#6 7.6 Editor score, out of 10

ACE Cash Express Payday Loan Review

National storefront lender with online applications and a long history of CFPB scrutiny.

Independently reviewed by the Payday Loan Compare editors. Last updated May 15, 2026.

ACE Cash Express is a national storefront lender with a large in-person network and a regulatory history that is worth understanding before you borrow.

ACE Cash Express is a national storefront payday lender with a large in-person network and online applications, operating in roughly 21 states. For borrowers who want face-to-face service and same-day cash pickup, the size of that brick-and-mortar footprint is the main reason to consider it.

Screenshot of the ACE Cash Express website — The ACE Cash Express homepage. Screenshot for reference, captured by our editors.

ACE Cash Express Payday Loan: Quick Facts

Loan amount range: $100 to $1,500
Typical fee per $100: $15 to $30
Typical term: 7 to 35 days
Funding speed: Same day in-store, next business day online
States served: Roughly 21 states

The Short Version

ACE Cash Express is a national storefront chain that also accepts online applications, operating in roughly 21 states. Its large brick-and-mortar network is the main draw for borrowers who want face-to-face service and cash pickup.

Loans range from $100 to $1,500, with finance charges of $15 to $30 per $100 borrowed and terms of 7 to 35 days. Storefront customers can often get cash the same day, while online applicants typically wait until the next business day.

How Borrowing Here Actually Works

The storefront experience is the core of ACE Cash Express. You can apply in person, ask questions across a counter, and leave with cash. For borrowers who want a human on the other side of the transaction, that access is real value, and the network is broad enough to make a store reachable in many markets.

The product itself is a standard single-payment payday loan: a flat fee per $100, repaid in full on your next pay date. Online, the application follows the usual pattern of income and bank-account verification followed by a next-business-day transfer.

Who It Suits, and Who Should Look Elsewhere

ACE Cash Express fits borrowers who specifically want a storefront, value same-day cash pickup, and live in one of the states it serves. The $1,500 ceiling is generous enough for larger short-term needs.

Look elsewhere if cost is your top concern. In many markets ACE prices its fees at the top end of the state-allowed range, so you may pay closer to $30 per $100 than $15. Compare its fee against other lenders on this list for your state before deciding, and consider an online lender with posted fee tables if the price matters more to you than the storefront.

The Catch Worth Knowing

ACE Cash Express has a regulatory history worth knowing. In 2014 the company reached a settlement with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over its collection practices. Since then it has made public commitments to reform how it handles collections. That history is not a reason to rule the lender out, but it is a reason to read your loan agreement closely and understand exactly what you are authorizing.

As with any storefront payday lender, the convenience of in-person cash can make a second loan feel like the easy fix when the first one is hard to repay. Borrow only what your next paycheck will fully cover, and know your state's rules on rollovers before your due date arrives.

What We Like, and What to Watch

What we like: Large storefront network for in-person service. Post-2014 CFPB settlement, public commitments to collection practice reforms.

What to watch: Past CFPB enforcement action over collection practices (2014, settlement). Fees at the top end of the state-allowed range in many markets.

How We Scored ACE Cash Express

Same rubric as every lender on the list. The full scoring methodology explains the weights.

35% · Cost and clarity of APR

ACE Cash Express charges $15 to $30 per $100 borrowed, and in many markets it prices its fees at the top end of the state-allowed range, so borrowers may pay closer to $30 than $15. This is a soft spot on the criterion. The fee is disclosed within the state framework, but the tendency to sit at the upper end, paired with no posted fee table as visible as some online lenders offer, makes ACE a lender to price-check against the rest of the list before signing.

25% · Borrower protections

This is the criterion most affected by ACE's history. In 2014 the company settled with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau over its collection practices and has since made public commitments to reform them. Operating across roughly 21 licensed states means state rollover and rate rules apply. The past enforcement action is not a reason to rule the lender out, but it does weigh on this score and makes reading the loan agreement closely especially important here.

20% · Transparency and licensing

ACE Cash Express is licensed across roughly 21 states and runs a long-established national operation, which supports the licensing side of this criterion. On transparency, the record is mixed: the CFPB settlement over collection practices is a documented part of its history, and while the company has been public about reform commitments since, that past episode keeps this score below the lenders with cleaner records and more visible upfront fee disclosure.

20% · Customer experience

The large national storefront network is the strongest part of ACE's case, putting in-person service and same-day cash pickup within reach in many markets, with next-business-day funding for online applicants. The $1,500 ceiling covers larger short-term needs. The customer-experience score is solid on access, though borrowers should weigh the lender's collection-practice history when judging how the relationship may go if a loan becomes hard to repay.

ACE Cash Express earns a 7.6, in the lower half of our list. A large national storefront network, same-day cash, broad licensing, and a generous $1,500 ceiling support the score. Two factors hold it back: fees in many markets sit at the top of the state-allowed range, and the company carries a 2014 CFPB settlement over collection practices, with reforms pledged since. The score reflects a workable storefront lender that borrowers should approach with the agreement read closely and the fee compared against cheaper options.

The Bottom Line

ACE Cash Express is a workable choice for borrowers who want a large storefront network and same-day cash. Two things deserve your attention: fees often sit at the top of the allowed range, and the company has a past CFPB settlement over collection practices, with reforms since. Confirm your state's fee, read the agreement carefully, and you can borrow here with your eyes open.

ACE Cash Express Payday Loan: Frequently Asked Questions

ACE Cash Express ranks #6 of 8 on our independent US payday lender list with an editor score of 7.6 out of 10. National storefront lender with online applications and a long history of CFPB scrutiny.

ACE Cash Express offers loans of $100 to $1,500, with a typical term of 7 to 35 days. The exact amount you qualify for depends on your income and your state rules.

ACE Cash Express charges a typical finance fee of $15 to $30 per $100 borrowed. Payday loans are high-cost credit, so confirm the total cost of borrowing for your state before you sign.

Funding speed: Same day in-store, next business day online. States served: Roughly 21 states.