Firstcard
Cleo app icon

Cleo

Skipping the subscriptionFacts verified September 11, 2026

Cleo is a money app with a cash advance called Cleo Cover, plus optional Plus, Pro and Builder subscriptions. You can skip the subscription and still get an advance for free. Just email support instead of using the in-app button. Advances run from $20 to $250. Express delivery costs $4.49 to $14.99, though Cleo lists a lower starting price on its App Store page.

$250

Max advance

$0/mo

Subscription

None

Credit check

The details

Max advance
$250
Daily limit
$170
Limit resets
Per day
Mandatory fees
None
Premium plan (optional)
Plus $5.99/mo, Pro $8.99/mo, Builder $14.99/mo
Interest
None
Late fee
None
Credit check
None
Direct deposit required?
No
Bank-link required
Yes (Plaid)
Instant transfer
Same day
Instant transfer fee
Up to $14.99 (starting fee disputed)
Free transfer
3 to 4 days
Tips
None
Eligibility
Connect the bank account you are paid into via Plaid. Not available in Connecticut or Maine. First-time cap $20 to $100, grows with deposit history.

What it really costs

Cheapest path: 0% APR equivalent

Borrow $250, choose free delivery (3 to 4 days), repay on your next payday. Cleo charges no interest and no required fees, so waiting costs you nothing.

Most expensive path: ≈156% APR equivalent

Borrow $250 with instant delivery for a fee of up to $14.99, repaid in 14 days. That works out to an annualized cost of roughly 156%, payday-loan territory for saving a couple of days. Cleo does not publish a fee for every advance amount, so treat this as the top of the range.

APR equivalents are Firstcard's illustrative math: fee ÷ advance × 365 ÷ 14 days until repayment, not a rate Cleo charges. Optional tips are excluded.

Pros & cons

Pros

  • You pick your repayment window, from 3 to 14 days, not Cleo.
  • Standard delivery is always free. It takes 3 to 4 days, no subscription needed.
  • No interest and no late fees, ever, on any advance.

Cons

  • Want to skip the subscription? You have to email support, not just tap a button.
  • Need it fast? Express costs up to $14.99. Cleo won't confirm the starting price.
  • Advances top out at $250, and first-timers often see just $100.

Compare Cleo to other cash advance apps

AppEditors' ratingMember ratingMax advanceInstant feeFirstcard clicks (12 mo)
Cleo app icon
Cleo
—4.0 (1 review)$250Up to $14.99—
Current Paycheck Advance logo
Current Paycheck Advance
4.7 5.0 (1 review)$750Not published30,792Get Cash Advance
Klover logo
Klover
4.6 4.5 (3 reviews)$750$3.99–⁠$37.4911,166Get Cash Advance
Grant logo
Grant
4.5 4.5 (2 reviews)$500$2–⁠$253,476Get Cash Advance

Similar apps are picked automatically: same category, ranked by Firstcard editors' rating. Clicks are Firstcard members sent to each app in the last 12 months, with suspected bot traffic excluded.

A warning from Firstcard

  • Borrow with a plan. Take an advance only for a specific, necessary expense, and know exactly which paycheck repays it before you tap the button.
  • Don't stack apps. Using more than two cash advance apps at once is how the debt spiral starts. We don't recommend it, ever.
  • Avoid instant fees. Express delivery is extremely expensive for the days it saves, see the APR math above. If a free delivery option exists, use it.

Relying on an advance every paycheck? Learn how these apps really work →

Firstcard member reviews

What real members say about Cleo

Real reviews from verified Firstcard members who use these apps with their own money. Interview quotes are edited from spoken to written language for clarity, never for meaning. First name, age, and state only.

4.0

1 verified member interview

First advance

Not shared

0 of 1 members shared theirs

Max advance reached

$500

Cleo advertises $250

Speed of money delivery
5.01 rated
Cost and fees
2.01 rated
Customer support
2.01 rated

Marcus R.

California · interviewed Sep 3, 2026

✓ Verified member

“Instant money, fees on fees, and no humans”

First advance

Not shared

Max advance

$500

“You qualify for $500, but you'll get $200 today, $200 tomorrow, and you pay different fees for every time you borrow. It ended up being almost another 50 bucks extra.”

These ratings and opinions are Marcus’s own. Firstcard paid Marcus for the interview, and no partner saw or edited it. The figures come from what was said in the interview rather than from the provider, so they may differ from today’s terms or from the offer you are given. Firstcard verifies each product’s fees and limits separately, in the details section above.

How Firstcard works

Firstcard exists to make finance simple and accessible, so anyone can choose the right financial product with confidence. That means showing every fee and every catch upfront, and holding ourselves to the same standard. Here is how Firstcard works, and how we make money.

How we rate. Our editors' rating for a cash advance app weighs what it truly costs to use (the instant fee plus any required subscription, not the advertised “no interest”), how much you can actually get, how fast the free option delivers, what you need to qualify, and how repayment works. Ratings run 1 to 5 in tenths and compare products only within their own category, so a 4.5-star cash advance app is not “better” than a 4.0-star credit builder: they do different jobs. Treat the rating as one input, not the decision. See how we rate financial products.

How we make money. Firstcard may earn a commission when you click a link on this page, get approved, or open an account. That is what keeps our comparisons free to use. See how we make money and our current partners.

Ratings versus placement. Star ratings, member reviews, and our cost math are never influenced by money, and no partner sees a review before it publishes. Where a product appears is a separate question: featured spots and default ordering can reflect partner compensation and what members click and choose. That is why the rating and the real numbers travel with every product, wherever it sits. See our Advertiser Disclosure and Editorial Guidelines.

Terms change, so check before you apply. These terms come from the providers, not from us, so we cannot guarantee they are current or complete, and anything a member reports describes their own account rather than the offer you will be given. Always confirm the fees and terms on the provider's own site before you apply. If you spot something wrong here, email support@firstcard.app and we will fix it.