Comparison · 2026 edition
Plaid vs Salt Edge: open banking compared 2026.
Plaid and Salt Edge side by side in the Open Banking and Account-to-Account Payments Index 2026: scores, evidence, published facts and awards.
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Plaid and Salt Edge side by side in the Open Banking and Account-to-Account Payments Index 2026: scores, evidence, published facts and awards.
In the Open Banking and Account-to-Account Payments Index, Plaid scores higher overall: 3.9 out of 5 (78 out of 100) against 3.3 (66), ranking 1 and 5 of 12. Plaid also scores higher in every segment.
Overall and segment scores out of 100, and the score out of 5.
| Score | Plaid | Salt Edge |
|---|---|---|
| Score out of 5 | 3.9 | 3.3 |
| Score out of 100 | 78 | 66 |
| Overall rank | 1 of 12 | 5 of 12 |
| For payment and e-money firms (out of 100) | 85, rank 1 | 69, rank 5 |
| For lenders and fintech apps (out of 100) | 79, rank 1 | 67, rank 4 |
| For merchants and platforms (out of 100) | 70, rank 1 | 61, rank 6 |
| Type | Open banking data and payments platform | Open banking and open finance platform |
Each score with the evidence behind it.
| Criterion | Plaid | Salt Edge |
|---|---|---|
| Bank coverage | 5/5 12,000+ institutions across 20 countries published. | 5/5 5,000+ institutions across 50+ countries published. |
| Product range | 5/5 Account data, pay by bank, VRP and payouts all published. | 4/5 Account data, payments, payouts and refunds published; VRP not named. |
| Published pricing | 0/5 Not published; plans list products without prices. | 0/5 Not published on the pages read. |
| Regulatory standing | 5/5 FCA and DNB licences with numbers published. | 3/5 One FCA licence with number; EU licence not detailed. |
| Integration | 4/5 Free sandbox, hosted bank connection screen and live API access; SDKs not confirmed on the pages read. | 4/5 Self-serve API keys, documentation and dashboard; SDKs not confirmed on the pages read. |
| Security certifications | 4/5 ISO 27001 and SOC 2 published; SOC 2 type not stated. | 3/5 ISO 27001 published. |
Each criterion is scored 0 to 5 against the best published offer in the Open Banking and Account-to-Account Payments Index. 0 means not offered or not published. How it is scored
What each provider publishes on its own pages, read on 26 October 2026.
| Fact | Plaid | Salt Edge |
|---|---|---|
| Bank coverage | "Access 12,000+ financial institutions and both personal and business accounts across 20 countries." | "Connect to over 5,000 financial institutions across 50+ countries through one unified platform." |
| Product range | Products listed: Pay by Bank, Variable Recurring Payments, Payouts ("Seamless payouts within your app"), Transactions, Balance, Income and Identity Verification. | Data Aggregation, Data Enrichment, Financial Insights, Pay by bank ("Pay with any bank from Europe & UK"), Bulk Payments and "Instant payouts and refunds". VRP not named on the pages read. |
| Pricing | US and Canada pricing page lists Pay as You Go, Growth and Custom plans with products "Included" or "Contact for pricing"; no prices published. | Pricing page could not be opened (page not found). Not published on the pages read. |
| Regulatory standing | Plaid Financial Limited "authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) under firm reference number 804718"; Plaid B.V. "authorised and supervised by De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB) under registration number R179714". | Salt Edge Limited, "registered in England and Wales (#11178811) and authorized by the FCA (#822499)"; homepage states "PSD2-licensed". |
| Integration | "Start testing in sandbox for free"; Plaid Link bank connection screen; pay-as-you-go plan by request; unlimited live API calls. | "Get API keys" self-serve; Account Information and Payment Initiation docs, dashboard and TPP developer portal. |
| Security certifications | "Plaid is certified as ISO 27001 compliant", "ISO 27701 compliant" and "SSAE18 SOC 2 compliant" (report type not stated). | "We are ISO 27001-certified". |
| Date read | 26 October 2026 | 26 October 2026 |
Not published or not stated by Plaid: pricing, security certifications and integration.
Not published or not stated by Salt Edge: product range, pricing and integration.
Facts read on 26 October 2026 from: plaid.com/en-gb, plaid.com/pricing, plaid.com/en-gb/safety; and saltedge.com.
Awards follow from the published scores and cannot be bought.
From each provider's strongest criteria and published terms.
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