Comparison · facts verified
CarrierKYC vs Highway: carrier verification for factoring companies
Highway and CarrierKYC both try to answer "is this really the carrier?", but for different buyers. Highway sells carrier identity and fraud tools to freight brokers and 3PLs, and its own site says so. CarrierKYC is built for small factoring companies and focuses on the moment money leaves your account: who is applying, and whose bank account you are about to fund.
For a factor, the short version is this. We found no Highway product sold to factoring companies, and Highway publishes nothing about verifying bank-account ownership. CarrierKYC is in early access and does far less than Highway overall, but what it does is aimed squarely at a factor's payee risk.
| CarrierKYC | Highway | |
|---|---|---|
| Built for | Small US freight factoring companies | Freight brokers and 3PLs; carriers use it free |
| Verifies the applicant's identity | Yes: ID and selfie, matched to FMCSA officer records | Carrier identity and "Rightful Owner Validation" (vendor claim) |
| Verifies bank-account ownership | Yes: account holder matched to the carrier's legal name | Not published |
| Re-verifies remit-to and bank changes | Yes, before the next ACH goes out | Not published |
| Ownership-change checks | Ownership changes trigger re-verification | Ownership Attestation, added Q2 2026 (vendor claim) |
| FMCSA authority and insurance | Checked at onboarding; not a continuous monitoring feed | Ongoing carrier monitoring (vendor claim) |
| UCC and prior-factor check | Yes, UCC and prior-factor check at onboarding | Not published |
| Load-level fraud tools | No | Load Lock, email and VoIP tools, Know Your Driver |
| Pricing | Free 60-day pilot, then $399/mo with 20 onboardings; $25 per extra; re-verifications included | Connect $150 to $500/mo; Load Lock and fraud add-ons $500/mo each |
| Best for | Factors who need to know who they are paying | Brokers vetting carriers before they tender a load |
Who each product is built for
Highway's homepage speaks mainly to two groups: freight brokers and 3PLs ("Verify smarter. Book faster.") and carriers, who can use Highway for Carriers free. Its llms.txt file mentions factoring companies only as part of its partner ecosystem, and its July 2026 press release describes Highway as providing Carrier Identity solutions "for freight brokers."
CarrierKYC's customers are factoring companies, and only factoring companies. Verified Payee is the onboarding link a factor sends a new client, plus a hold on every later bank or ownership change. It sits next to your back-office software and doesn't replace it.
Where the checks overlap
Both products care about whether the right party controls the carrier. Highway says its Rightful Owner Validation "ensures the correct entity is being onboarded." In Q2 2026 it added Ownership Attestation, which, Highway says, requires "historically associated owners to affirm any material ownership change before it is reflected in traditional data sources." That is a direct answer to change-of-ownership fraud, and it's a good idea.
CarrierKYC asks a narrower question. It matches the person completing the onboarding link (ID and selfie) to the officers on the carrier's FMCSA record, and it repeats that check when the bank account or ownership changes.
Where they differ: the payee
A broker's worst day is a stolen or double-brokered load. A factor's worst day is an ACH to an account the carrier doesn't own. Highway's own Q2 2026 fraud index says about half of incidents are now tied to communication-based attacks (vendor data, broker-side), which is exactly how fake bank-change requests arrive.
Highway's public pages describe secure payments through the Triumph network, and OTR Solutions says its Epay Manager partnership syncs a broker's carrier network and bank details during onboarding. Neither page describes how a carrier's bank-account ownership is verified, or how a later change is checked. CarrierKYC confirms the account holder matches the carrier's legal name and holds any change until it's re-verified. Our remit-to change SOP covers the manual version.
Can you use both?
Yes, if your carriers already work with Highway brokers. A carrier that verified with Highway may see a second identity check at its factor as friction, so keep yours focused on the two facts only you need: who controls the carrier, and who owns the account you pay. On the debtor side, Triumph's NOA Management checks the factor of record on network loads ("If it doesn't match, we don't pay"), which complements both.
Frequently asked questions
Does Highway sell to factoring companies?
Not that we could find on 2026-10-19. Highway's site and press materials describe brokers, 3PLs and carriers as its users, and mention factoring companies only as ecosystem partners. Ask Highway directly, because this could change.
Can a factor rely on a carrier's Highway verification?
Treat it as a useful signal, not a substitute. It answers a broker's question about the carrier entity. Highway publishes nothing about checking who owns the bank account you are about to fund, which is the check a factor needs most.
Does CarrierKYC monitor carriers continuously like Highway?
No. Verified Payee checks at onboarding and re-verifies whenever the bank account or ownership changes. For authority and insurance status between those events, use the free carrier risk check or a monitoring service.
How much does Highway cost?
Highway's llms.txt lists Connect plans at $150, $300 and $500 a month, and Load Lock and its fraud add-ons at $500 a month each. Its homepage asks you to book a demo, so confirm current pricing with Highway. CarrierKYC's founding pricing is a free 60-day pilot, then $399 a month with 20 verified onboardings included, $25 for each extra onboarding, and payee-change re-verifications included. See pricing.
Sources
- 01Highway: llms.txt (products, plans and pricing) · Vendor page
- 02Highway: homepage · Vendor page
- 03Highway: Q2 2026 Freight Fraud Index · Vendor press release, 2026-07-28
- 04OTR Solutions: Highway and Epay Manager partnership · Partner page
- 05Triumph: NOA Management for factors · Vendor page
See something out of date?
Vendors change fast. If a fact about Highway or CarrierKYC is wrong, tell me and I'll fix it and update the verified date.