Empower is a financial services company that offers up to $300 cash advances with no credit checks or interest. But to get advances, you need to pay a monthly membership fee of $8. This fee covers instant transfers to your Empower card, or transfers to your linked bank account usually within one business day. Instant transfers to your bank account are also available but cost between $1 and $8 depending on the advance amount.
While many people like it, Empower isn’t the only cash advance app on the block. These other apps like Empower are similar, but may offer higher advance limits, lower fees and additional features like free overdraft, which could help you save.
If you're a freelancer or gig worker with multiple jobs, Cleo may be a good fit. Cleo is a financial budgeting app with a free and paid version. The free version offers a plethora of tools to help you track your spending and save more. The paid version offers the free features plus cash advances in the app, overdraft protection and cashback to your Cleo wallet.
What makes Cleo good for freelancers is that it doesn't require employment verification and has no minimum income requirement. As long as you have consistent income, you could qualify for cash advances. Its cash advance amounts start at $20 to $70, but could increase to $250 over time. Empower also has a $250 borrowing limit, but charges more for its monthly subscription than Cleo.
Available in all states
Pros
No direct deposit requirements
No credit checks or interest charged
Free AI financial planner, bill tracker and low balance alerts
EarnIn is a popular wage-based app with no monthly fees. Unlike Empower, EarnIn lets you borrow up to $150 a day and up to $750 every pay period on wages you've already earned. But as a wage-based app, the advance amount you qualify for depends on the number of hours you've already worked.
While it doesn't cost anything to use EarnIn, you need to upload your time schedule so it can track your hours. Normal transfer times are one business day — or within minutes if you use EarnIn's Lightning Speed service. This service costs between $3.99 and $4.99 per transfer, which, depending on the amount, is cheaper than Empower and many other apps.
Albert is a banking and cash advance app that goes beyond what Empower offers. It offers overdraft protection rather than cash advances, but the limits are the same as Empower — up to $250 per pay period. But it also packs a mix of saving and investing tools to help beginners build a customized investment portfolio with just a few questions.
It offers investment advice through its Genius service, an AI-driven, human-supported add-on feature for Albert customers. The Genius service costs $16.99 a month, but you automatically get a free 30-day trial before deciding if it's right for your investing goals.
Available in all states
Pros
Offers 30-day free trial for Genius
Overdraft protection up to $250
No late fees or interest
Cons
Must have Genius subscription
Overdraft protection only good for Albert card
Monthly fee of $16.99
Loan amount
$25 to $250
Loan Term
Within 6 days of overdraft, with possible 7-day extension
Dave offers higher cash advances through its ExtraCash advance product, up to $500, with no interest or late fees. However, Dave's delivery speed may be slower than Empower. Getting your funds may take one to three business days. If you want instant delivery, there's a fee from $1.99 to $25, depending on the size of your advance and where you’re having it transferred. Dave also offers extra perks, such as a gig connection service and budgeting features.
Brigit allows you to extend your due date up to three times if you can't make your repayment on time, a perk not seen with many other apps. Standard funding takes up to three business days, or get your money as quickly as 20 minutes for a small fee. Brigit's standard overdraft or cash advance features won’t cost you extra but you’ll have to pay a monthly membership fee ranging from $8.99 to $14.99.
Available in all states
Pros
No interest or fees on advances
Due date extensions available
Cons
Membership fees up to $14.99
Standard delivery can take up to two days
Loan amount
$50 to $250
Loan Term
Until your next payday, but can extend
Turnaround time
2 to 3 business days or instant with a Premium subscription or for a fee.
Loan amount
$50 - $250
Turnaround time
2 to 3 business days or instant with a Premium subscription or for a fee.
B9 is a membership-based cash advance app that offers up to $500 per pay period — higher than Empower. Like Empower, it charges a monthly fee: $9.99 for advances up to $100 and $19.99 for advances up to $500. While these fees are high compared to other apps, you don't need to pay extra for instant transfers — which could balance things out.
To use the B9 app, you must open an FDIC-insured checking account with B9 and set up direct deposit through your employer or the B9 app. To qualify for a cash advance, you have to receive at least one direct deposit into your B9 account — but advances are available as soon as one hour after receiving your first deposit.
SoLo Funds is a social lending app that offers peer-to-peer (P2P) microloans from $20 to $575. Like Empower's cash advances, it's designed to help you access cash to cover emergency expenses. But it's a no-interest personal loan funded by SoLo members instead of a cash advance. And SoLo gives you the option to give back to your community — not only can you borrow money, you can lend to others too.
You can get your money as soon as a member funds your loan — as quickly as 20 minutes. To use the service, it's customary, although not required, to offer a tip. You're more likely to get funded if you offer a tip, but SoLo caps tips at 15%. Unlike most cash advance apps, you must repay the loan on time or get charged a late fee of 10% plus a third party transaction fee.
Unlike Empower, MoneyLion charges no monthly fee to qualify for advances. And its advance limits are higher too. Its basic limit is $500 per pay period, but you may qualify for up to $1,000 if you open a RoarMoney account and set up direct deposit.
As a full-suite banking app, MoneyLion offers a range of services, including an investment account, a crypto trading feature and a credit builder program. MoneyLion gets mostly positive reviews on Trustpilot, but some customers have complained about glitches with the app and high instant transfer fees that make borrowing expensive.
Available in: Alabama, Arizona, California, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wisconsin, Wyoming
Pros
Borrow up to $1,000 per pay period with RoarMoney account
No fees and no obligation to tip
Credit building and investing tools
Cons
Free transfer could take up to 5 days
Can only borrow $100 at a time
Instant delivery costs up to $8.99
Loan amount
Up to $500 or $1,000 with RoarMoney account
Loan Term
Due by your next pay date
Turnaround time
Up to 5 days or instant for a fee of $0.49 to $8.99
Loan amount
$50 - $500
Turnaround time
Up to 5 days or instant for a fee of $0.49 to $8.99
Compared to other cash advance apps, Empower is about average. It offers a standard advance amount — up to $300 — and its monthly fee of $8, and app features are similar to what other cash advance apps offer. However, not all cash apps charge monthly fees: EarnIn and MoneyLion are two exceptions.
On the plus side, it offers a 14-day free trial, so you can test the service before paying. Like many cash advance apps, normal ACH transfers to your bank account are free and usually arrive within one business day, which is quicker than many apps. Instant transfers cost between $1 and $8, depending on the amount — unless you have a qualifying Empower Card. These fees are also about average for most cash advance apps.
For those looking to build their credit, the company is launching Empower Thrive — a credit line that starts at $200 and can increase to $1,000 with a history of on-time payments. However, this is not a unique feature. Cash advance apps like Brigit and MoneyLion also offer credit-building loan programs for a fee.
And if you need to borrow more than $250 between paydays, you’ll likely be better off with an app like B9, EarnIn, One@Work, PayActiv or MoneyLion — all offer potentially higher amounts than Empower. Empower generally gets good reviews online, but some customers have complained about low advance limits.
Pros
Other banking services available
FDIC-insured automatic savings feature
Empower Card with 10% cashback
Cons
Monthly subscription fee
Not all users will qualify for a $300 advance
Instant transfers cost money unless you have an Empower Card
More alternatives to payday and installment loans
We didn’t include payday and short-term installment loans as alternatives to Empower, as they charge sky-high interest rates that can hit up to 700% APR or higher.
For short-term borrowing, cash advance apps like Empower and the other apps on our list are almost always cheaper than a payday loan, as they never charge finance fees or interest on what you borrow.
Alternatives to cash advance apps
If you prefer not to use a cash advance app that monitors your bank account or you don’t get regular direct deposits — often a requirement for cash apps — consider these other methods for accessing quick cash instead:
Credit card cash advance. Credit card cash advances are a convenient way to access quick cash, but it’s best to limit them as fees can run high. Compare the best credit cards.
Personal loan. If you need more than $500, compare the best personal loan lenders to find loans between $600 and $100,000. Same-day funding may even be available.
Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) app. While they don’t offer cash, BNPL apps let you purchase items you need today and pay them off later. Discover a range of BNPL apps and compare costs.
Employer advance. If you need funds before payday, your employer may be willing to advance part of your paycheck. Or, some employers are now partnering with apps like DailyPay and Payactiv to offer cash advance benefits to employees.
See our payday loan alternatives guide for more short-term borrowing options to cover emergency expenses or tide you over to payday.
Kat Aoki was a personal finance writer at Finder, specializing in consumer and business lending. She’s written thousands of articles to help consumers make better decisions on their home loans, bank accounts, credit cards, cryptocurrency and more. Kat is well versed in working with leading brands in the real estate, mortgage and personal finance industries, and her expertise has been featured on Forbes Advisor, Lifewire and financial comparison sites like iSelect and realestate.com.au. She holds a BS in business administration from California State University, Sacramento and enjoys hiking and yoga in her spare time. See full bio
Kat's expertise
Kat has written 186 Finder guides across topics including:
Lacey Stark is a freelance personal finance writer for Finder, specializing
in banking, loans, investing, estate planning, and more. She has 20
years of experience writing and editing for magazines, newspapers, and
online publications. A word nerd from childhood, Lacey officially got her
start reporting on live sporting events and moved on to cover topics
such as construction, technology, and travel before finding her niche in
personal finance. Originally from New England, she received her
bachelor’s degree from the University of Denver and completed a
postgraduate journalism program at Metropolitan State University also
in Denver. She currently lives in Chicagoland with her dog Chunk and
likes to read and play golf. See full bio
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