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The Best International Payment Processors For Selling Across Borders
Many payment services specialize in specific types of business, so find one that matches your risk profile and operates in the markets you're hoping to break into.
Chris has been writing about small business topics since 2003. He has been featured in Fox Business, ABC News, Yahoo Finance, GoBankingRates, Newsweek, BizJournals, and other publications. He has a Bachelor’s of Arts in English Writing Arts from SUNY Oswego, and a Masters of Science in Interactive Media from the University of Central Florida.
WRITTEN & RESEARCHED BY
Chris MotolaChris has been writing about small business topics since 2003. He has been featured in Fox Business, ABC News, Yahoo Finance, GoBankingRates, Newsweek, BizJournals, and other publications. He has a Bachelor’s of Arts in English Writing Arts from SUNY Oswego, and a Masters of Science in Interactive Media from the University of Central Florida.
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Frank has been writing about payment processing and business services since 2015. He is a retired Air Force officer and a former practicing attorney. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from The Pennsylvania State University and a Juris Doctorate degree from the Ventura College of Law.
REVIEWED BY
Frank KehlFrank has been writing about payment processing and business services since 2015. He is a retired Air Force officer and a former practicing attorney. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from The Pennsylvania State University and a Juris Doctorate degree from the Ventura College of Law.
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Selling across borders can expand your business’s market exponentially, but if you want to be able to take a payment from thousands of miles away, you’re going to need an international payment processor.
Below, we’ll take a look at how international payment processing works and some of the best options for international merchant accounts.
An international merchant account allows a business to accept and process payments online using the local currencies of customers living in other countries worldwide.
For example, if you’re an American merchant selling to a British customer, an international merchant account would allow you to accept payment in pounds sterling in addition to US dollars. Depending on the gateway, it may convert the foreign currency for you or route it to a bank account specifically set up for that currency.
International Merchant Accounts As High-Risk Accounts
Businesses in high-risk industries sometimes seek international merchant accounts if their industry isn’t well-served by domestic merchant services. This is out of the scope of this particular article, but you can find what you’re looking for in our best offshore merchant account providers feature.
How The International Merchant Services Companies Compare
Here are the best international merchant services that provide international payment processing, international payment gateways, and international merchant accounts for a variety of circumstances. Our selection criteria evaluate cost, transparency, contract requirements, and features:
PaymentCloud: Best for high-risk eCommerce businesses
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Pros
No account setup fee
High-risk merchants supported
Reasonable rates and fees
Cons
No publicly-disclosed pricing
Limited support for point of sale
Why PaymentCloud Is The Best Choice For High-Risk eCommerce Businesses
High-risk businesses can be in a tough spot when it comes to credit card processing in general, and international payment processing is no exception. PaymentCloud is one of the most honest players in the high-risk payment processing industry, keeping extraneous fees and disadvantageous terms to a minimum. The processor uses Authorize.Net (which is also on this list) for its payment gateway, which can grant you access to markets in the US, Australia, and Canada.
PaymentCloud Features
PaymentCloud specializes in card-not-present transactions, which includes eCommerce.
PaymentCloud’s features include:
Payment gateway
Shopping cart integration
ACH and eCheck processing
Cryptocurrency processing
Merchant cash advances
PaymentCloud Pricing
Because PaymentCloud is a high-risk processor, pricing is specific to the customer. However, PaymentCloud has developed a reputation for fair pricing in the high-risk niche. Just keep in mind you’re going to be paying a little bit more as a high-risk merchant.
Technical skill required to get the most out of it
Why Stripe Is The Best Choice For Handling Multiple Currencies
Stripe's global reach exceeds most of its competitors. Stripe is available in 46 countries, supports over 135 currencies, and supports many local payment methods, making it easy for customers to pay with their preferred method.
Stripe's deep customization options can further work in your favor by allowing you to avoid exchange fees. For example, you can accumulate separate balances in different currencies with Stripe, which it then routes to different bank accounts. If you don't want to do that, Stripe can still make the conversion for you, but it comes with an additional 1% fee.
Stripe Features
Stripe is a developer-centric payment processor that also boasts exhaustive support for foreign currencies and payment methods.
Stripe’s features include:
Integrated payment gateway
Checkout pages and payment links
ACH processing
Invoicing
Subscription billing
Business management tools
Financing available to some customers
Global tax tools
Stripe Pricing
Stripe’s online transaction fees start at 2.9% + $0.30. International transactions add 1.5% to your transaction fees, and currency conversion an additional 1%.
Why Helcim Is the Best Choice For Interchange-Plus Pricing With No Monthly Fee
Helcim does something extremely rare: it offers transparent interchange-plus pricing and a full merchant account with no monthly fee. Helcim's price structure is set up to reward volume, meaning that it's a better deal the higher your sales volume is.
Helcim, a Canadian company, is well-suited for selling to our neighbor to the north as it can support transactions in both US and Canadian dollars. While it can support transactions in more countries, they need to be conducted in one of the two supported currencies.
Helcim Features
At Merchant Maverick, we tend to be pretty big fans of interchange-plus pricing. It is, by far, the most transparent way to bill for payment processing, letting you know exactly where your fees are coming from and how much you’re paying for each swipe. Helcim offers interchange-plus pricing and more, making it well worth your consideration as an international processor.
Notable features include:
Payment gateway
Online store
Hosted payments page
Product and inventory manager
Helcim Pricing
Helcim’s pricing decreases the higher your transaction volume is. Rates start at interchange + 0.50% + $0.25 for online transactions.
Corepay is geared primarily toward eCommerce with a diverse selection of payment gateways and offshore account options, as well as MOTO-only accounts for companies that exclusively need support for mail or telephone orders.
For high-risk businesses selling in the US and UK, Corepay offers a quick and easy solution for payment processing. International reach can also be expanded with your choice of payment gateways like Authorize.Net.
Corepay Features
Corepay features include:
High-risk & low-risk merchant accounts
eCommerce specialists
MOTO (Mail Order/Telephone Order) only accounts also available
24-48 hour account approval timeframe
Offers NetValve proprietary payment gateway. Also integrates with Authorize.Net, NMI, Inovio, etc.
Offers CB-ALERT anti-fraud software
ACH processing available
Corepay Pricing
Corepay has no application or account setup fees. As is typical for high-risk processors, Corepay does not disclose transaction fees and maintenance fees.
Why Durango Merchant Services Is The Best Choice For International High-Risk Merchants
High-risk merchants get a bad rap in the payment processing industry and are often shunned by popular services. That said, there are payment processors that think selling a little CBD oil isn't such a big deal. Durango Merchant Services falls into the latter category and, while it isn't necessarily the cheapest option on the block, offers a quality service with international capabilities.
Durango offers most of its customers month-to-month contracts with no early termination fees. However, certain businesses that are considered especially high-risk may be asked to sign a contract with a more extended term. Durango uses a proprietary gateway, a necessary feature for eCommerce, and includes it at no additional charge.
Durango offers international merchant accounts with currency conversion services for Canada, Panama, the UK, and most countries in the EU. These accounts also come with additional fraud prevention services.
Durango Merchant Services Features
Notable features include:
Integrated payment gateway
High-risk merchant accounts
Offshore merchant accounts
Shopping cart integration
eCheck processing
Cryptocurrency processing
Durango Merchant Services Pricing
As is typical for high-risk processors, Durango Merchant Services does not publicly disclose rates. These are generally negotiated on a case-by-case basis.
Why 2Checkout Is The Best Choice For Businesses That Need Strong eCommerce Tools
2Checkout has an impressive international reach, with availability in over 200 countries and the ability to process over 100 different currencies. Not too many other services can take you that far around the globe.
What's unique about 2Checkout is its branding as a "monetization platform." A lot of this is due to a merger a few years back between 2Checkout and a company called Avangate that specialized in selling digital goods. As a result, 2Checkout offers a lot of bells and whistles useful for optimizing the sale of digital products, such as A/B testing, cart abandonment prevention, and conversion rate optimization. Most of these are available as add-ons, so you can pick and choose what you want to pay for.
2Checkout Features
2Checkout is an eCommerce-only payments platform with a well-developed set of tools designed to monetize digital sales.
Just be aware that 2Checkout doesn’t offer any support for card-present transactions at all, so it’s not a good solution for businesses that also engage in brick-and-mortar retail. Also, keep in mind that 2Checkout is a third-party processor, so it’s not a good fit for high-risk merchants.
Can be used with many different merchant accounts providers
Broad support for international transactions
Month-to-month billing
Cons
Usually cheaper when bundled with another service
Currency support is regionally limited
Why Authorize.Net Is The Best Choice For Standalone Payment Gateway For Businesses That Sell Internationally
eCommerce requires both a payment processor and a payment gateway. Many payment processors offer gateway support with their service or as an add-on. In the case of Authorize.Net, it's the reverse. It's a payment gateway that offers optional merchant account services through its partners.
Authorize.Net can accept transactions from merchants located in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, the EU, or Australia and can handle 11 different currencies. As long as you're based in one of those countries, you can accept payments from anywhere in the world. Currency support, however, is pegged to your region by default. So if you're located in the US, you'd get currency support for US and Canadian dollars.
Authorize.Net Features
Authorize.Net’s features include:
Standalone payment gateway
Simple checkout
Recurring billing
Customer information manager
ACH and eCheck processing
Authorize.Net Pricing
As a standalone gateway, Authorize.Net charges $0.10 per transaction and a $25/month gateway fee. These fees may vary when bundled with merchant services.
Why PayPal & Braintree Are Best For Raw International Reach
PayPal can process transactions in over 130 currencies from 45 countries. Further, PayPal offers its own branded infrastructure and payment method, which is a common way to pay for things online. Businesses that can handle some coding, as well as those that prefer their own dedicated merchant account, will find Braintree more to their liking. Those looking for simplicity and quick approval may prefer PayPal's third-party processing service (the usual cautions about account stability apply).
Between the two services, you can probably find an option that works for your business, though companies that want a merchant account without a lot of tech-related hassle may not find what they're looking for.
PayPal/Braintree Features
When it comes to online payments, no brand has the name recognition and reach of PayPal. While it has few unique qualities, Braintree has been owned by PayPal since 2013, so we’re grouping the two branded services into one entry.
Features include:
Integrated payment gateway
Native eCommerce integrations
Online checkouts and payment links
Pay In 4
Cryptocurrency support
Contextual checkout buttons
Recurring billing
ACH processing
PayPal/Braintree Pricing
Flat fee online transactions for both PayPal and Braintree start at 2.59% + $0.49. As PayPal’s fee structure has become quite complicated, learn more by reading our full breakdown of PayPal’s fees.
Why Adyen Is Best For Large International Businesses
Adyen powers the transactions of corporate giants, such as McDonald's, Microsoft, and eBay. As you might guess, these companies have substantial international processing needs, which Adyen can accommodate.
One of the major selling points for Adyen is the number of payment methods it can potentially support. And unlike some other international payment processors, you can process uncommon (for the region in question) payment methods. For example, you could implement Alipay payments within North America.
Adyen Features
Adyen’s features include:
Integrated payment gateway
One-click checkouts
Recurring billing
Omnichannel sales tools
Currency conversion
Adyen Pricing
Adyen’s transaction fees vary by volume and payment method but start somewhere around interchange + 0.6% + $0.12.
Merchant Maverick has been researching the payment processing industry since 2009. Our writers have reviewed hundreds of credit card processors, merchant account services, and mobile payment apps, evaluating each provider carefully on several different metrics.
Weighted Rating Breakdown
Fees & Rates 35%
Contract 20%
Products & Services 15%
Sales & Advertising Transparency 15%
Customer Service 10%
User Reviews 5%
When comparing different payment processing companies and applications to one another, we consider numerous data points. Our experts start by comparing credit card processing rates, the presence of additional fees, contract length, sales practices, and the presence or absence of additional features and services, like point of sale software. Each provider is judged on its own merits and how well it stacks up to industry standards; then it is weighed against the other providers on the list.
We spend an average of 10-15 hours researching and updating each one of our lists, making sure every company or application included meets our internal standards for quality and reputation. Any list of recommended payment processors on our site might contain a mix of standard merchant accounts, third-party payment processors, mobile payment devices, and high-risk payment processors, depending on what our expert feels is the best fit for certain scenarios or business types.
For additional details about Merchant Maverick’s review and rating processes, please refer to any or all of the following methodology pages:
While Visa and Mastercard are fairly ubiquitous throughout the world, other payment methods and systems have developed independently. That means that the international payments scene is largely fragmented, with narrow bridges connecting all of these systems. Traditionally the solution has been wire transfers, a fairly quick but expensive way of sending money long distances, and one generally not suited for high-volume payment processing.
For example, the United States uses a system called the automated clearing house (ACH) to handle bank-to-bank transfers. Within the States, it’s a nearly ubiquitous part of settling transactions ranging from credit cards to moving money in and out of your digital wallet. Meanwhile, much of Europe uses a system called SEPA. In China, it’s a system called CNAPS. And that’s just bank-to-bank transfers.
Some payment processors and peer-to-peer payment methods (such as PayPal and Wise) can serve as a bridge between the underlying payment systems in different countries. You’ll often be charged a markup for international transactions and currency conversions, but this will usually be significantly less than the fee for wiring money.
Why You Need A Great International Payment Gateway
When you’re dealing with eCommerce, sooner or later, you’re going to run into the concept of a payment gateway. While they sound similar, they are not the same thing as payment processors.
Payment Processors
A payment processor is required for completing any card-based transaction. The processor transmits the sale and card information from the point of sale (you, the merchant) to and between the issuing bank (the cardholder’s bank) and the acquiring bank (your bank). The processor will provide a merchant account or aggregate you into a collective merchant account in the case of a third-party processor, which will temporarily hold the payment and deduct all applicable fees from it.
You never directly access your merchant account. Instead, funds will be transferred to your bank account from your merchant account automatically once all the background processing is complete.
Payment Gateways
A payment gateway adds another step to this process. It securely transmits data to the payment processor and communicates to the customer whether the transaction has been accepted or declined. Gateways can also do substantially more, such as provide support for multiple currencies and allow you to do business overseas. You can think of a gateway as being the “online” portion of your payment services. While a gateway is optional for an in-person card transaction, it’s necessary for any online purchase.
If you’re doing business overseas without a physical retail location in that market, you’ll need a gateway with international capabilities.
Some payment services companies are “full-stack” service providers, meaning they combine the functionality of a payment processor and a payment gateway into a single service. This includes companies such as Square and Stripe. It also means you can’t mix and match your merchant account and your gateway; they’re joined at the hip.
10 Concerns For International Credit Card Processing
Some additional things to keep in mind when you’re accepting international payments include:
Exchange Rates
Exchange rates can be confusing, especially if you’re trying to optimize them. They’re in a constant state of flux, and that’s before you factor in service fees from banks or services that make the exchange for you. Make sure you know who is exchanging currency in your payment pipeline, what they’re using to determine the exchange rate, and how much they charge for making the exchange.
Cross Border Fees
Many payment methods charge additional fees for international purposes. Visa charges the Visa International Service Assessment (ISA) fee, while Mastercard charges an International Cross Border Fee and an Acquirer Program Support Fee. Banks may also charge ISA fees whenever a foreign card is used for a transaction.
Most popular payment types have similar fees. If possible, you’ll want to minimize these.
Conversions On Dispute
If you thought chargebacks and disputes were fun on domestic charges, international disputes add in another factor: the exchange rate. Because exchange rates fluctuate, the amount that’s refunded may be more or less than what was originally paid. In most cases, you’ll be expected to refund the exact amount of the purchase to the customer, so you may end up eating (or benefiting from) the second conversion.
Multiple Merchant Or Bank Accounts
Depending on the service you use and your accounting preferences, you may prefer to use multiple accounts to separate sales in different markets. This can add cost and complexity but can also save you money that you’d otherwise lose by changing currencies. Talk with your accountant to get a sense of the best way to optimize your payment infrastructure.
Your Risk Profile
Many payment services consider doing business internationally to be a risk factor. This shouldn’t be a problem if you’re working with payment services that specialize in international sales, but if you’re mixing and matching your services, be aware that it could trigger some flags.
Additional Functionality
Does the payment processor play nice with your company’s accounting software? If you’re moving physical goods, does it help you track and move your inventory? Whether it offers these features as part of its platform or through integrations, a good payment processor will provide a smooth pipeline for your sales channels.
Enhanced Security
You’re going to be doing business in more than one system, possibly in multiple currencies. The last thing you need is to have customer info exposed.
Handling Multiple Currencies
There are a lot of perks to being the world’s reserve currency — US dollars are exchanged all over the world. However, the ability to accept payment in local currencies will save your customers some headaches and will probably increase your sales in foreign markets overall. This includes being able to display the cost of your product in the local currency on your shopping cart.
Support For Foreign Payment Methods
Visa and Mastercard can take you pretty far in foreign markets, but if your gateway supports local payment methods that are popular in those markets, you’ll have an edge. These methods include Alipay, which is popular in Asia and also used in Australia and parts of Europe (some American retailers also accept it). It also can’t hurt to have support for digital wallets (such as Apple Pay and Google Pay).
Global Tax Support
Have you heard of a VAT (value-added tax)? Turns out, the US is one of a minority of UN member nations that don’t have one. The short of it is that it’s a tax levied on each stage of production but generally collected by the end retailer. Having your gateway service worry about this for you will save you a lot of grief.
How To Choose The Best International Payment Processing For Your Business
Choosing the best small business payment processing for small business can pretty complicated decision. Choosing one that offers excellent support for international commerce doubly so. Many payment services specialize in handling a specific type of business, so you’ll want to pick one that matches your risk profile and operates in the markets you’re hoping to break into. Consider any other perks they offer that will make it easier for you to present and sell your particular product. And finally, pay as little as necessary for the features you need.
In the meantime, we can offer more information about specific topics we were only able to touch on in this post. Want to know more about what to expect from cross-border fees? Curious about what other payment types you might encounter out in the wild? We can teach you everything you need to know about alternative payment methods.
Chris has been writing about small business topics since 2003. He has been featured in Fox Business, ABC News, Yahoo Finance, GoBankingRates, Newsweek, BizJournals, and other publications. He has a Bachelor’s of Arts in English Writing Arts from SUNY Oswego, and a Masters of Science in Interactive Media from the University of Central Florida.
View Chris Motola's professional experience on LinkedIn.
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The vendors that appear on this list were chosen by subject matter experts on the basis of product quality, wide usage and availability, and positive reputation.
Merchant Maverick’s ratings are editorial in nature, and are not aggregated from user reviews. Each staff reviewer at Merchant Maverick is a subject matter expert with experience researching, testing, and evaluating small business software and services. The rating of this company or service is based on the author’s expert opinion and analysis of the product, and assessed and seconded by another subject matter expert on staff before publication. Merchant Maverick’s ratings are not influenced by affiliate partnerships.
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