PaySchools
PaySchools is a U.S.-based K-12 school payment platform, operating as i3 Education within i3 Verticals, that digitizes cafeteria, meal, and school-related payments for school districts, parents, and administrators.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2012
- HeadquartersCentennial, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What PaySchools does
PaySchools is a U.S.-based payment collection and management platform serving K-12 schools and educational institutions. Founded in 2012 and headquartered in Centennial, Colorado, the company enables school districts to digitize cafeteria, meal, and other school-related payments, replacing manual cash handling and paper-based lunch account administration with a centralized online system for parents and administrators. Its core product is a unified digital payment platform that supports school lunch and cafeteria transactions and is positioned to extend to broader school payment workflows.
The company operates as i3 Education, the education-focused division of i3 Verticals, with its website redirecting to i3verticals.com/education for expanded solution offerings. This corporate integration links PaySchools to a larger parent with adjacent payment, merchant services, and vertical-specific capabilities, providing distribution leverage and cross-sell potential within the education vertical. Leadership is led by Chief Executive Officer Hume Miller, with Tim Arheit serving as Chief Software Architect. PaySchools employs between 101 and 250 people, supporting its domestic K-12 district customer base.
The business model is enterprise B2B SaaS combined with payment processing economics: schools are onboarded as customers, parents transact through the platform, and the company earns a combination of subscription/contract fees and per-transaction payment revenue. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. Distribution is direct-to-district, with support delivered through the i3 Verticals support portal. The product has no disclosed AI/ML capabilities, no third-party integrations in the source data, and no public app; differentiation rests on operational embedding in school payment workflows, parent adoption, and the back-office integration enabled by its parent company's broader payments infrastructure.
PaySchools firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- PaySchools
- Legal name
- i3 Education
- Website
- https://payschools.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2012
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- PaySchools is a U.S.-based K-12 school payment platform, operating as i3 Education within i3 Verticals, that digitizes cafeteria, meal, and school-related payments for school districts, parents, and administrators.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
PaySchools industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Education Payment Processing
- NAICS
- Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (52232), Educational Support Services (6117)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Payments, Cashiering & Payment Plans (EDALAJAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Meal Distribution, Serving Lines & Point-of-Sale (Cafeteria Service) (EDAEAEAF), Meal Program Compliance & Administration (NSLP/SBP, Reimbursements) (EDAEAEAC)
Keywords
Where PaySchools is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Centennial
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
PaySchools business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels1 record
PaySchools product offering
Product offeringCore offering
PaySchools is a payment collection and management platform for K-12 schools and educational institutions. It enables schools to digitally process and manage payments for school meals, cafeteria services, and related school fees, replacing manual cash handling with streamlined contactless payment experiences. The platform operates as i3 Education, the education-focused division of i3 Verticals.
Product overview
PaySchools is i3 Education and operates as a unified payment collection and management platform for schools. The platform enables educational institutions to collect and manage various school payments digitally. The company redirects to its parent entity i3verticals.com/education for expanded solution offerings in the education industry.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Companies that use PaySchools
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
PaySchools technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
PaySchools partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- i3 EducationcorePaySchools is i3 Education, operating as the education-focused payment solutions division within the i3 Verticals family of companies. Services are integrated with broader i3 Verticals education solutions at www.i3verticals.com/education
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves4 records
Expansion highlights3 records
PaySchools competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- PowerSchool: PowerSchool is the dominant K-12 student information system provider with integrated payment and nutrition modules. Operates broadly across the K-12 stack rather than specializing only in payments, but its payments suite competes head-on with PaySchools in districts that prefer bundled SIS-adjacent vendors.
- FACTS (Nelnet): FACTS, a Nelnet business, provides K-12 tuition management, billing, and payment plans to schools and families. Competes with PaySchools on school fee and tuition collection, and overlaps on the broader school payments category.
- Tyler Technologies (K-12 division): Tyler Technologies serves K-12 districts with broad public-sector software including finance and payment workflows. A broader incumbent with overlapping payment functionality across district finance use cases.
Direct peers
- LINQ: LINQ provides K-12 nutrition program management, online payments, and eligibility solutions to school districts. Directly competes with PaySchools in cafeteria payment collection and meal account management for the same K-12 vertical.
- RevTrak: RevTrak provides online payment processing for K-12 schools covering meal payments, activity fees, and tuition. Directly comparable as a school-specialized payment platform serving the same district finance use cases as PaySchools.
- Heartland School Solutions: Heartland School Solutions provides K-12 payment processing, cafeteria POS, and nutrition management software. Operates as a direct functional competitor in meal payments and school payment collection.
- SchoolCafe: SchoolCafe offers online school meal payments, menu publishing, and nutrition management for K-12 districts. Closely overlaps with PaySchools' cafeteria payments and meal account workflow.
- MySchoolBucks: MySchoolBucks is a widely adopted school meal payment platform serving K-12 districts with online cafeteria payments, account management, and nutrition program tools. Closely mirrors PaySchools' core offering and customer base.
Emerging players
- Cybersoft Technologies (PrimeroEdge): Cybersoft's PrimeroEdge platform provides K-12 nutrition and meal benefit management with integrated payment capabilities. Comparable as a nutrition-and-payment solution for the same K-12 buyer, though with stronger emphasis on USDA compliance workflows.
Regional players
- TouchNet (Nelnet): TouchNet, a Nelnet company, provides campus commerce and payment solutions primarily to higher education, with limited K-12 exposure. Adjacent thematically as an education-payments platform rather than a direct K-12 competitor.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
PaySchools social profiles
Digital presencePaySchools financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
PaySchools leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
PaySchools funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
PaySchools M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about PaySchools
What does PaySchools do?
PaySchools is a payment collection and management platform for K-12 schools and educational institutions. It enables schools to digitally process and manage payments for school meals, cafeteria services, and related school fees, replacing manual cash handling with streamlined contactless payment experiences. The platform operates as i3 Education, the education-focused division of i3 Verticals.
Is PaySchools a public or private company?
PaySchools is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was PaySchools founded?
PaySchools was founded in 2012. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is PaySchools based?
PaySchools is headquartered in Centennial, United States, in the North America region.
Who are PaySchools's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are PowerSchool, FACTS (Nelnet) and Tyler Technologies (K-12 division). Direct peers are LINQ, RevTrak, Heartland School Solutions, SchoolCafe and MySchoolBucks. Cybersoft Technologies (PrimeroEdge) is listed as an emerging player. TouchNet (Nelnet) is listed as a regional player.
Does PaySchools have an API?
No public API is recorded for PaySchools.
What industry is PaySchools in?
PaySchools's product category is Education Payment Processing. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDALAJAE, Payments, Cashiering & Payment Plans, with a secondary code of EDAEAEAF, Meal Distribution, Serving Lines & Point-of-Sale (Cafeteria Service). Its NAICS code is 52232.