Loans Personal Loans

Best Apps Like Albert for Small Cash Advances [2025]: No Credit Check, No Stress

Get quick access to cash before payday with apps like Albert. These apps offer flexible advances with no credit checks or high interest rates.

Updated Aug. 29, 2025
Fact check checkmark icon Fact checked

Albert is a popular financial app that offers a variety of money management tools, including budgeting, savings, and cash advances. One of Albert's standout features is the ability to get a paycheck advance, called an Albert Advance, of between $25 and $1,000 without a credit check or interest charges. While this is a nice option for those who need quick access to funds between paychecks, you might be interested in exploring other apps. Albert requires you to have an Albert Cash account to qualify for advances, and it charges high fees to transfer funds to another bank account.

Fortunately, this isn't the only app that provides payday advances. There are several apps like Albert that will give you a paycheck advance, letting you borrow from your next paycheck, with no interest payments or credit requirements. And, like Albert, these apps don't require credit checks, impact your credit score, or charge interest. Here are some of the best alternatives we've found.

How we evaluate products

Apps like Albert comparison

Maximum paycheck advance Fees
EarnIn EarnIn1 $750 per pay period
  • No monthly fees
  • Up to $5.99 fee for expedited transfers2
Current Current34 $750
  • No monthly fee
  • Fee for expedited transfers
Cleo Cleo $2505
  • $5.99 monthly Cleo Plus membership
Tilt Tilt (formerly Empower)6 $3007
  • $8 monthly membership

EarnIn

Excellent for direct deposits

Product details
  • Maximum advance: $750 per pay period ($150 per day)
  • Fees: No monthly fees, up to $5.99 for instant transfers

EarnIn offers one of the highest maximum advances available to qualified users. However, it may take a couple of pay periods before you qualify for access to borrow up to $750 per pay period. First-time users can access between $0 and $150 with a daily max of $85 on average. Your "Pay Period Max" may increase after your first couple of pay periods. Regardless of your Pay Period Max, you can't borrow more than $150 per day.

With EarnIn, you can get your paycheck advance transfer for free within 1-2 business days. Otherwise, if you need it as soon as possible, you'll need to pay a fee of up to $5.99.

Pros
  • You may have access to up to $750 per pay period.
  • There is no credit check required and no impact on your credit score.
  • There are no mandatory fees on standard transfers or interest on advances.
Cons
  • You'll need consistent pay of at least $320 per pay period.
  • It takes a couple of pay periods before you're eligible for the maximum advance.
  • Fees up to $5.99 are charged for expedited transfers.

Visit EarnIn | Learn more in our EarnIn review

Current

Excellent for subscription-free service

Product details
  • Maximum advance: $750
  • Fees: Variable fees for instant access to funds8

What's nice about Current's paycheck advance service is that you don't necessarily have to open a Current account to use it. It can also work with third-party financial institutions. However, you will need to receive at least $500 in eligible payroll deposits in either your Current account or outside account to be eligible for a paycheck advance.

Current offers other financial tools designed to help you build your credit, including a savings account and fee-free overdraft protection up to $200.9 Plus, you can get your paycheck up to two days early when you set up direct deposit.

Pros
  • Current doesn't require a subscription.
  • Advances sent in 3 business days are free.
  • Current offers flexible repayment terms.
Cons
  • Borrowers will be charged a fee for instant access to funds.
  • Current requires you to have recurring deposits of at least $500 to access the maximum advance amount.
  • It's not available in Connecticut, Maryland, Nevada, or the District of Columbia (D.C.).

Visit CurrentLearn more in our Current review

Cleo

Excellent for gig workers

Product details
  • Maximum advance: $250
  • Fees: $5.99 monthly Cleo Plus subscription

Most of the best cash advance apps available require you to have a job that pays you a consistent income so you are getting a regular paycheck. However, freelancers and gig workers like myself don't necessarily get a paycheck every two weeks. For us, Cleo is a great option for paycheck advances because it doesn't require minimum recurring deposits or proof of employment to qualify.

While Cleo is a free app, the easiest way to access its advance service is to subscribe to Cleo Plus ($5.99 per month) or Cleo Builder ($14.99 per month).

With Cleo Plus, you can get a pay advance for up to $250, but first-time users are limited to borrowing between $20-$100.

Pros
  • You get to select the repayment date.
  • You can get funds in 3-4 days for free.
  • You don't need to have regular paychecks.
Cons
  • There's a fee for getting an advance instantly.10

Visit Cleo | Learn more in our Cleo review

Tilt (formerly Empower)

Excellent for fast cash advances

Product details
  • Maximum advance: $400
  • Fees: $8 monthly membership fee

Tilt is a financial app that provides a line of credit and paycheck advance services. For a monthly membership fee of $8, you can get an advance of up to $400 delivered to your account within minutes (when the app was still Empower, the limit was $300). For instant transfers, you'll pay a fee between $1 and $8 or 3% of the advance amount. If you don't want to pay a fee, you may still get a paycheck advance faster with Tilt, because the platform deposits most advances in up to one business day.

There is no credit check required for the advance service. New users qualify for advances of around $100, on average, and Tilt may increase this amount if you're diligent about repaying your advances.

Tilt also provides financial tools for automatic savings and credit score monitoring that may help you stay on top of your finances.

Pros
  • Tilt has no interest charges or late fees.
  • It also has no credit check requirements.
Cons
  • The app costs $8 per month and requires a subscription for paycheck advances.
  • Paycheck advances aren't available in Connecticut, Maine, or the District of Columbia (D.C.).

Visit Tilt | Learn more in our Tilt review

Tips for using payday advance apps

Payday advance apps that enable you to access cash when you need it without paying interest and fees or impacting your credit are a great alternative to predatory payday loans of the past. However, that doesn't mean you shouldn't read the fine print so you know exactly what you are getting yourself into. Here are a few tips for using paycheck advance apps wisely.

  • Read the terms carefully: Ensure you understand the repayment deadlines, possible fees, and requirements.
  • Borrow only what you need: Remember, these cash advances are here to help you get through to the next payday. You don't want to borrow more than what your paycheck will cover.
  • Choose reputable apps: Research user reviews to get a better idea of how the app operates to help you avoid scams or predatory lending.
  • Monitor your bank account: Keep track of your cash advance transfers and repayments to ensure you can cover the payments and still have money in your bank.

How to borrow money from Albert

If you're not sold on any of these apps like Albert being right for you, and you just want to know how you would take out a paycheck advance with Albert, follow these steps.

Note: You don't need an Albert subscription to request an Instant Advance (although this used to be the case). However, you do need an Albert Cash account with automatic transfers (Smart money) enabled to qualify. If you don't have one of those, you'll need to open one first.

  1. If you haven't already, enable "Instant" in the Albert app and link a bank account, which Albert will analyze to determine whether you qualify for an advance and, if so, for how much.
  2. Go to the "Instant" dashboard in the app to request an advance. The app will give you a few options for the advance amount.
  3. Choose the amount you want to advance from your next paycheck and follow the prompts to confirm.

You can either receive your paycheck advance directly to your Albert Cash account for free or pay between $5.99 and $19.99 to transfer it to an external account.

You'll have to request an Instant Advance each time you want one, and your limit may change at Albert's discretion.

FAQs

What app lets you borrow money instantly?

All the cash advance apps we've reviewed here provide the option of letting you borrow money instantly, but most of them charge a fee for expedited transfers. If you don't want to pay a fee, some paycheck advance apps are faster than others. Tilt, for example, processes most deposits within one business day, compared to the three or four days that are standard with other apps.

What's better, Albert or Tilt (formerly Empower)?

When it comes to paycheck advance services, the apps Albert and Tilt, which used to be called Empower, differ in many ways. Albert costs a good deal more at $14.99 per month, while Tilt costs $8 per month, but you aren't required to subscribe to Albert to use Instant Advance and can opt out of Tilt's fee, too. You can access up to $1,000 with Albert or up to $400 with Tilt. 

Another place where Albert and Tilt differ is in their customer reviews. On Trustpilot, Albert has an excellent 4.5 rating with its customers. On the other hand, former Empower customers give the app a rating of 1.6. So, judging primarily by the customer reviews, Albert is the better app.

Neither app requires a credit check or charges interest, and both offer financial tools for budgeting, savings, and more.

Bottom line

When it comes to paycheck advances, apps like EarnIn, Current, Cleo, and Tilt offer convenient alternatives to the Albert financial app. Many of these options offer advances that are very similar to Albert's.

While cash advance services can be helpful in managing short-term gaps in your finances, it's important to use them responsibly — borrow only what you need and keep track of repayment terms. If used wisely, these paycheck advance apps can provide a valuable financial cushion without the high costs and predatory nature of traditional payday loans.

Learn More
4.5
info
No fees for standard speed transfers
Can work for any employer as long as you have a consistent schedule
There’s no hard or soft credit check + service won’t impact your credit score
You can access up to $750 between paydays