Top 10 best international payment gateways

Panna Kemenes

With the growth of eCommerce sales, the payment gateway market is booming. By 2030, it’s expected to reach a value of $106.4 billion USD.¹

An international payment gateway captures and transmits your customers’ payment information. This enables you to accept global online payments.

With so much choice, deciding on an international payment gateway can be a challenge.

Let’s look at the best payment gateway for international transactions.

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Top 10 international payment gateway providers

Let’s take a look at the best international payment gateway providers.

Top 10:
  • What to consider when choosing a payment gateway
  • Conclusion: What’s the best international payment gateway?
  • Stripe

    Stripe is one of the leading choices for international payment gateway providers. It has the second largest US market share in the payment processing industry of 19.44%. It supports 229,894 businesses.²

    Stripe supports international business. It accepts 135+ currencies across 46 different countries and supports 50+ payment methods.³ ⁴ ⁵

    It customizes the checkout based on your customer’s location. For example, locally-popular payment methods, increasing customer conversion rates and preventing abandoned carts.⁵

    Stripe stands out in the variety of APIs it offers. Its wide range allows integration with almost any online store.

    Stripe has high standards of compliance. It has licenses and certifications in the UK, US and EU. It's also secure, with encryption, isolated infrastructure and fraud protection.³

    Stripe offers a pay-as-you-go pricing system, starting at 2.9% + 30¢ per transaction.⁶ They charge an extra 1% when a currency conversion occurs.⁷

    You can also design a custom package, with volume discounts and country-specific rates.

    You can connect Stripe with Wise Business. You can link your EUR, GBP, USD, AUD, NZD, SGD, RON, and CAD account details with Stripe. The supported currency can depend on your location.

    PayPal

    PayPal is the market leading payment processor with a share of 42.35%. Its trusted name can increase your customer conversion rate by up to 44%.⁸ ⁹

    PayPal is easy to set up and integrate with the majority of payment processors. It’s available in 202 countries and supports 25 currencies.⁹

    As the merchant, you can host your own checkout page and allow transactions with Payflow open API. Or, you can have PayPal manage the checkout experience.¹⁰

    Payflow supports all major credit and debit card payment types. It also supports PayPal and PayPal credit payment.¹⁰

    You can upgrade fraud protection and automated recurring billing for a monthly fee of $10.⁹

    PayPal offers a free as well as a paid version of their payment gateway: Payflow Link and Payflow Pro. In both cases, each transaction will incur a fee of $0.10. For international payments, PayPal applies a currency conversion fee of 2.5% and a cross border fee of 1%.⁹

    Square

    Unlike other providers, Square doesn’t offer a standalone payment gateway. Instead, it offers an end-to-end payment processing solution for eCommerce and brick-and-mortar businesses.

    Square is PCI compliant, fraud secure and transparent about its fees. Its payment API can easily integrate with your current online store. It’s easy to open an account and get verified.

    Square also offers a strong selection of POS terminals, both online and in-person. Using Square, you can accept the majority of credit and debit cards. You can also accept Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Square Pay payments¹¹ ¹²

    Square supports payments from

    • US
    • Canada
    • Australia
    • Japan
    • United Kingdom
    • Republic of Ireland
    • France
    • Spain¹³

    Square doesn’t offer currency conversions. Instead, they charge all transactions in the currency of your account. So for US based businesses, this will be USD.

    This means Square charges your international customers in USD. Their bank will perform the currency conversion, costing them rather than you.⁴ ¹⁵

    Square charges 2.9% + $0.30 per online transaction and 3.5% + $0.15 per manually-entered card transaction. It also offers custom pricing for businesses processing more than $250,000 USD per year.¹⁶

    FIS Global

    FIS Global (formerly known as Worldpay) is a payment processor focused on global markets.

    They support payments in 126+ currencies, across 50 markets. Additionally, they offer 300 Alternative Payment Methods (APM).¹⁷

    This wide range of local payment methods can help increase international customer conversion. WorldPay offers an end-to-end omnichannel payment processing solution that streamlines the checkout process(see FIS Global/Worldpay alternatives).

    They charge 1.5% per Visa or Mastercard transaction. That said, they offer tailored pricing plans, which can vary depending on the region.¹⁸

    Adyen

    Adyen is a global payment processing solution with payment gateway functionality(see Adyen alternatives). It’s currently available in 45 countries.¹⁹

    Adyen offers dynamic currency conversion (DCC) at the checkout for 36 different currencies.²⁰

    This allows your international customers to pay in their own currency. It also offers a range of local payment methods.²¹

    With these features, you can have a stronger foothold in international markets.

    Adyen is easy to integrate into your online store. It’s also PCI compliant with a strong fraud protection system.

    Adyen charges a fixed processing fee of $0.13 USD per transaction and a variable fee based on the payment method. For example, an ACH Direct Debit payment costs $0.13 + $0.27 USD, while Union Pay costs $0.13 + 3%.²²

    2Checkout

    2Checkout is an international payment gateway that’s truly global.

    It supports transactions in 200 countries, 45+ local payment methods and 100+ currencies.²³

    Aside from ease of integration, it’s also free of monthly fees, making it an affordable option.

    Its pricing is per transaction. It also varies depending on your subscription plan and the payment method used. For the 2Sell plan, you’ll pay 3.5% + $0.35 per transaction.

    For the 2Subscribe plan, for subscription service business models, you’ll pay 4.5% + $0.45 per transaction. If you specialize in selling digital goods, the 2Monetize plan charges 6.0% + $0.60 per transaction.²³

    In some cases, a cross border fee of 2% will apply, with 3% for high fraud-risk countries. That said, some countries are exempt from the cross border fee. Additionally, non-traditional local payment methods may incur higher fees.²⁴

    Braintree

    Braintree offers merchant accounts and a full payments stack. This includes payment gateway functionality.

    It has strong anti-fraud protection and gives you global reach. It’s available in 45+ countries and supports 130+ currencies.²⁵

    It also offers features such as recurring billing and reporting.²⁶

    For card and digital wallet payments, Braintree applies a fee of 2.59% + $.49 per transaction. For ACH Direct Debit, the fee is 0.75% per transaction and for Venmo you’ll pay 3.49% + $.49 per transaction.

    Braintree also applies a crossborder fee of 1% to non-US cards and 1% for non-USD transactions.²⁷

    Checkout.com

    Checkout.com is another payment processing solution with an international payment gateway.

    Checkout.com is available in 45+ countries and supports 150+ currencies. It also supports local payment methods. It has zero setup fees, fraud protection, reporting and a single unified payments API. ²⁸

    Pricing is flat-rate but quote-based, tailored for your specific business and risk category.

    Sage Pay

    Sage Pay is an all-in-one payment processor, accounting and ERP software.

    It allows you to create and send invoices. You can accept multi-currency payments and manage accounting.²⁹ It supports major credit and debit cards, e-wallets and PayPal payments. ³⁰ ³¹

    Sage Pay comes with different pricing plans based on the size of your business.³² Unfortunately, it doesn’t state the transaction fees it applies.

    Amazon Pay

    Amazon Pay is a payment gateway offered by Amazon. It enables your customers to pay for your products using their Amazon accounts.

    37% of customers abandon their cart if asked to create a new account.³³

    The Amazon Pay international gateway avoids this issue, making for a trusted checkout.

    Amazon Pay’s omnichannel API makes integration with your online store easy. They offer strong fraud protection, recurring billing and express payouts within 24 hours.³³

    Amazon Pay supports payment in 12 currencies and is available in 18 countries.³⁴ It also supports all major credit and debit cards, as well as a range of local payment methods.³⁵

    For international payments, Amazon Pay charges a cross border processing fee of 3.9%. An authorization fee of $0.30 USD comes on top of this.³⁶ Tax may also be charged when applicable.

    If you’re also selling on Amazon, on a range of marketplaces, you can withdraw your multi-currency earnings into your Wise Business account. By doing this, you’ll avoid paying high currency conversion fees.

    What to consider when choosing a payment gateway for international transactions

    Multi-currency support and local payment methods are key to international customer acquisition. To boost sales, you need to offer the payment method of choice of your customer, in their currency.

    Your payment gateway should be easy to integrate with your online store. Ease of integration with other solutions is also a bonus.

    Strong protection against fraud and PCI compliance is also key to ensuring reliability.

    Pricing is another factor when choosing an international payment gateway. You should check if the pricing is per transaction or volume based. You should also check to see the differences in pricing for local payment methods, as these can quickly affect your cash flow. FX rates and hidden fees in cross-border payments can eat into profit margins.

    Cash flow ebook bannerCash flow ebook banner mobile

    Conclusion: What’s the best international payment gateway?

    The best international payment gateway is the one that best suits your business.

    Multi-currency and local payment support for your customers is key. Then, finding an affordable pricing structure for your business is the next step. Ease of integration is the last key to success.

    Choosing the right business account to receive payments into can also make a big difference. For example, you can link Wise Business to Stripe or Amazon to receive international payments to local account details - saving money on cross border fees.

    manage-your-international-business


    Sources:

    1. Payment Gateway Market Size is expected to reach at USD 106.4 Billion by 2030
    2. Stripe Revenue and Market Share in 2023
    3. Stripe Payments | All-in-One Account, Gateway, and Processor
    4. Stripe global availability
    5. Stripe Payment Methods for Business
    6. Pricing & fees | Stripe Official Site
    7. Stripe: Local payment methods pricing
    8. Stripe Revenue and Market Share in 2023
    9. Payflow Payment Gateway Service | PayPal US
    10. Payflow Gateway
    11. Payment processing with Square.
    12. A payment link that does it all | Square Online Checkout
    13. International Availability | Square Support Center - US
    14. Does Square allow or handle currency conversion for international customers?
    15. Can I accept Multiple Currencies with Square?
    16. Understanding Our Fees | Square Payments
    17. Worldpay
    18. Worldpay Payment Processing | FIS
    19. Countries and languages | Adyen Docs
    20. Dynamic Currency Conversion | Adyen Docs
    21. Payment Methods - Adyen
    22. Full list of prices for supported payment methods - Adyen
    23. Pricing | 2Checkout
    24. Cross-border payments fee charges | Documentation | 2Checkout
    25. Reach More Buyers | Braintree Payments
    26. Braintree Direct | Braintree Payments
    27. Pricing | Braintree Payments
    28. Payment Gateway Pricing - Checkout.com
    29. Multi-Currency Accounting & Invoicing Software | Sage US
    30. Credit and Debit Card Processing | Sage US
    31. Integrated Payment Solutions | Sage US
    32. Business Cloud Accounting Software Pricing | Sage US
    33. Secure Checkout and Payment Options | Amazon Pay
    34. FAQ: Amazon Pay multi-currency capabilities
    35. Merchant frequently asked questions | Amazon Pay Help
    36. Amazon Pay fees | Amazon Pay Help

    All sources checked June 21, 2023.


    *Please see terms of use and product availability for your region or visit Wise fees and pricing for the most up to date pricing and fee information.

    This publication is provided for general information purposes and does not constitute legal, tax or other professional advice from Wise Payments Limited or its subsidiaries and its affiliates, and it is not intended as a substitute for obtaining advice from a financial advisor or any other professional.

    We make no representations, warranties or guarantees, whether expressed or implied, that the content in the publication is accurate, complete or up to date.

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