Compare earned wage access and pay advance providers in Australia. Employee fees, advance limits, payroll integrations, and app ratings.
A $500 advance for 7 days costs from $5 with CommBank AdvancePay.
Total cost (fees plus any interest) for that scenario. Quote-based employer providers show Get quote. Adjust the amount and days above to compare.
| 10 Providers | CommBank AdvancePay | Employment Hero EWA | Beforepay | MyPayNow | Wagepay | Wagetap | Earnd | PayActiv | Paytime | Wagestream (Humanforce Stream) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cost of advance | $5Cheapest | $8 | $25 | $27 | $27 | $28 | Get quote | Get quote | Get quote | Get quote |
| Visit CommBank AdvancePay | Visit Employment Hero EWA | Visit Beforepay | Visit MyPayNow | Visit Wagepay | Visit Wagetap | Visit Earnd | Visit PayActiv | Visit Paytime | Visit Wagestream (Humanforce Stream) |
| Provider Model | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Provider model | Consumer-direct (bank product) | Employer-sponsored | Consumer-direct | Consumer-direct | Consumer-direct | Consumer-direct | Employer-sponsored | Employer-sponsored | Employer-sponsored | Employer-sponsored |
| Employer integration required | ✕ | ✓ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Payroll integrations | None (requires CBA transaction account) | Employment Hero Payroll, Xero, MYOB, KeyPay | None (consumer-direct) | None (consumer-direct) | None (consumer-direct) | None (consumer-direct) | Payroll API integration | Major payroll platforms (quote) | Xero, MYOB, custom API | Humanforce platform plus 350+ integrations |
| Minimum employees required | Not applicable | Must use Employment Hero platform | Not applicable | Not applicable | Not applicable | Not applicable | Contact provider | Contact provider (suits larger employers) | Contact provider | Contact provider |
| Fees & Limits | ||||||||||
| Employee fee per withdrawal | $5 per $500 (about 1%) | 1.3% (Swag Wallet) or 1.5% (bank account) | 5% flat | 5% of advance | 5% of advance | 5% of advance + 40c to 90c processing | Flat fee (employer can subsidise) | Variable fee (quote) | Flat ATM-style fee (employer can subsidise) | Withdrawal fee (employer can subsidise) |
| Employer fee | Not applicable (bank product) | Free (part of Employment Hero platform) | Not applicable (consumer-direct) | Not applicable (consumer-direct) | Not applicable (consumer-direct) | Not applicable (consumer-direct) | Quote (SaaS platform) | Free for employer | Quote (employer SaaS fee) | Free for employer |
| Interest rate | None (14.90% p.a. only if overdue) | None | None | 24% p.a. | 24% p.a. | 24% p.a. | None | None | No interest | None |
| Maximum advance | Assessed individually | Up to 50% of earned wages | Up to $2,000 | Up to $2,000 (25% of wages) | Up to $3,000 | Up to $2,000 | Up to 50% of earned wages | Up to 50% of earned wages | Up to 50% of earned wages | Up to 50% of earned wages |
| Advance basis | Bank-assessed limit | Percentage of earned wages | Fixed dollar amount | Up to 25% of regular wage | Fixed dollar amount | Fixed dollar amount | Percentage of earned wages | Percentage of earned wages | Percentage of earned wages | Percentage of earned wages |
| Repayment method | Automatic when pay is received | Automatic deduction from next pay run | Automatic, up to 4 instalments | Automatic deduction from next pay | Automatic deduction from next pay | Automatic deduction from next pay | Automatic deduction from next pay | Automatic deduction from next pay | Automatic from next pay run | Automatic from next pay run |
| Maximum repayment term | By next pay | Next pay run | Up to 62 days (4 instalments) | Up to 62 days | Up to 62 days | Up to 62 days | Next pay run | Next pay run | Next pay run | Next pay run |
| App & Experience | ||||||||||
| App rating (iOS) | 4.6 / 5 | 4.3 / 5 | 4.6 / 5 | 4.5 / 5 | 4.5 / 5 | 4.5 / 5 | Not available | 4.6 / 5 | 4.4 / 5 | 4.4 / 5 |
| App rating (Android) | 4.4 / 5 | 4.0 / 5 | 4.3 / 5 | 4.1 / 5 | 4.2 / 5 | 4.1 / 5 | Not available | 4.4 / 5 | 4.2 / 5 | 4.0 / 5 |
| Approval time | Instant for eligible customers | Instant to Swag Wallet | Within minutes | Within minutes | About 60 seconds | About 3 minutes | Instant once set up by employer | Instant once set up by employer | Instant once set up by employer | Instant once set up by employer |
| Pay cycle support | All pay cycles | Weekly, fortnightly, monthly | Weekly, fortnightly | Weekly, fortnightly | Weekly, fortnightly | Weekly, fortnightly | Weekly, fortnightly, monthly | Weekly, fortnightly, monthly | Weekly, fortnightly, monthly | Weekly, fortnightly, monthly |
| Additional features | Built into the CommBank app | Swag Wallet; financial wellbeing tools | Cash-flow analysis for eligibility | Income-based eligibility; instant transfers | Loyalty tiers (Basic, Premium, Deluxe) | Bill Split (cover bills up to $600) | Financial wellbeing tools | Financial wellbeing tools; bill pay | Financial wellbeing; self-service Xero/MYOB setup | Financial wellbeing; savings and budgeting tools |
| Regulation / licence | ADI (CBA, AFSL 234945) | ASIC Credit Licence | ASIC Credit Licence | ASIC Credit Licence | ASIC Credit Licence | ASIC Credit Licence | ASIC regulated (AU fintech) | ASIC (AU credit licence) | ASIC regulated (AU fintech) | Australian Financial Services Licence |
| Contract length | No contract | Month-to-month (via Employment Hero) | No contract | No contract | No contract | No contract | Contact provider | Contact provider | Contact provider | Contact provider |
| Setup fee | Free | Free for employer | Free | Free | Free | Free | Free for employer | Free for employer | Free for employer | Free for employer |
A few things to know before you switch.
On-demand pay, also called earned wage access (EWA) or pay advance, lets you access a portion of the wages you have already earned before your regular payday. Instead of waiting for the pay cycle, you draw down part of your pay early and it is repaid automatically from your next pay. Providers charge either a flat fee, a percentage of the advance, or a fee plus interest.
Employer-sponsored providers (such as Earnd, Paytime, Employment Hero EWA, PayActiv, and Wagestream) are set up by your employer and integrated with payroll. They often have low or employer-subsidised fees, but you can only use them if your employer offers them. Consumer-direct apps (such as Wagetap, Beforepay, MyPayNow, and Wagepay) let you sign up yourself using your bank transaction history, with no employer involvement, but usually cost more.
It depends on the provider and how long until payday. Consumer-direct apps typically charge about 5% of the advance, and some add around 24% p.a. interest for the days until repayment. For example, a $500 advance for 7 days costs about $27.30 with a 5% plus 24% p.a. provider. CommBank AdvancePay charges $5 per $500, and Employment Hero EWA charges 1.3% to 1.5%. Use the calculator above to compare the total cost for your situation.
Most consumer-direct providers operate under an ASIC Credit Licence, and bank products like CommBank AdvancePay are offered by a licensed bank (ADI). Employer-sponsored providers operate under ASIC oversight or an Australian Financial Services Licence. Regulation of earned wage access continues to evolve, so check each provider's current licence and terms.
For consumer-direct apps, no: you sign up yourself and they assess eligibility from your bank transaction history and regular income. For employer-sponsored providers, yes: your employer has to enable the service through their payroll before you can use it.
Repayment is usually deducted automatically from your next pay. If there is not enough to cover it, providers may reschedule, charge late or dishonour fees, or apply interest. CommBank AdvancePay, for example, charges 14.90% p.a. plus a $15 fee if the advance is not repaid on time. Only advance what you can comfortably repay, and check each provider's hardship terms.
For a typical small advance, CommBank AdvancePay is usually cheapest at about 1% ($5 per $500), but it is only available to CommBank customers. Employment Hero EWA is low at 1.3% to 1.5% but needs your employer on its platform. Among consumer-direct apps, Beforepay's flat 5% with no interest is often cheapest for longer hold periods. The calculator above ranks providers by total cost for your advance amount and days.
Yes. Employer-sponsored providers integrate with your payroll so staff can access earned wages early, often at a low or employer-subsidised fee, as a financial wellbeing benefit. Several (PayActiv, Wagestream, and Employment Hero) are free for the employer. If you would like help choosing one for your team, get in touch via the link below the table.
We can help you evaluate earned wage access providers based on your payroll system, employee count, and budget.