Which online payment methods to accept in the UK?

The UK market is dominated by debit and credit cards issued under the VISA or MasterCard brand.

Besides cards, PayPal, Klarna, Apple Pay en Amazon Pay are relevant online payment methods to offer to UK shoppers.

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United-Kingdom (UK)
E-commerce Market Profile

Find below the key stats for the UK ecommerce market.
Here you can find the most popular online payment methods in the UK.

Would you like to know which Payment Service Providers can help you to accept payments online?
Start with our short list of Payment Service Providers in the UK.

Currency

British Pound (GBP)

Household Internet Access Rate

89.9%

Internet Country Code

.co.uk

B2C E-commerce Market Size

Population (+ Global Rank)

65.7 million (2020) (#22)

Online Payment Methods

International credit and debit cards (MasterCard, Visa),

Country GDP (+ Global Rank)

$2,925,000,000,000 (#9)

National E-commerce Association(s)

GDP per capita (+ Global rank)

$44,300 (#39)

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bacs

Bacs Direct Debit is a simple way for organisations and businesses to collect recurring or occasional payments from their customers - both business and consumer. It saves time, reduces the costs of collections and puts cleared funds directly into the bank account.

Amazon Pay

Amazon Pay is an online payment service owned by Amazon that lets shoppers use their amazon.com account to make online purchases. With Amazon Pay, shoppers can make purchases using credit or debit cards stored in their digital wallet. The acceptance of Amazon Pay can lead to an improved payment acceptance rate, lower cart abandonment, and increased conversions as Amazon Pay shoppers can pay for products and services without creating new accounts or leaving a merchant’s site.

Google Pay

With Google Pay, shoppers can make purchases using credit or debit cards stored in their Google account. Shoppers get to experience a simpler checkout process whether they are buying from their Android devices, on the web, or in-store through POS terminals.

Klarna | Pay-Later

Klarna allows shoppers to buy now and pay later. And Merchants to increase their conversion rate with optimised user experience for m-commerce as well as state of the art payment options.

SOFORT - Pay now by Klarna

Sofort, also known as Pay now with Klarna, is a popular online banking method in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, and Belgium. Sofort is also available in Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, and the United Kingdom.

American Express

American Express is a credit or charge card that can be used for online payments. American Express is amongst the major credit card brands in the world.

VISA

Visa is one of world's best known online payment methods and largest credit card brand. Visa truly is a global payment brand with acceptance at point-of-sale and online in over 170 countries.

MasterCard

MasterCard is one of world's best known online payment methods and dominant credit card brands. MasterCard is truly a global payment brand, supporting 150 currencies with over 35 million acceptance locations (point-of-sale and online) in over 210 countries.

PayPal

PayPal is the online payment method that enables people to send money and to shop online without sharing financial information. Shoppers can pay from their PayPal preloaded balance, directly from their bank account or stored credit cards like MasterCard and Visa.

Apple Pay

The Apple Pay payment service allows consumers to pay contactless, in-app and on desktop through the newest Apple Macbook and iMac's. Consumers are able to securely store credit and debit card details into their Apple Pay wallet and confirm payment by simply scanning their fingerprint with Apple's Touch ID or by using Face ID.

PaybyBank

PaybyBank app allows UK shoppers to pay through their mobile bank app.

Direct Debit

A direct debit is a transaction whereby funds are withdrawn from the customer's bank account. When a shopper selects the direct debit payment option upon checkout, the merchant is allowed to charge the purchase amount and collect it from the shopper's bank account.

Open Banking

Open banking payments are authenticated directly between consumers and their banks, meaning, unlike with direct debits, merchants can avoid chargebacks generated due to fraud or an inability to capture funds. It works in a similar way to most online banking methods. A customer simply selects the payment type during the checkout process, at which point they are redirected to their bank’s online banking environment to securely confirm the payment.

Bank Transfer

A bank transfer is an offline or online initiated transfer of funds from the shopper's bank account to the merchant's bank account. It can be used by any online shopper with a bank account. Merchants have to wait for the shopper to take action, completes payment and for the funds to arrive in their bank account before delivery of service or product can take place.

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Over 26.369 online businesses used our platform since we started ABOUT-PAYMENTS.com back in 2012. Due to the growing number of Payment Service Providers and gateways worldwide, it has become difficult for you as a merchant, business or developer to choose the right one to process your payments. ABOUT-PAYMENTS.com simplifies this selection process considerably and makes life easier.
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Which online payment methods to accept in the UK?

United-Kingdom (UK)
E-commerce Market Profile

Currency

Household Internet Access Rate

Internet Country Code

B2C E-commerce Market Size

Population (+ Global Rank)

Online Payment Methods

Country GDP (+ Global Rank)

National E-commerce Association(s)

GDP per capita (+ Global rank)

Looking to accept payments online?
Find your Payment Service Provider »

✓  Our matching service is free of charge
✓  Offers quick insight into your options
✓  Helps out to wisely select your provider

Online Payment Methods in the UK

bacs

Amazon Pay

Google Pay

Klarna | Pay-Later

SOFORT - Pay now by Klarna

American Express

VISA

MasterCard

PayPal

Apple Pay

PaybyBank

Direct Debit

Open Banking

Bank Transfer

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Which online payment methods to accept in the UK?

United-Kingdom (UK)E-commerce Market Profile

Currency

Household Internet Access Rate

Internet Country Code

B2C E-commerce Market Size

Population (+ Global Rank)

Online Payment Methods

Country GDP (+ Global Rank)

National E-commerce Association(s)

GDP per capita (+ Global rank)

Looking to accept payments online?Find your Payment Service Provider »✓ Our matching service is free of charge ✓ Offers quick insight into your options✓ Helps out to wisely select your provider

Online Payment Methods in the UK

bacs

Amazon Pay

Google Pay

Klarna | Pay-Later

SOFORT - Pay now by Klarna

American Express

VISA

MasterCard

PayPal

Apple Pay

PaybyBank

Direct Debit

Open Banking

Bank Transfer

If you follow us, we like it.

United-Kingdom (UK)
E-commerce Market Profile

Looking to accept payments online?
Find your Payment Service Provider »

✓ Our matching service is free of charge
✓ Offers quick insight into your options
✓ Helps out to wisely select your provider