Every time a customer buys from you, three companies take a cut. Visa (or Mastercard), the payment gateway, and your processor. Most business owners don't realize they can choose who gets that middle slice — and the difference between a good and bad gateway can cost you thousands per year. Here are the five we'd trust with our own revenue.
The 30-Second Rankings
- 🥇 Stripe — Best overall for online businesses
- 🥈 Square — Best for omnichannel (online + in-person)
- 🥉 PayPal — Best brand trust for conversion
- #4 Adyen — Best for global expansion
- #5 Helcim — Best interchange pricing for high volume
#5 — Helcim: The Fee Transparency Champion
Interchange + 0.5% + $0.25 · No monthly fee
Helcim offers interchange-plus pricing — you pay the actual card network rate plus a tiny markup. On a $50 transaction, that's ~$1.50 vs. Stripe's $1.75. It doesn't sound like much, but at $50K/month, you save $2,500+/year. No long-term contracts, no hidden fees, and a genuinely helpful support team.
Catch: Helcim requires underwriting and isn't available in all countries. Not for micro-businesses doing a few transactions a month.
#4 — Adyen: Built for Global Scale
Custom pricing (typically 2.5-3.5% + $0.20-0.30)
Adyen supports 150+ currencies and 250+ payment methods, including local favorites like iDEAL, Alipay, and WeChat Pay. If you're expanding internationally, Adyen's single-platform approach is a game-changer — one integration, one reporting dashboard, one payout. The revenue-sharing model means fees drop as you grow.
Catch: Adyen is overkill for domestic-only businesses. Custom pricing means you need volume to negotiate.
#3 — PayPal: Conversion King, Fee Villain
2.99% + $0.49 · No monthly fee
PayPal's brand recognition boosts conversion by 15-30%, especially on mobile. PayPal Pay Later and Venmo increase average order value. 400M+ active users means most customers already have an account and trust it. The problem? Higher fees, more surcharges (chargebacks, currency conversion, international), and occasional fund freezes.
Smart move: Use PayPal alongside Stripe or Square as a payment option, not as your primary processor.
#2 — Square: The Omnichannel Leader
2.9% + $0.30 online · 2.6% + $0.10 in-person · Free card reader
Square is the only gateway that truly unifies online and in-person payments. The free POS software, free card reader, and e-commerce integration make it ideal for businesses with a physical presence. The dashboard is the easiest to use of any gateway we've tested — our non-technical team members consistently prefer it.
Catch: Less customizable than Stripe for complex online setups. Account holds can be aggressive for certain industries.
#1 — Stripe: The Gold Standard
2.9% + $0.30 · No monthly fee
Stripe is the most versatile, developer-friendly, and feature-rich gateway on the market. 135+ currencies, subscriptions, marketplaces, invoices, Payment Links, Stripe Terminal — it does everything. The API is best-in-class, and the documentation is so good it's used as a teaching resource. For any online-first business, Stripe is the default choice for good reason.
Catch: The learning curve is real. Non-technical users should start with Payment Links or Checkout.
Which One Should You Pick?
🏆 Stripe — For Most Online Businesses
Flexible, global, and packed with features. The standard for a reason.
Square — If You Have a Physical Store
The online + in-person unification is unmatched. Free hardware is a bonus.
Helcim — If You Process $10K+/mo
Interchange-plus pricing saves serious money at volume. Worth the underwriting process.
Disclosure: Some links on this page are affiliate links.