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FractionalPay

Compare split payment companies

Split payment companies, compared

Split payment companies fall into four groups: payout tools, payment operations APIs, raw operator primitives and the spreadsheet you already have. This page compares them on the jobs that matter when every incoming payment has to be divided between several parties.

Try the split simulator See pricing
  • Fair comparison by category, not by slogan
  • Clear notes on when another tool fits better
  • Flat monthly plans with no transaction fees from us

Daily reconciliation run

Oct 14, 2026 · 4 matched, 1 open

  • txn_...4KQCharge
    Operator $250.00Ledger $250.00
    Matched
  • txn_...7RBCharge
    Operator $1,200.00Ledger $1,200.00
    Matched
  • txn_...2MDRefund
    Operator $50.00Ledger $50.00
    Matched
  • txn_...9TXPayout
    Operator $812.40Ledger $812.40
    Matched
  • txn_...5HCFee
    Operator $7.55Ledger none
    Missing

Category comparison

Five ways to split payments, side by side

Most teams that search for split payment companies already take payments and already pay people out. The open question is the layer in between: who decides how much of each payment belongs to whom, how refunds flow back, and how finance proves the numbers at month end. The table compares the common approaches on exactly that layer.

Columns describe categories, not single vendors. Payout tools include Tipalti and Trolley. Payment operations APIs include Modern Treasury and Dots. Raw operator primitives means building on Stripe Connect yourself.

  • Per-payment split rules

    Each incoming payment divided by rule the moment it succeeds

    FractionalPay
    Yes
    Payout tools
    No
    Payment ops APIs
    Build on primitives
    Raw operator primitives
    Build it yourself
    Spreadsheets
    Formulas by hand

  • Proportional refunds

    A refund reversed across every share

    FractionalPay
    Yes
    Payout tools
    Not the focus
    Payment ops APIs
    Build it yourself
    Raw operator primitives
    Build it yourself
    Spreadsheets
    Manual

  • Double-entry ledger

    FractionalPay
    Yes
    Payout tools
    Not the focus
    Payment ops APIs
    Varies by vendor
    Raw operator primitives
    Build it yourself
    Spreadsheets
    No

  • Reconciliation with the operator

    FractionalPay
    Growth and Scale
    Payout tools
    Payout side
    Payment ops APIs
    Varies by vendor
    Raw operator primitives
    Build it yourself
    Spreadsheets
    Manual

  • Payout scheduling

    FractionalPay
    Yes
    Payout tools
    Yes
    Payment ops APIs
    Yes
    Raw operator primitives
    Through API calls
    Spreadsheets
    Manual

  • Recipient tax forms

    FractionalPay
    Status tracking on Growth
    Payout tools
    Core strength
    Payment ops APIs
    Varies by vendor
    Raw operator primitives
    No
    Spreadsheets
    No

  • Self-serve signup

    FractionalPay
    Yes
    Payout tools
    Mostly demo-led
    Payment ops APIs
    Varies by vendor
    Raw operator primitives
    Yes
    Spreadsheets
    Not applicable

  • Pricing model

    FractionalPay
    Flat monthly, no transaction fee
    Payout tools
    Base fee plus transaction fees
    Payment ops APIs
    Monthly tiers or custom quote
    Raw operator primitives
    Per account and per payout fees
    Spreadsheets
    Staff hours

  • Who it fits

    FractionalPay
    Platforms splitting every payment by rule
    Payout tools
    AP teams and global recipient payouts
    Payment ops APIs
    Engineering teams building money movement
    Raw operator primitives
    Teams with engineers to spare
    Spreadsheets
    A few parties and low volume

FractionalPay sits on your own payment account. Payments land in your platform account at a licensed payment operator; FractionalPay calculates the splits, keeps the ledger and sends payout instructions to that account. We never hold, pool or transmit funds and we are not a payment institution. Plans are 199, 499 or 1,499 USD per month, or 99, 249 or 749 USD per month billed yearly, with no per-transaction cut. Details are on the pricing page.

How to read the categories

Moving money and dividing money are different jobs

Payout tools are built to send money to many recipients and to collect what you need from them first: bank details, tax forms, approvals. Tipalti adds a full accounts payable suite with invoice workflows. Trolley focuses on recipient payouts and tax forms. Both are strong at the last step, but neither divides each incoming payment by rules. You still have to tell them how much each person is owed.

Payment operations APIs give engineers building blocks. Modern Treasury offers payment operations and ledger APIs and is sold through a custom quote. Dots offers a payouts API for platforms at 149 and 999 USD per month on its pricing page, without split rules or reconciliation. Your team still writes the logic that turns a payment into shares.

Raw operator primitives means using Stripe Connect directly. It is the rail itself, priced at about 2 USD per active account per month plus 0.25 percent and 0.25 USD per payout. It moves money well, but it has no rule engine, no business ledger and no reconciliation screen, so engineers build splits by hand.

Spreadsheets work while you have a handful of parties. They break on the first partial refund after a payout, and on the first audit question about a number from three months ago.

Order #48213

Split by rule v3

Gross payment

$1,000.00 USD

  • Provider $700.00
  • Platform $150.00
  • Partner $100.00
  • Subcontractor $50.00
Shares add up to the payment $1,000.00

Split rule

Version 3 · Active

Rule name

Marketplace, default

Applies to

All payments

  1. 1 Seller Hold 10% for 14 days 80%
  2. 2 Delivery $12.50
Remainder and rounding go to Platform Test on $250.00 passes

Making the call

Questions that settle the comparison quickly

Finance and engineering usually evaluate together, and they ask different questions. These four tend to decide which category you need before any vendor names come up.

  • Does every incoming payment need to be divided between two or more parties, or do you only pay invoices and recipients
  • When a customer is refunded after the seller was paid, who absorbs it and how is it recorded
  • Can finance change a commission rate without an engineering ticket
  • Do you want a per-payout fee that grows with volume, or a flat monthly price

Detailed comparisons

Go deeper on a specific alternative

Each page below compares one tool or one approach in detail, including the cases where the other option is the better choice.

Questions

Frequently asked questions

Something else on your mind? Write to [email protected] or read the API documentation.

What do split payment companies actually do
They take one incoming payment and decide how much of it belongs to each party, such as a seller, a partner and the platform. Some also move the money, some only record it. FractionalPay calculates the split, writes the ledger and sends payout instructions to your own payment account.
Is FractionalPay a payment processor or a money transmitter
No. Payments land in your own platform account at a licensed payment operator. FractionalPay never holds, pools or transmits funds and is not a payment institution. It works as the rules, ledger and payout instruction layer on that account.
Can we use FractionalPay together with a payout tool
Yes, if you want to. FractionalPay works out the shares and keeps the ledger, and payouts run through the connected accounts at your operator. Teams that need recipient tax form collection at large scale sometimes keep a dedicated payout tool for that part.
Why compare against spreadsheets at all
Because most platforms start there. A spreadsheet is free and flexible, but it has no idempotency, no proportional refunds and no audit trail, and it falls behind once refunds arrive after payouts.
How does pricing compare with per-payout pricing
FractionalPay charges a flat monthly price with a monthly split flow limit of 100,000, 1,000,000 or 10,000,000 USD. We add no transaction fee, and your operator's own fees stay as they are. See pricing.
Do we need to talk to anyone to start
No. Run the split simulator on the homepage, sign up with email and password, and test in the sandbox. Live connection and payouts start on a paid plan you choose yourself. The API is documented at /docs/api.

Compare on your own numbers

Put a real payment from last month into the simulator and see the shares, the ledger lines and the payout dates before you decide.

Try the split simulator See pricing

No transaction fees from us. Runs on your own payment account at a licensed operator. FractionalPay never holds your funds.