Complete guide to merchant account fees in the UK
Read our complete guide to merchant account fees in the UK, covering how they work, tips to save money and a comparison of fees from popular providers.
Starting an ecommerce business and need a payment solution? There are lots of different options out there, so it can be tough to know which one to choose.
In this guide, we’ll make it a little easier with a head-to-head comparison of two of the big names in payments processing. It’s Stripe vs. Payoneer on fees and pricing, security, features and more.
We’ll even show you a way to get paid easily from customers all over the world using a Wise Business account, which links seamlessly to payment service providers (PSPs) like Stripe.
💡 Learn more about Wise Business
Let’s kick things off with an at-a-glance comparison of Payoneer and Stripe based on their pricing and key features:
Service | Stripe | Payoneer |
---|---|---|
Pricing | Varied fees per transaction type, plus costs for physical POS terminals Standard fee 1.5% + £0.20 for local cards¹ | Varied fees per transaction type Up to 3% to send payments Up to 3.99% to receive credit card payments Free to receive payments into local receiving accounts² |
Trustpilot rating | 2.4³ ⭐ | 3.9⁴ ⭐ |
Invoice payments | ✅ | ✅ |
Recurring payments | ✅ | ✅ |
International payments | ✅ | ✅ |
API integrations | ✅ | ✅ |
Checkout solution | ✅ | ✅ |
Payment links | ✅ | ✅ |
In-person payments | ✅ | ❌ |
Payoneer is a US-based platform that allows businesses to make and receive payments across international borders. It’s aimed at small-to-medium sized companies, particularly ecommerce businesses which sell online. However, it can also be used by freelancers and other types of entrepreneurs.
Payoneer’s services are split by customer type - Freelancer, Business and Marketplace, each offering a range of specially tailored services.
The main features of Payoneer include:
- International payments
- Local receiving accounts
- Client billing
- Purchasing
- Bank withdrawals
- Multi-currency conversions
- Connect to Marketplaces like Amazon and eBay
- Website payments with Payoneer Checkout
- Payment cards
Payoneer has a ‘Great’ rating of 3.9 on TrustPilot, based on over 53,000 reviews.⁴
Payoneer is a payment gateway, providing payment gateway, payment processing and online checkout services.
A payment gateway is an online platform which allows businesses to accept payments from their customers, usually via credit or debit card, as well as other forms of electronic payment (such as Apple Pay and Google Pay, for example).
Yes, Payoneer is safe to use. The company is PCI DSS level 1 certified and works with large, trusted partner banks to safeguard customer funds. Its customers include huge companies like Google and Airbnb.⁵
It also uses advanced security measures, including:⁵
- 2-factor authentication and CAPTCHA requests to secure account access and verify transactions
- RSA adaptive authentication
- Account takeover prevention
- Risk model and behaviour profiling
- Fully monitored transactions to prevent fraud, identity theft and phishing
Payoneer is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK.⁵
Payoneer doesn’t have subscription fees, as it uses a per-transaction pricing model.
Here are the kind of fees you can expect to pay to use the platform:²
Transaction type | Payoneer fee |
---|---|
Online payments | Pay - up to 3% Receive - Up to 3.99% to receive credit card payments |
International | Pay - up to 3% Receive - Free to receive payments into local receiving accounts |
Refund | Varies |
Chargeback | Varies |
Stripe is a comprehensive payments processing platform aimed at businesses of all sizes. The Irish-American company’s customers are primarily ecommerce businesses, but anyone who sells online will find its services useful.
Features of the Stripe platform include:
- Local and global card payments
- Physical card terminals
- Online and digital payment methods
- Invoicing and recurring billing solutions
- Payment links
- Low and no code solutions as well as more complex, tailored options
- Support with tax, user identification, business management and more
New to Stripe? Find out everything you need to know in our complete Stripe Payments review |
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As for what its existing customers think about Stripe, it’s not overwhelmingly positive. The company gets a ‘Poor’ rating of 2.4 on TrustPilot (from more than 14,000 reviews).³
Yes, Stripe is safe to use, as it’s a level 1 Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS) provider.⁶
To maintain this status, Stripe has to have a number of security measures in place. This includes:
- Maintaining a secure network and systems
- Encrypting and securely storing any sensitive data held
- Using industry level security to prevent malware and viruses
- Having strong access control measures
- Regularly testing systems and processes to spot and correct any vulnerabilities
- Having policies in place that clearly set out security measures expected and applied
Stripe is also FCA regulated in the UK.
Read more about Stripe security here |
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Now we come to that all-important question - how much will it cost your business to use Stripe? Let’s put Stripe and its fees under the microscope.
Stripe uses a per-transaction pricing model. This means that it doesn’t charge subscription fees, instead imposing charges for each payment and individual service you use.
Here are the main Stripe fees you need to know about:¹
Transaction type | Stripe fee |
---|---|
Local cards payments | 1.5% + £0.20 for standard UK cards 1.9% + £0.20 for premium UK cards |
International card payments | 2.5% + £0.20 for cards issued in the EEA 3.25% + £0.20 for cards issued anywhere else + 2% fee if currency conversion is needed |
Chargebacks (disputes) | £20 per payment |
Recurring payments (billing) | 0.5% per payment |
Invoicing | 0.4% per invoice |
To help you choose the most cost-effective payment processing solution for your needs, here’s a head-to-head comparison of fees for both Payoneer and Stripe:
Transaction type | Stripe fee¹ | Payoneer fee² |
---|---|---|
Online payments | 1.5% + £0.20 for standard UK cards 1.9% + £0.20 for premium UK cards | Pay - up to 3% Receive - Up to 3.99% to receive credit card payments |
International | 2.5% + £0.20 for cards issued in the EEA 3.25% + £0.20 for cards issued anywhere else + 2% fee if currency conversion is needed | Pay - up to 3% Receive - Free to receive payments into local receiving accounts |
Refund | Varies | Varies |
Chargeback | £20 per payment | Varies |
While you’re researching payment gateways and processors, it could also be worth looking into how you’ll manage business funds across borders.
Open a Wise Business account and you can hold and exchange 40+ currencies at once. You can send payments to 140+ countries and get local account details to get paid in 8+ currencies like a local.
Use your Wise account to get paid in a selection of major foreign currencies by customers and clients, through marketplaces - and via PSPs like Stripe. Whenever you need to send, spend or exchange foreign currencies, you’ll benefit from the mid-market exchange rate, with low, transparent fees.
You’ll also benefit from all of these features:
- No ongoing fees, minimum balance requirements or foreign transaction fees
- Debit and expense cards for you and your team, which you can use in 150+ countries
- Multi-user access for team members, with ways to control and manage permissions
- Pay up to 1,000 people at once with the Wise batch payments feature
- Integrate with your favourite cloud accounting solutions, and use the Wise API for automation and streamlining workflow
- Use the Wise Interest feature to make your money work harder when you’re not using it
With the help of a truly global account, your business can grow beyond international borders.
Get started with Wise Business 🚀
After reading our comprehensive review of Stripe vs. Payoneer, you should have all the info you need to compare the two payment solutions.
We’ve covered everything from fees and pricing to features and security, all to help you choose the best fit for your business.
Sources used:
Sources last checked on date: 20-Jun-2024
*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.
Read our complete guide to merchant account fees in the UK, covering how they work, tips to save money and a comparison of fees from popular providers.
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