7 best payment gateways in Singapore (2026 guide)

Key Takeaways:

• The right payment gateway in Singapore affects your checkout conversion, total transaction costs, and how easily you collect revenue across markets.

• For businesses scaling beyond Singapore, what separates gateways is settlement currency breadth, local payment method coverage by market, and platform breadth.

• Airwallex supports 160+ local payment methods and like-for-like settlement in 14 currencies, helping Singapore businesses keep more of their international revenue.

Choosing a payment gateway in Singapore? You’re in the right place.

This guide compares seven payment gateways used by Singapore businesses: Airwallex, PayPal, Stripe, Adyen, Shopify Payments, HitPay, and Opn Payments. For each, we cover fees, supported payment methods, settlement coverage, and the kind of business it actually suits.

You'll find a side-by-side comparison table, deeper per-provider analysis, and a decision framework to help you choose based on your needs and situation.

7 best payment gateways in Singapore (2026)

The right gateway for you depends on your order mix, your cross-border exposure, and how broad a platform you need. Here’s a quick overview of the seven providers to choose from:

The information in this table has been reviewed to be accurate as of 19 May 2026.

1. Airwallex

Airwallex is a financial platform built for businesses with cross-border revenue. Where most gateways stop at accepting cards, it combines payment acceptance with multi-currency accounts, corporate cards, and expense management on a single platform (and it’s the only provider on this list to do that).

With Airwallex, you can settle in 14 currencies like-for-like, avoiding a forced FX conversion on every international sale. You can also pay overseas suppliers from the same balance you collected revenue in, which again helps you avoid FX fees.

Airwallex also lets you accept 160+ local payment methods, including PayNow, GrabPay, Atome, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Alipay, WeChat Pay, and FAST/GIRO. Cards are processed through local acquiring across major markets, which can lift authorisation rates on cross-border transactions versus a single international acquirer.

The information in this table has been reviewed to be accurate as of 19 May 2026.

2. PayPal

PayPal works as a checkout button. But if you use it as your primary acceptance rail, it gets expensive fast.

International cards are charged at 4.40% + S$0.50¹, with a further 3.5% currency conversion fee applied to non-SGD payments received¹. On a business doing, say, US$500K of cross-border GMV, that conversion fee alone runs into five figures annually — and there's no like-for-like settlement option to avoid it. Funds can also be held during disputes, which creates working capital risk.

Many merchants run PayPal alongside a primary card gateway rather than as their only acceptance method. That works, but it adds reconciliation overhead and splits your customer data across two providers.

For more information, read our PayPal Business Account review.

The information in this table has been reviewed to be accurate as of 19 May 2026.

3. Stripe

Stripe is the strongest developer experience among card gateways and a sensible option for SaaS and digital businesses based in a single market. The question is what happens when your cross-border volume grows.

International cards add 0.5% on top of the 3.4% domestic rate, and currency conversion adds another 2%². A business doing 30% of its GMV cross-border at US$500K total volume is paying roughly US$3,000 in conversion fees alone — money that disappears into FX rather than into authorisation lift or fraud tooling.

Stripe's adjacent products (Issuing, Treasury, Billing) extend the platform, but they're priced separately and don't change the underlying settlement model. If you've outgrown a single market, the decision is whether to stay on Stripe and absorb the FX cost, or move to a provider that settles like-for-like in your key currencies.

The information in this table has been reviewed to be accurate as of 19 May 2026.

4. Adyen

Adyen is built for high-volume merchants. The Interchange++ pricing model passes wholesale card costs through transparently, which can be cheaper than blended rates above a certain volume threshold. 

More importantly, Adyen has broad local acquiring across regions, which can meaningfully lift authorisation rates on cross-border card traffic — typically the single biggest revenue lever at scale.

The trade-off is fit. Card processing is $0.13 + Interchange++ + 0.60%³, but there's a minimum invoice depending on industry and business model³. Implementation takes weeks or months, not days, and requires internal payments expertise to run.

Adyen is also a payments platform, not a financial operations platform. It settles to your linked bank accounts in their respective currencies, but doesn't offer multi-currency accounts as a product.

The information in this table has been reviewed to be accurate as of 19 May 2026.

5. Shopify Payments

Shopify Payments only matters if you're committed to Shopify as your eCommerce platform. Inside that ecosystem, it's the default and avoids third-party transaction fees, with card rates starting at 3.2% + S$0.50 on the Basic plan and dropping on higher tiers⁴.

The constraints are structural. Singapore-specific local payment method coverage is thin: PayNow, the dominant local QR method, isn't listed as a native option on the official pricing page and typically requires a secondary provider. There's no like-for-like settlement, no multi-currency account, and no way to consolidate cross-border flows.

If you run sales channels beyond Shopify (a B2B portal, marketplaces, an in-app checkout), you'll need a second gateway anyway. At that point, you're paying for two providers and reconciling across both.

For more information, read our Shopify Payments guide.

The information in this table has been reviewed to be accurate as of 19 May 2026.

6. HitPay

HitPay is a Singapore-grown provider focused on local small businesses. Its strength is breadth of locally-relevant payment methods — PayNow QR, GrabPay, ShopeePay, Atome, ShopBack Pay, WeChat Pay, plus Apple Pay and Google Pay — and a self-serve product with no monthly subscription.

The gaps show up as you scale beyond Singapore. There's no like-for-like settlement, no multi-currency account, and no spend management. International card transactions carry an FX surcharge on top of the international card rate⁵, so cross-border revenue is materially more expensive than domestic.

The honest read on HitPay: it's a good option if most of your volume stays in SGD. Once you start doing more cross-border sales, the lack of settlement options and broader tools usually pushes you to switch to another provider.

The information in this table has been reviewed to be accurate as of 19 May 2026.

7. Opn Payments

Opn Payments (formerly Omise) is built for Southeast Asia. The standout is regional wallet coverage — Alipay+, GCash, Dana, KakaoPay, Touch'nGo⁶ — which is genuinely useful if you're accepting payments from consumers across the SEA region from a Singapore base. Card processing is flat at 3.30% + S$0.30 for both domestic and international cards⁶, and PayNow is at 1.00% + S$0.15⁶.

Opn solves the acceptance problem but not the financial operations problem. There's no like-for-like settlement, no multi-currency account, and no business spend tooling, so you'd typically run Opn as your SEA wallet acceptance layer alongside a separate primary card gateway and a separate treasury setup. This adds complexity and cost to your operations.

The information in this table has been reviewed to be accurate as of 19 May 2026.

How to choose the right payment gateway for your business

Most comparison guides list the obvious factors — fees, security, support. The questions below go deeper, and they're the ones that have the biggest impact on your costs and operations as you grow.

How much of your revenue is cross-border?

If most of your sales are in SGD, domestic card rates and local payment method coverage matter most. If a meaningful amount is in USD, EUR, GBP, or regional SEA currencies, the bigger lever is whether your gateway can settle in those currencies like-for-like, or whether every sale gets converted back to SGD with an FX margin.

A useful rough check: take your annual cross-border GMV, multiply by the gateway's stated FX margin (usually 2%), and compare that number to the cost of switching providers. For businesses doing US$250K+ in GMV, the FX cost alone justifies the move.

Which local payment methods do your buyers actually use?

In Singapore, PayNow is non-negotiable for most consumer-facing businesses. If you sell across SEA, the relevant set widens: GrabPay, ShopeePay, and Atome in Singapore and Malaysia; GCash in the Philippines; Dana in Indonesia; KakaoPay in South Korea; Touch'nGo in Malaysia.

Don't rely on a generic "we support 100+ methods" claim. Check your gateway supports the specific methods your customers in each market actually use — and while you’re doing that, check what each method costs.

Are you running, or about to run, more than one provider?

Many businesses end up with a primary card gateway, a wallet provider for regional acceptance, and a separate banking setup for supplier payouts. This works, but it adds reconciliation work, splits customer data, and makes FX management harder.

The alternative is a single platform that handles acceptance, settlement, and outbound payments together, such as Airwallex.

Do you need a gateway, or a financial platform?

A gateway accepts payments. A financial platform also holds your money in multiple currencies, lets you pay suppliers and staff overseas, issues corporate cards, and manages team spend.

If you only sell domestically and pay everyone in SGD, a gateway is enough. If you collect revenue in multiple currencies and pay suppliers or contractors abroad, a financial platform usually costs less in total and removes a lot of manual work.

How predictable do you need your costs to be?

Most gateways quote blended rates (a flat percentage + fixed fee). Adyen uses Interchange++, which is transparent but variable. Some providers add FX surcharges, monthly currency fees, or higher rates for specific methods.

Ask each provider for a worked example based on your actual transaction mix — domestic vs international, card vs wallet, average order value — rather than relying on headline rates.

Why Singapore businesses choose Airwallex

Most of the providers in this guide do one thing well. PayPal is a familiar consumer wallet. Stripe has the strongest developer experience. Adyen processes cards efficiently at high volume. HitPay and Opn cover local and regional payment methods cleanly.

But running a business involves more than accepting payments. You're (likely) collecting revenue in multiple currencies, paying suppliers and contractors overseas, managing team spend across markets, and trying to do all of it without stitching together four different providers.

That's where Airwallex comes in. It's built around the operational reality of cross-border businesses, not bolted on top of a domestic gateway.

Settle in 14 currencies, with no forced conversion

Most gateways convert non-base-currency sales back to SGD and charge an FX margin on every transaction. Airwallex lets you settle like-for-like in 14 currencies and hold the balance in a multi-currency account. You only convert when you want to.

Save up to 80% on FX fees

When you do want to convert, you get access to highly competitive rates (0.4% to 0.6% above interbank) that save you up to 80% on FX fees.

Accept 160+ local payment methods in 180+ countries

Airwallex supports 160+ local payment methods, including PayNow, GrabPay, Atome, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Alipay, WeChat Pay, and FAST/GIRO in Singapore — plus methods relevant to buyers in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, the US, the UK, and the EU.

Use local acquiring for stronger cross-border auth rates

Cards processed through local acquiring rails tend to authorise at higher rates than cards routed through a single international acquirer. Airwallex offers local acquiring across major markets, which directly reduces declined transactions — typically the largest hidden cost in cross-border payments.

Case study: Motherswork

Singapore-headquartered family retailer Motherswork moved from PayPal and a Stripe-based gateway to Airwallex.

The results: 23% lower international transaction fees, a 29% lift in online conversion, a 4% increase in average order value, and roughly 95% of supplier transfers settling same-day. 

Want to lower your transaction fees and improve online conversions like how Motherswork did?

Frequently asked questions (FAQs)

Which payment gateway is best in Singapore?

There's no single best payment gateway in Singapore — it depends on your sales mix, your cross-border exposure, and whether you need a gateway or a broader financial platform. Stripe suits developer-led teams. Adyen suits high-volume enterprises. HitPay suits Singapore-only SMBs. For businesses collecting revenue in multiple currencies and paying suppliers overseas, Airwallex offers settlement and treasury tools that stand-alone gateways don't.

How much does a payment gateway cost in Singapore?

Most payment gateways in Singapore charge between 2.8% and 4.4% per card transaction, plus a fixed fee of S$0.30 to S$0.50. International cards and currency conversion typically add another 0.5% to 3.5% on top. Local payment methods like PayNow are usually cheaper — between 0.65% and 1.3%. The headline rate rarely tells the full story, so ask each provider for a worked example based on your actual transaction mix.

What payment methods should my payment gateway support in Singapore?

At minimum, your gateway should support Visa, Mastercard, Amex, and PayNow — the dominant card networks and the most-used local payment method in Singapore. If you sell to consumers, add GrabPay, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. If you sell across SEA, you'll also want coverage for Atome, Alipay+, GCash, Dana, and ShopeePay depending on your target markets.

How long does settlement take with a Singapore payment gateway?

Settlement timelines vary by provider and payment method. Card payments typically settle in 2 to 7 business days, while PayNow can settle as quickly as T+1. PayPal settles to your PayPal balance instantly but requires a separate withdrawal step. Check each provider's stated settlement schedule, since longer timelines tie up working capital.

Can I use more than one payment gateway?

Yes, and many businesses do — for example, running one gateway for card acceptance and another for regional wallets. The trade-off is operational complexity: separate dashboards, separate reconciliation, and split customer data. A single platform that covers your full acceptance, settlement, and payout needs usually costs less in total once you account for the operational overhead.

Is a payment gateway the same as a payment processor?

No. A payment gateway captures customer payment details at checkout and securely passes them to the payment processor, which moves the funds between the customer's bank and your merchant account. Most modern providers — including Stripe, Adyen, and Airwallex — bundle both functions into a single product, so you rarely buy them separately. You can read more about the difference between payment gateways and payment processors.

Sources:

1.  https://www.paypal.com/sg/webapps/mpp/merchant-fees

2.  https://stripe.com/en-sg/pricing

3.  https://www.adyen.com/pricing

4.  https://www.shopify.com/sg/pricing

5.  https://www.hitpayapp.com/sg/pricing

6.  https://www.omise.co/en/pricing/singapore

This publication does not constitute legal, tax, or professional advice from Airwallex, nor does it substitute seeking such advice, and makes no express or implied representations / warranties / guarantees regarding content accuracy, completeness, or currency. If you would like to request an update, feel free to contact us at [[email protected]]. Airwallex (Singapore) Pte. Ltd. (201626561Z) is licensed as a Major Payment Institution and regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.