How to Integrate a Payment Gateway Into a Website

Choosing a Payment Gateway

Understand what the gateway does. The payment gateway processes the customer's credit card information by sending the data to the gateway's web server, which then makes the sale and sends the confirmation back to the website. You can quickly integrate your gateway into your website's shopping cart software.

Check with your web host. Your web host or online shop software provider may provide payment gateway services that you can quickly implement on your suite. Check your website's control panel or your online shop's admin page to see if there are payment gateway options.

Browse your options. There are a lot of different payment gateways out there, and they can get a bit confusing. Before you start looking, check which gateways your shopping cart software supports. Your shopping cart software's support site should have a list of compatible payment gateways. Some of the more widely supported gateways include: PayPal Payza Perfect Money Egopay SecurePay Authorize.net Verify Braintree SecurePay

Pay attention to fees and conditions. The payment gateway will typically charge you a one-time setup fee, a monthly fee, and then charge a small fee for each transaction processed. Compare rates to find the service that meets your needs the best.

Pick between an external or a direct gateway. External gateways (also known as "redirect") send your customers to another website to process the payment. Direct gateways (also known as "transparent") do the processing within your store, keeping the customer on your site. If possible, choose a direct gateway, as they look more professional.

Sign up for a merchant account. You will need to sign up for a merchant account, which you then link to your payment gateway. This will allow you to receive payments from the customer. Merchant accounts will typically charge you per transaction as well.

Sign up for your chosen payment gateway. Once you sign up for your gateway, you will be provided the necessary information that you will need to provide to your online store software. This could be a login name and password, or it could be an ID and an authorization file.

Integrating the Payment Gateway into a Web Shop

Set up your web shop. Most online retailers will use third-party software to create a webshop for their customers. This software handles the creation of the ordering page as well as all the code for transferring payment information to the gateway. Creating this code from scratch is one of the most difficult tasks when it comes to web development, so it's usually best left to professionals.

Add payment methods. The process for this will vary from service to service, but generally, you will need to enter your payment gateway information for each method of payment you intend to accept (Visa, Mastercard, etc.). Your payment gateway determines which cards are accepted. You can do this from your online store's administration page. Find the Payments page, or something similar.

Test the gateway. You will typically be provided Test or Sandbox accounts by your payment gateway service. These allow you to perform fake transactions to ensure that the payment process is working correctly. Be sure to test before making your store live. This will vary again from service to service. Check your payment gateway's support site for details on testing your gateway's integration.