Discover the top 10 payment gateway providers for your business, including PayPal, Stripe, Square, and more.
Choosing the best payment gateway for your online business is a crucial decision that can significantly impact your customer experience and profit margins. Payment gateways enable businesses to accept payments both online and in-person, and each provider offers unique features, pricing, and supported payment methods. This guide will help you navigate through the top payment gateway providers to find the ideal solution for your business needs and budget.
PayPal distinguishes itself through its unmatched versatility and global recognition. A payment solution that caters to a variety of business requirements, PayPal ensures secure transactions for both online and in-person sales. It’s easy to implement, with compatibility on all major ecommerce platforms, simplifying the process of connecting an online store to a PayPal Business account. This ease extends to financial services too, with applications for business loans, credit cards and debit cards.
PayPal provides payment processing services for e-commerce vendors, auction sites and other commercial entities globally, and allows you to accept credit cards including Amex and Visa. It also offers easy cart integration, plentiful customization options, online invoicing, and facilitates credit card payments over the phone.
PayPal is one of the most widely used online payment platforms. Founded in 1998 as Cofinity, it lets you make and receive payments all over the world.
Stripe is one of the most popular payment gateways, especially in the United States, and is primarily associated with mobile payments. It's designed with online businesses in mind, helping to take and process billions of dollars in transactions each year. Stripe's extensive features include subscription management, fraud prevention, customizable checkout, and seamless integration options, making it a popular choice for many businesses.
Pros
Cons
Stripe is a good choice for businesses with their own apps or existing websites wanting to integrate payment processing. It features developer-friendly payment solutions that plug into many different marketplaces and online payment solutions using application program interfaces (APIs).
Square is most widely known for allowing merchants to more easily process card payments. Priding itself on enabling sellers of all kinds to grow their business, Square has expanded its offerings to include online payment services and business lending. Square has become a top competitor in the payments gateway market.
Square is best for businesses that want to take advantage of customer loyalty tools, which help create repeat business.
Square is a payment processing and point-of-sale (POS) platform used by businesses of all sizes, from brand-new startups to large multistore operations.
Shopify Payments is the default payment processor for Shopify stores, offering a range of subscription options for businesses of various sizes.
Shopify's payment processing fees differ depending on your plan. This varies between 2.9% and 2.4%, plus a 30¢ fee per transaction.
Take control of your cash flow with Shopify Payments. Only with Shopify Payments can you track your orders and payments all in one place. Have a complete view of your finances, accept local currencies and payment types for a smooth checkout experience.
Authorize.net is a versatile payment gateway solution, best suited for businesses with more complex payment needs. Owned by Visa, it offers a wide range of services including point-of-sale, e-commerce, mobile, and phone payment options. Additionally, it supports billing, e-checks, and credit card readers, making it a comprehensive choice for various business models.
WorldPay is a UK-based payment service provider known for its extensive range of payment services for both online and in-store channels. WorldPay helps online merchants process international payments by connecting with a variety of global banks and partners. This capability makes it particularly suitable for merchants that process international payments, although it does come with higher transaction fees.
Overall, WorldPay is a reliable payment processing software that offers a wide range of options for businesses looking to accept payments from customers.
Adyen offers e-commerce companies a payment platform that includes gateway, risk management, and front-end processing services. Much like Braintree, Adyen is a full-stack gateway and counts prominent merchants like Microsoft and Spotify as clients. The company has attracted merchants with a single platform that can support payments in any channel over 250 local payment methods and 200 countries.
Adyen is a good choice for us as it is a global platform that supports both credit and PayPal payments.
2Checkout is another payment provider that is commonly used by online merchants, not least because as well as one-off purchases, it's easy to set up subscriptions. This makes it especially useful for online businesses selling digital services such as web hosting or web design companies. It's also commonly available as a plugin for major ecommerce platforms, and can process a wide range of global currencies.
Braintree, a PayPal-owned gateway, is a robust solution for mobile-centric merchants. It benefits from its access to the millions of PayPal sellers and has secured the business of some of the world’s largest digital merchants, such as Uber and Airbnb. Braintree provides developers with an SDK with multiple features, making it a versatile choice for businesses.
Braintree does not charge any monthly or annual fees, making it a cost-effective option for many businesses.
Braintree supports a variety of digital wallets, including PayPal, Venmo, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. This makes it an excellent choice for businesses looking to offer multiple payment options to their customers.
Braintree's strategic focus on mobile has made it a high-growth commerce channel.
Amazon Pay is a payment gateway that leverages Amazon's extensive infrastructure to provide a seamless payment experience for both merchants and customers. It supports payments on Amazon's own website as well as third-party merchant sites, making it a versatile option for e-commerce businesses.
Amazon Pay's pricing structure is competitive, with fees that are in line with other major payment gateways. Here is a quick overview:
Amazon Pay offers easy integration with various e-commerce platforms, allowing merchants to quickly set up and start accepting payments. The integration process is straightforward, with comprehensive documentation and support available.
Amazon Pay is an attractive proposition for third-party merchants looking to leverage Amazon's trusted brand and infrastructure.
Amazon Pay provides a familiar and trusted checkout experience for customers, which can lead to higher conversion rates. The seamless integration with Amazon's ecosystem ensures that customers can use their existing Amazon accounts to make purchases, adding an extra layer of convenience.
Choosing the right payment gateway provider is crucial for the success of your business. It impacts not only your customer experience but also your bottom line due to varying transaction fees and features. By carefully considering factors such as cost, features, and supported payment methods, you can find a solution that meets your unique business needs. Whether you opt for a platform-specific gateway like Shopify Payments or a versatile option like PayPal or Stripe, the key is to ensure that the provider you choose aligns with your operational requirements and growth plans. We hope this guide has provided you with valuable insights to make an informed decision. Happy selling!
The reason there are so many payment gateway providers is that each of them is adept for specific situations. Brick-and-mortar retailers and pizza shops have different requirements than a law firm or a dental implant manufacturer. So, when it comes down to picking your payment gateway provider, you need to consider your unique needs.
To choose the best payment gateway for your business needs, it’s important to consider cost, features, and supported payment methods. Payment processing fees can quickly eat into your profit margins, so it's crucial to compare these along with the features offered by each provider.
If you’re already running your business on Shopify, the platform’s own payment gateway, Shopify Payments, is a no-brainer. There’s no need to find a third-party provider that connects with your store, nor compare payment processing fees. You can do it all in one place.
Payment gateways handle a critical task for your business, so it’s important to pick one that keeps your data and customer data secure. Many payment gateways comply with the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) to protect your customer’s data.
Many payment gateway providers also offer point-of-sale systems for in-person transactions, multiple-location support, and other related services. It's beneficial to find a payment gateway that can address all of your current and future payments needs.
Choosing the right payment gateway is crucial because it affects your customer experience and your profit margins. When you take the time to pick the right payment gateway for your unique business needs, you can confidently move forward knowing each card payment will go through without any trouble. That’s a win for you and your customers.
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