Credit card payments require more than a checkout form. The site must use a reputable processor, minimise card-data exposure, authenticate transactions where required, handle webhooks and reconcile settlements.
How this guide was produced
Documented features reviewed on 10 September 2026. Gateway eligibility, fees and regional support vary, so check them for your own country and card mix.
Eight options at a glance
| Option | Best fit | First thing to verify |
|---|---|---|
| WooCommerce Stripe Gateway | WooCommerce stores using Stripe | Payment methods and region |
| WooPayments | Integrated WooCommerce management | Country eligibility and fees |
| PayPal Payments | PayPal and card checkout | Account eligibility and funding methods |
| WP Simple Pay | Stripe payments without a store | Plan and transaction features |
| WPForms | Form-based payments | Gateway add-ons and licence |
| Gravity Forms | Custom payment workflows | Payment add-ons |
| GiveWP | Donations and recurring gifts | Gateway and plan terms |
| Easy Digital Downloads | Digital product checkout | Gateway extension scope |
How we assessed them
We looked at hosted or tokenised fields, supported processors, SCA and 3DS, saved methods, subscriptions, webhooks, refunds, disputes, fees, currencies, taxes, receipts, accessibility, logging and PCI scope.
Test the unhappy paths
- Success, decline, authentication challenge and timeout
- Duplicate submission and refund
- Dispute handling and webhook retries
- Settlement reconciliation against your accounts
Never store raw card numbers
Use processor-hosted or tokenised fields, HTTPS everywhere, least privilege and strong administrator authentication.
Read next
- Two-factor authentication plugins - protect the accounts behind the money
- WordPress donation plugins - gift-specific payment flows
- FunnelKit review - checkout optimisation for WooCommerce
- Run a live speed test - slow checkouts lose sales
Where to get these
Direct links to the official plugin, theme and store pages for everything named above. Prices and plans are set by the vendor, and some links may earn us a commission.
- Get it
WooCommerce Stripe Gateway
Plugin · WooCommerce · Free
- Get it
WooPayments
Plugin · Woo · Free
- Get it
PayPal Payments
Plugin · WooCommerce · Free
- Get it
WP Simple Pay
Plugin · Awesome Motive · Freemium
- Get it
WPForms
Plugin · WPForms · Freemium
- Get it
Gravity Forms
Plugin · Rocketgenius · Premium
- Get it
GiveWP
Plugin · Liquid Web · Freemium
- Get it
Easy Digital Downloads
Plugin · Awesome Motive · Freemium
Common questions
Does a plugin make a site PCI compliant?
No. It can reduce scope, but compliance depends on your whole business, technical and processor environment.
Which gateway is cheapest?
Compare effective cost for your countries, cards, refunds, disputes, subscriptions, currency conversion and volume.
Should checkout save cards?
Use processor tokens with explicit customer controls. Do not store raw card numbers on the site.
Fast WordPress editorial
Independent research edition · Published 10 September 2026. We update field guides when a plugin's documented capabilities change.
