Stripe vs Airwallex: Compare on fees, features and benefits

Key takeaways

• Both Stripe and Airwallex provide global payment processing. Stripe is well-known for its online payment processing, while Airwallex is well-known for its end-to-end financial solutions for growing businesses.

• When assessing the two, look at their global reach, local payment method coverage, multi-currency settlement options, and end-to-end offering.

• Compared to Stripe, Airwallex offers greater local payment method coverage, a multi-currency wallet to settle global funds without incurring FX fees, customer support at lower costs, and a wider breadth of financial solutions, including FX, transfers, high-rate saver accounts, and spend management solutions.

If you run an eCommerce business, you'll need an online payment gateway to accept credit and debit card payments from customers. Both Stripe and Airwallex offer payment gateways that plug into your eCommerce store, but which solution is right for your business? 

Beyond comparing payment processing costs, you’ll also want to compare the features on offer to assess total value and cost. Look for multi-currency settlement options, access to diverse local payment methods (LPMs), robust customer service support, and additional solutions, like foreign exchange (FX), transfer, and spend management solutions.

This article is authored by us – Airwallex. While we aim to provide a comprehensive, fact-checked comparison against Stripe, we’re also going to highlight some of our best features and what makes our platform stand apart from the competition. 

Read on to find out how our platform, Airwallex, compares against Stripe on price, features, and benefits.

What is Stripe?

Stripe is a well-known payment-technology company that provides businesses with a platform to accept payments from customers.

Stripe offers an online payment gateway for eCommerce businesses to accept online payments via credit and debit cards, digital wallets, bank transfers, and buy now, pay later (BNPL) services. Stripe is widely known to be developer-friendly due to its well-documented APIs and range of developer tools that simplify the process of building and managing payment systems.

What is Airwallex? 

Airwallex is a financial solutions platform for growing businesses. Like Stripe, Airwallex also offers online payment acceptance via major card schemes and local payment methods, spanning digital wallets to BNPL. It’s easy to get started with no-code, low-code, and fully-customisable integration options. 

In addition to payment processing, Airwallex provides FX management, which saves on conversion fees with same-currency settlement into its multi-currency wallet, as well as efficient transfer solutions and spend management tools to control and monitor business expenses. Airwallex also offers dedicated local support to help businesses expand more efficiently.

Compare Stripe and Airwallex features

One of the key differences with Airwallex is its like-for-like settlement in 14+ major currencies directly into Airwallex, without needing a separate bank account. This feature refers to settling funds in the same currencies that customers pay in, without costly currency conversions or forced settlement fees. Funds settle into an Airwallex multi-currency wallet, with no need to open a separate foreign currency bank account like you would with Stripe.

On top of that, Airwallex offers 160+ local payment methods compared to Stripe’s 100+. These include digital wallets, such as Google Pay and Apple Pay, buy now, pay later (BNPL) options like Klarna and Afterpay, and digital bank transfers like Trustly in Europe and iDEAL in the Netherlands. Airwallex also offers 20+ local payment methods in Asia not offered on Stripe, including DOKU Wallet in Indonesia, Toss Pay in South Korea, and ShoppeePay in Malaysia.

See the full list of Airwallex’s 160+ local payment methods.

Compare additional features between Stripe and Airwallex

On top of the availability of local payment methods and like-for-like settlement, Airwallex differs from Stripe through its product suite, strength of local support, and inclusion of security features.

• Full product suite: Stripe’s full stack of products and services includes online payments, billing, invoicing, point of sale, and embedded finance. While Airwallex has these capabilities, it also features FX and transfer solutions, multi-currency accounts, virtual cards, expense management tools, high-rate saver accounts, and more.

• Local support: Stripe offers ticketing support to its customers. Airwallex, on the other hand, provides hands-on onboarding and local account managers. This service is included at no extra cost for eligible customers, where Stripe charges thousands annually. With Airwallex, businesses don’t need to be enterprise-scale to get tailored help from someone within Australia, which can make a world of difference to small and medium-sized businesses.

• Security: Both have a robust security system to protect against fraud using extensive data. Airwallex's checkout has a built-in AI optimisation engine (at no extra cost) that helps reduce payment fraud and improves conversion rates. Stripe also offers security and fraud features as an add-on feature, but at an additional fee.

Compare Stripe and Airwallex fees

Overall, Airwallex offers lower pricing on domestic and international card payments.

Stripe fees, explained

Stripe charges a fee for each successful credit and debit card transaction. Its fees vary depending on whether the card used to pay is domestic or international. 

In addition to transaction fees, Stripe charges FX fees, including:

• A minimum 1% foreign currency settlement fee to settle payments like-for-like (NZD to NZD or USD to USD) into a separate corresponding currency bank account. In Australia, Stripe only offers like-for-like settlement for NZD and USD. You’ll have to set up those NZD or USD bank accounts yourself.

• A 2% FX conversion fee to convert other foreign currencies to your domestic currency (e.g. EUR to AUD).

Airwallex fees, explained 

Like Stripe, Airwallex charges a per transaction fee for successful credit and debit card payments, and fees vary depending on whether your customers pay with a domestic or international card. Airwallex’s payment processing fees are typically lower.

Airwallex also charges a 1% foreign currency settlement fee and 2% FX conversion fee. But in most cases, businesses will be able to bypass the FX conversion fee through like-for-like settlement, without the hassle of setting up foreign currency bank accounts.

• There’s a 1% foreign currency settlement fee to settle foreign currency payments like-for-like  into Airwallex’s multi-currency wallet.

• Avoid the 2% FX conversion fee when you settle funds like-for-like in 14+ major currencies directly into Airwallex’s multi-currency wallet (e.g. EUR to EUR, NZD to NZD).

Compare online payment gateways between Stripe and Airwallex

Both Stripe and Airwallex have strong API integrations, security features (including encryption, fraud detection, and compliance with financial regulations), and customer support. Both also handle multi-currency transactions and suit small and large businesses. However, there are some key benefits with partnering with one over the other.

The benefits of Stripe’s online payment gateway include:

• Payment acceptance in 135+ currencies via major card schemes and 100+ local payment methods. Includes access to domestic BNPL as a payment method.

• Like-for-like settlement for USD and NZD payments when you set up corresponding USD and NZD bank accounts.

• Focused on payment processing, with strong integration with eCommerce platforms.

• Additional features, including billing, invoicing, point of sale, and embedded finance.

The benefits of Airwallex's online payment gateway include:

• Payment acceptance in 180+ countries and regions via major card schemes and 160+ payment methods. Includes access to domestic and international BNPL.

• Like-for-like settlement in 14+ currencies directly into Airwallex Wallet, with no currency conversions needed. Save on FX fees when paying out from the same multi-currency balances, and convert funds only when needed.

• Hold multi-currency funds indefinitely to hedge against currency fluctuations.

• Manage all global financial operations beyond just payment acceptance. Transfer, convert, hold, and manage global spend on one platform. Get access to interbank FX rates, branded corporate cards, expense management, and more.

What currencies can I settle like-for-like with on Airwallex and Stripe in Australia? 

Australian-registered businesses can settle payments like-for-like in 14+ major currencies directly into Airwallex’s built-in multi-currency wallet. Stripe allows like-for-like settlement for NZD and USD only – but first, you’ll need to set up separate NZD and USD currency bank accounts.

Like-for-like settlement refers to settling currencies in the same currencies you receive them in, with no currency conversions and associated FX fees.

This table shows the like-for-like settlement currencies available in Australia for major card schemes. See our settlement schedule and currencies to view available currencies in other regions and payment methods overview for additional settlement currencies available depending on card schemes and local payment methods.

Grow faster at home and abroad with Airwallex

Both Stripe and Airwallex are strong payment providers, with Stripe being well-known across the industry for its comprehensive payment processing and developer-friendly APIs. One area where Airwallex differs is its global payment coverage and wider breadth of financial solutions that can jumpstart your operations faster and at lower costs.

Here’s why you might consider Airwallex over Stripe:

• Airwallex offers greater global coverage of local payment methods. Our platform offers 160+ local payment methods, compared to Stripe’s 100+. That includes 20+ local payment methods in Asia not available through Stripe.

• Collect and settle foreign currency payments like-for-like into Airwallex Wallet, with no need to convert currencies. This feature is available for 14+ major currencies. With Stripe, businesses first need to set up foreign currency bank accounts to get the same benefit.

• Airwallex lets you collect international payments with BNPL options like Klarna and Afterpay. With Stripe, businesses can only collect domestic payments using these options.

• Airwallex offers more affordable local Australian support for businesses of all sizes. In comparison, Stripe charges thousands per year for a dedicated account manager.

All of these features can help your business onboard faster, launch into new markets quickly, and grow your business with confidence. Our value proposition is simple but powerful: Airwallex can simplify domestic and cross-border payments, and consolidate financial operations, with ongoing local support.

Frequently asked questions

Is Stipe or Airwallex better for international businesses?

Both Stripe and Airwallex are great for international businesses, but they have different strengths. Airwallex excels in multi-currency management and financial tools, making it ideal for businesses with significant international operations, while Stripe is more well-known and widely available in more countries.

 How do the pricing models of Stripe and Airwallex compare?

Stripe generally charges a percentage of the transaction amount plus a fixed fee, which is straightforward and suitable for a wide range of businesses. Airwallex offers slightly lower payment processing costs and multi-currency accounts, which can be more cost-effective for businesses with substantial international transactions.

What are the key differences in the feature sets of Stripe and Airwallex?

Stripe has strong capabilities in eCommerce integrations and subscriptions, with a stronger brand presence globally. Airwallex is a rapidly-growing fintech, and differs from Stripe through its multi-currency accounts, virtual cards, and financial management tools. Depending on your specific needs, one platform may be more suitable than the other. For example, if you primarily need payment processing, Stripe might suit you. If your business requires advanced financial management and international payment solutions, Airwallex may be the better choice.

What is like-for-like settlement?

Like-for-like settlement is a process that ensures that the currency a business receives in their account is the same as the currency in which the payment was made. This means that if a customer pays a business in, for example, US dollars (USD), the funds will be settled directly into their account in USD, without currency conversion. This approach helps businesses avoid unnecessary foreign exchange fees and ensures that they receive the exact amount they are owed, making international transactions more transparent and efficient. Airwallex offers like-for-like settlement in 14+ currencies directly into its multi-currency wallet.

Sources

1. https://stripe.com/au/pricing

Disclaimer: We wrote this article in Q2 2025. The information was based on our own online research and we were not able to manually test each tool or provider. The information is provided for educational purposes only and a reader should consider the specific requirements of their business when evaluating providers. This research is reviewed every six months. If you would like to request an update, feel free to contact us at [email protected].

This information doesn’t take into account your objectives, financial situation, or needs. If you are a customer of Airwallex Pty Ltd (AFSL No. 487221) it is important for you to read the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) for the Direct Services, which is available here.