If you run an online business, it’s crucial to accept credit card payments online to maximize your profit potential. The tricky part of this process, however, is that many third-party payment services charge hefty fees for their services. This guide walks you through how to accept credit card payments online without spending a dime through one of the most effective methods available today: the free Stripe payment gateway. Check it out!

Overview

The three best ways of accepting credit cards for free are to set up an account on Paypal, Squareup or Stripe. Each company has its own process and requirements, but all three allow you to create an account, start taking orders and get your products in front of the potential customer. The difference is how each company charges fees. Paypal will take 2.9% + 30 cents per transaction whereas Squareup charges nothing unless you don’t meet the minimum charge requirement.

Cost Comparison

The most popular payment gateway companies you might be familiar with are PayPal, Stripe, and Braintree. Services offered by these providers can include merchant accounts and other services that range from straightforward Paypal-Lite functionality to complex, full-featured merchant account solutions for large businesses.

Option 1 – Recurring payment solutions

Using an application like Stripe or Paypal, you can accept Visa and Mastercard debit cards on the fly. This lets you bring in revenue from the outside world with little trouble. You just need your customers to create an account with either site and provide them with your payment information. To take things even further, you can use platforms like WishList Member that offer recurring billing solutions for monthly membership sites and services as well. This helps you secure long-term income rather than only one-time transactions when providing software, for example.

Option 2 – One-time payment options

Your business can’t survive without accepting money from customers, and you’ll never be able to take credit cards unless you have an expensive cash drawer system. That’s where SwipeSimple comes in. We’ve got an easy-to-use and inexpensive mobile reader with the best customer service team out there! Pay by card or phone at your own convenience – we’ll take care of everything for you.

Etsy sellers

The good news is that it’s easy for you, as an Etsy seller, to set up an account with one of these providers. Just visit their sites and follow the steps. In no time at all, you’ll be ready to start taking payments through your storefront. The more sales you make, the better. And remember: it never hurts to try!

Fiverr sellers

If you’re not tech-savvy, outsourcing may be the best way to go. Some sellers on Fiverr will set up and manage your site for $5 – so you can focus on sales instead of spending hours fumbling with HTML code.

If you want to build your own checkout page, we recommend Etsy’s Instant Payment API, which allows customers in the US and Canada to make purchases by simply clicking on the checkout with Paypal at checkout time. This service also eliminates any transaction fees incurred when using Paypal, as well as transaction fees from credit cards accepted by buyers outside of Canada or the US. We’ve used this payment system for our own shop and find it very reliable for accepting international orders without surcharges being added on.