Ready to start selling online? Great! But not so fast. First, you’ll need a payment gateway. That’s not always the easiest decision to make.
What Is a Payment Gateway?
A payment gateway is a secure technology that transmits payment data between the customer, merchant, and payment processor. It acts like a digital point-of-sale terminal, encrypting credit card details to authorize transactions, prevent fraud, and route funds from the customer’s bank to the merchant’s account. You don’t need to understand every detail of how payment gateways work to run an eCommerce store, but knowing the basics will help you make better decisions.
Think of a payment gateway as a secure bridge between your customer’s payment information and your bank account. It safely collects and encrypts your customer’s credit card information during checkout. Most payment gateways offer valuable features such as recurring billing, fraud protection, invoicing, and multi-currency payments. Modern payment gateways accept other payment types as well. These include ACH payments, digital wallets (such as PayPal and Google Pay), and cryptocurrencies.
Where Do I Get a Payment Gateway?
Some payment gateways are available directly from the service provider. For example, you can sign up for Authorize.net on their website. However, you can’t get a high-risk merchant account directly from Authorize.net, and that’s where AllayPay comes in.
Other gateways are only available through your payment processing company. For example, FluidPay and NMI gateways are only available through a merchant service provider. These are typically ‘white-labeled’ payment gateway solutions, so many merchants are not even aware that they exist.
Helpful tip: Your payment processor can help negotiate down the price of the monthly and per transaction fees for your gateway.
At AllayPay, we’ve partnered with over 15 payment gateway providers to offer the best payment options tailored to your unique business needs. Let’s explore some of our top picks, compare how these payment gateways work, and help you choose the right one for your business.
The Top Payment Gateways
New eCommerce merchants and card-not-present businesses are surprised to learn about the many payment gateway services available from various payment gateway providers. They might also be surprised to learn that popular “all-in-one” solutions like Stripe and PayPal aren’t always the best choice for your specific business needs or payment methods.
NMI and Authorize.net are two of the most popular payment gateways available today. FluidPay is another excellent option, though it’s newer and thus has fewer plugins available as compared to NMI and Authorize.net.
The best payment gateways have these features in common:
- Strong performance and reliability with a 99.99% uptime
- Customizable for a variety of needs
- Advanced security features to keep your customer information safe
- Modern features like recurring payments and alternative payment options
- Built-in hosted payment pages and invoicing modules
- Reliable customer support when you need it most
- Robust API for connectivity to CRM systems and shopping carts
These gateways help businesses process payments efficiently and securely.
Now let’s take a closer look at how NMI, Authorize.net, and FluidPay compare.
NMI
NMI (Network Merchants, LLC) is a powerful, customizable payment gateway that works well for any size business that requires advanced payment features. You can obtain your NMI payment gateway through your payment processor, ISO, or agent.
Features
- Strong developer tools & API documentation
- Recurring billing and subscription management
- Payment links and electronic invoicing
- Multi-channel payment support (eCommerce, POS, virtual terminal, mobile)
- Advanced security and fraud prevention (PCI DSS Level 1 compliance)
Pros
- It is highly customizable and supports a wide range of integrations
- Advanced security features and fraud prevention tools
- Supports recurring billing, subscriptions, multiple payment types, multicurrency, and most of the top payment processors in the world
- Accepts high-risk businesses that can’t use other gateways owned by companies like Stripe or PayPal
Cons
- Load balancing, which is the practice of using multiple merchant accounts to spread risk for the merchant, works more like buckets. Once filled, it simply switches over to the next processor and is not customizable.
- Standard built-in merchant dashboard, not very customizable
- Can’t search by Authorization ID in transactions
- Slow to make any feature requests
- Not flexible with certain pricing methods (will prevent adding fees on debit cards)
- No SMS invoice links
- Can’t create an invoice to send later
Authorize.net
Authorize.net is like the Toyota of payment gateways. It’s very reliable, widely adopted, and suitable for businesses of all sizes and types. It supports a broad range of industries and functions smoothly for most standard needs. High-risk businesses can also use Authorize.net but will need a company like AllayPay to set up a high-risk merchant account.
With Authorize.net, businesses can receive payments from customers through multiple channels, including online stores, in-person transactions, and eCommerce platforms.
Features
- Supports many alternative payment types (mail-order, ACH, Apple Pay & more)
- Prebuilt and custom integrations with shopping carts
- Strong security features, recurring billing, & subscription management
- Invoice creation features
Pros
- Trusted brand (owned by Visa)
- Works for any size business and any risk level
- Been around since 1996
- 24/7 customer support
Cons
- No SMS invoice links
- No Surcharging or Convenience fee options
- No load balancing (can’t have more than one processing account on the same gateway)
- Agents can’t log in to merchants’ accounts to assist
- Extremely dated user interface
FluidPay
FluidPay is a newer, cloud-based payment gateway with a modern user interface. It supports a variety of payment methods, including credit cards, ACH, and digital wallets such as Apple Pay, Google Wallet, and Samsung Pay. You can only get FluidPay through a partnered payment processor like AllayPay.
Features
- Customer Vault lets you securely store customer payment info in the gateway
- QuickBooks PaySync for accounting integrations
- Level 3 processing for B2B transactions
- EMV terminal support for in-person transactions
- WatchDog fraud management tool
- Great developer API
Pros
- Very easy to use
- Added security on hosted payment pages with email and/or SMS verification to prevent card hacking
- SMS Invoicing options
- Customizable customer receipts and user reports
- Option to enhance features for a fee. White-label options for custom branding for agents and ISOs
- Smooth integration with popular shopping carts for eCommerce
Cons
- Fewer prebuilt integrations when compared to NMI or Authorize.net
- Batch reporting can be somewhat tricky to navigate
- Refunds with surcharging will not report properly in the transaction view
- Card spinning protection is only available using their ‘global security settings’
Choose the Best Payment Gateway for Your Business Type
Choosing the right payment gateway, including options for embedded payments and payment methods, is all about finding the best fit for your business. There’s a lot to consider, like fees, security for online transactions, payment types (credit cards, debit cards, ACH, mobile wallets, etc.), and your budget.
Start by thinking about your needs:
- Do you need to send invoices via SMS?
- Do you need the same system to take in-person payments with a card reader?
- Do you sell internationally?
- Do you want to implement surcharging or convenience fees?
- Do you need enhanced fraud features?
- Do you need more than one merchant account on the same gateway?
Integration is another big one. The right gateway should connect easily with your eCommerce online store or POS system. A good API or plug-and-play integration can make setup a breeze and improve the customer experience.
Final Thoughts on Choosing the Best Payment Gateway
Every business should consider its specific needs and evaluate the best payment gateway providers and payment processors when choosing a payment gateway. The best payment gateway will depend on the specific needs of each merchant. Thus, it’s best to walk through the specific needs with your account rep to ensure you get everything you are looking for in a payment gateway.
Ready to get started? Contact us today for a free consultation and let us find the best payment gateway for your business.
