Lesson 3 of 8
Fees, subscriptions and tips: measuring the true cost
Earned wage access is rarely priced as interest. Workers pay a fee for each fast transfer, a monthly subscription or a tip, and some pay nothing because the employer does. This lesson sets out each way of charging, shows how to turn each into one comparable measure, an annual rate, and explains why the cost over a year of use matters as much as the cost of one advance.
Published 15 October 2026 · Listen to this lesson
In this lesson
- Four ways the cost is paid
- One yardstick: the annual rate
- Subscriptions: the cost depends on use
- Tips: voluntary in form, part of the cost in practice
- From one advance to a year of use
- Comparing offers: a checklist