Online Payment Processors 2026: Independent Ranking for Small Businesses
We compare services that let a small business or online store accept card payments, on verifiable facts only: the standard online card fee as the provider publishes it, the fixed fee per payment, whether there is a monthly fee, what a chargeback costs, whether a financial regulator licenses the provider, whether it is certified under PCI DSS and how fast money reaches your bank account. Every fact links to an official page and carries the date we checked it. This is not financial advice: providers set prices by country, card type and business risk, so check the offer for your own business. Paid placements never change the Score.
| # | Company | Who it serves | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Square | 83 | 2.9% | $0.30 | Yes | 1 days | 8 | No monthly fee Licensed PCI DSS Listed company |
| 2 | Adyen | 72 | Not verified | $0.13 | Yes | 2 days | Not verified | No monthly fee Licensed PCI DSS Listed company |
| 3 | Stripe | 70 | 2.9% | $0.30 | Yes | 3 days | 51 | No monthly fee Licensed PCI DSS |
| 4 | Mollie | 67 | 1.8% | $0.28 | Yes | Not verified | Not verified | No monthly fee Licensed PCI DSS |
| 5 | Razorpay | 65 | 2% | $0.00 | Yes | 2 days | Not verified | No monthly fee Licensed |
| 6 | SumUp | 62 | 3.5% | $0.15 | Yes | 1 days | 38 | No monthly fee Licensed |
| 7 | PayPal (business) | 59 | 3.0% | $0.49 | Yes | Not verified | 200 | No monthly fee Licensed PCI DSS Listed company |
| 8 | PayPal Braintree | 53 | 2.9% | $0.29 | Yes | Not verified | Not verified | Licensed PCI DSS Listed company |
-
- Online card fee
- 2.9%
- Fixed fee per payment
- $0.30
- Licensed by a financial regulator
- Yes
- Payout to your bank
- 1 days
- Countries for businesses
- 8
Pros
- Regulator licence with a number on the official site
- Validated under PCI DSS as a service provider
- Pay per transaction, with no monthly fee
- Money reaches your bank account quickly
Details Visit site ↗ 100% backed by facts
-
- Online card fee
- Not verified
- Fixed fee per payment
- $0.13
- Licensed by a financial regulator
- Yes
- Payout to your bank
- 2 days
- Countries for businesses
- Not verified
Pros
- Regulator licence with a number on the official site
- Validated under PCI DSS as a service provider
- Pay per transaction, with no monthly fee
Details Visit site ↗ 77% backed by facts
-
- Online card fee
- 2.9%
- Fixed fee per payment
- $0.30
- Licensed by a financial regulator
- Yes
- Payout to your bank
- 3 days
- Countries for businesses
- 51
Pros
- Regulator licence with a number on the official site
- Validated under PCI DSS as a service provider
- Pay per transaction, with no monthly fee
Details Visit site ↗ 93% backed by facts
-
- Online card fee
- 1.8%
- Fixed fee per payment
- $0.28
- Licensed by a financial regulator
- Yes
- Payout to your bank
- Not verified
- Countries for businesses
- Not verified
Pros
- Regulator licence with a number on the official site
- Low standard fee for online card payments
- Validated under PCI DSS as a service provider
- Pay per transaction, with no monthly fee
Details Visit site ↗ 77% backed by facts
-
- Online card fee
- 2%
- Fixed fee per payment
- $0.00
- Licensed by a financial regulator
- Yes
- Payout to your bank
- 2 days
- Countries for businesses
- Not verified
Pros
- Regulator licence with a number on the official site
- Low fixed fee per payment
- Pay per transaction, with no monthly fee
Details Visit site ↗ 72% backed by facts
-
- Online card fee
- 3.5%
- Fixed fee per payment
- $0.15
- Licensed by a financial regulator
- Yes
- Payout to your bank
- 1 days
- Countries for businesses
- 38
Pros
- Regulator licence with a number on the official site
- Pay per transaction, with no monthly fee
- Money reaches your bank account quickly
Details Visit site ↗ 79% backed by facts
-
- Online card fee
- 3.0%
- Fixed fee per payment
- $0.49
- Licensed by a financial regulator
- Yes
- Payout to your bank
- Not verified
- Countries for businesses
- 200
Pros
- Regulator licence with a number on the official site
- Validated under PCI DSS as a service provider
- Pay per transaction, with no monthly fee
Cons
- High fixed fee per payment
- High fee for each chargeback
Details Visit site ↗ 83% backed by facts
-
- Online card fee
- 2.9%
- Fixed fee per payment
- $0.29
- Licensed by a financial regulator
- Yes
- Payout to your bank
- Not verified
- Countries for businesses
- Not verified
Pros
- Regulator licence with a number on the official site
- Validated under PCI DSS as a service provider
Details Visit site ↗ 71% backed by facts
Not ranked yet: not enough verified data
These services are known to us, but we haven't verified enough facts to rank them fairly.
- 2Checkout (Verifone) (site closed to automated checks, )
- Checkout.com (34% backed by facts)
- Lemon Squeezy (49% backed by facts)
- Mercado Pago (49% backed by facts)
- Paddle (54% backed by facts)
- PayU (64% backed by facts)
- Payoneer (Checkout) (62% backed by facts)
- Revolut Business (site closed to automated checks, )
Sites marked as closed refuse automated reading (403 error, captcha or a robots.txt ban). We don't bypass such protection, so we can't verify their facts and they are not ranked. This says nothing about their quality. A company can send links to its official pages to [email protected].
How we calculate the Score
45%
Cost
The standard published rate for an online payment with a domestic consumer card, on a plan with no monthly fee (from 1% scores 100 to 5% or more scores 0), the fixed fee per payment in USD (0 to $0.50), whether there is no monthly fee, and the chargeback fee (0 to $25). We take the provider's US page; if it does not serve the US or its site sends us to another country's page, we use the page we are shown, convert at the ECB rate and name the market. Interchange++ and custom quotes give no percentage, so that fact stays empty.
45%
Licence and security
A licence or authorisation from a financial regulator with a number on the provider's own legal page or in the regulator's register (for example US state money transmitter licences in NMLS, De Nederlandsche Bank, the FCA, the Central Bank of Ireland, the Reserve Bank of India), PCI DSS validation as a service provider, and company age (20+ years scores in full).
10%
Payouts
The standard time until money from a card payment reaches your bank account, as the provider states it, not counting the first payout (0 days scores 100, 7 days or more scores 0). Where the fee depends on the payout speed, we take the same option as for the fee.
How to choose a payment processor
Count the full cost, not only the percentage
Add the fixed fee per payment, the monthly fee, fees for international cards and currency conversion, and the chargeback fee. On small orders the fixed fee can cost more than the percentage.
Check that your country is supported
A processor must support the country where your business is registered and pay out to a local bank account. The list of supported countries is usually on the provider's site.
Check the licence and the contracting entity
Find out which company in the group signs your contract and which regulator licenses it. Your money between payment and payout is held by that company.
Ask about holds and reserves
The first payout often takes longer, and providers can hold part of your money as a reserve if they see risk. Read the terms on payout schedules, reserves and account closure before you start.
Think about tax and chargebacks
If you sell digital products abroad, VAT and sales tax rules apply. A merchant of record takes this on for a higher fee; with a plain processor, tax and chargebacks are up to you.
Frequently asked questions
Which payment processor is the best for a small business?
The provider ranked first has the highest Score under our open methodology. But your real cost depends on your country, average order, card mix (domestic, international, business cards) and how many chargebacks you get, so ask two or three providers for the price for your own business and compare the full cost.
Why are some fees for the US and others for Europe or India?
Card fees are set by country: in the EEA interchange fees are capped by law, so European rates are lower than American ones. We take the provider's US page; if a provider does not serve the US or its site sends us to another country's page, we use that page, show the market and convert at the ECB rate. Compare providers within the same market where you can.
What is Interchange++ and why is the fee empty for some providers?
Interchange++ means you pay the card issuer's interchange fee, the card scheme fee and the provider's own markup separately. The total depends on each card, so there is no single percentage to publish. Large providers such as Adyen and Checkout.com price this way or by quote, so their percentage fee stays empty and they score lower on cost.
What is a merchant of record?
A merchant of record, such as Paddle or Lemon Squeezy, sells your product to the customer in its own name: it collects and pays sales tax and VAT, handles chargebacks and refunds, and pays you the rest. The fee is higher than plain card processing because it includes this work, so compare it with a processor's fee plus your own tax compliance costs.
How can I check that a payment processor is licensed?
Look for the licence number on the provider's legal or licences page and check it in the regulator's public register: NMLS Consumer Access in the US, the FCA register in the UK, De Nederlandsche Bank or the Central Bank of Ireland in the EU, the RBI list of payment aggregators in India. Also check which company in the group signs your contract.