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APIs · head to head

Token.io vs Unit

Token.io logo

Token.io

APIs

Account to account pay by bank infrastructure across the UK and Europe

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Unit logo

Unit

APIs

Banking as a service platform for embedding deposit accounts, cards and payments, with a sponsor bank behind it

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Token.io account to account payments carry no chargeback scheme, so merchants gain cost savings but consumers lose the dispute protection cards provide, which limits adoption in general retail.; Unit your product depends on a sponsor bank you do not contract with directly, and 2024 showed what that means: Thread Bank received an FDIC enforcement action naming its banking as a service programmes and Blue Ridge Bank went under an OCC consent order and offboarded fintech partners.
  • They diverge on capability: Token.io covers Payment initiation, Unit covers Deposit accounts.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Token.io and Unit actually diverge.

Attributes where Token.io and Unit differ
AttributeToken.ioUnit
PlatformsWeb, APIWeb, iOS, Android

Identical on both: starting price (On request), pricing model (quote), free tier (No), 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 Token.io

  • Payment initiation
  • Variable recurring payments
  • Bank network coverage
  • giroAPI membership
  • Payouts and refunds
  • Data and account information
  • Hosted payment pages
  • Reconciliation reporting

Only in Unit

  • Deposit accounts
  • Card issuing
  • Payments
  • White label components
  • Compliance operations
  • Lending
  • Programme reporting
  • Sandbox

What people use each for

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

Token.io

  • A utility or telecom collecting high value bills where card interchange makes acceptance expensivenot Unit
  • An investment or trading platform funding customer accounts without card chargeback exposurenot Unit
  • A payment service provider adding pay by bank to its merchant proposition without building bank connectivitynot Unit
  • A German merchant using giroAPI scheme access for recurring and future dated bank paymentsnot Unit

Unit

  • A vertical SaaS platform for contractors that wants to hold customer funds and issue expense cards without pursuing a charternot Token.io
  • A payroll or benefits platform embedding accounts so employees can be paid ahead of schedulenot Token.io
  • A marketplace that wants seller balances to sit in real accounts under its own brand rather than as ledger entries at a processornot Token.io
  • A company that needs interchange revenue from a card programme to make the unit economics of its core product worknot Token.io

Where each one falls short

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

Token.io

  • Account to account payments carry no chargeback scheme, so merchants gain cost savings but consumers lose the dispute protection cards provide, which limits adoption in general retail.
  • Conversion depends on each bank's own authentication journey, and slow or broken bank redirects cost sales in ways the merchant cannot fix or even always diagnose.
  • Variable recurring payments beyond sweeping are still being rolled out unevenly across banks and markets, so a subscription use case may be supported at one bank and not another.
  • Token.io initiates payments rather than acting as acquirer of record, so merchants still need settlement, safeguarding and reconciliation arrangements elsewhere.
  • Coverage and feature parity vary by country, so a pan European rollout means different capabilities and different bank behaviour in each market rather than one uniform product.

Unit

  • Your product depends on a sponsor bank you do not contract with directly, and 2024 showed what that means: Thread Bank received an FDIC enforcement action naming its banking as a service programmes and Blue Ridge Bank went under an OCC consent order and offboarded fintech partners.
  • Programme approval by the bank is a separate gate from signing with Unit, and it can add months and impose product restrictions that were not visible during the commercial conversation.
  • Compliance obligations are shared but the operational load lands on you, and platforms consistently underestimate the staffing needed for disputes, escalations and the bank ongoing oversight requests.
  • Pricing is unpublished and blends platform fees, per-account and per-transaction charges and interchange sharing, which makes it hard to model unit economics before you have volume and easy to be surprised by the minimum.
  • Migrating a live deposit programme to a different provider or bank is extremely disruptive because it involves moving customer accounts and card credentials, so switching costs are far higher than for ordinary software.

Pricing, plan by plan

Token.io

On request
  • Token.io platform$undefined/year
    • Quoted per customer, typically per initiated payment
    • Volume tiers and monthly minimums are common
    • No interchange, so unit cost is usually well below card acceptance

Unit

On request
  • Unit Banking as a Service$undefined/year
    • Platform fee plus per-account and per-transaction charges, quoted
    • Interchange sharing arrangements negotiated per programme
    • Minimum commitment typical

Which should you pick?

Choose Token.io if

  • You need payment initiation.
  • You work on Web, API.
  • You also want variable recurring payments.
Token.io review

Choose Unit if

  • You need deposit accounts.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want card issuing.
Unit review

Questions people ask

Is Token.io or Unit better?
Neither clearly leads. Token.io starts at On request and Unit at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Token.io or Unit?
Token.io starts at On request and Unit at On request.
Does Token.io or Unit run on more platforms?
Token.io runs on Web, API. Unit runs on Web, iOS, Android.
What is Token.io best used for?
Token.io is most often used for a utility or telecom collecting high value bills where card interchange makes acceptance expensive, an investment or trading platform funding customer accounts without card chargeback exposure, a payment service provider adding pay by bank to its merchant proposition without building bank connectivity, a german merchant using giroapi scheme access for recurring and future dated bank payments. Of those, a utility or telecom collecting high value bills where card interchange makes acceptance expensive and an investment or trading platform funding customer accounts without card chargeback exposure are not what Unit is typically brought in for.
What can Token.io do that Unit cannot?
Token.io covers Payment initiation, Variable recurring payments, Bank network coverage, giroAPI membership. Unit covers Deposit accounts, Card issuing, Payments, White label components.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Token.io: Does pay by bank remove card fees?

It removes interchange and scheme fees, so unit cost is normally far below card acceptance, particularly on high value payments.

Unit: Who actually holds the money?

A chartered partner bank, not Unit. Deposits sit at the sponsor bank and FDIC insurance flows from that bank, so its condition is your condition.

Token.io: What about chargebacks?

There are none. That is the cost saving and the consumer protection gap, which is why it suits bills, top ups and account funding more than retail.

Unit: What happened with Unit sponsor banks in 2024?

Thread Bank received an FDIC enforcement action that explicitly named its banking as a service and lending as a service programmes, and Blue Ridge Bank was under an OCC consent order from January 2024 and offboarded fintech partners. Blue Ridge exited the order in late 2025.

Token.io: Is Token.io regulated?

Yes, it is an authorised third party provider under UK and European open banking rules, but it initiates payments rather than holding merchant funds as an acquirer.

Unit: What does Unit cost?

Not published. Expect a platform fee, per-account and per-transaction charges, an interchange share and a minimum commitment.

Unit: Do we need our own compliance team?

Yes. Unit supplies tooling and the bank sets the rules, but disputes, escalations and evidence for bank oversight require named people on your side.

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