How to Choose a Crypto Payment Processor: A Merchant's Guide

What should you decide first when choosing a crypto payment processor?

Start with the limits that can't be negotiated, then compare price and risk on whatever is left. A processor that can't serve your business or deliver your required currency is out, however cheap it looks.

Before you contact sales, write a short description of your business: company country, owners' countries and citizenships, what you sell, where your customers are, expected crypto sales, usual order size and your bank. Say whether you collect your own revenue or handle other people's money, because those are different activities.

1. 
   01

   Set your hard limits

   Check your company, owners, activity, buyers and the bank or wallet you need to be paid into.

2. 
   02

   Follow the money

   Trace a typical sale from the customer's wallet to usable funds, naming each company and cost along the way.

3. 
   03

   Read the agreement

   Match the company that signs to its licences, then read the clauses on holds, refunds, fee changes and closure.

4. 
   04

   Verify before switching

   Run the agreed checkout, order records and refunds through a small rollout, and check the money arrives where you expect.

Can the processor serve your business?

Eligibility comes before anything you pay for or build. A processor that says it takes payments worldwide may mean worldwide buyers, while its merchant accounts are open in far fewer countries.

BitPay's country help says it accepts US and Canadian applications and has paused new onboarding in the EEA, UK and Australia. CoinGate has its own supported-country list, and the United States wasn't on it when we read it.^[2][3] An old review or a licence won't get you past a current pause.

Your owners' connections count too. The terms of NOWPayments' linked company, FD Transfers LLC, exclude residents or citizens of the EU, UK, US and UAE, and people located in or resident in Russia. Paykilla's public policy prohibits US persons, including citizens, residents and US-formed companies.^[4][7] A different company address won't change that, so ask how they'd treat your company and its owners.

B2BinPay's El Salvador policy restricts US and Canadian residents and companies. Its footer still mentions EU, UK and US exemptions, which contradicts that, and a contradiction isn't permission.^[29] Until B2BinPay says which account agreement would cover you, don't count on getting the rates it advertises.

Be exact about what you sell. A provider page that mentions gaming, financial services or digital goods hasn't approved every business in that category, so give it your licences (where you need them), your customer locations and whether you collect for third parties. Our high-risk merchant guide goes through that conversation.

A recent official change affects shortlisting too. The UK's 8 October 2026 notice lists Xeltox Enterprises Ltd under RUS3755, with Cryptomus and Heleket among its name variations, and we wouldn't recommend opening a new account with either brand.^[8] OFSI guidance covers UK activity, UK nationals and UK-established entities abroad, and it includes cryptoassets. It's a UK rule, not a global ban.^[9] If you already have funds with either, get bank and sanctions advice before trying to move them. This is general information, not legal advice.

Which customer wallets and networks do you need?

Your buyers' wallets decide. Pick the coins they already hold, and check the coin, the network and how they send it together. A long coin list on a homepage doesn't mean your customers can complete a payment.

USDT (Tether) on TRON and USDT on Ethereum run on different networks. The provider has to accept the exact pair, and your checkout should name it before the buyer sends. Also look at invoice minimums, wallet scanning, expiry and whether an exchange withdrawal deducts its own fee from the amount sent.

CoinGate's merchant acceptance list includes USDC on networks such as Base and Solana, but not USDT.^[10] If your buyers hold Tether, asking them to swap first adds a step, and you should measure what it costs you.

Wallet friction costs money. Say a shop saves $50 a month with a cheaper processor but loses three orders because customers can't use their wallets. If each lost order would have left $25 after product costs, that's $75 lost against $50 saved.

Ask a few regular customers how they'd pay, then try those methods in the proposed checkout. Tracking attempted orders, successful payments, expired invoices and support requests will show whether a lower fee is hiding lost sales.

How do you work out what a processor really costs?

Follow the whole bill. Start with your monthly crypto revenue, the number of paid orders, your average order and how often you need money out.

BitPay's standard starting rate is 2% plus $0.25 below $500,000 of cumulative monthly volume; high-risk pricing is higher, and BitPay doesn't quote it. Its terms require a non-refundable application fee, even if the application is denied or withdrawn, and they don't give the amount.^[11][12] Ask what it is before you apply.

CoinGate lists 1% on its Standard plan, plus a risk margin in payment quotes that it doesn't publish. Its manual-exchange fee is its own charge and doesn't automatically apply to checkout conversion.^[13][14] B2BinPay's first tier charges 0.40% for coins and 0.50% for stablecoins and tokens, and its per-network minimum commissions can raise the cost of a small payment.^[15] Confirmo's active Irish fee schedule lists 0.8% for invoicing, for accounts covered by that Irish company.^[16]

These charts show only the provider's fee. Network charges, quote margins, bank costs and account charges come on top, and so do B2BinPay's per-network minimum commissions. They aren't offers of an account, and an unknown charge isn't zero.

At $10,000 in monthly sales with $100 orders, the fee alone is $100 at CoinGate, $225 at BitPay, $40 at B2BinPay for coins or $50 for its stablecoins, and $80 under Confirmo's Irish schedule. We worked those out from the rates above. Fixed charges bite hardest on small orders.

What do small orders and bank charges do to the bill?

They can outweigh the gap between headline rates.

NOWPayments' prices contradict each other. Its Fees article gives explicit 1% and 1.5% answers but repeats 0.5% and 1% in the flow description.^[27] You'd need a tariff for your own settings, and the NOWPayments fee guide covers the differences still open.

How and when does money reach your bank?

What matters is when you can spend the money: how long until cash is in your own account, including the wait to reach a withdrawal minimum, not just how long until the provider detects a payment or credits a balance.

The path has several stages: the buyer sends, the payment is confirmed, any conversion finishes, your balance reaches the withdrawal minimum, the processor issues the transfer and your bank credits it. A published timing may cover only one of those stages, so ask which one, and whether cut-offs, weekends or checks add time.

At NOWPayments, partner business checks may apply, and other crypto balances are converted at the account's commission.^[4] Confirmo's Irish policy also uses third-party payment partners for bank settlement, and its public fee schedule gives no bank-arrival time.^[20] Ask whether your bank will accept money from the sender named on the transfer before you rely on either.

Minimums tie up cash. An approved B2BinPay merchant with €4,800 ready to withdraw is below the published €5,000 floor, so it needs more cleared revenue or another approved way to get paid. The €200 gap is money waiting, not a €200 fee. Budget for your suppliers from usable cash and keep some cover for a delayed transfer.

Paykilla's public price is from 0.5%, configured individually, and it claims a zero withdrawal service fee. Neither is a flat price for every merchant, and neither says a custom bank withdrawal is free.^[6]

Which company signs your agreement, and what permission does it have?

Start with the company that signs your agreement. "Registered" and "licensed" mean different things, so look at the specific permission and what it covers.

The Bank of Lithuania register lists UAB Decentralized with payment-institution and crypto-asset-service-provider licences, both valid from 16 December 2025. NYDFS lists Bitpay, Inc. with a virtual currency licence.^[23][24] Those are official records you can look up yourself. They don't promise your account will be approved or that every bank service is covered anywhere.

A permission belongs to the company that holds it. A sister company, a partner or a register entry from another country doesn't automatically cover the company that signs with you, so ask for the licence and the services it covers if the public entry is unclear.

Confirmo's replacement Irish fee schedule takes effect on 1 November 2026.^[17] Confirmo's posted Terms already list USD 100 plus network costs for recovered mispayments.^[1] So match the company, agreement and fee schedule version you're quoted. The documents give no single current fee for everyone, and no sign that recovery was free before the new schedule.

Save the agreement and the quote with their effective dates. If a salesperson promises something more generous than the terms, ask which written document controls.

Who holds your funds, and what can stop a withdrawal?

Choose who controls your money before choosing who has the nicest dashboard. Custody makes the provider's release rules part of your cash flow.

CoinGate's terms say account funds aren't deposits, have no deposit insurance, and can be restricted or have withdrawals suspended during checks.^[21] Ask how funds are kept apart, what your claim would be if the company failed and which company holds each balance.

BTCPay Server's FAQ describes non-custodial invoicing, with payment going directly to your wallet and no processor subscription or transaction charge. Hosting, wallet security and any conversion service are still on you; the FAQ points to plugins for fiat conversion.^[22] Look closely at your exact setup, especially if a third party hosts it or a wallet keeps spendable keys on the server.

Read the suspension and review clauses even if you plan to withdraw often. B2BinPay's Payment Review terms give no deadline. If funds are returned because of a review, it may deduct the cost of the return plus $50–$100 per returned transaction, depending on your risk level.^[18] That charge applies only when a review ends in a return; it isn't part of the ordinary withdrawal tariff.

Before signing, find out who asks for documents, where you reply, how a case escalates and whether funds not under review stay available. A promise of "no rolling reserve" doesn't answer any of that, and an easy signup can still lead to verification later.

Can you refund customers and leave cleanly?

Plan for refunds and account closure while you're choosing, before a customer needs money back. A blockchain payment that has gone through doesn't end your responsibility for valid returns or cancellations.

Ask how to issue full and partial refunds, which asset and network the customer gets back, when the exchange rate is set and who pays transfer costs. BitPay's refund documentation treats a refund of a paid order differently from returning an underpayment or just the overpaid excess.^[28] Whoever answers refund requests needs to know which case they're in.

For wrong-network, late or tiny payments, find out whether recovery is possible, left to the provider's discretion or not offered below a cost threshold, and who has to claim it and complete any identity checks. A recovery promise with no conditions isn't enough to budget on.

• Can you export orders, balances, fees, exchange values and transfer references in a useful accounting format?
• What happens to open invoices, refundable orders, recurring customers and reusable deposit addresses?
• Can you withdraw a closing balance below the normal minimum, and what deductions apply?
• How long must you keep access for refunds and late payments, and what counts as inactivity?
• What notice is required to close, and can checks continue after termination?

Have one person watch the old account's notices while you migrate. A forgotten balance or an unanswered document request can cause trouble after checkout has moved.

How should you test checkout and compare the shortlist?

Test what your business depends on before you move every sale. A plugin logo says little about your store version, order updates or refund process.

CoinGate's WordPress listing includes compatibility metadata and a changelog with checkout-related changes.^[26] That's the kind of evidence to ask for when you want to know which plugin version works with your shop. A plugin marked "tested" hasn't necessarily been tested on your setup.

Give your developer a checklist covering a normal paid order, an expired or underpaid invoice, duplicate payment notifications, a refund and an accounting export, and agree what the right result is for each. A webhook should update an order without dispatching goods twice, and someone needs to own fixing an order if notifications stop.

Ask support how it handles a held transfer outside working hours, because being available, replying and resolving a case are three different things. Reviews can suggest questions, but weigh merchants' reports apart from those by shoppers or gift-card buyers, and an average rating isn't a payout guarantee.

The fee rows below show only the provider's fee, and nothing in the table tells you if you're eligible.

	CoinGate	BitPay	B2BinPay	Confirmo	BTCPay Server
Score	81/100 · #1	73/100 · #3	62/100 · #9	72/100 · #4	57/100 · #12
Payment fee	1%	2% + $0.25	0.4%	0.8%	0%
Cost on $10k/month	$100	$225	$40.00	$80.00	$0.00
Pays out to bank	EUR, GBP, USD	AUD, CAD, CHF, EUR, GBP, MXN, NZD, USD	EUR, USD	EUR	Not stated
Stablecoin networks	USDC: Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain, Solana, Polygon, Arbitrum, Base, Optimism · EURC: Ethereum	USDC: Ethereum, Polygon, Arbitrum, Optimism, Base, Solana · USDT: Ethereum, Polygon, Arbitrum, Optimism, Solana · PYUSD: Ethereum · GUSD: Ethereum · USDP: Ethereum · EURC: Ethereum · BUSD: Ethereum, Polygon	USDT: Not stated · USDC: Not stated	USDT: Ethereum, TRON, Polygon, Arbitrum, Optimism, BNB Smart Chain · USDC: Ethereum, Polygon, Arbitrum, Optimism, BNB Smart Chain · USDG: Not stated	USDT: Liquid, TRC20 (plugin)
Coins	12	19	Not stated	10	14
Custody	Custodial	Custodial	Custodial	Custodial	Non-custodial
Merchant KYC	Required	Required	Required	Required	None
Rolling reserve	Not stated	Not stated	Not stated	Not stated	none
Licence	Crypto-Asset Service Provider (MiCA), Bank of Lithuania; licence No. 2, authorization code LB002323 (LB002323); Payment institution, Bank of Lithuania (EMT operations); licence No. 60, authorization code LB002324 (LB002324)	Money transmitter (NMLS ID) (1496848); Virtual Currency Business Activity licence (NYDFS)	Digital Asset Service Provider (PSAD), B2BINPAY EL SALVADOR S.A. DE C.V. (PSAD-0064); Bitcoin Service Provider (PSB), B2BINPAY EL SALVADOR S.A. DE C.V.	Crypto-Asset Service Provider (MiCAR), Confirmo Limited (C570624); Payment Institution (PSD2), Confirmo Limited — electronic-money-token transfer scope (C570624)	Not stated
Plugins	WooCommerce, Wix, Magento 2, WHMCS, OpenCart, PrestaShop	WooCommerce, Shopify, Magento 2, WHMCS, Wix, BigCommerce	WooCommerce	WooCommerce, Shopify	WooCommerce, Shopify, PrestaShop, Magento, BigCommerce, Odoo
Legal entity country	Lithuania	United States	Not stated	Ireland	Not stated
Founded	2014	2011	Not stated	2014	Not stated

If you're eligible and want euros, start with the CoinGate review. US and Canadian applicants can look at the BitPay review. The crypto payment gateway ranking covers more options, and the CoinGate and NOWPayments comparison helps when the coins you need and the bank payout you want point to different providers.

Keep the old checkout running during a limited rollout until the new one is paying out usable funds and keeping reliable records. Agree beforehand what would send you back to it, finish refunds and transfers already in progress, and keep one place to log problems.

Choosing a crypto payment processor FAQ

Updates: 14 October 2026: clarified B2BinPay's policy and what the estimates leave out. 11 October 2026: rechecked eligibility rules, prices, agreements and official notices, and added the customer-wallet example, the questions on getting paid and a migration checklist.