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APIs · head to head

REST Client VSCode vs Tink

REST Client VSCode logo

REST Client VSCode

APIs

VSCode extension for making HTTP requests and testing REST APIs

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Tink logo

Tink

APIs

European open banking platform for account data and payment initiation

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only REST Client VSCode has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: REST Client VSCode limited to Visual Studio Code; not available as a standalone application; Tink visa owns Tink, and pay-by-bank exists to move payments off card rails, so the roadmap and pricing of the product you are using to reduce interchange are set by the company that earns the interchange.
  • They diverge on capability: REST Client VSCode covers REST Client, Tink covers Account data access.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which REST Client VSCode and Tink actually diverge.

Attributes where REST Client VSCode and Tink differ
AttributeREST Client VSCodeTink
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelUnknownquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsWindows, macOS, LinuxAPI, Web
Founded2016Unknown

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 REST Client VSCode

  • REST Client
  • HTTP requests
  • Response viewing
  • VSCode
  • Environment variables
  • Custom headers
  • VSCode extension support

Only in Tink

  • Account data access
  • Payment initiation
  • EEA passporting
  • Categorisation
  • Account verification
  • Risk and affordability signals
  • Variable recurring payments support
  • Consent management

What people use each for

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

REST Client VSCode

  • API Developmentnot Tink
  • API Gatewaynot Tink
  • API Testingnot Tink
  • API Documentationnot Tink
  • Microservicesnot Tink

Tink

  • A European lender that needs verified income and expense data from a borrower bank account across several EEA markets under one licencenot REST Client VSCode
  • A merchant offering pay-by-bank at checkout to avoid card acceptance costs on high value basketsnot REST Client VSCode
  • A fintech that does not hold its own PSD2 licence and needs to operate under an authorised provider passported across the EEAnot REST Client VSCode
  • A bank building an account aggregation view of a customer external accounts without negotiating with each institution individuallynot REST Client VSCode

Where each one falls short

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

REST Client VSCode

  • Limited to Visual Studio Code; not available as a standalone application
  • No support for WebSocket, gRPC, or other advanced protocols
  • No cloud sync or team server features; requires Git-based workflow

Tink

  • Visa owns Tink, and pay-by-bank exists to move payments off card rails, so the roadmap and pricing of the product you are using to reduce interchange are set by the company that earns the interchange.
  • Coverage is Europe only, so a product serving both European and United States users runs a second aggregator with a different data model and a separate contract.
  • PSD2 connection quality varies sharply by bank, and headline connection counts hide wide differences in success rate, consent lifetime and re-authentication frequency that determine what users actually experience.
  • Consent under PSD2 expires and requires periodic re-authentication, so any product depending on continuous data access has a recurring user friction it cannot design away, and drop-off at re-consent is a real product problem.
  • Pricing is quoted with data access and payment initiation priced separately, and there is no published rate card, so small merchants cannot compare pay-by-bank economics against card acceptance without a sales process.

Pricing, plan by plan

REST Client VSCode

Free

No published plan breakdown. See the REST Client VSCode review.

Tink

On request
  • Tink Platform$undefined/year
    • Priced by product, market and volume
    • Data access and payment initiation priced separately
    • Annual commitments typical for enterprise agreements

Which should you pick?

Choose REST Client VSCode if

  • You need rest client.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on Windows, macOS, Linux.
  • You also want http requests.
REST Client VSCode review

Choose Tink if

  • You need account data access.
  • You work on API, Web.
  • You also want payment initiation.
Tink review

Questions people ask

Is REST Client VSCode or Tink better?
Neither clearly leads. REST Client VSCode starts at Free and Tink at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, REST Client VSCode or Tink?
REST Client VSCode has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for REST Client VSCode and On request for Tink.
Does REST Client VSCode or Tink run on more platforms?
REST Client VSCode runs on Windows, macOS, Linux. Tink runs on API, Web.
Can I use REST Client VSCode for free?
Yes. REST Client VSCode has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Tink starts at On request.
What is REST Client VSCode best used for?
REST Client VSCode is most often used for api development, api gateway, api testing, api documentation. Of those, api development and api gateway are not what Tink is typically brought in for.
What can REST Client VSCode do that Tink cannot?
REST Client VSCode covers REST Client, HTTP requests, Response viewing, VSCode. Tink covers Account data access, Payment initiation, EEA passporting, Categorisation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

REST Client VSCode: How much does REST Client VSCode cost?

REST Client VSCode is completely free and open source. It is available on the Visual Studio Code Marketplace with no subscription or licensing fees.

Source
Tink: Who owns Tink?

Visa, since 2022. That is directly relevant if you are adopting pay-by-bank specifically to reduce card costs.

REST Client VSCode: What authentication methods does REST Client support?

REST Client supports Basic Auth, Digest Auth, SSL certificates, Azure AD, and AWS Signature v4 authentication for API requests.

Source
Tink: Do I need my own PSD2 licence?

No. Tink holds AIS and PIS licences from the Swedish FSA passported across the EEA, and customers can operate as its agent rather than obtaining their own authorisation.

REST Client VSCode: Can I save and manage multiple requests?

Yes. REST Client supports multiple requests per file using ### delimiters, request history with auto-save, environment variables for different configurations, and code snippet generation for multiple programming languages.

Source
Tink: Does Tink cover the United States?

No. It is a European platform. US coverage requires a separate provider.

REST Client VSCode: How do teams collaborate with REST Client?

REST Client requests are stored as text files that can be version-controlled in Git repositories. Teams collaborate by sharing requests through Git, making the API specs part of the codebase.

Source
Tink: How reliable are the bank connections?

It varies by institution far more than the headline count of roughly 6,000 connections suggests. Ask for per market and per bank success rates and consent lifetimes for the banks your users actually hold accounts with.

REST Client VSCode: What protocols does REST Client support?

REST Client primarily supports HTTP/HTTPS and GraphQL. It does not support WebSocket, gRPC, or other advanced protocols available in desktop clients like Insomnia.

Source
REST Client VSCode: Is there cloud sync for REST Client requests?

No. REST Client has no built-in cloud sync or team server features. All collaboration and sharing relies on Git repository management.

Source
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