Overview

Smile API brings together data from government, HR and payroll systems, gig economy platforms and user-uploaded documents. That range can support workflows that need more than one way to verify a person or their income, rather than a single employment check. The trade-off is that the free Sandbox uses mock data only; production access requires Smile's approval and is billable.

The API uses REST, JSON and HTTPS, with an OpenAPI specification and Postman collection among its developer resources. New accounts can test against the Sandbox immediately. This makes it possible to explore integration before seeking live access, but teams that need production credentials from the outset should factor in the approval step.

Key features

Account linking: Smile Wink lets users connect payroll, government or HR accounts to retrieve verified employment and income data. It gives teams a connected-data route that can reduce reliance on uploaded paperwork, but its fit depends on users being able to link a relevant account. Wink can be embedded as a widget or sent by email.

Document processing: Smile Snap extracts and validates data from identity documents, income statements, photographed IDs, PDFs and scanned records. It complements account linking with a user-provided evidence path, which matters when an account connection is not practical or records arrive as files.

Risk screening: Smile Signals combines telecom, behavioral and email signals with sanctions, PEP, identity, phone and email screening. That breadth can serve onboarding flows with several screening needs; a team seeking only one check may have less reason to adopt a combined set of capabilities.

Digital onboarding: Smile Flip supports identity checks, face matching, document capture, form autofill and customizable workflows. It can bring several onboarding steps together, though teams should assess whether its workflow and consent model fit their own process.

Integration and privacy: Smile describes a unified API, plug-and-play APIs and a developer SDK. It says users control which parties receive their data and can revoke access; after revocation, Smile says the information is deleted through its Revoke API. Smile also states that transfers are encrypted and that it follows industry standards, and cites compliance with the Philippine Data Privacy Act of 2012 and support for portability rights under Section 18. Teams should review the consent and revocation flow against their own requirements.

Pricing

Smile uses a freemium model, with a free Sandbox plan and pricing on request for production use. The Sandbox costs 0.00 USD per free and provides test credentials with mock data only. It is useful for integration evaluation, not live verification; production access requires approval and is billable. Smile offers a free trial, but no duration or additional terms are stated here.

Production pricing is custom pricing: Smile directs organizations to book a demo or contact the company. That means teams need to discuss their intended use before budgeting for live traffic. No production quota, seat allowance or renewal term is stated.

Platforms

Smile API is available as an API and on the web. Its API access and immediate mock-data Sandbox give developers a way to evaluate an integration, while the approval requirement separates that testing from production use. Coverage is multinational, verification types are both, and typical turnaround is instant.

Who it's for

Smile is aimed at banks, fintechs, digital lenders, recruitment agencies, HR teams and other service providers. The named use cases span buy now, pay later, personal lending, earned wage access, banking, card issuing, recruitment, rental verification and data services. It is most compelling for teams whose product needs multiple verification routes or onboarding checks behind an API; it is less suited to buyers who want a standalone consumer verification service or need unapproved live access.

Pros and cons

Pro: Account linking and document processing provide complementary routes to employment, income and identity evidence.
Pro: Signals and Flip extend the offering from data retrieval into screening and configurable onboarding.
Pro: REST, JSON, HTTPS, OpenAPI and Postman resources give developers concrete integration materials, while Sandbox access supports early evaluation.
Con: Sandbox access is limited to mock data, and production requires approval, so it cannot validate live-data behavior by itself.
Con: Production pricing is custom pricing, requiring a sales conversation before teams can establish live-use costs.
Con: The broad suite may be more than teams need when their workflow calls for only one verification or screening capability.

Alternatives

For a broader comparison set, browse Employment Verification Software.

MyEmployment is a freemium option with a free plan, including free employee and former-employee services, and supports Android, iOS, web and API platforms. Consider it when those user groups and platform choices fit the workflow.
Argyle is a paid API and web platform with usage-based pricing, charging for data used and no extra charge for reverifications. It may suit teams that prefer that stated usage model.
AuthBridge is a paid API and web alternative whose pricing options are discussed with sales; consider it if a sales-led pricing discussion is acceptable.
Decentro is a paid API and web option with no free plan; its Global plan describes free setup and unlimited rollover of unused API hits, but shows no transaction price. Consider it if rollover is useful and you are prepared to clarify transaction costs.
MeasureOne Employment Verification is a paid API and web service with a free trial; its CORE plan describes direct connections, status-level data, PDF processing and real-time results. It may fit teams seeking those employment-verification capabilities and willing to contact sales for pricing.
Equal Employment Verification has a starting rate of 350.00 INR per once, per verification, exclusive of taxes; its final rate depends on verification type, volume and turnaround time. Consider it when a per-verification starting price is useful for comparison.
Konfir Employment Verification offers a Basic plan at 5.50 GBP per once per successfully verified activity, with three users, custom UX branding and pay-as-you-go pricing. It may suit a team whose needs align with those terms.
Profiden Employment Verification API uses per-successful-call pricing shared after a buyer provides its use case and expected volume; completion is asynchronous by webhook or status check. Consider it when that per-call and asynchronous model fits the integration.

Verdict

Smile API is a strong candidate for banks, fintechs and service providers building multi-route verification or onboarding into a product, with account linking, document handling and screening available through an API-oriented offering. Its main advantage is that breadth; its main drawback is that mock-data testing is free, while production access is approval-based and billable at custom pricing. Choose it when those capabilities justify the extra production-access step, and look elsewhere when predictable published live pricing or immediate production access is essential.

	Payscore	Smile API
Free plan	No	Yes
Free trial	No	Yes
Paid from	—	Free
Open source	No	No
Platforms	Web	api, Web
Free plan	No	Yes
Verification types	both	both
Source coverage	mixed	mixed
Typical turnaround	instant	instant
Geographic coverage	multinational	multinational
API access	Yes	Yes

Payscore vs Smile API

Payscore

Smile API