Which online payment methods to accept in the US? (2024)

FAQs

Which payment method is best for the USA? ›

Why are credit cards the best payment method? Credit cards are often viewed as the best payment method because they are convenient, widely accepted, and offer enhanced fraud protection.

The most popular retail payment method in the US is card payments, especially credit and debit cards.

Cash is the best — and sometimes only — way to pay for bus fare, taxis, and local guides. If you'll be shopping a lot or settling bills at pricey business-class hotels, you might use your credit card more than I do — but you'll still be better off using cash for smaller purchases.

Credit and debit cards are the most popular payment method for making online purchases.

Credit cards are the most used payment method (54%), followed closely by debit cards (49%). PayPal stands out as the leading mobile payment option for online transactions, used by two-fifth of Americans (42%), underscoring its strength in the e-commerce space.

Services like Apple Pay and Google Pay don't charge any extra fees on top of credit card processing fees, so the cost is the same as accepting card payments directly. PayPal does charge an additional fee for each transaction, so it's more expensive for merchants – but it's also a more established payment method.

The payment option that is not accepted online is cash. When making online purchases, you typically cannot use physical cash as a form of payment because there is no physical exchange of money. Instead, online transactions are usually done through credit cards and debit cards.

What is the best alternative to PayPal? ›

Prepaid gift cards – if you manage to find a service that accepts prepaid gift cards, these are among the most anonymous and efficient payment options. PayPal – widely accepted, but semi-anonymous. Google Pay – semi-anonymous and isn't widely available. Apple Pay Cash – isn't anonymous and isn't widely available.

Faster payments can yield real economic benefits to individuals and businesses by allowing them to send and receive payments at any time of the day, on any day of the year, so that recipients have access to final funds almost immediately.

With cash-in-advance payment terms, an exporter can avoid credit risk because payment is received before the ownership of the goods is transferred. For international sales, wire transfers and credit cards are the most commonly used cash-in-advance options available to exporters.