Payment gateway charges in India: compare fees

Compare payment gateway charges in India using the standard rate for each payment method, GST on the fee and the amount that reaches your bank. On 06 Nov 2026, Razorpay's pricing FAQ states 2% plus GST, Cashfree's offer terms state a standard 1.95% plus applicable taxes, and PayU lists 2% for specified domestic methods, with GST extra.

Build the comparison at the rates you will pay after promotions end. Then value any eligible introductory offer separately. Include your store platform's applicable transaction fee, refunds and paid settlement options before selecting a gateway for a D2C checkout.

Payment gateway charges comparison: 06 Nov 2026

The table links to each provider's public pricing page. Match the payment method and account terms when requesting a written quote.

Save the quote with a check date, billing basis and payment-method schedule. A headline comparison hides differences between domestic cards, international cards and UPI variants. Ask for the line that applies to each method used by your buyers.

Keep optional products on separate rows. A payout service, subscription tool or expedited settlement option performs a different job from accepting a checkout payment. Include it when the operating plan uses it and keep it out of a base gateway comparison otherwise.

Read promotional pricing before using it in a budget

Razorpay's page advertises a 0% introductory fee for the first 90 days while its FAQ describes 2% plus GST. Confirm eligibility and covered methods in writing before budgeting the introductory benefit.

Cashfree's checked festive offer advertises zero platform fees on eligible cumulative volume up to ₹20 lakh, through 31 Mar 2027. Its terms cover qualifying new merchants signing up from 21 Jul 2026 and exclude specified methods. They retain GST at 18%, calculated on standard 1.95% pricing, even while the platform fee is waived. Read the linked terms before treating the headline as the full deduction.

Put the promotional and standard periods on separate lines in your planning sheet. Set an expiry reminder and record the cumulative eligible volume. Finance should be able to explain a rise in deductions when the offer ends without having to reconstruct the account's onboarding history.

PayU's checked page lists zero setup and annual maintenance fees. Use the provider quote to confirm which optional services are enabled. A recurring service belongs in the operating budget even when the base payment product has no fixed fee.

Calculate the fee and GST separately

Use this worksheet structure for every successful payment:

Processing fee = captured amount × applicable fee rate.

Tax on the fee = processing fee × applicable tax rate.

Expected bank amount = captured amount − processing fee − tax − other agreed deductions.

The tax base in that calculation is the service fee. Keep the customer's invoice tax and the provider's fee invoice in separate records. Have finance reconcile the tax invoice against the settlement statement before closing the month.

Worked example with an assumed ₹1,000 successful payment, a 2% processing fee and 18% tax on that fee: the fee is ₹20, tax is ₹3.60 and the net amount is ₹976.40 before other deductions. For 100 identical payments, captured value is ₹1 lakh, fees total ₹2,000 and tax totals ₹360. The corresponding net is ₹97,640.

Use one basis when comparing providers: either fees before tax or total deductions including tax. Put that basis in the column heading. Rounding and batch adjustments belong in the settlement reconciliation, with a reference back to the original payment.

Find the lowest cost for your actual payment mix

Export successful payments by method and captured value. Apply the quoted rate for each method, then sum the resulting fees. Divide by total captured value to calculate the blended processing rate for that mix.

Keep failed attempts outside the successful-payment denominator, but record them in the checkout funnel. A cheaper processing rate produces little value if fewer buyers complete payment. Compare payment completion by device, method and checkout step when reviewing a gateway change.

Ask each provider to price the same mix. Include domestic and international cards separately, and distinguish ordinary UPI from credit card on UPI. Write down whether a commercial quote uses a volume commitment, a category restriction or a promotional period.

A negotiated fee also needs an operational owner. Save who approved the rate, when it starts and which account it covers. Check the first settlement after the change against the written schedule. An approved quote only helps the margin once the deductions match it.

Check refunds, disputes and settlement options

Request the refund schedule alongside the processing schedule. Ask whether the original processing fee is retained, what a paid instant-refund option costs and how each adjustment appears in the settlement file. Record the answer in the contract comparison rather than assuming the original fee reverses with the sale.

Do the same for chargebacks. Keep the disputed amount, evidence deadline and any contracted dispute fee visible to the person who owns the case. A support ticket and a bank adjustment need a common reference so finance can follow the resolution.

Separate settlement speed from processing cost. PayU's public FAQ describes standard settlement as T+2, with other options based on business category. Confirm what the transaction date means in your contract, the business-day rules and the fee for any faster option.

Use the cash plan to decide whether faster access is worth paying for. Record the planned dispatch payments and stock purchases, then compare them with the expected settlement dates. A faster settlement option solves a timing problem; assess it against that timing need.

Include the Shopify platform fee

Shopify's third-party transaction fee documentation, checked 06 Nov 2026, describes a separate platform charge that depends on the store's payment setup and plan. Join the applicable platform charge to the gateway cost in the checkout worksheet.

Keep manual COD separate. Shopify's manual-payments documentation, also checked 06 Nov 2026, exempts manual payments from its third-party transaction fee. Courier collection and freight still belong in the COD cost worksheet.

When testing a prepaid incentive, include the gateway and platform charges beside the discount. Compare the retained contribution and delivery outcome with COD. The RTO reduction guide shows how to preserve the acquired-order denominator so abandoned or cancelled orders remain visible.

Reconcile captured payments to the bank

Build a reconciliation sheet with order reference, payment reference, captured amount, applicable rate, fee tax, refund adjustments, settlement reference and bank credit. Restrict access to the people who need those records.

Work from the provider's payment ledger to its settlement batch, then from the batch to the bank. An order marked paid confirms a different event from the bank receiving a settlement. Keep unmatched payments in an exception queue with an owner and a next check date.

Check these cases before closing the sheet:

• A captured payment missing from the expected settlement batch.
• A different fee rate from the written payment-method schedule.
• A refund appearing against a later batch than the original capture.
• A promotional fee ending before the recorded eligible cap or date.
• A bank credit that combines several settlement or adjustment records.

Keep the provider's fee invoice with the settlement file. Match its billing period and adjustments to the ledger, then resolve discrepancies with payment references. That gives finance a reproducible trail when the checkout team changes a payment method or enables a new service.

Compare a gateway change on the live checkout flow

Before switching the main checkout, verify the mobile payment path, order confirmation and refund workflow using the provider's supported test process. Confirm that the store records successful and failed payments correctly and that the reconciliation owner recognises the new settlement file.

Start the comparison with written commercial terms and a saved payment-method mix. After the first complete settlement and refund cycle, compare the actual fee deductions, payment completion and bank matching effort. Use those results to decide which payment configuration earns its place in the checkout.