Best Payment Gateways
Compare online payment gateways for SMEs and freelancers.
| Vendor | Monthly fee | Online card rate (UK) | In-person terminal | Contract | Payout speed | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stripe | 0 | 1.5% + 20pStandard UK card | Stripe Terminal available | None | 2–3 days standardInstant for fee | Developers, SaaS, marketplaces |
| PayPal | 0 | 2.9% + 30pStandard domestic | Via Zettle reader | None | Instant to PayPal1–3 days to bank | Consumer trust, broad recognition |
| Adyen | ~£100/mo minimum | Interchange++ (lowest at scale) | Adyen Terminal | None (volume min.) | Negotiated SLA | Enterprise; £10M+ annual volume |
| Checkout.com | Custom | Custom / interchange+ | Limited | Custom | Enterprise SLA | Scale-ups, global enterprise |
| Braintree | 0 | 1.9% + 20pUK standard cards | No | None | 2–3 business days | Mobile apps, custom checkout design |
| Authorize.net | $25/mo + $0.10/txn | Via acquirer (custom) | No (US-focused gateway) | None | 2–3 business days | US merchants; recurring billing |
| Opayo (Elavon) | From ~£25/mo | Via Elavon acquirer | No (gateway only) | Typically 12 mo | Via acquirer | UK/Ireland ecommerce; Sage users |
| Mollie | 0 | 1.8% + €0.25Cards; iDEAL €0.29 flat | No | None | Next business day | European SMEs; iDEAL/Klarna/SEPA |
| Razorpay | 0 | 2%India-primary; UK limited | No | None | T+2 | India-based businesses |
| Helcim | 0 | Interchange + 0.5% + 25¢avg ~2.49% + 25¢ online | Card reader $99 | None | 1–2 business days | Growing businesses $10k+/mo; US/CA |
| Shopify Payments | Included in Shopify plan£25–£259/mo | 1.5%–2% + 25pDepends on plan | Via Shopify POS | Month-to-month | Yes | Shopify store owners |
| Amazon Pay | 0 | ~2.7% + 30pUK standard; +0.4–1.5% cross-border | No | None | Varies by cycle | Stores with high Amazon Prime overlap |
| Apple Pay | 0 | Processed via your PSPNo extra fee from Apple | Via NFC on reader | N/A | Via underlying PSP | Add-on method, not standalone |
| Google Pay | 0 | Processed via your PSPNo extra fee from Google | Via NFC on reader | N/A | Via underlying PSP | Add-on method, not standalone |
| Worldpay | From £17.50/mo18-mo contract | Custom IC+ / blended | Yes (terminal rental) | 18-mo minimum | Within 30 min | High-volume omnichannel merchants |
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We independently review payment providers for UK tradespeople, SMEs and freelancers.