If you own an online store powered by WordPress, you’ve probably encountered both Stripe and WooCommerce Payments. 

WC Payments comes as part of the WooCommerce plugin package, and you can set it up fast.

However, Stripe has taken the eCommerce world by storm, making it a worthy competitor.

So, which of these two services is better?

Stripe vs WooCommerce Compared

Here are some factors that distinguish the online two payment processors: 

Transaction Charges And Fees

	Stripe	WooCommerce Payments
Credit Cards	2.9% + 30¢ (increases by 1% for international cards)	2.9% + 30¢ (Fixed, up to $1 million)
In-Person Sales	2.6% + 10¢	2.7% + 5¢
Currency Conversion	+ 1%	+ 1%
Dispute Fee	15%, Refundable if dispute won	15%, Refundable if dispute won

WooCommerce Payments uses a Pay-As-You-Go payment model that only charges you for activity on your account depending on your country and the country of your customer’s card. You may also incur dispute fees and currency conversion charges.

For example, a credit card issued within the United States will attract a 2.9% + ¢30 charge per transaction. For a card issued outside the U. S, you’ll receive an additional 1% charge on the standard card fees. 

For in-person sales in the US, WooCommerce charges 2.6% + ¢10 per transaction. Here,

an international card attracts an extra 1% charge above normal rates. 

Just like WooCommerce, Stripe charges a fee of 2.9% + ¢30 on all successful card transactions, provided your transactions don’t exceed $1 million per year. This fee remains flat across all countries.

Unlike WooCommerce Payments, however, Stripe does not add extra charges on international cards. In-person transactions attract a 2.7% + ¢5 fee, which isn’t that different from WC Payments.

You may incur other charges with Stripe, including:

• $8 per wire transfer
• $1 per ACH credit payment
• $5 per Bank Cheque received.

Verdict

There’s no material difference between fees and charges from both payment processors. Stripe offers a lot more services and may have other related charges, but they won’t be too significant.

However, an extra 1% charge on international cards can make all the difference, especially if your business serves a global market. For this reason, Stripe wins, but ever so slightly.

Also read Stripe Vs PayPal For Recurring Payments.

Processing Time

Credit card transactions made using WC Payments take at least 2 days in the US and Australia to process into your bank account. In other countries, it takes up to 7 days. 

New accounts usually face an initial 7-day waiting period before resuming the WooCommerce standard payout schedule.

If you want to access your money sooner, WooCommerce will charge you an additional 1.5% fee. Thereafter, it’ll take about 30 minutes and you’ll have your money in your account.

Similarly, Stripe makes bank payouts within every two business days. If you’ve just onboarded to the Stripe Payment platform, your first payment will take anywhere between 7 to 14 days. 

In some countries, it might take longer. Once done, this period reverts to the standard two-day period in the US and Australia, and 7 days in other countries.

Verdict

Here, we have a tie. There isn’t much difference in processing times or waiting periods between these two service providers.

Both Stripe and WooCommerce Payments enforce an initial waiting period, and have regular payment schedules thereafter. 

Read Stripe Vs. Wix Payments.

Customer Support

To grow their company, Stripe offers reliable customer support. From your Stripe dashboard, you can access customer support via chat, email, and phone 24/7.

They also respond to direct messages and tweets across different social media platforms.

WooCommerce Payments isn’t that different, either. Just like Stripe, they offer reliable customer support for their clients.

You can get help in their forums, or log into your WordPress account and call, chat or email support. 

Verdict

Another Tie. Their customer support services are quite similar, although you can also get help on WooCommerce payments from their forum. Stripe lacks one.

If you are into crypto payments, check Stripe Vs Ripple.

Availability

Stripe, unlike other payment platforms like PayPal, is only available in just 46 countries. This includes the US, UK, Europe, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates. It also serves Brazil and Singapore.

On the flip side, WooCommerce Payments is only available in just 10 countries. These are: 

• US
• UK
• Ireland
• Canada
• Australia
• New Zealand
• Spain
• France
• Germany 
• Italy

Although both these lists keep growing as these companies gain more market share, they’re both still relatively small. 

Verdict

Stripe wins here. It covers more countries than WooCommerce Payments does, and serves more people. 

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Is WooCommerce the Same As Stripe?

No. These two services are different, and are run by two different companies. Also, Stripe and WooCommerce have some stark differences. 

First, WooCommerce Payments is an extension of the WooCommerce plugin for WordPress.

Also, you can run a standalone WooCommerce store but from within a WordPress environment. It helps small businesses collect payments from customers, but you can only use it within WordPress. 

Stripe is a standalone payment processor. They also help small businesses collect payments, but you can use Stripe without WordPress or even a website.

Besides that, you can install a Stripe extension to your WooCommerce website and use it instead of WooCommerce Payments.

What Is Stripe Used For

Stripe is a digital mobile wallet. It’s an excellent option for sending or receiving payments. With a myriad of in-app tools, you can issue invoices, create subscriptions, and sell products and services.

It also has adaptable APIs that help you integrate their payment gateway into any software, website, or service. Once set up, you can run your business from any device.

If you have a vast business, then Stripe is ideal for simpler and faster payments while ensuring you deliver your products and services efficiently. 

What Is WooCommerce Used For

WooCommerce is an e-commerce plugin for WordPress that turns your website into an online store. It’s quite popular for small businesses and dropshipping.

It helps your store manage secure payments, configure shipping options, and manage your taxes and inventory.

It’s a versatile platform that allows you to sell both physical and digital goods. You can use multiple variations and configurations for your products or offer instant downloads for digital items.

Can You Use Stripe With WooCommerce?

Yes, you can.

Stripe accepts payments from major credit and debit cards. Besides that, the Stripe Plugin for WooCommerce accepts payments directly to your store from both the web and smartphones.

Stripe allows your customers to stay in your store during checkout instead of redirecting them to an external checkout page.

Which Payment Gateway Is Best For WooCommerce

If you’re hosting a WooCommerce store, there are plenty of excellent gateways to choose from. Here are some of them:

PayPal

PayPal is a globally accepted online payment solution for many e-commerce businesses. It offers diverse use cases for both businesses and individuals.

WooCommerce supports PayPal, and you can set it up easily from your dashboard.

The PayPal extension for WooCommerce requires a PayPal business account. However, it redirects your customers to the PayPal website to complete their purchase, taking them away from your checkout page.

Learn more about PayPal and Stripe here

Square

Square is a magnificent payment gateway for WooCommerce, especially if you own physical stores with locations and delivery options.

The WooCommerce Square extension allows you to synchronize your products with your square account and you can track each sale.

Also, Square supports recurring payments when used alongside the WooCommerce subscription extension. However, it’s only available in the U.S, Canada, Japan, and the UK. 

Authorize.Net

Thousands of businesses worldwide use Authorize.Net as their primary payment gateway. Its WooCommerce extension creates a seamless checkout experience for your customers, especially those who use credit cards.

They’ll stay on your checkout page without redirection until they complete their purchases. 

Authorize.Net servers process the transactions in the background, making it an efficient option for small business websites. You can run recurring repayments for WooCommerce subscriptions using this service.

WooCommerce PayPal Pro

PayPal Pro for WooCommerce is a paid extension developed by the company behind WooCommerce.

It enables you to use PayPal with a better checkout experience, allowing customers to complete the purchase without leaving your website.

WC PayPal Pro is available in the UK, US, and Canada, but you’ll need a PayPal Customer account to use it. If you have an Australian business, then you can use your PayPal Pro PayFlow Account with it.

It does not support recurring payments, and will not work for a membership website with subscription-based products.

You’ll have to pay a monthly fee and transaction fees depending on the country and this can be quite expensive for new businesses.

Final Thoughts

A payment gateway is an essential requirement for you to set up a web store. If you’re big on WordPress, you can’t go wrong with WooCommerce Payments, considering how safe and stable it is.

However, we recommend Stripe. It’s just as safe and stable, and it allows you to trade in more countries.

Besides that, you can integrate it into any website, regardless of its software. You can also manage your money much easier and sell different products and services with little hassle.