Authorize.net

Authorize.net is one of the oldest card gateways still trading. It started in 1996, was bought by CyberSource in 2007 and passed to Visa when Visa acquired CyberSource in 2010. It still runs under its own name and is aimed at small and mid-sized businesses rather than enterprises.

The product is a gateway first: it connects a website, virtual terminal or point-of-sale setup to the merchant's acquiring bank. US merchants can instead take the all-in-one plan, where Authorize.net supplies the merchant account as well. Accepted cards are Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, JCB and Diners Club, alongside Apple Pay, Google Pay and, in the US, eCheck payments drawn on bank accounts through ACH.

Pricing for US merchants is on the website. The all-in-one plan costs $25 a month plus 2.9% and 30 cents per transaction. Merchants who bring their own account pay the same monthly fee, 10 cents per transaction and a 10-cent daily batch fee, and eCheck adds 0.75% per payment. There is no setup fee. Recurring billing, stored customer profiles, an account updater for expired cards and a rules-based fraud filter are part of the platform.

Merchants must be based in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Europe or Australia, although they can take payments from customers elsewhere. Account currencies depend on that region: US and Canadian accounts settle in USD or CAD, Australian accounts in AUD, NZD or USD, and UK and European accounts in a set of European currencies plus USD. Merchants outside the US should expect fewer plug-ins and should check which acquiring banks the gateway works with in their country.