Best Payment Gateway for Startups in India (2026)

The case for

• Cashfree publishes the whole dispute ladder with response windows, so you know you get 3 days to respond and 1 day for fraud cases
• Refunds, batch refunds, split settlements and vendor payouts are all documented with APIs and webhooks, which shortens integration work for an in-house team
• Settlement reversal reasons are published, so you can tell an invalid IFSC apart from a bank side failure without raising a ticket

The catch

• The default settlement cycle is T+2 bank working days, not T+1. Instant settlement needs an eligibility check through a support form, not a dashboard toggle
• Settlements to NRE bank accounts are not possible, which blocks a merchant whose only current account sits under an NRE mandate
• The refund button only appears on transactions that have already settled, and the money takes 7 to 10 business days to reach the customer

The case for

• The full rate card is public, with 2 percent on domestic cards, netbanking, wallets and UPI, and no setup fee
• Multi-currency processing covers 26 currencies including USD, GBP, EUR and AED, which suits exporters billing overseas customers directly
• It holds RBI payment aggregator authorisation and PCI DSS certification, with the certificate number stated on the site

The catch

• The 2 percent headline excludes 18 percent GST, so the real domestic cost lands at 2.36 percent of every transaction
• Annual Software Upgradation Charges of ₹1,200 plus GST start from the second financial year, charged monthly in advance every 1 April
• Running CCAvenue through the Shopify plugin adds 0.20 percent on every payment mode processed, on top of the platform fee

The case for

• Pricing is one published number. A 1.99 percent platform fee on every transaction plus 18 percent GST, with no setup fee and no annual maintenance charge
• Default settlement is next day rather than two days, and same-day and on-demand settlement options exist for businesses that need faster cash
• Onboarding is digital for eligible businesses and the checkout is the one most Indian shoppers already recognise, which helps conversion

The catch

• The business.paytm.com address now redirects to paytmpayments.com and the entity on record is Paytm Payments Services Limited, so older links point at a moved brand
• The 1.99 percent headline covers all transactions with no separate UPI or RuPay rate published, so a UPI-heavy seller pays the same as on cards
• International card acceptance is not switched on at signup and needs separate activation run by the merchant helpdesk after account approval

The case for

• The gateway currently runs at zero transaction fee as a limited period offer, against a struck through 1.99% headline rate.
• Setup fee and annual maintenance fee are both stated as zero, so there is no fixed cost to keep the account open.
• Standard Checkout is a hosted page that removes the PCI DSS burden, with ready plugins for WooCommerce, Shopify, OpenCart and Magento.

The catch

• The free rate is explicitly a limited period offer and the site never states what you pay once that period ends.
• No per instrument rate card is published, so UPI, cards, net banking and international payments all sit behind one struck through 1.99% figure.
• The pricing and FAQ pages on business.phonepe.com render as an empty app shell, so the detail appears only after you sign up.

The case for

• Broad Indian payment method coverage including UPI
• Payment links and subscriptions reduce build effort

The catch

• Per-transaction fees apply to every payment
• Exact rates vary by method and need verification

The case for

• Transaction fees are printed plainly at 5% plus ₹3 on the free and Starter store plans and 2% plus ₹3 once you reach Growth
• GST is called out as extra on the pricing page rather than buried, and store plans carry a 14 day money back guarantee
• The payment gateway is bundled with the store at no separate charge, so there is no second plugin or gateway subscription

The catch

• Digital product sales are charged at 10% plus ₹3 on the lower plans, double the physical goods rate, which is easy to miss
• Reaching the 2% rate means the Growth plan at ₹14,999 a year, so the lower fee only pays back at real volume
• The terms let Instamojo change your commission at its sole discretion and put the burden on you to check the site for revisions