Business-to-business (B2B) transactions are those that take place between businesses, rather than between a company and an individual consumer (which is called business-to-consumer, or B2C).

Money a worker has already earned by working hours or days up to today, but the company has not paid out yet.

A third party markets its services directly to consumers.

A setup where an app offers wage access directly to a worker without needing a direct link to the employer's official payroll system.

Earned wage access (EWA) is a service that allows workers to tap into a portion of their earned wages before their scheduled payday. It typically involves a third-party provider that integrates with payroll or time-tracking systems. Unlike payday loans, it generally does not charge high interest, since employees are only accessing money they have already earned.

A third party contracts with the employer, typically provides the funding, integrates with the employer's time and attendance records to determine actual wages that have been earned but not yet paid, and is repaid by payroll deduction.

A system where a company works with a service provider. The provider links to work and time records, lets workers draw money, and takes it out of the final paycheck.

Excess wages are an employee’s earnings that exceed the legally required threshold of wages on which taxes must be paid. That threshold is commonly called a Wage Base Limit, and it's used to calculate how much an employee owes in Social Security taxes.

An extra perk companies offer to help workers handle unexpected bills without using high-cost payday loans.

Fringe benefits are a type of compensation employees receive in addition to their normal wages. Often referred to as simply "perks," these benefits are part of an employee's total compensation package and can be a valuable tool for attracting and retaining talent.

Gross pay is the total amount of money an employee earns before taxes and withholdings are taken out. It’s normally the baseline for calculating an employee’s overall compensation and benefits, both when first hiring them and when awarding any pay increases.

Net pay is the total amount of money an employee gets after taxes and withholdings are taken from their gross pay. These deductions can significantly affect an employee’s paycheck and include, but aren’t limited to: taxes, retirement contributions, etc.

Another name for EWA. It means getting your pay whenever you need it instead of waiting for a set end-of-month or biweekly payday.

The money taken off the final paycheck on payday to balance out what was already withdrawn early.

A small flat fee, subscription cost, or optional tip charged by some third-party apps to process an instant transfer.

Supplemental income is extra money or gifts employees earn on top of their regular wages. It can come in the form of bonuses, stock options, or flexible benefits.

The key characteristic is that employers aren’t required to give supplemental income. They can use it to reward good work and attract top talent, but it’s ultimately their decision.

The software link between a company's clock-in records and an EWA platform used to verify available funds.

A small cost or flat charge to move the earned money instantly into a bank account or mobile wallet.