You have the option to use PayPal Checkout exclusively to process PayPal transactions. Merchants can also register for PayPal Payments Pro, a merchant account from PayPal (our preferred provider), or apply for a merchant account through an FDMS Nashville compatible processor.
Before listing the benefits of each type of PayPal account, it is helpful to understand what shoppers will see.
What customers see when using PayPal Checkout
- After selecting products to purchase, your customer chooses to pay with their PayPal account or pay on PayPal's checkout page (with PayPal Payments Pro, customers also have the option of using your existing checkout for credit card payments).
- Your customer is transferred to PayPal. You can customize aspects of the PayPal Payment pages, such as the header and background color, to make these pages more like your custom checkout pages.
- Your customer can either log into their PayPal account to confirm their shipping address and billing information that PayPal has stored or enter their credit card information on the PayPal checkout page. Your customer clicks Continue to use PayPal to pay for their purchase.
- Your customer is transferred back to your website to review their order and complete the checkout process.
- Your customer submits their order on your website. Your website makes an API call to PayPal to process the transaction; this is invisible to your customer. Once the payment is processed, PayPal sends your website a confirmation.
- Your customer is taken to the order confirmation screen.
What customers see when using PayPal Payments Pro
- After selecting products to purchase, your customer chooses to pay with a credit or debit card.
- Your customer declines to go to PayPal and wants to stay on your checkout pages, so they click the Checkout button.
- Your customer enters their shipping and billing information and continues. This can be on a single page or multi-pages. Learn more.
- Your customer is taken to a page to review their order. Note: You are able to show or hide the Order Review page. Learn more.
- Your customer submits their order on your website. Your website makes an API call to PayPal to process the transaction; this is invisible to your customer.
- Your customer is taken to the order confirmation screen.
Note: Merchants can also enable the PayPal Account Optional feature which will allow buyers not to have to sign in to PayPal when paying with a credit card. Buyers will still go to PayPal to checkout if they choose this option in your payment methods. Learn more.
Benefits of PayPal Checkout
- Merchants can typically be more quickly approved for a PayPal Business account than a merchant account which typically requires several business days and lengthy application forms.
- PayPal is widely used and respected as a payment processing option, which allows buyers to select various funding sources such as a bank account or even credit cards.
- PayPal offers fraud protection tools to sellers such as verifying accounts and confirming shipping addresses. You can choose to decline orders with an unconfirmed shipping address.
- There are no setup or monthly fees for PayPal Business accounts, only transaction fees.
- You can choose to display PayPal in the shopping cart or at the top of the Shipping and Billing page. Shoppers that access PayPal from those locations will not need to fill in shipping address or billing information in your store, which can be perceived as a quicker checkout experience for some shoppers.
- The main drawback is shoppers will leave your site to pay, which can be perceived as disruptive to the checkout experience given the change in visual design between your custom checkout pages and PayPal payment pages. You can, however, customize some elements of PayPal payment pages. Learn more.
Benefits of PayPal Payments Pro
- Accepting credit cards online is considered standard by many shoppers and may lend credibility to your site when compared to another site only accepting PayPal payments.
- Shoppers remain on your site rather than being directed to PayPal and back to your site to complete the order. This can be perceived as less disruptive to the checkout experience.
- Signing up for PayPal Payments Pro will automatically add a PayPal Checkout option.
Note: At this time you must have a US PayPal account. PayPal does not currently support non-US PayPal accounts in this integration of PayPal Checkout.
Learn more about PayPal Checkout.
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