Accepting payments both online and off

These days, many businesses that start as “Brick & Mortar” real-world operations are looking to take advantage of the worldwide access to customers the internet offers. Luckily, there are a number of payment options that work for both, so you can keep all your transactions organised in the same place! Below are some options that let you do exactly that, starting with those that offer ‘out of the box’ compatibility with this business model, as well as a few more that integrate easily with other apps that do the same job.

Built-in functionality:

PayPal

PayPal is probably the one you’ve heard of, and for good reason! You can accept payments over the phone and in person without having to get a separate app, and you can even accept bitcoins! However, their customer service leaves a lot to be desired, so if you are someone who needs a bit of assistance to set everything up how you want it, other options with better customer support may be preferred.

Charges: 2.9% plus $0.30 transaction fee

International charges: +1% cross-border fee -/+2.5% currency conversion fee

WorldPay

WorldPay offer card machines and mobile device payments, so you can take payments for your goods or services wherever you are! They offer services to businesses of all sizes, so you can be sure that WorldPay can look after your business as it grows, and if you need accessories such as card readers and till rolls, WorldPay offers excellent deals on compatible products.

Charges: £75 set-up fee, £15/month – 1.9% +10p transaction fee – pay-as-you-go options also available

SagePay

SagePay offers integrated ePOS (electronic point of sale) integrations, allowing you to accept payments over the phone, face-to-face, and online! Additionally, if you already use Sage accounting products, their gateway integrates seamlessly, meaning you can spend more time focussing on what really matters.

Charges: £19.90/month +12p transaction fee – 350 free transactions

£45/month +10p transaction fee – 500 fee transactions

Authorize.Net

Authorize.Net lets you accept payments over the phone or via mail order using their Virtual Terminal, and you can even set up recurring/subscription payments! You can only use their services if your business if based in the UK, US, Canada, Europe, or Australia, and fraud protection comes as standard.

Charges: $49 initial set-up fee, $25/month + 2.9% plus $0.30 transaction fee

Integrated functionality:

Stripe

Stripe is fast catching up with Paypal as the most widely used online payment system, and although you can’t accept real world payments directly using Stripe, it integrates with many mobile card reader apps, so you can easily use Stripe for both online and real world purchases. It also comes with its own analytics and reports capacity, making it a good all-in-one option.

Charges: 2.4% plus 20p transaction fee

International charges: +2%

Braintree

Braintree are a PayPal company that offers a fantastic deal – your first £30,000 of transactions are fee-free, no matter how long it takes you to get there! They also accept bitcoin, PayPal, and seem pretty on the pulse when it comes to adding new payment methods as they appear. It doesn’t come with built-in real-world payment facilities, but integrates with many services that do.

Charges: 2.4% plus 20p transaction fee

First £30,000 is free-free; non-EU-cards incur 3.4% fee