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Payroll · head to head

Openwage vs Payhawk

Openwage logo

Openwage

Payroll

UK earned wage access charging a transparent 1 percent transfer fee, free for employers

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Payhawk logo

Payhawk

Payroll

Modular spend management combining corporate cards, accounts payable, procurement and travel

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Openwage it is UK-only, tied to UK payroll cycles and regulation, so it is not usable for international workforces.; Payhawk buying the full stack of Travel, Accounts Payable, Cards and Procurement separately costs more than a single suite price, since each module carries its own flat monthly fee.
  • They diverge on capability: Openwage covers On-demand pay, Payhawk covers Corporate cards.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Openwage and Payhawk actually diverge.

Attributes where Openwage and Payhawk differ
AttributeOpenwagePayhawk
Pricing modelPer-transfer fee, paid by the employeePer module per month

Identical on both: starting price (On request), free tier (No), platforms (Web, iOS, Android), 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 Openwage

  • On-demand pay
  • Transparent per-transfer fee
  • Payroll and T&A integration
  • No credit impact
  • Automatic payday reconciliation
  • Employer-free deployment

Only in Payhawk

  • Corporate cards
  • Accounts payable automation
  • Procurement module
  • Travel booking
  • ERP integrations
  • Multi-entity consolidation

What people use each for

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

Openwage

  • A UK employer with shift or hourly staff wanting an on-demand pay benefit at no cost to the businessnot Payhawk
  • An employee wanting to know the exact cost of an advance before requesting one, rather than an opaque feenot Payhawk
  • A company already running standard UK payroll and time and attendance systems wanting straightforward integrationnot Payhawk
  • An HR team comparing earned wage access providers on published unit economics rather than sales quotesnot Payhawk

Payhawk

  • A multi-entity European business wanting one system for cards, expenses and payables across currenciesnot Openwage
  • A finance team that wants to price spend management before a sales call rather than negotiating blindnot Openwage
  • A company wanting only accounts payable automation without paying for card issuing it does not neednot Openwage
  • A mid-market business standardising ERP-integrated expense reporting ahead of a fundraise or auditnot Openwage

Where each one falls short

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

Openwage

  • It is UK-only, tied to UK payroll cycles and regulation, so it is not usable for international workforces.
  • Even a published, low fee still means employees effectively pay to access their own earned money, and frequent use compounds that cost over a year.
  • The 50% cap on gross (not net) earned pay can overstate what an employee can actually draw once tax and deductions are accounted for, creating confusion at the point of request.
  • As with all earned wage access, dependency on the product is a symptom of insufficient pay cadence or amount that the advance itself does not fix, and can mask a deeper compensation problem an employer should address directly.
  • Accuracy is entirely dependent on the employer's payroll and time and attendance data being current, so errors upstream produce incorrect available-balance figures for employees.

Payhawk

  • Buying the full stack of Travel, Accounts Payable, Cards and Procurement separately costs more than a single suite price, since each module carries its own flat monthly fee.
  • The unlimited-seats model is a poor fit for a company issuing cards to only a handful of employees, since the fixed module price does not scale down.
  • Card issuing depends on Payhawk's own banking partners rather than a company's existing bank, so switching away later means reissuing cards and re-training staff on a new tool.
  • Procurement is a separate paid module rather than a built-in feature, so a company evaluating "Payhawk" from marketing material may be looking at capability it has not actually bought.
  • International card acceptance and FX handling vary by market, and companies with material spend outside Europe report gaps compared to global card issuers.

Pricing, plan by plan

Openwage

On request
  • Openwage$undefined/month
    • Free for employers to offer
    • 1% fee per transfer, minimum £1, paid by the employee
    • No interest and no credit check

Payhawk

On request
  • Travel$299/month
    • Integrated travel booking
    • Unlimited employee seats
  • Accounts Payable$349/month
    • Invoice capture and approval routing
    • Unlimited document processing
  • Cards and Expenses$449/month
    • Unlimited card transactions
    • Multi-entity expense management
  • Procurement$499/month
    • Purchase request and approval workflow
    • Vendor management

Which should you pick?

Choose Openwage if

  • You need on-demand pay.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want transparent per-transfer fee.
Openwage review

Choose Payhawk if

  • You need corporate cards.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want accounts payable automation.
Payhawk review

Questions people ask

Is Openwage or Payhawk better?
Neither clearly leads. Openwage starts at On request and Payhawk at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Openwage or Payhawk?
Openwage starts at On request and Payhawk at On request.
Does Openwage or Payhawk run on more platforms?
Both run on Web, iOS, Android, so platform support will not decide this one for you.
What is Openwage best used for?
Openwage is most often used for a uk employer with shift or hourly staff wanting an on-demand pay benefit at no cost to the business, an employee wanting to know the exact cost of an advance before requesting one, rather than an opaque fee, a company already running standard uk payroll and time and attendance systems wanting straightforward integration, an hr team comparing earned wage access providers on published unit economics rather than sales quotes. Of those, a uk employer with shift or hourly staff wanting an on-demand pay benefit at no cost to the business and an employee wanting to know the exact cost of an advance before requesting one, rather than an opaque fee are not what Payhawk is typically brought in for.
What can Openwage do that Payhawk cannot?
Openwage covers On-demand pay, Transparent per-transfer fee, Payroll and T&A integration, No credit impact. Payhawk covers Corporate cards, Accounts payable automation, Procurement module, Travel booking.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Openwage: Who pays the fee?

The employee, at 1% of the amount transferred with a minimum of £1; the employer benefit itself is free.

Payhawk: Is Payhawk pricing really public?

Yes, module pricing (Travel, Accounts Payable, Cards and Expenses, Procurement) is published starting at 299 to 499 dollars a month per module, or bundled as Payhawk Complete.

Openwage: Is it a loan?

No, Openwage states it is not a loan or credit product; there is no interest and no credit score impact.

Payhawk: Does it charge per seat?

No, each module includes unlimited employee seats; the fixed monthly fee does not increase with headcount.

Openwage: How much can an employee access?

Up to 50% of gross wages already earned in the current pay period.

Payhawk: Can we buy just one module?

Yes, modules are sold separately, so a company can buy Accounts Payable without Cards or Procurement.

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