9 best Stripe competitors in 2024

Square is a third-party payment processor that supports in-person, online and mobile transactions. New companies choose Square over Stripe because it’s easier to deploy, offers basic business tools and has a more extensive hardware selection. Indeed, Square is the best Stripe alternative for startups wanting an out-of-the-box point-of-sale (POS) and payment processing solution.

Like Stripe, Square displays rates online and doesn’t require long-term contracts. Both processors charge 2.9% plus $0.30 per transaction for online sales. In-person prices differ, Square costs 2.6% plus $0.10 per purchase and Stripe is 2.7% plus $0.05.

Aside from payment processing, startups can manage inventory and track customer purchases. Square provides free POS software with built-in customer relationship management (CRM) tools, whereas Stripe doesn’t have an integrated POS system. However, high-risk businesses or high-volume sellers may prefer another Stripe competitor, such as Paysafe or ProMerchant.

Learn More: Read our full Square review.

PayPal is a user-friendly Stripe alternative and a well-known consumer payment method. It’s the best Stripe competitor for flexible digital payments because it offers many solutions, from payment buttons to custom integrations.

While Stripe lacks POS software, PayPal provides PayPal Zettle. It’s an out-of-the-box processing and POS solution that supports contactless payments like Apple Pay. Retailers can add no-code buttons to their websites or use quick response (QR) codes. Besides major credit cards and digital methods, PayPal offers Venmo and buy now, pay later options.

Businesses looking for payment processors like Stripe appreciate PayPal’s international support. PayPal works in 202 countries, whereas Stripe is supported in 46.

However, PayPal’s rate structure is complex, and some merchants report delayed or frozen funds. Additionally, PayPal must preapprove certain services or items before merchants can accept payments.

Learn More: Read our full PayPal review.

Helcim is a merchant account provider offering transparent pricing and a free POS system for unlimited users. Growing businesses looking for cheaper alternatives to Stripe appreciate Helcim’s scalable rate structure. As your processing volume increases, Helcim automatically reduces your rates. Also, Helcim is among the top-rated providers on our list of the cheapest credit card processing for small businesses.

Helcim’s business tools include free invoicing software and subscription management. Unlike Stripe, Helcim doesn’t charge extra for recurring payments. We like that Helcim offers five price tiers, with Helcim’s margin ranging from 0.15% to 0.40% plus $0.06 to $0.08 per transaction. Although this is on top of the interchange fees, companies with higher sales volumes could receive lower rates through Helcim than Stripe’s flat rate pricing model.

However, Helcim integrates with fewer third-party platforms than Stripe. For more e-commerce flexibility, check out PayPal or National Processing. Likewise, Helcim doesn’t work with most high-risk businesses, like drop shippers or car rental agencies. It sells a smart terminal and a card reader, but you can’t purchase POS terminals, printers or kitchen systems.

Learn More: Read our full Helcim review.

Paysafe is the best Stripe alternative for high-risk businesses. It has 25 years of experience in the payment industry and approves merchants often turned away by other processing companies. Paysafe works with i-gaming, travel and airline agencies, direct marketing firms, trading and crypto services.

We were impressed with Paysafe’s risk and fraud tools, which allow business owners to view on-demand reports and set customizable fraud filters.

Paysafe is a SwipeSimple and Clover reseller, giving companies several software and hardware options. The cash discount and surcharge programs offer solutions to reduce credit card processing costs.

Paysafe supports slightly fewer currencies (40) and processing regions (across the E.U., U.K. and North America) than Stripe. While Stripe discloses rates on its website for each transaction type, Paysafe provides limited details. The processor also receives poor ratings for its customer service department, which could be a red flag.

Learn More: Read our full Paysafe review.

For a Stripe alternative with exceptional analytics, consider Elavon Payment Processing. Merchants can customize reports to view high-level and granular details about chargebacks, card brands and more. The reporting tools provide 17 data field filters, and the interactive dashboards keep leaders updated on the latest payment information.

Elavon designs industry-specific solutions and may work with some high-risk businesses on a case-by-case basis. Yet, it lacks the pricing transparency Stripe provides. Companies must request a quote and review the terms carefully for administrative fees.

Although merchants cite longer customer service wait times, Elavon offers multilingual support and is suitable for international payment processing. Small businesses and startups may prefer a more straightforward solution like Square.

Learn More: Read our full Elavon Payment Processing review.

If you’re looking for a Stripe competitor to equip your store or restaurant with payment and POS hardware, check out Clover. It supplies mobile credit card readers, dual-side POS systems and compact tablet units. Even professional and field workers may prefer Clover’s convenient mobile units (Clover Go) as a cheaper alternative to Stripe. Clover Go’s in-person transaction fee is 2.6% plus $0.10 vs. 2.7% plus $0.05 for Stripe.

Brick-and-mortar businesses can build an online presence with Clover’s e-commerce solutions. It seamlessly integrates with BigCommerce and supports online marketplaces like Facebook, Amazon, eBay, Instagram and Etsy. Companies can leverage Order with Google or provide delivery services through Uber Eats, Postmates or DoorDash. In addition, Clover’s accounting and payroll integrations reduce manual data entry.

However, in most cases, you will pay higher upfront costs for Clover compared to Stripe due to the hardware fees and POS software (which Stripe doesn’t offer). The investment is long-term, as other processing solutions may not work with Clover’s equipment.

Learn More: Read our full Clover review.

ProMerchant is a credit card processing company dedicated to helping businesses navigate merchant services. It’s the best Stripe alternative for personalized support because every company can access a responsive team from the day they start the approval process. Application approvals occur within two to 24 hours, and merchants can accept payments within 48 to 72 hours. Moreover, ProMerchant doesn’t charge early termination fees or require long-term contracts.

Although it lacks online rate transparency, ProMerchant explains its pricing models. It offers an interchange-plus fixed rate or zero-cost processing plan. Both have monthly fees.

ProMerchant doesn’t provide many e-commerce integration details online. However, the merchant company provides gateway and technical support experts to help businesses set up online payment processing. Likewise, your account director or support expert assists with card reader or terminal setup and operation. ProMerchant supplies reporting tools and analytics. However, it doesn’t have a built-in POS system like Square or Helcim.

Learn More: Read our full ProMerchant review.

Intuit Payments supports in-store, mobile, online and invoice transactions. However, its straightforward pay-as-you-go or subscription-based pricing makes Intuit Payments a cheaper alternative to Stripe. Whereas Stripe charges 0.4% to 0.5% per paid invoice (on top of the processing fee of 2.9% plus $0.30), businesses pay a flat rate (2.99%) through Intuit Payments.

In addition, companies processing over $2,500 monthly through Intuit Payments may qualify for discounted rates. There are no monthly fees or minimums with a free QuickBooks Money plan, whereas each paid Stripe invoice still incurs another 0.4% to 0.5% fee.

We love that Intuit Payments handles multiple payment methods, including PayPal and Venmo, which Stripe doesn’t support. And, like Stripe, Intuit Payments offers payment links. Intuit Payments provides real-time invoice tracking and same-day or next-day deposit options.

We wish Intuit offered 24/7 customer support and a complimentary card reader like Square. Its merchant services integrate seamlessly with QuickBooks software, but it’s not a good fit for companies that use third-party accounting programs like Xero or Wave.

Learn More: Read our full Intuit Payments review.

National Processing is a cost-effective Stripe competitor offering multiple application programming interfaces (APIs) and e-commerce integrations. Unlike Stripe, eligible merchants can receive a free terminal and mobile card reader. It provides a complimentary gateway setup and works with companies canceled or turned down by other merchant account providers.

National Processing recommends its gateway for sites built from the ground up, as businesses can save money compared to using Authorize.net. Aside from custom integrations, National Processing integrates seamlessly with BigCommerce (a feature also offered by Clover). Ecwid users can deploy National Processing right from their control panel. Other e-commerce platforms like WooCommerce, Zendesk, OpenCart and Shopify may require third-party plugins or have additional fees.

National Processing lacks the value-added services Square and Helcim provide, like POS software.

Learn More: Read our full National Processing review.