Top 5 Online Payment Solutions

If you want to maximize sales, you need to be easy to buy from. If you don’t accept their preferred method of payment, many customers will choose to buy from somewhere else. Accepting online payments – both directly and via credit card – is a great way to scale your business.

But there are many online payment services, all with their own features and benefits. Just as important as accepting online payments is finding a payment processor who meets your needs. Here are six payment solutions you should consider before you take payments.

Here’s What We’ll Cover:

• PayPal
• Stripe
• Braintree
• GoCardless
• Verifone
• Key Takeaways

1. PayPal

PayPal is the best-known online payment processor on the planet. They’re undoubtedly the most popular. In 2020 alone, they processed more than $936 billion. This came from over 325 million account holders and 28 million merchants who accept PayPal payments.

Users can deposit money from their bank accounts, and transfer funds to other users within the PayPal system. Not only that, but users can also make credit card payments directly through PayPal. There’s no need to switch to another app in order to make credit card payments. Moreover, PayPal offers several nifty features to business owners. For example, you can create and send invoices, and save them all for your tax records.

PayPal’s service fee is currently $0.30 per transaction, plus an additional 2.9%. However, starting August 2nd, 2021, their fee structure will get a bit more complicated. The cost for online digital payments will go up, while credit and debit card fees will go down slightly. This could be bad, good, or neither depending on your business and the type of payments you usually accept. There are no additional monthly fees or account setup fees.

2. Stripe

Stripe is another online payment processor similar in many ways to PayPal. This includes their fee structure, which is pegged at 2.9% plus $0.30 per transaction for all payment methods. As with PayPal, there are no extra fees.

Stripe’s main advantage is their API, which is a bit easier to work with than PayPal’s. This makes it a favorite among developers, since it can be easily integrated into any type of web project. Better yet, Stripe handles merchant approvals and PCI compliance, so you can focus on running your business.

3. Braintree

Braintree used to be a little-known payment solution for merchant accounts. However, they rose to fame by handling payments for StubHub and AirBnB. PayPal took notice, and acquired Braintree in 2013.

Because it’s owned by PayPal, you’ll notice that both online payment systems share a large number of features. For example, they both allow you to accept installment payments. But Braintree is designed for larger businesses with a lot of sales. In addition to all of PayPal’s services, Braintree users can accept real-time payments from Venmo, Google Pay, and credit and debit cards.

4. GoCardless

GoCardless is a payment platform option designed for subscription services. It offers automated billing features. You can create multiple billing schedules for multiple products or services. You can even see which customers are behind on their payments. Customers can pay with credit or debit cards, or via bank transfers.

The basic GoCardless service is free. That said, there are other important features in the subscription version. In exchange for a transaction fee, you can set up email notifications and ecommerce pages. You can also put your name on your customers’ bank statements instead of the charges simply showing as “GoCardless.”

5. Verifone

Verifone got their start developing point-of-sale hardware for accepting payments in person. Now, they also have a service for facilitating contactless payments. They purchased a company called 2Checkout in the year 2020, which is now being rebranded as Verifone. This new Verifone service provides online payments, invoicing, and even subscription billing. The fees are $0.35 per transaction, plus 3.5%, with higher charges for subscriptions.

Key Takeaways

Whether you’re shipping physical products or developing a mobile app, there are ways to accept payments online to meet your needs. Any one of these innovative payment solutions will be perfect for some companies. Which one is ideal for you will depend on the nature of your business.

Was this guide so good you’ve just gotta have more? Check out our research hub! It’s a treasure trove of tips for small to mid-sized business owners.

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