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Payroll · head to head

Paylocity vs Rain Instant Pay

Paylocity logo

Paylocity

Payroll

HR and payroll solutions to drive employee engagement

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Rain Instant Pay logo

Rain Instant Pay

Payroll

US earned wage access with a free ACH option and a paid instant transfer

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Paylocity the Internet Archive's capture of Paylocity's homepage on 3 January 2021 named a wide suite of modules, including Payroll, On Demand Payment, HR Edge, Recruiting, Performance Management, Compensation Management and a Learning Management System, all sold via 'Request a Demo' with no price figures published.; Rain Instant Pay the free option takes one to three business days, so in practice employees who need money urgently pay the instant fee, which makes the free tier close to theoretical.
  • They diverge on capability: Paylocity covers Payroll, Rain Instant Pay covers Earned wage calculation.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Paylocity and Rain Instant Pay actually diverge.

Attributes where Paylocity and Rain Instant Pay differ
AttributePaylocityRain Instant Pay
Founded1997Unknown

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), 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 Paylocity

  • Payroll
  • HR Management
  • Benefits Administration
  • Time and Labor
  • Talent Management
  • Employee Engagement
  • Slack
  • Microsoft Teams

Only in Rain Instant Pay

  • Earned wage calculation
  • Instant transfer
  • Free ACH transfer
  • Payroll deduction file
  • Employer dashboard
  • Tip and off-cycle payouts

What people use each for

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

Paylocity

No use cases recorded yet. See the Paylocity review.

Rain Instant Pay

  • A senior living operator trying to fill open shifts by offering same-day access to earned paynot Paylocity
  • A restaurant group replacing paper cheque advances and cash tip payoutsnot Paylocity
  • A staffing agency competing for hourly workers who compare pay access when choosing assignmentsnot Paylocity
  • An employer with high first-90-day turnover wanting a retention lever that does not raise wage costnot Paylocity

Where each one falls short

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

Paylocity

  • The Internet Archive's capture of Paylocity's homepage on 3 January 2021 named a wide suite of modules, including Payroll, On Demand Payment, HR Edge, Recruiting, Performance Management, Compensation Management and a Learning Management System, all sold via 'Request a Demo' with no price figures published.

Rain Instant Pay

  • The free option takes one to three business days, so in practice employees who need money urgently pay the instant fee, which makes the free tier close to theoretical.
  • Fees of two to four dollars on small withdrawals represent a high effective cost to the worker, and employers who market it as a free benefit are describing their own invoice, not the employee experience.
  • Access is capped at roughly half of earned wages per pay period, which frequently falls short of what an employee in genuine difficulty needs and pushes them to other credit anyway.
  • It requires reliable time and attendance integration, and employers with manual timekeeping or multiple payroll systems face a long implementation before anyone can draw a cent.
  • US state-level earned wage access regulation is still changing, and a company operating across many states can find rules on fees and disclosures differ by jurisdiction mid-contract.

Pricing, plan by plan

Paylocity

On request
  • Core Payroll$undefined/month
    • Payroll Processing
    • Tax Services
    • Direct Deposit
  • Complete HCM$undefined/month
    • All Core features
    • HR
    • Benefits

Rain Instant Pay

On request
  • Rain Instant Pay$undefined/year
    • Employer cost quoted, commonly no subscription fee
    • Employee pays roughly 1.99 to 3.99 per instant transfer
    • Standard ACH transfer free to the employee, one to three days

Which should you pick?

Choose Paylocity if

  • You need payroll.
  • You work on Web, Ios, Android.
  • You also want hr management.
Paylocity review

Choose Rain Instant Pay if

  • You need earned wage calculation.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want instant transfer.
Rain Instant Pay review

Questions people ask

Is Paylocity or Rain Instant Pay better?
Neither clearly leads. Paylocity starts at On request and Rain Instant Pay at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Paylocity or Rain Instant Pay?
Paylocity starts at On request and Rain Instant Pay at On request.
Does Paylocity or Rain Instant Pay run on more platforms?
Paylocity runs on Web, Ios, Android. Rain Instant Pay runs on Web, iOS, Android.
What can Paylocity do that Rain Instant Pay cannot?
Paylocity covers Payroll, HR Management, Benefits Administration, Time and Labor. Rain Instant Pay covers Earned wage calculation, Instant transfer, Free ACH transfer, Payroll deduction file.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Rain Instant Pay: Does the employer pay anything?

Usually not a subscription. The revenue comes from employee instant transfer fees, unless the employer chooses to subsidise them.

Rain Instant Pay: How much does an employee pay?

Nothing for a standard ACH transfer taking one to three days, and roughly 1.99 to 3.99 for an instant transfer to a debit card.

Rain Instant Pay: How much can be withdrawn?

Typically up to about 50 percent of wages earned so far in the current pay period.

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