How To Choose A Payment Gateway For Your Business

How to pick a payment gateway provider for an end-to-end payment processing experience

1. Safety and compliance with standards

Firstly, pick a payment gateway that meets the PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard) security standards. It is mandatory for all companies that process, store, or transmit payment data. Having a certificate means that you are not in danger of information leakage and reputational losses.

Also pay attention to the additional security features that the payment gateway offers. For example, the 3D Secure function. How does it work? Imagine that the client makes a payment, and the system requests confirmation of identity. This reduces the risk of fraud and protects your customer base.

Another significant security tool is two-factor authentication. This method requires additional confirmation of the user's identity via SMS code, email, a special PIN code application, and so on. Make sure that the payment gateway supports data encryption when transmitting information. Encryption ensures secure data transfer between the client, payment gateway, and bank. Even if the information is intercepted, it will remain inaccessible to unauthorized persons,

2. Support for various payment methods

For your business to work successfully, it is extremely critical that the payment gateway supports as many payment methods as possible. This will make it more convenient for both your customers and your business.

Bank cards (Visa, Mastercard, American Express, etc.). Support for the main payment cards is mandatory, because this is the most common method of online payments.
Local and alternative payment methods. If your business operates in a specific regional market, it is important to take this into account and provide support for popular local payment systems. In addition, you must provide payments via Apple Pay and Google Pay.
Digital wallets and cryptocurrencies — although cryptocurrencies are still not the main payment method, their support can help businesses attract a new audience.

3. Transparent commission structure

Payment gateways typically offer various types of fees, which can include both a flat fee for each transaction and a percentage of the total transaction amount. But other than that, pay attention to additional fees:

• commission for currency transactions or currency conversion;
• commission for international transactions;
• transaction processing fee outside business hours;
• fee for certain payment methods;
• refund Fee.

It is especially important while choosing the best payment gateway for small business, where each additional expense can significantly affect cash flow.

4. Easy integration

The payment gateway does not fly somewhere in the air, but must be connected to something — a website or business application. So firstly, make sure that the selected payment gateway supports integration with the platform that your site or app runs on. Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, and BigCommerce have ready-made plugins for integration with popular payment gateways.

Choose a payment gateway that has an official plugin for your platform, because it guarantees better compatibility and stability in operation. If your site or application is built on a unique platform or a self-developed system, pay attention to the SDK and API support provided by some payment gateways.

Make sure that the payment gateway provides detailed technical documentation with step-by-step instructions, code examples, recommendations for using the API, and answers to frequently asked questions.

5. Availability in your business countries

What makes a good payment gateway? When it works with US banks and support the requirements and regulations governing online payments in that country.

Do you work with other countries? Choose a payment gateway that supports
multi-currency operations. In addition, pay attention to convenient currency conversion at a competitive exchange rate. This is especially important for businesses that receive payments in one currency but operate in a country with a different currency.
For businesses operating in countries with strict payment regulations, it is also significant to check whether the selected gateway supports the requirements of these countries. For example, some countries require data storage on local servers or special user identification procedures.

6. Customer support

Problems appear, and this is OK. But it is important that they are solved. Make sure that your chosen payment gateway provides prompt support that responds quickly to requests and can help you resolve technical or financial issues.

If your business operates in Europe, but the selected payment gateway provides support only in the US, this can create inconvenience and lead to long delays in solving issues. Therefore, take into account the opening hours of technical support.

Choosing a B2B payment system is also subject to these rules. And if you want to learn more about B2B payment solutions, read our new article.

How to pick the right payment gateway: 3 tips

1. Compare multiple providers
Before choosing a single payment gateway, we recommend that you compare several options. How to compare payment gateway providers? We also write about payment gateway comparison in our blog. So check our website!

2. Try the demo version or test mode
Many payment gateways offer demo versions or test modes that allow you to evaluate the interface's performance, configuration, and usability.

3. Read other users' reviews
Feedback from other businesses and users who already use this payment gateway will help you get a realistic idea of its advantages and possible disadvantages.

By picking the right payment gateway, you can significantly increase customer satisfaction from using your service and ensure the reliability of financial transactions. So, which payment service provider is the best? You can decide via our list of payment providers! We have gathered the best and reliable companies that deserve your attention in one place.