Accepting Online Payments on Your Website

Whether you’re selling products, services, or subscriptions, your payment setup is the engine that keeps your online business running.
The key is choice and reliability; giving your customers easy, familiar options while keeping your cash flow secure and consistent.

Let’s explore how to accept online payments safely, efficiently, and profitably.

🕐 Takes about 6 minutes to read

🧭 Here’s What We’ll Cover

• Payment types and how they work
• Merchant facilities vs third-party gateways
• PayPal, Buy-Now-Pay-Later, and emerging options
• Surcharges and currencies
• Fraud prevention and strategic risk management

🏦 Merchant Facilities: The Bank Route

A merchant facility is a service your bank provides that allows you to accept credit and debit card payments directly into your business account.

It’s worth negotiating hard on fees, settlement times, and support. Ask about:

• Cut-off and settlement times: Do they pay daily, including weekends and holidays?
• Support hours: If your funds are delayed, or if you are offline who do you call?
• Fraud responsibility: Spoiler alert: it’s on you.

💬 Cranky Boss Tip:
Don’t let $60,000 sit in limbo over a long weekend. Negotiate weekend settlements upfront. This is crucial to your cash flow. 

A merchant facility gives you control but also carries more risk. You’re responsible for all fraudulent transactions, and chargebacks often come with a $25 fee.

🔒 Third-Party Payment Gateways:The Middleman

A payment gateway connects your website, your merchant account, and your customer’s bank securely.
They handle the technical side (encryption, authorisation, and compliance) while transferring the funds to your bank.

Trusted options include:
SecurePay, eWAY (I have used both)

I chose SecurePay, and for good reason:

• Excellent customer service and easy setup
• Built-in fraud protection
• Recurring billing and subscription support
• Detailed and customisable daily reports

That kind of visibility helps spot suspicious activity before it becomes a problem.

💰 PayPal: Love It or Leave It

There’s no denying PayPal’s convenience; customers trust it and checkout in seconds.
Transactions are seamless, and you’ll usually see funds in your account the next day (often within hours).

✅ Pros:

• Extremely low fraud rates
• Easy setup and buyer confidence
• Instant notifications and quick transfers

❌ Cons:

• High fees (though negotiable)
• Difficult to contact when things go wrong
• Possible account holds or frozen funds

💬 Cranky Boss Moment:
PayPal froze my funds once, and let’s just say… the ombudsman and I became best friends.

Despite the headaches, PayPal remains one of the most trusted options online.

🛍️ Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) Options

BNPL platforms like Afterpay, ZipPay, and Klarna give customers flexibility and often boost sales.
I chose ZipPay/ZipMoney for their lower fees and smoother integration.

✅ They offer:

• Fast approvals and instant settlements
• Strong fraud prevention
• Excellent customer service

If your audience skews younger or price sensitive, BNPL is a must have at checkout.

🏪 EFTPOS Terminals: Bridging Online and In-Store

If you also run a physical store or take phone orders, keep an EFTPOS terminal on hand.
It’s an easy backup during online outages and a simple way to handle mixed sales channels.

✈️ Cranky Boss Tip:
Live EFTPOS Black earns Qantas Points per dollar processed. If you’re going to work this hard, at least fly for free.

🌍 Other & International Payment Options

Don’t overlook emerging and cultural preferences:

• Apple Pay, Google Pay, Stripe, Square are frictionless digital wallets.
• Alipay, WeChat Pay, China UnionPay are essential if you target Chinese consumers.

The easier it is for customers to pay the way they’re used to, the higher your conversion rate.

💳 Payment Surcharges

As a business, when you process certain types of payments, you will almost always incur a fee for processing that payment. This may come in a percentage or a flat rate, or both. Some businesses choose to absorb that fee, while others pass it on to the customer.

There is a ban against excessive surcharges. For instance, if your financial provider charges you 1% for a credit card payment that you process, you are not required to impose a fee on your customer. If you decide that you would like to, you cannot charge anything above what the bank has charged you. 

These rules apply to the following payment types:

• Eftpos (Prepaid and Debit)
• MasterCard (Prepaid, Debit & Credit)
• VISA (Prepaid, Debit & Credit)
• American Express cards that are issued through an Australian Financial Service Provider and not directly through American Express.

These rules do not apply to the following payment types, but you should check with these payment systems as they may have their own rules and limits to surcharges you can impose:

• Paypal
• Diners Club
• BPAY
• American Express cards issued directly by American Express
• Cash & Cheques

The ACCC sets out clear rules and guidelines regarding excessive surcharges.

I have never charged a customer a payment surcharge on using a credit card. I have always absorbed this cost or included it in my fixed total price. This is good business practice and essential to customer trust and loyalty.

💬 Cranky Boss Tip:
Absorb it. It’s cleaner, it builds trust, and you’ll make it back in repeat customers.

Transparent, all-inclusive pricing reduces cart abandonment and builds loyalty.

💱Currencies

If you sell internationally, add a live currency converter plugin or allow checkout in major currencies (USD, EUR, GBP).
Always include a disclaimer that conversions are approximate and final charges occur in your base currency.

You can also negotiate with your bank or gateway to accept multi-currency settlements.

🧠 Risk & Fraud Awareness

Every payment system carries risk.
Fraudulent transactions, chargebacks, and false disputes can erode profit fast.

That’s why it’s essential to:

• Use gateways with built-in fraud detection.
• Set transaction limits for high-value orders.
• Learn how to recognise suspicious behaviour.

For detailed prevention tips, see:
📍 Types of Fraud
🔹 Tips on How to Spot Fraudulent Transactions.

Final Words

Offering multiple payment options isn’t just convenience; it’s strategy.
It builds trust, improves conversion rates, and protects your business from disruption.

Negotiate with banks, compare fees, and test everything. A smooth checkout is invisible to your customer, and that’s exactly how it should be.

💬 Cranky Boss Tip:
If you make people think too much at checkout, you’ve already lost the sale.

📅 Updated October 2025

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📚 Related Reading

• Having an Online Presence
• Selecting and Registering a Domain Name
• Hosting Companies
• Website Builders & Building a Website
• Constructing Your Website Pages
• 🔹 You’re here: Online Payment Methods
• Pricing Standards & Advertising Online
• Disputes and Chargebacks
• Types of Online Fraud
• SEO (Search Engine Optimisation)
• Paid Advertising – Google Ads
• Other Selling Platforms

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