Most of the SaaS companies no matter how big or small have been widely using Stripe for years to process payments. The truth is Stripe is not the only payment processor out there, there are many more other services that could be used for the same. It’s better to use the right payment processor that you need for online payments and recurring invoices rather than relying on selectiveness of Stripe.
Stripe is the most popular payment processors used for SaaS and eCommerce payment settlements online. Its model is the most suited one for today’s rapid payment procedures. They charge 2.9% fee for each transaction processed and works for the customers who do not own any credit card. You are required to pay higher if you are using more features or a higher-level subscription model on your system to charge your customers for various SaaS services. For example if you $30 for a simple basic account but also charge higher for the premium account– the processing fees through Stripe would also increase.
To small-time SaaS businesses this fees model is very hard to digest as their profits are based on fewer customers who and they don’t them to be charged extra for the same when they increase the services verticals.
Here we have mentioned some of the top payment processors with the same payment processing services and slightly broader goals that define their uniqueness.
#1 PayPal
One of the very first online payment methods was PayPal and it’s still used by most of the people online and even by various companies. Over the years, Paypal has garnered immense respect and the payments can be paid for a number of services through it including SaaS companies, AirBnB and many others.
With 24/7 cusomter support, PayPal is certainly the better payment processor online. One of the biggest drawbacks is PayPal after a billing cycle you cannot cancel the subscription.
#2 Authorize
If you are looking for a number features in a payment processing service, Authorize.net has to be your first choice. It comes with tons of features that most of the services on our list lack—including Stripe. For instance PayPal and Stripe do not allow receive recurring payments while Authorize.net allows that.
The other most important aspect of Authorize is there are loads of user-guides and videos are available to make the payment processing smooth. It’s so minimalist that it can be operated in phone or web very easily.
#3 Braintree
BrainTree is a popular payment processor that allows credit cards, Apply Pay and several other payment options to be processed through it. We can use its free version if the processing of payments is under $50K, for any more there are premium plains and the first one starts at $29.
Stripe charges 2.9%+0.30c while BrainTree charges almost the same at 2.9% + $0.30 for each transactions made using their services or APIs. Overall BrainTree is not a bad choice either given to its varied available resources.
#4 Dwolla
For all those SaaS and other small-time freelancers who have transaction volume less than $10K for the first month in transactions it can be processed free of cost. Dwolla is almost the minimalist payment processor that has nailed everything and simplified payments. It can be used instead of Stripe and does pretty much everything that Stripe offers. There are not many fees for account setup or monthly-based and it supports various currencies.
It’s 24/7 support is also very active and there are many other options that we can use in terms of emergencies such as fraud detection, risks and direct bank transfers.
#5 Adyen
The Dutch company Adyen is also a major payment processor used across the whole Europe, Latin and North America. What makes Adyen different from the rest payment processors on our list is their range is very extensive. From giant companies to single-page apps, brick and mortar stores and recurring payment features– all can be done on a single platform.
They are operating 200 countries. Free trials and subscriptions are also available. Most of its plans are just like Stripe’s no upfront fees initially and but charges are incurred for using different services on a montly basis.
#6 Worldpay
If you are a UK-based and looking for a native payment processor than Worldpay is a better substitute to Stripe. They are almost as old as PayPal and into the business since early 2000s. We can process credit/debit cards, direct bank transfers, similar payment processors like PayPal through it. It works for all. It supports an array of different currencies and is currently operating in over 120 countries.
The best feature of Worldpay is native customer support, they offer support in the native langauge of the customer.
Worldpay is considered most secure online payment method which is member of the PCI Security Standards COuncil that decides rules for online payment processing by ensuring the security of the payments online. You can check detailed analysis on how to keep the customer data secure while making the eCommece payments.
#7 Skrill
Skrill is one of the Paysafe group products which was founded back in 2001. They have 20 million-worldwide customers and over 45 currencies are supported. There are currently more than 2,000 business using Skrill in 2023.
You can use Skrill like Stripe to process eCommerce payments, move funds from one business to the other and recurring invoices can be dealt through it. This way, Skrill can be considered the best substitute on our list while dealing SaaS recurring payments.
