Payment Gateway Integration

In 2024, 17.08 million Australian shoppers used online shopping websites monthly, a 45% increase from 2020 (11.78%).¹ This kind of growth brings opportunity, but also higher expectations.

Getting paid online is more than just adding a checkout button. It’s about making the experience smooth, secure and reliable for both you and your customers. Whether you're just starting out or growing fast, integrating a payment gateway is an important step.

We’ll walk you through the basics required to get you started, from setup and cost considerations to factors to consider while integrating.

What is payment gateway integration?

Payment gateway integration means adding a payment system to your website so you can accept online payments. It connects your site to services like Stripe, PayPal, or Square and handles the money safely when someone makes a purchase.

Types of payment gateway integration models

1. Basic payment gateway integration

If you are a small business that's not looking to scale immediately, for example, a homegrown brand with a handful of products without a complex website layout, you can opt for basic integration since major plug-ins or heavy backend logic will not be required.

You could set up something like Stripe or Square on your own, using their docs. If you’re comfortable with basic web development (HTML/CSS or Node.js or PHP), you’ll be able to create a payment form, connect the API, and handle token exchanges. Go for this if:

• Your website is simple.
• You’re okay with using the default payment flow from the provider.
• You don’t need a custom checkout experience that resonates with your brand.

2. Advanced payment gateway integration

Let’s say you’re a growing business that has been scaling fast by selling online, running ads, and looking to bring in overseas customers; you can opt for the advanced integration. Go for this if:

• You wish to let users pay using their preferred mode of payment (cards, wallets, bank transfers, etc.).
• You accept multiple currencies for international orders.
• If your business follows a subscription model.

Payment gateway integration costs involved

• Setup fees: Some tools make you pay to get started, others don’t.
• Per-transaction cuts: A portion of every payment goes to the gateway.
• Monthly charges: If you go for additional features or higher limits, expect a monthly fee.
• Currency conversions: If you are selling globally, extra fees may apply.

How to integrate a payment gateway into a website?

Integrating a payment gateway to your website can take anywhere between 1-2 days to a week. Here’s a breakdown of all the steps involved in this process:

In that case, here’s how you can get started:

1. Choose a payment gateway

Start with selecting a payment gateway provider that is in line with your business requirements. Some key things to consider:

• Cost: Check if there is a cost per transaction, setup/monthly maintenance charges, or any hidden fees.
• Supported countries: Make sure the payment gateway works in the regions you serve.
• Security features: Ensure end-to-end encryption, fraud detection, and PCI compliance.
• Payment methods: Look for support for credit cards, digital wallets, bank transfers, or any method your customers typically use.

2. Create a merchant account

Once you've selected the payment gateway, sign up on their website and create a merchant account. The merchant account acts as a middleman between your customer and your bank where it holds the payment for a short while, checks for fraud, and then sends the money to your business bank account.

For eg, if you run a mid-sized online sports merchandise brand in Australia and you’ve picked Stripe as your payment gateway, you might have to create a Stripe merchant account, connect it to your website, and use it to accept payments from customers.

During sign-up, you’ll usually need to provide business details and personal details. Most payment platforms work the same way, where you’ll be asked to verify your email and sometimes upload an ID before you can start receiving money.

But if you’ve got customers overseas, there are a few extra things to think about. In that case, it helps to use a business account like Wise Business that supports multiple currencies. You get local bank details in AUD, USD, GBP, EUR and more, so it’s easier (and cheaper) to get paid from other countries. Once that’s set up, just link it to your payment gateway to get your payouts.

Sign up for the Wise Business account! 🚀

3. Get the API keys

Once your account is set up, the next thing you’ll need is your payment gateway API keys. These keys link your website to the payment gateway in a secure way. Depending on the provider, you might have to generate them yourself or they might already be set up for you. Either way, you’ll usually find them in the “Developer” section of your account dashboard.

Just make sure to keep your secret key safe and don’t share it publicly.

4. Integrate the payment gateway to your website

After you obtain API keys, integrate the payment gateway to your site. How you do this depends on how your site’s built:

• Using plugins: If your site runs on something like Shopify, or Magento, there are ready-made plugins that make this part easy. You just install the plugin, enter your API keys, and follow the setup prompts.
• Custom websites: For custom setups, you might have to create a custom payment form and creating a custom payment form and embed HTML code on the frontend and backend. Most gateways will give you code snippets or docs to guide you through it.
• Direct API integration: Some platforms give you APIs that are easy to work with. Just follow their steps and connect things up.

Once it’s linked, your site will be able to start handling payments securely.

5. Configure payment settings

The next step is to adjust the settings so it works the way your business needs. Go to your gateway’s dashboard and look out for these basics:

• Currency: Pick the primary currency you want to get paid in.
• Transaction limits: Set a minimum or maximum amount per order if needed.
• Fraud tools: Turn on fraud protection features if they’re available.

6. Test your payment gateway integration

Before going live, check if everything works as expected. Most payment gateways offer a test or sandbox mode where you can run fake transactions without using real money. Remember to change your sandbox/test API credentials for live/production credentials and update the environment variables or configuration files so your website connects to the actual payment environment, not the test one. Do a few test runs to see how payments go through, including what happens when they fail. Make sure the checkout, payment and confirmation all work without errors.

7. Go live and monitor transactions

Once everything is tested and ready, switch your setup to live mode and start accepting real payments. After going live, keep an eye on your transactions to make sure payments are processing without issues. Regular real-time monitoring helps detect errors early, track failed payments, and spot anything unusual.

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Things to keep in mind when integrating a payment gateway:

• Integration type: Whether it’s a plugin, a redirect to a third-party page, or a full custom API build, the setup will affect the dev time and flexibility.
• Your tech stack: Make sure the payment gateway supports the language or framework your site uses.
• Docs: Good documentation helps. You’ll want clear steps, sample code, and error messages explained.
• Security: Your setup needs to be secure. Look for things like SSL, tokenization, and PCI compliance.
• Webhooks: Some gateways send updates about payment status. You’ll need to find those and handle them on your server.
• Error handling: Decide how your site will respond if a payment fails or times out.
• Testing: Use the sandbox mode to test everything without using real money.
• Mobile-friendly: Make sure the payment flow works on phones, not just desktops.
• Currencies: If you accept different currencies, check if the gateway supports them and does conversions.
• Rate limits: Some gateways have limits on how many requests you can send. Crucial for sites that get lots of traffic.

What’s next after setup? Wise helps you manage the money part

Getting your payment gateway is quite simple. Once you check off API keys, basic configuration, and test runs, you’re pretty much set to start accepting payments. But beyond just setup, think about how your money flows after a transaction. Especially if you're selling globally, managing different currencies can turn into extra admin and surprise fees.

That’s where using something like a Wise Business account can help. Instead of going through multiple bank accounts or paying high conversion fees, you can receive payments in different currencies and hold them until you’re ready to convert. It keeps things simple and saves you time post-checkout.

Expanding a business globally opens up exciting opportunities, but also new challenges like receiving payments across borders. Hidden foreign transaction fees and hefty currency conversions involved with international payments can eat into your profits and time.

Receive money from around the world at the speed and price of local payments. Transform the way you receive payments with Wise Business:

• One-time fee of 65 AUD for local account details in 8+ currencies, including AUD, NZD, USD, and more—no recurring fees
• One account to hold, send, and convert money with no hidden fees or exchange rate markups
• Create and send professional invoices directly to your customers through Wise Business
• Create payment links to request money in specific currencies
• Seamlessly receive payments from customers, online sales, or PSPs like Stripe and Amazon.
• Wise is safe and secure - Trusted by 13 million people and counting

Sign up for the Wise Business account! 🚀

Source:

1. Australia e-commerce shoppers:Link