Checkout.com vs Adyen: Which is Better for Doing Business in Europe?

Understand the pros and cons of Checkout.com vs Adyen, and see which is a better option for doing business in Europe.

Payment gateways play an important role in e-commerce, acting as the middleman between customer and merchant. They can affect everything from the security of a transaction to the customer experience at checkout, so it is essential to find the right solution for any business. When comparing payment gateways like Checkout.com vs Adyen, there are several things to consider before deciding on one or the other. 

Checkout.com vs Adyen: Which is Better for Doing Business in Europe?

What do Checkout.com and Adyen do?

Adyen entered the market in 2006 and is primarily known for their B2B and enterprise payment services. Adyen’s global presence and client portfolio of large brands and household names have made them a significant player in the marketplace. 

Checkout.com is newer to the payment gateway world. Checkout.com serves a wider range of businesses, from mid-sized to enterprise and touts themselves as a full payment processing platform offering international coverage with customizable solutions. 

However, Checkout.com has a narrow focus on fully online payment processing, unlike Adyen who also provides their own Payment Gateway and more tangible, brick-and-mortar business services like POS transactions, receipt printing and ACH transactions. Checkout.com does not have quite the name recognition of Adyen but also serves regions where Adyen did not have as much of a stronghold.

If merchants are considering Checkout.com vs Ayden, there are a few considerations that should play into the decision-making process.

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Considerations: Checkout.com vs Adyen

Cost/Pricing

• Checkout.com Pricing – Checkout.com pricing varies based on your business type and risk profile. 
• Adyen Pricing- Adyen pricing is a standard fee per transaction, including a processing fee and a payment method fee, depending on the card issuer and country. 

Merchant User Experience

• Checkout.com – Checkout.com tries to make its product as customizable as possible so that merchants can integrate it as an infrastructure partner for their products. However, their integrations are more limited with just 50+ partners to Adyen’s 100+ partners.
• Adyen – With Adyen, any time there are platform changes, all of those changes are rolled out at the same time to all merchants; no one merchant receives any different experience than another. They also provide more numerous (100+) integrations and plugins.

Checkout.com currently has a more customized experience for merchants due to their flexibility, yet it lacks as many pre-built integrations. However, it remains to be seen if Checkout.com will continue with this customizable approach or if it is simply a way to gain entry into the market.

Cross-Border Payments

• Checkout.com – Checkout.com supports processing in nearly 50 countries with most major payment methods from cards to digital wallets to local payment methods. Their largest presence is in Europe, Asia Pacific, and the Middle East.
• Adyen – Adyen allows you to make and accept payments in over 20 countries across Europe and some countries in North America and Asia Pacific like Australia, Canada, Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong, and the United States, among others. However, international merchants will need to check twice before choosing Adyen, as they are only available for merchants domiciled in a limited number of primarily European countries. 

Customer Support

• Both companies offer 24/7 live support, making it easy for merchants to solve problems no matter their time zone. However, Adyen also offers multiple webinars in addition to the live help that Checkout.com provides.
  

Checkout.com Pros and Cons

Pros: 

• At the moment, Checkout.com offers a more customizable solution for businesses with regard to platform and pricing structure. 
• Serves businesses of different sizes from mid-sized businesses to enterprise clients

Cons: 

• Checkout.com is a newer platform that does not support as many countries or currencies as competitors. 
• Their market strength is mainly in the Middle East, Asia, and Europe, but less so in the US.
• Offers fewer (50+) integrations.
• Not suitable for companies with brick-and-mortar payments needs like POS transactions, receipt printing 

Adyen Pros and Cons

Pros: 

• Adyen has a vast global presence and excellent reputation for enabling fast transactions. 
• They are available across Europe and North America. 
• More integrations (100+) available.

Cons: 

• They are not very flexible for merchants with needs outside of what their platform already offers.
• Not suitable for smaller businesses.
• Adyen is available almost exclusively in Europe with additional support for the United States, Canada, Australia, Brazil and Singapore. Merchants in the rest of South America, Africa and Asia will need to look elsewhere for a supported payment provider.
  

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