Popular Payment Gateways: How Do They Compare?

With dozens of payment gateway providers to choose from, how do you know which one is best for your business? 

Payment Gateways Defined

A payment gateway enables merchants to process credit cards by facilitating smooth communication between the cardholder’s bank (issuing bank) and the merchant’s bank (acquiring bank). Payment gateways utilize robust security standards to keep data safe when it is transmitted. Some gateways, like Cardknox, provide merchants with a broader range of payment processing features and benefits.

There are a lot of things to consider when you start shopping for a payment gateway. Here’s a short list of some of the main components common to most payment gateways and some questions to keep in mind when making a decision. 

• Integrations with e-commerce platforms – Does the gateway offer easy integrations or plugins for e-commerce platforms like WooCommerce and Magento?
• Fee structure – How is pricing set up? Is it a flat rate? Are there transaction fees, setup fees, or monthly charges that affect overall pricing?
• Payment methods – Does the gateway support both in-store and online payment methods like credit and debit cards, ACH payments, and mobile wallets?
• Cardholder data security features – Does the gateway feature fraud detection and prevention tools to ensure Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) compliance?
• Currencies – Does the gateway offer support for multiple currencies to enable international sales?
• Recurring billing – Does the gateway provide options for scheduling regular fixed payments like subscription services?
• Customer service – Does the payment gateway have an in-house team? Are they accessible via phone, email, and/or chat?

Choosing the Right Gateway

There is no one “perfect” payment gateway provider; each one has its own unique pros and cons. The features that are most important to you will vary depending on your industry and type of business, although certain features, like security tools and data encryption, are important for all types of businesses. Not all payment gateways offer the same products and services, so it can be hard to compare “apples to apples.” So, it’s important to look for solutions that appeal to your business’ unique needs. For example, do you sell internationally? If so, then you need a payment gateway provider that supports multiple currencies. What about processing fees? Depending on your cash flow, you may find that a monthly flat rate works better for your business than per-transaction pricing. 

The following chart highlights a few key comparisons between popular payment gateway providers for small- to medium-sized businesses.

Custom-Built Solutions

At Cardknox, we will manage the onboarding process and customize features and payment flows for both in-store and online payment processing based on your merchants’ needs. Cardknox supports a wide range of hardware and software, including Verifone, Pax, Ingenico, and many more terminals and devices. We also support leading POS systems and e-commerce platforms such as WooCommerce and Magento, as well as popular ERP solutions such as NetSuite and QuickBooks.

With an abundance of niche solutions and built-in rate optimization for a variety of industries, it’s no wonder that software developers across every major vertical have made Cardknox their payment gateway of choice. Click here to reach out to us for more information about how Cardknox can supercharge your payment processing setup and discover why Cardknox offers the best payment processing products and services available.