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APIs · head to head

Thunder Client vs Tink

Thunder Client logo

Thunder Client

APIs

Lightweight REST API client built as VSCode extension

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 Thunder Client has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Thunder Client paid plans are billed annually only: Starter is $3 per user per month and capped at a maximum of 10 seats, Business is $7 per user per month with 500 monthly collection runs per user, and Enterprise is $16 per user per month for unlimited runs; 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: Thunder Client 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 Thunder Client and Tink actually diverge.

Attributes where Thunder Client and Tink differ
AttributeThunder ClientTink
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelfreemiumquote
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsVSCode extension, WebAPI, Web
Founded2021Unknown

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 Thunder Client

  • REST Client
  • Environment variables
  • Response testing
  • VSCode
  • GitHub
  • Webhook support
  • VSCode extension support
  • Web 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.

Thunder Client

  • 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 Thunder Client
  • A merchant offering pay-by-bank at checkout to avoid card acceptance costs on high value basketsnot Thunder Client
  • A fintech that does not hold its own PSD2 licence and needs to operate under an authorised provider passported across the EEAnot Thunder Client
  • A bank building an account aggregation view of a customer external accounts without negotiating with each institution individuallynot Thunder Client

Where each one falls short

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

Thunder Client

  • Paid plans are billed annually only: Starter is $3 per user per month and capped at a maximum of 10 seats, Business is $7 per user per month with 500 monthly collection runs per user, and Enterprise is $16 per user per month for unlimited runs

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

Thunder Client

Free
  • FreeFree
    • REST client
    • Collection management
    • Local testing
  • Pro$8/monthly
    • Cloud sync
    • Team collaboration
    • Advanced features

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 Thunder Client if

  • You need rest client.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on VSCode extension, Web.
  • You also want environment variables.
Thunder Client 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 Thunder Client or Tink better?
Neither clearly leads. Thunder Client 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, Thunder Client or Tink?
Thunder Client has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Thunder Client and On request for Tink.
Does Thunder Client or Tink run on more platforms?
Thunder Client runs on VSCode extension, Web. Tink runs on API, Web.
Can I use Thunder Client for free?
Yes. Thunder Client has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Tink starts at On request.
What is Thunder Client best used for?
Thunder Client 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 Thunder Client do that Tink cannot?
Thunder Client covers REST Client, Environment variables, Response testing, VSCode. Tink covers Account data access, Payment initiation, EEA passporting, Categorisation.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Thunder Client: How much does Thunder Client cost?

Thunder Client publishes a free plan at no cost, then Starter at $3, Business at $7 and Enterprise at $16, all priced annually.

Source
Tink: Who owns Tink?

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

Thunder Client: Is Thunder Client free?

Yes, there is a free plan. It is used through the Thunder Client extension for VS Code, available from the marketplace, with limits applied compared with the paid tiers.

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.

Tink: Does Tink cover the United States?

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

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.

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