As you’re setting up your Shopify store, you may be wondering if the built in Shopify payment gateway is suitable for your requirements. Or you may already be a Shopify merchant and have stumbled upon the realization that some products cannot be sold through Shopify’s own Payment gateway. Whether you are a complete novice or just need some information, we explain below exactly the right one you should choose for your needs and the things to consider before making your decision.
Shopify Payment Solutions for Restricted and Prohibited Items
What to look for in a Payment Gateway for your Shopify Store?
What is a Payment Gateway?
A payment gateway is a company that processes payments for a merchant and transfers the funds to the merchant’s account. There are many payment gateways available, and these are the top payment options for Shopify stores. There are many payment gateways available for Shopify, so it can be a bit overwhelming to choose between them so we’ve listed the ones available including their benefits and fees.
Shopify Payment Gateway
This is Shopify’s own payment gateway. The biggest benefit of using the built in Shopify payment gateway is the ease of use. You only need to supply your bank details and Shopify does the rest. There is no need for any extra complicated set up. Plus if anything does go wrong, you can contact Shopify immediately for support and they will have all the information available to them. If you are on a basic plan, the transaction fees are 2% + 25p for every online transaction. On the Shopify plan, the transaction fees go down to 1.7% + 25p and then finally, if you are on the advanced plan the transaction fees will be 1.5% + 25p.
Shopify Additional Payment Gateways
Shopify allows for other Payment gateways for a variety of reasons. One of those reasons is when a merchant wants to sell products that Shopify deem to be prohibited. Another reason is that other payment gateways offer more flexibility with customisation and offer extra services that Shopify Payments does not.
Stripe
Stripe is a popular Shopify Payment Gateway solution but is similar to Shopify Payments itself as Shopify use Stripe for their payment gateway. So many of the benefits will be the same as that of Shopify Payments.
The transaction fees associated with having Stripe as the payment gateway are the same as Shopify Payments.
Paypal & Paypal Express
Paypal is another common payment solution on Shopify. Incredibly easy to use, Paypal offers both paid and free options for merchants along with good support available.
Paypal also offers pay later and “paypal credit” options so your customers can buy now and pay over installments later.
The transaction fees for paypal can range between 1.9% to 3.4% per sale. Whilst using Paypal will incur you third party transaction fees (ranging between 0.5%-2%) on Shopify, setting up Paypal Express on your Shopify store will mean that you do not need to pay these third party fees. Just remember to activate Shopify payments alongside PayPal Express otherwise you will be charged the third party transaction fees.
Amazon Pay
Amazon Pay is suitable for those who have an Amazon professional seller account and this option may be better for those who receive lots of orders each month. Amazon Pay may not be suitable for smaller merchants as the money from transactions can take a few days to come through. As Amazon Pay is a third-party payment provider, there will be additional fees ranging between 0.5%-2% depending on the Shopify plan you are on.
Klarna
If you want to offer more incentive to your customers then having Klarna as a payment option may be better for your store. Klarna allows your customers to buy their purchase now and then pay later via 3 interest-free installments. Using Klarna as a payment method for your customers is very beneficial to you as a merchant because even if the customer is unable to pay off their purchase to Klarna, you will still receive the full amount.
The transaction fees for Klarna begin from 1.9% per sale + £0.20 and if you have a high sales volume store then the transaction fee may be even lower.
Klarna is only available in certain locations and extra third party transaction fees will also apply depending on which plan you are on and where your location is based.
Opayo
Opayo, formerly SagePay, is a well-regarded payment solution for Shopify merchants in the United States and the United Kingdom.
Opayo's payment software is versatile, catering to both online and offline transactions, and it prioritizes secure payments, even allowing customers to use PayPal.
Choosing Opayo ensures reliable and secure handling of customer transactions, although there are concerns about the security level in its customer authentication process. A notable drawback is the extended account verification process, lasting around five weeks, during which transaction management is temporarily restricted.
Opayo differs in pricing from other Shopify payment options on this list. The first option is a monthly fixed fee of £25, along with a transaction cost of 0.99% or more (initial 350 transactions are complimentary). Alternatively, the Pay as You Go plan includes a one-time joining fee of £99, a transaction fee of 1.99% or more, and a gateway click fee of £0.12, requiring payment whenever a customer clicks to pay.
World Pay
WorldPay is a popular payment option for Shopify stores, known for its secure and flexible transaction services. It allows you to sell products online, take payments over the phone, and accept credit/debit card transactions.
One notable advantage is its support for over 120 different currencies, providing flexibility for transactions worldwide. Additionally, WorldPay does not charge extra for refunds.
WorldPay is praised for its reliable customer service, and its pricing is based on the number of sales you process, making it suitable for businesses of different sizes. It also has strong fraud protection features, ensuring secure transactions for businesses operating in more than 100 countries.
WorldPay offers two plans: Standard and Advanced Gateways, priced at £19 and £45 GBP per month, respectively. WorldPay also offers pay as you go option with a transaction fee of 2.75% + £0.20.
WorldPay is a solid choice for Shopify merchants looking for secure and adaptable payment processing.
Shop Pay
Shop Pay is an easy-to-use payment option on Shopify that lets customers save their payment details and shipping info for a quicker checkout on any Shopify store. It's like PayPal, making it simple for customers to buy things again quickly.
With Shop Pay, customers can also choose to pay for their order right away or split the total into four equal payments with no extra charges or interest.
What makes Shop Pay better than some other options, like Klarna, is that it's part of Shopify, so customers don't get redirected away from the store. This makes it the ideal payment choice to keep customers on your site. Merchants get the full payment once the order is done, minus the Shop Pay service fee. In a nutshell, Shop Pay is a straightforward and integrated payment solution for Shopify that benefits both merchants and customers.
For Shopify merchants, the transaction fees are 2% for the Basic Shopify plan, 1% for the Shopify plan, and 0.5% for the Advanced Shopify plan.
Shopify Payment Solutions for Restricted and Prohibited Items
If you are using Shopify Payments, then you have to keep in mind that some products are restricted by Shopify Payments and you won’t be able to sell them in your store.
Some examples of prohibited products include certain financial services, adult toys, CBD oil products, vape and tobacco products, anything to do with gambling, fireworks.
However, in order to get around this, you can use some alternative payment gateways.
Paytriot
Paytriot is a UK based payment gateway solution and offers many benefits including multi currency transactions and fraud detection. Paytriot is perfect for Shopify stores whose products include CBD oil items or gambling to name a few. Paytriot offers payment solutions for other high risk stores also.
Zion Payments
Zion Payments is another UK based payment solution which offers a secure, reliable, yet simple payment solution for your Shopify store. It is easy to integrate and offers international payments too.
As both Paytriot and Zion Payments are third party payment solutions, Shopify will charge between 0.5%-2% for transaction fees.
Overall, the fees associated with accepting payments on your Shopify store will depend on the payment provider you select. Some payment providers charge merchants a fee for using their service. Other payment providers may not charge a fee, but take a percentage of your transaction amount. Therefore, it’s important to research the pricing of all payment providers before selecting a payment method for your store. You should also understand what fee each payment provider charges and how much your profit will be after the fees have been deducted from your sales.
What to look for in a Payment Gateway for your Shopify Store?
While there are many payment providers available for your Shopify store, not all of them will have the same features. Before you select a payment provider, you should do your research and find a payment method that best suits your business. Here are a few tips for choosing the best payment provider for your Shopify store.
Below we list some key things to consider when you are trying to choose the most suitable payment gateway for your Shopify store.
Transaction Fees
This is a very important point to consider for the majority of merchants as it can make a big difference. You can compare the payment gateways we have listed above in more detail to see which will be suitable for your needs.
Accepted Payment Cards
Some payment solutions may not accept certain cards so this is a key thing to consider and question before choosing your payment solution. Going with a payment gateway that for example does not accept Mastercard may ultimately affect your profits as it may prevent certain customers from purchasing on your store.
Worldwide Availability
If you have a Shopify store with the intention to be global, you will need to ensure that the payment solution you have chosen is able to accept payments globally. For example, if you stick with Shopify payments, there are certain areas of the world where Shopify payments is not accepted.
Multiple currency support
Similar to worldwide availability, if your reach is international and a lot of your customers pay using foreign currency then choosing the payment solution that offers multiple currency support will be a big advantage for you.
Customer Transaction Experience
You also want to consider what the payment solution is like - it should be intuitive, easy to follow and simple for your customers. You don’t want any additional barriers that may prevent your customers from making a transaction so choosing the payment solution that offers a smooth checkout process is definitely something to consider.
Availability of Fraud Detection Features
With lots of new scams popping up daily, you need a payment gateway that is smart enough to detect and handle any possible fraud occurring. This is vital for you especially if you are a small business.
Security
One way to defend against any fraud or scam is to implement a payment gateway that has increased levels of security. You want your customers to be able to shop knowing that their information is secure and you will also want to ensure that your payment solution is as secure as possible.
Mobile payment support
Mobile payments are increasing year on year as our tech gets smarter so enabling a payment option for mobile is something you may wish to consider. Does the payment gateway you are considering offer mobile payment support?
On mobile, you can also enable both Apple Pay and Google Pay and there won’t be any extra costs associated with this - only what you are paying normally for transaction fees.
However, you will need to enable Shopify Payments to activate Google Pay. Additionally Google Pay is not available if your Shopify store is located in France.
For Apple Pay, you can enable it but you will need to ensure you are using one of the following payment providers: Shopify Payments, Stripe, First Data Payeezy, Authorize.net, CyberSource or Braintree.
Integration with other systems
Integration is an important point especially if you are looking at third party payment solutions for your Shopify store, you will want to ensure that the integration is seamless. However, keep in mind that there may be some payment gateways that require developer knowledge and experience to set up.
Offline payments
Point of Sale (POS) is a system that businesses use to manage sales transactions and you may also wish to consider a payment gateway solution that allows you to take payments in person, offline. Quite a few payment gateways cater to the hybrid method but make sure to research properly in case there are additional fees associated with in person payments.
Analytics
You may wish to gather some data to analyse your transactions and this can actually be very useful when you are trying to understand trends. Analytics is another thing to consider when choosing your payment solution.
Limits
Finally, you will want to ensure that once you have chosen your desired payment gateway, that there are no hidden limitations or that you are not just on a ‘basic’ plan.
Radiant can help with Shopify Payments
So, these are some important points you must keep in mind while choosing a payment gateway for your Shopify store. Make sure you do enough research before selecting a payment gateway for your store. When you choose wisely, you can be sure that your business will be profitable. Here, at Radiant, we are experts when it comes to Shopify Payments. If you need help integrating any third party payment gateway on your Shopify store, contact us today.
