Best Payment Gateways in South Africa 2025: PayFast, PayGate, Peach Payments Comparison

As e-commerce grows in South Africa, selecting the right payment gateway is crucial for business success. With increasing online transactions, eCommerce businesses need a reliable, efficient, and secure payment solution to maximize conversions and ensure a smooth customer experience. But how do you choose the best payment gateway for your business?

Are high payment gateway fees eating into your profit margins?

Do you struggle with high checkout abandonment rates?

These are common pain points for many online retailers, but with the right payment gateway, you can address these issues and improve your sales. In this blog post, we’ll compare the top payment gateways in South Africa for 2025: PayFast, PayGate, and Peach Payments. We’ll dive into their fees, features, fraud prevention, UX, and more, to help you make an informed decision for your business.

Payment Gateway Fees & Settlement Times in South Africa

Understanding the fee structure and settlement times of different payment gateways is crucial for businesses looking to keep costs low and maintain cash flow. Here’s a breakdown of the fees and settlement times for PayFast, PayGate, and Peach Payments.

PayFast: Fees, Settlement Times, and Features

PayFast is one of the most popular payment gateways in South Africa, and it is known for its fast settlement times and extensive range of features. PayFast charges a 2.9% + R1.50 transaction fee, which is slightly higher than PayGate but remains competitive for the services offered. PayFast is known for providing quick settlement and processing payments within 1–2 business days, making it an attractive option for businesses that require fast access to funds.

PayGate: Fees, Settlement Times, and Features

PayGate is a well-established payment gateway in South Africa, offering competitive rates with transaction fees starting at 2.5%. This fee can be lower for businesses with higher transaction volumes. PayGate’s settlement times are generally longer than PayFast, taking 2–3 business days for funds to be deposited into a merchant’s account. However, PayGate offers excellent customer support and a reliable, secure platform.

Peach Payments: Fees, Settlement Times, and Features

Peach Payments charges a slightly higher transaction fee than PayGate, with rates starting at 2.95%. However, Peach Payments makes up for this with its excellent fraud protection tools and highly customizable payment options. Its settlement times range from 2–3 business days, making it suitable for businesses that can afford a slightly slower payout in exchange for robust security and fraud prevention.

Checkout UX and Mobile Performance: What’s Best for Your Store?

In today’s mobile-first world, the checkout experience is crucial for improving conversion rates. A seamless, mobile-optimized checkout process can reduce friction and increase sales.

How PayFast, PayGate, and Peach Payments Optimize Checkout

All three payment gateways offer a clean, user-friendly checkout interface. However, their mobile performance varies slightly:

PayFast is known for its mobile-optimized checkout pages, providing an excellent experience for users on smartphones and tablets.
PayGate offers a more traditional checkout process, but its interface is still responsive on mobile devices.
Peach Payments provides a smooth mobile checkout process with high customization options, which is ideal for businesses with unique needs.

If you’re operating an online store, especially one built on platforms like Shopify or WooCommerce, ensuring that your chosen gateway integrates seamlessly with your platform’s mobile design is essential. PayFast and Peach Payments both shine in this area.

Fraud Prevention & Chargeback Handling: Which Gateway Protects You Best?

Fraud is a constant concern for online businesses, and a robust fraud prevention system is essential for protecting your revenue and customer data.

Fraud Protection Features of PayFast, PayGate, and Peach Payments

PayFast offers a basic level of fraud prevention with features such as 3D Secure and anti-fraud filters. While PayFast provides reasonable protection against fraud, it may not be as advanced as Peach Payments regarding chargeback management.
PayGate provides strong fraud protection with 3D Secure and Verified by Visa options. PayGate also has a fraud screening tool that monitors suspicious transactions in real-time.
Peach Payments excels in this area with advanced fraud prevention tools, including machine learning algorithms, 3D Secure, and chargeback handling. Peach Payments is highly regarded for offering robust security, which can be a key factor for businesses selling high-ticket items.

If fraud prevention is your top priority, Peach Payments is the most robust choice, offering comprehensive tools to reduce fraudulent activity.

Which Payment Gateway Works Best for Shopify and WooCommerce in South Africa?

Integrating your payment gateway with your eCommerce platform is crucial for ensuring a smooth customer experience.

PayFast with Shopify

PayFast is one of the most popular choices for South African Shopify merchants. It offers a straightforward integration, making it easy to accept payments via various methods, including credit/debit cards and EFT.

PayGate with WooCommerce

PayGate integrates seamlessly with WooCommerce, providing a reliable payment processing solution for South African online stores. It offers a well-documented plugin, simplifying installation and configuration for WooCommerce users.

Reducing Checkout Abandonment and Improving Conversions

One of the key goals for any eCommerce business is to reduce checkout abandonment and improve conversion rates. Choosing the right payment gateway can play a significant role in achieving this.

Best Payment Gateway Practices to Boost Conversions

To maximize conversions, it’s essential to:

Choose a payment gateway with fast settlement times, reducing customers' waiting time to confirm their payments.
Offer multiple payment options to cater to a broad audience, from credit card payments to mobile wallets.
Implement mobile-optimized checkout pages for a smoother experience on smartphones.
Use a gateway with advanced fraud protection to increase trust and reduce cart abandonment.

By implementing these practices, businesses can ensure a better customer experience and improved sales.

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Best Payment Gateways in South Africa