By
Dimitar Bogdanov
June 14, 2022
4 Min Read
On these pages we’ve already talked extensively about the benefits of crypto payment gateways. While they are more of a stopgap solution, these providers are quite useful when it comes to giving merchants an easy way for merchants to integrate crypto payments without having to deal with the technical aspects of blockchain technology. However, because of the reliance on a third-party, centralized provider, selecting a reputable and reliable crypto payment gateway provider is crucial.
Fortunately, there is no shortage of excellent service providers. Here are some of the best crypto payment gateways out there.
The largest US crypto exchange has been a key player in the crypto space for a long time and has built an impressive portfolio of products and services centered around digital currencies. Among these is a crypto payment gateway service called Coinbase Commerce that has gained quite a traction among merchants in certain markets, especially in Europe. Among the service’s advantages are fast crypto-to-fiat conversion, which mitigates the price volatility problem, and compatibility with most ecommerce CMS platforms.
The platform offers two options when it comes to accounts - a self-managed and a Coinbase-managed one. The former allows the merchant to remain in control of their private keys, while the latter option has Coinbase handling the account on the behalf of the client. Coinbase Managed requires an application review and might be unavailable in certain regions.
Coinbase Commerce supports seven cryptocurrencies - Bitcoin, Ether, DAI, Litecoin, Dogecoin, USD Coin and Bitcoin Cash - which is on the lower end compared to some of the other major crypto payment gateways. Additionally, Coinbase Commerce supports only Bitcoin, Ether and USD Coin.
Coinbase Commerce charges a 1% transaction fee.
Another well established player in this space, Bitpay has been around for more than a decade - an eternity in the Web3 space. Bitpay is a highly interactive API-based platform that supports a number of major cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Ether, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash and Dogecoin.
Currently, the platform processes over 70,000 transactions per month, on average, according to data on the Bitpay website. More than 250 companies and stores, including Amazon, Burger King, Uber and Adidas, accept digital payments or gift cards from Bitpay. Transaction fees on the platform start at 1%.
This is another well-known player in the crypto payments space. The platform offers multiple payout options for merchants, including a standard crypto-to-fiat conversion. Beyond that, merchants can also choose to keep the cryptocurrency they have received or convert one cryptocurrency into another.
Like other crypto payment gateways on this list, Coingate has plugins for a number of popular eCommerce platforms. OpenCart, Magento and PrestaShop are some of the platforms supported by the crypto payment gateway.
Coingate has a 1% crypto payment processing fee.
One of the biggest strengths of NOWPayments is the sheer number of cryptocurrencies the platform supports. According to its website, the crypto payment gateway works with over 100 coins ranging from crypto heavyweights like BTC, ETH, LTC and SOL, through a large selection of stablecoins, to more obscure crypto assets.
Another one is the compatibility with most major eCommerce platforms, including Opencart, PrestaShop, Magento 2 and Shopify.
Among its suite of products, the payment gateway has tools that enable organizations to accept crypto donations and send mass crypto payouts.
NOWPayments charges up to 0.5% on transactions, with an extra 0.5% charged in case a conversion from one cryptocurrency into another is needed.
Alfa Coins’ biggest draw is its flexibility, reflected in the number of interesting options the service offers to the merchants that use it. For example, the service charges 0.99% on transactions and the merchant can choose to pay it or include it in the invoice to be paid by the consumer. Another useful feature is the fixed exchange rate window, which lasts for 15 minutes after invoice has been created and is meant to protect the merchant against crypto price volatility.
Alfa Coins also offers a number of handy tools, such as statistics, automatic payouts and auto withdrawals to external wallets without additional fees. The platform also offers various integration options, including a number of APIs, a payment button and shopping cart plugins.
A potential drawback of Alfa Coins is that it supports only seven cryptocurrencies, though this includes the two biggest coins on the market - Bitcoin and Ether. The platform also supports Bitcoin Cash, Litecoin, XRP, Dash and ERC-20 USDT.
