PayPal
Why PayPal
What it does
PayPal is a payments service for businesses. You can accept payments online through checkout, send invoices, share payment links and buttons, take payments in person with a point of sale or Tap to Pay, and pay out to others. It supports customers in 200+ markets and 140 currencies. Around the payments are tools for fraud protection, seller protection, reporting and business financing.
Why you would need it
Customers like paying with an account they already trust, and many will not enter card details on a shop they do not know. If you do not offer PayPal, some will leave at checkout.
For a small business it is also the quickest way to start charging. You do not need a website, a storefront or hardware to send a payment link or an invoice.
Where it fits
It sits at the payment step of your sales process. Orders, invoices and subscriptions go in. Money, payment status and dispute data come out. For an online shop it is an extra payment method next to cards and local methods. For a freelancer it can be the invoicing tool.
It does not handle tax as a merchant of record would. For that, compare Paddle. For a broader developer-first payment stack, compare Stripe.
What stands out
- Wide recognition: customers in many countries already have an account.
- A range of ways to get paid, from a payment link with no code to a full API integration.
- A REST API covering orders, payments, subscriptions, invoicing and disputes, with a sandbox.
- An official MCP server from PayPal that runs locally.
My take
I'd offer PayPal as a payment method for most consumer-facing businesses, because it removes friction at checkout. For a small business that needs to be paid quickly, payment links and invoices are fine.
I would not use it as the only payment layer for a software business that scales. The fee depends on country, method and volume, so read the fee table for your situation. For Dutch customers, remember that iDEAL usually matters at least as much, and it has its own fee. A payments specialist like Stripe gives you more control over the whole flow.
Verdict
Pick PayPal as a payment option when you sell to consumers or want to be paid fast with links and invoices. Skip it as your only provider if you need deep control of billing, tax handling or very low fees at high volume.
Notes
Your note
Before you choose
Fees are per transaction
PayPal has no subscription plan to compare. It charges a percentage plus a fixed amount per commercial transaction, and the rate depends on country, payment method, cross-border payments and volume. Look at the fee page for your country and model your real order values. Small orders feel the fixed part most.
Read moreShow less
Other payment methods have their own fees
iDEAL and other local methods are priced separately. If your customers are in the Netherlands, compare the all-in cost of PayPal, iDEAL and cards through a provider like Stripe before you choose a default.
Buyer and seller protection have conditions
PayPal advertises seller protection, but eligibility rules apply, and disputes can still cost you time. Read the conditions before you rely on it for high-value orders.
Not a billing system
PayPal can do subscriptions and invoices, but it is not built for complex billing. For recurring revenue with tax handling, look at Paddle, Chargebee or Stripe Billing. For Dutch bookkeeping, check how payments reach Moneybird or Exact Online.