ACHQ

Overview

ACHQ handles ACH and eCheck payments for merchants, payment platforms, ISVs, and partners serving merchants. It suits teams that need recurring bank payments alongside account validation and developer integrations. Its tiered plans combine monthly fees with per-transaction charges, so the right fit depends on volume and which operational tools you need.

Key features

ACHQ supports one-time ACH payments, recurring billing, and electronic check conversion. Real-time bank account validation and direct acceptance of Plaid tokens can help businesses authorize transfers with verified account details.

Teams can send customers to an ACHQ-hosted checkout page, use Plaid Link for tokenized capture, or integrate through a REST API. The API uses JSON over HTTPS, supports idempotency keys, and has SDKs for Node, Python, Ruby, and PHP. HMAC-signed webhooks are automatically retried and can be replayed from the dashboard, useful safeguards for systems that need to reconcile payment events.

The dashboard covers transaction monitoring, daily settlement reports, return-rate trends, exports, and an immutable user action log. ACHQ says bank account details are stored as reusable tokens, rather than handled as personal account information by the customer’s systems. Its trust portal lists CCPA and GLBA, provides access to security documentation, and says the company is working on security compliance; completed questionnaires are available upon request.

Standard settlement is 1–2 days, with same-day ACH available for time-sensitive payments. Sandbox API access is free, while production use requires an application for a production account.

Pricing

ACHQ has no free plan or free trial. Production plans start at $39/mo, with a monthly subscription plus transaction fees. The sandbox is free, but it is not a free production tier.

• Starter — $39/mo: Up to 500 transactions per month, online and mobile payments, recurring billing, standard 2-day settlement, and email support. ACH fees start at 0.5% + $0.50 per transaction. This is the entry point for lower-volume operations that can do without included verification, webhooks, and full API access.
• Growth — $59/mo: Up to 2,500 transactions per month, bank account verification, webhooks and full API access, priority 1-day settlement, dashboard reporting, and phone and email support. Fees start at 0.35% + $0.40 per ACH transaction. The higher monthly cost buys a larger quota, lower starting transaction fees, and capabilities likely to matter to teams integrating ACH into their own workflows.
• Scale — $99/mo: Volume-based pricing, a dedicated success manager, custom integrations and SLAs, same-day ACH availability, and 24/7 priority support. Fees start at $0.25 per transaction, with no discount fee at the top tier. This is aimed at businesses that need tailored terms or higher-touch operations; the per-transaction starting price is not directly comparable to percentage-plus-fixed fees on lower tiers.

Choose by expected monthly transaction count as well as feature needs: Starter’s 500-transaction cap and Growth’s 2,500 cap are material limits, while Scale uses volume-based pricing. ACHQ does not state a separate seat limit in these plans.

Platforms

ACHQ is available on web and through its API. Its SDKs cover Node, Python, Ruby, and PHP.

Who it's for

ACHQ is a strong fit for merchants and software platforms that want recurring bank payments, account validation, and a choice of hosted checkout or API integration. Growth is the most complete fit for teams that need verification and full API access without custom Scale arrangements. Businesses with modest needs may find Starter’s transaction cap restrictive, while those seeking a free production option will need another provider.

Pros and cons

• Pros: Multiple integration paths, including hosted checkout, Plaid Link token capture, and a REST API, let teams choose how much of the payment flow to build.
• Pros: Validation, idempotency keys, and retryable, replayable webhooks address practical needs in bank-payment integrations.
• Pros: Reporting includes return-rate trends and an immutable user action log, which can help operations teams investigate payment outcomes and activity.
• Cons: There is no free production plan or trial, and the minimum listed plan adds a monthly fee before per-transaction charges.
• Cons: Starter excludes bank account verification and full API and webhook access, so teams needing those capabilities must move to Growth.
• Cons: Starter and Growth impose monthly transaction caps, and Scale’s volume-based pricing requires a different cost assessment.

Alternatives

Compare ACH payment processing software if you want to weigh providers by category.

• Stripe ACH Direct Debit charges $0.80 per successful transaction, capped at $5.00, and settles in 4 business days; consider it if that per-transaction structure and settlement timing suit your needs better than ACHQ’s monthly tiers.
• PayJunction ACH Payment Processing offers API, web, iOS, and extension platforms, with ACH rates as low as 0.75% on its Standard plan; consider it if those platform options or its stated rate structure better match your setup.
• Increase ACH prices ACH origination at $0.50 per transaction for next-day settlement or $2.00 for same-day; consider it if you prefer those per-transaction origination options.
• Paymentus is a paid web-based alternative.
• GoACH uses custom pricing; consider it if you want a quote-based arrangement.
• ACH Processing Company is a paid option with API and web platforms.
• OpenACH offers free open-source software under GPL v3.0 for open-source applications distributed under GPL; consider it if that licensing model and its Android, iOS, API, self-hosted, and web platforms fit your project.
• Authorize.net has a $25.00 monthly All-in-one plan with a merchant account and payment gateway, priced at 2.9% + $0.30 per transaction; consider it if that plan structure better fits your payment setup.

Verdict

ACHQ is a sensible choice for merchants and platforms building recurring ACH payments that need validation, API tools, and operational reporting in one service. Growth is the clearest fit for teams that need full API access and verification; look elsewhere if you need a free production tier or want to avoid monthly fees and transaction caps.