree
    • No employer subscription cost
    • Free standard 1 to 3 day ACH and qualifying instant transfers
    • Fees apply only to expedited delivery options

Which should you pick?

Choose OnPay if

  • You need single plan.
  • You also want tax filing and payment.
OnPay review

Choose Payactiv if

  • You need earned wage access.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want payactiv card.
Payactiv review

Questions people ask

Is OnPay or Payactiv better?
Neither clearly leads. OnPay starts at On request and Payactiv at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, OnPay or Payactiv?
Payactiv has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for OnPay and Free for Payactiv.
Does OnPay or Payactiv run on more platforms?
OnPay runs on Web. Payactiv runs on Web, iOS, Android.
Can I use Payactiv for free?
Yes. Payactiv has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. OnPay starts at On request.
What is OnPay best used for?
OnPay is most often used for a farm running agricultural payroll that needs form 943 rather than the standard quarterly filing, a church or nonprofit with clergy compensation rules that mainstream providers decline to handle, a restaurant group needing tip credit and minimum wage make-up calculated correctly each pay period, a small business that wants one price for payroll rather than a tiered plan it has to keep upgrading. Of those, a farm running agricultural payroll that needs form 943 rather than the standard quarterly filing and a church or nonprofit with clergy compensation rules that mainstream providers decline to handle are not what Payactiv is typically brought in for.
What can OnPay do that Payactiv cannot?
OnPay covers Single plan, Tax filing and payment, Vertical payroll support, Benefits brokerage. Payactiv covers Earned wage access, Payactiv Card, Free standard transfers, Bill pay and marketplace.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

OnPay: How is OnPay priced?

As a single published plan with a flat monthly base fee plus a charge per person paid, with no feature tiers. Contractors are charged at the same per person rate as employees.

Payactiv: Does it cost the employer anything?

No, the core benefit is free to employers, and standard employee transfers are also free; only expedited delivery options carry a fee.

OnPay: Does it handle payroll outside the United States?

No. It is US-only, in all fifty states, including multi-state filing at no extra cost.

Payactiv: How is the advance calculated?

From wages already earned according to the employer's time and attendance or payroll data, not a loan against future unearned pay.

OnPay: Why do farms and churches use it?

It supports Form 943 agricultural filing, clergy housing allowance and Social Security exemption rules, and 501(c)(3) nonprofit payroll, which several larger providers do not.

Payactiv: Which payroll systems does it integrate with?

More than 70, including ADP, Paychex, Kronos, Workday and UKG.

OnPay: Is there a mobile app?

No. Employers and employees use a responsive web interface, which is a genuine gap for shift-based workforces.

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