A payment gateway is an eCommerce service that authorizes the transfer of funds from the buyer to the seller. It facilitates the transfer of transaction data to the buyer’s bank, and on approval of the authorization request, the funds are successfully transferred.
Payment gateways have become a crucial element of eCommerce websites. It is an important aspect of the eCommerce experience. Most eCommerce websites have multiple payment gateway services and customers can choose the one they’re the most comfortable with. With the abundance of options available and increasing risk of payment fraud in this segment, it is imperative that your eCommerce website gets it right.
Points to Check Out before Choosing A Payment Gateway Service
A few factors you should necessarily keep in mind while choosing your payment gateways:
1. Fees
Different payment gateways have different fee structures, owing to different functionalities. So, make sure not to exceed your budget with a single one, especially if you’re using multiple gateways.
2. Speed
Different payment gateway services offer different speeds as well. You want to choose online payment gateway services that work for your website depending on the type of business and the volume of transactions handled by it.
3. Customer Support
Check whether the terms and hours of customer support of the gateway provider are in accordance with your needs. You should be able to solve any technical problems involving the gateway quickly.
4. Encryption Standards
This is possibly the most important factor to consider. It is the age of data breaches, and you cannot risk even a small breach when sensitive information such as credit card details of thousands of customers is a part of the equation. Data security standards such as tokenization, SSL protocol, PCI compliance, etc should be a part of the security standards of your payment gateway.
Now that you are acquainted with what you should look for in your online payment gateway services, we can introduce you to some of the popular choices in this category. These are safe bets for any eCommerce website as they have been around for a while and stood the test of time.
1. Stripe
Stripe is an elegant, quick, and easily customizable payment gateway. It provides a range of tools which can be used by businesses to develop their own payment processes. It is a ‘full stack’ solution, meaning it plays the dual role of both the payment gateway and the merchant account.
With Stripe APIs, you can create payment solutions that suit your specific needs rather than opting for a one-size-fits-all solution. You can build your own embeddable checkout form and have your own custom UI toolkit.
Stripe handles transactions worth billions of dollars annually. In addition to traditional modes of payment, it also supports alternative modes of payment such as AliPay and Bitcoin as well.
Pricing: Transaction fee of 2.9% per transaction, no subscription or setup fees
Supported Currencies and Cards: 135 currencies; all major cards
Pro Tip: While Stripe is great, it demands slightly more technological/coding knowledge than other providers if you want to reap the full benefits of this feature-rich solution.
2. Amazon Pay
Amazon Pay has earned a lot of trusts owing to its established parent brand. It boasts a simplified UI that helps shoppers spend more time shopping and less time checking out. Moreover, the fact that most of the world is already so familiar with Amazon certainly lends to its burgeoning popularity.
You can increase your conversions and also lower your cart abandonment rates. Engage with Amazon customers across various devices. The ease of use is magnified for customers as Amazon Pay balance continues to gain popularity as a payment mode. It provides the A to Z guarantee for security for the stored payment details of the customers’ Amazon accounts.
Pricing: Transaction fee of 2.9% per transaction, no subscription or setup fees
Supported Currencies and Cards: 100 currencies; all major cards
Pro Tip: If you want your payment gateway to increase your customer reach, Amazon Pay should be your go-to option. Leverage Amazon’s trust factor to lend credibility to your eCommerce website!
3. 2Checkout
Take your eCommerce business global with 2Checkout! 2Checkout supports payments from over 200 global markets. You can accept and make payments with 2Checkout no matter where you are in the world. Available in 15 languages, 2Checkout offers advanced fraud protection. It provides an easy-to-incorporate API integration so that you can embed payment gateway on the website itself. It also offers payouts in several currencies. It empowers users to pursue new market opportunities on a global scale and allows them to offer exceptional customer experience.
Pricing: Transaction fee of 2.9% per transaction, no subscription or setup fees
Supported Currencies and Cards: 130 currencies; all major cards
Pro Tip: If your business processes upwards of $50,000 a month, you can contact 2Checkout to see if you qualify for a volume discount!
4. Paypal
No list of popular payment gateways is complete without Paypal. It has 254 million users worldwide, including 19 million businesses. Its popularity is unquestionable. Create custom checkout pages, get faster payments and enjoy simpler compliance and tracking with PayPal. Additionally, you can opt for services such as recurring billing, buyer authentication and more. Paypal is trusted worldwide, and for good reason. It is convenient, flexible
Pricing: Transaction fee of 2.9% per transaction, no subscription or setup fees
Supported Currencies and Cards: 25 currencies; all major cards
Pro Tip: With PayPal’s payment gateway, you can also offer Express Checkout on your website, which can boost sales.
5. Authorize.net
This is a payment gateway that is meant for businesses based in the US, Canada, the UK, Europe or Australia. It offers a flexible, integrated payment solution which can enable payments within payments. It has advanced fraud detection capabilities along with a robust, scalable API for payment solutions. Go for this payment gateway if you have a medium to large-sized business and are looking for a payment gateway to expand your business. Data portability and a high setup and subscription fee make it a more expensive option, but it is one of the oldest in the business, and definitely worth the money.
Pricing: Transaction fee of 2.9% per transaction, $49 setup fee and $25 monthly fee
Supported Currencies and Cards: 150+currencies; all major cards
The Bottom Line
So, there you have it! The best options are available for you to choose online payment gateways for your eCommerce website. Choose the ones that align with your business needs for now. You can always switch over to others, but these are the classic options that you can go for without a second thought. Invest in these payment gateway services for secure transactions. It will make things easier for both your business and your customers, and enable you to build a relationship of trust with customers worldwide.
