When setting up your online store (which The Creative Goddess can assist you with) factoring in a how you will accept card payments on your website is extremely important. They manage the front-end of transactions by encrypting and securely transmitting customer payment information to your bank. Let’s explore some of the primary payment gateways available in South Africa:
PayFast #
Our preferred payment gateway is one of the most popular payment gateways in South Africa. It enables merchants with the ability to accept debit cards, credit cards, instant EFT, Mobicred, and Zapper.. It’s quick signup process, various payment methods and relatively low fees have made it an instant favourite for both ourselves and the majority of our clients.
Pros: PayFast easily integrates into 80+ ecommerce platforms and allows merchants to offer up to 7 different payment methods to their customers. You can use it PayFast with Shopify, WooCommerce, Magento, and many other platforms. Apart from handling individual payments, businesses utilizing a subscription or membership model can manage recurring payments on a regular basis – monthly, quarterly, bi-annually, or annually in an automated setup.
Cons: Payfast holds funds for up to 48 hours before making them available for withdrawal, a process which will take an additional 2 business days to reflect in your bank account
Costs: PayFast is free to use, and businesses only get charged transaction fees. The lowest charge is a 2% fee on Instant EFTs, and the most a company might ever have to pay is 4.5% plus an additional R5 when customers pay using SCode. They charge a flat fee of R8.70, excluding VAT, every time you make a request for a payout to your bank account. Instant refunds will cost you R2 excluding VAT.
Yoco #
A payment gateway that allows its clients to process both online and in-person sales. Their goal is to make the hassle of processing payments a thing of the past. The Yoco payment gateway allows receiving transactions directly through your site. At the moment, Yoco can integrate with WordPress, WooCommerce, Wix, and Shopstar.
Pros: Setting up your Yoco account is so simple they claim it’ll take less than 5 minutes.
All transactions are protected by 3D-Secure, and Yoco releases funds to your bank account within 2 business days.
Costs: There is no monthly subscription fee for Yoco’s services, but clients are charged transaction fees on a sliding scale, up to R100 000 in monthly sales. Below R20k in sales, clients pay 3.4%, and that number goes as low as a 3.05% fee at just under R100k in sales. At over R100k in monthly sales, clients can negotiate custom rates and enjoy additional benefits.
PayFlex #
is fast becoming the go-to payment gateway for South African businesses looking to attract a younger customer base that is increasingly credit-savvy. PayFlex easily integrates with WooCommerce, Magento, Shopify)
Pros: Customers and merchants prefer PayFlex as a payment gateway due to its buy now, pay later feature. PayFlex asserts that simplifying payments results in a 70% increase in order value for clients and an 80% rise in repurchase rates. Clients using Payflex have the option to pay their products in 4 installments over 6 weeks at 0% interest while the merchant recieves the money upfront and Payflex assumes the debt and risk.
Costs: Payflex applies a per-transaction fee for successful transactions; however, the specific amount is not disclosed on their website. While there is no setup fee, they do impose a fixed monthly service fee along with the transaction fees which was R249, waived for the first 3 months due to a special offer at the time of writing this article.
Ozow #
is the gateway solution focused on instant EFT transactions. Ozow stands out as the top choice payment gateway for numerous businesses due to its ability to handle real-time payments.
Pros: Withdrawals are almost instant since the funds will reflect in your nominated bank account the same day or interbank standard EFT rules.
Unlike with card based transactions, once payments are confirmed, they cannot be reversed, eliminating the hassle of dealing with fraudulent chargebacks. Additionally, merchants have the option to connect multiple bank accounts to a single Ozow merchant account and dashboard.
Businesses can integrate it with BigCommerce, Magento, Shopify and many other e-commerce platforms as well.
Costs: There are no subscription fees, only monthly transaction fees starting at 2,5% for automated EFTs under R500 000. The transaction fees drop to 1,5% as the processed amount increases.
Peach Payments #
is a South African payment gateway designed for larger businesses. This platform is compliant with PCI DSS level 1 standards and provides integrations with leading ecommerce platforms like WooCommerce, Magento, Shopify, and Wix.
Pros: Peach Payments gateway allows clients to process payments with all major credit cards, including Visa, Mastercard, Diners Club and American Express. Businesses can also collect PayPal, MasterPass, Mobicred, and via Instant EFT payments. At the top of the Peach Payments’ feature list are the abilities to process recurring payments and 1-click checkout capabilities.
Costs: Transaction fees are 2.95% + R1.50 per transaction for cards. EFT payments at 1.5% + R1.50 per transaction. There is no setup fee or monthly fee. They offer an enterprise package of R500 for larger business that handle transactions for more than R300,000 per month.
