Stripe is very simple for developers to integrate into their application as it is a "works out of the box" solution with a fantastic API.
The Stripe API is incredibly simple to setup, for example creating a new charge with Ruby is simply:
require "stripe"
Stripe.api_key = "vtUQeOtUnYr7PGCLQ96Ul4zqpDUO4sOE"
Stripe::Charge.create(
:amount => 400,
:currency => "usd",
:card => {
:number => "4242424242424242",
:exp_month => 1,
:exp_year => 2014,
:cvc => 314
},
:description => "Charge for test@example.com"
)
Stripe have recently announced support for online marketplaces. This means a service can now enable their users to seamlessly collect payments using the Stripe API.
WePay has developed world-class technology for detecting online fraud which takes the burdon off their customers. WePay utilizes their users social presence to establish identity and reputation which enables them to optimise risk and availability of funds.
This results in fewer instances of merchants having to deal with chargebacks and drastically reduces the need to freeze accounts.
Not only does WePay offer an API but they also provide a fully featured set of embeddable payment buttons. The payment buttons enable you to accept donations, sell tickets and host a store.
Unlike Paypal, everything (including the checkout process) happens on your site, which helps to reduce churn by up to 50%.
WePay takes a more holistic approach to customer service when compared to competitors such as Stripe as they provide full support to developers and payers.
WePay has a great reputation for customer support and have a dedicated team to support their users over phone, live chat, and email.
The WePay API is simple to integrate yet flexible enough to handle multiple use cases. The API has the following use cases:
Traditional Payment Gateway - Allows you to easily start accepting payments in your staging environment in minutes. No minimums, no contracts and none of the headaches traditionally associated with payment gateways.
Marketplace - Creates financial accounts for your merchants, this allows developers not to have to worry about aggregation laws and other relegation red-tape.
The API also allows two main options when it comes to the buyer checkout process:
Hosted Checkout - WePay handles all the PCI requires for you.
Integrated Checkout - Enables the developer to build and host the pages to fully integrate the payment service into their product. This is especially useful for mobile applications or businesses that want full control over the checkout experience.
Although PayPal won't charge you for buying items and services or sending money to friends and family, there are some fees that could be an additional cost. There are fees for getting paid/sending money as well as merchant fees.
PayPal has a very strict policy on defending their users for fraudulent activities from vendors. If you are unhappy with an order or a transaction and are on your right, you can appeal to PayPal Support which will help you undo the transaction.
You can transfer money to other PayPal users simply by entering their email address and the amount you wish to transfer. Payments are instant and can also be sent to users who don't have a PayPal account yet.
When your account is not verified, PayPal can decide to (temporarily) freeze all your funds until all proper documentation has been provided by the user. For example, European users who have received more than 2.500 EUR in a year will have their funds frozen until user identification is provided.