Brief Summary
Stripe Connect and Stripe Checkout are two Stripe tools for different online payment scenarios. Connect is suitable for platforms and marketplaces to distribute payments among participants, while Checkout is designed for online stores wanting to increase conversion with a ready-made responsive payment form.
Who is this article for
- For online store owners who choose a convenient payment method.
- For marketplaces and platforms with multiple payment participants.
- For e-commerce teams looking to increase conversions and scale payment acceptance.
Essence of the article
- Stripe Connect is designed for platforms, marketplaces, and multi-sided business models.
- Stripe Checkout is a ready-made payment form optimized for conversion growth.
- Checkout supports 40+ payment methods and 135+ currencies.
- Connect allows managing payment routing, payouts, KYC, and reporting.
- Both tools can be used separately or together, depending on the business model.
Stripe Connect vs Stripe Checkout: what’s the difference
| Parameter | Stripe Connect | Stripe Checkout |
|---|---|---|
| Main purpose | Handling multi-party payments | Ready-made payment form for the customer |
| Suitable for | Marketplaces, platforms, seller services | Online stores and brands |
| Key advantage | Funds distribution and payout management | Increased conversion and quick deployment |
| Additional features | KYC, roles, reporting, analytics | Localization, responsiveness, taxes, subscriptions, cart recovery |
Stripe Connect: Platform for marketplaces and platforms
Stripe Connect – a solution designed specifically for marketplaces, platforms, and other multi-sided business models. It enables easy payment processing and disbursement of funds to third parties such as sellers or service providers.
Main features of Stripe Connect:
- Flexible payment routing.
You can configure the distribution of funds between different transaction participants, whether it be the platform, sellers, or other parties. - Easy onboarding of new participants.
Stripe Connect simplifies the registration and verification process for new sellers or service providers, ensuring compliance with Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements. - Global coverage.
Support for over 135 currencies and dozens of popular payment methods allows you to scale your business internationally without additional effort. - Powerful platform tools.
Stripe Connect provides tools for managing users, payouts, reports, analytics, as well as roles and permissions. - Additional revenue streams.
Platforms can monetize payments by charging transaction fees or offering additional financial services, such as lending or card issuance.
Stripe Checkout: Optimized payment form:
Stripe Checkout – a ready-to-use payment form optimized for increasing conversion. It can be embedded directly on your site or used as a separate page hosted on Stripe.
Key advantages of Stripe Checkout
- High conversion rate.
Stripe claims that using Checkout increases conversion by 8% compared to other payment forms. - Support for multiple payment methods.
Checkout supports over 40 popular payment methods, including credit/debit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and many more. - Responsive design.
The checkout form automatically adjusts to the screen size, providing a user-friendly experience on any device. - Customization of appearance.
You can customize the colors, fonts, and styles of the form elements to match your website’s branding. - Additional features.
Checkout offers features such as automatic tax calculation, cross-sells, subscriptions, abandoned cart recovery, and more.
Supported payment methods Stripe Checkout
According to Stripe documentation, Stripe Checkout supports over 40 local payment methods, including:
- Credit and debit cards: Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, JCB, Diners Club, China UnionPay, and others.
- Digital wallets: Apple Pay, Google Pay, Microsoft Pay, etc.
- Buy now, pay later: Afterpay, Klarna, and other BNPL services.
- Bank transfers and direct debit transactions.
- Local payment methods in various countries: iDEAL in the Netherlands, SOFORT in Germany, Alipay and WeChat Pay in China, and many others.
Stripe Checkout automatically determines the most suitable payment methods based on the buyer’s location and other factors. Sellers can enable or disable certain payment methods through the Stripe dashboard.
Supported currencies for Stripe Checkout
According to Stripe documentation, Stripe Checkout supports over 135 currencies worldwide for accepting payments. However, it should be noted that available currencies may vary depending on the payment method used and the buyer’s location.
For card payments, Stripe supports a wide range of currencies, including major global currencies such as US dollar (USD), euro (EUR), British pound (GBP), Japanese yen (JPY), and many others. The full list of supported currencies for card payments can be found on the Stripe currencies page.
For alternative payment methods, such as bank transfers, digital wallets, and local payment systems, the currencies available are determined by the payment provider itself. Therefore, the list of supported currencies may differ for each payment method. This information can be found on the respective documentation pages for each payment method.
Additionally, Stripe Checkout also supports a dynamic pricing feature that automatically displays prices in the buyer’s local currency based on their location.
Conversion Improvement with Stripe Checkout
Stripe Checkout offers a multitude of features and optimizations that help increase conversion during the checkout process. Here are some key ways to improve conversion using Stripe Checkout:
- Support for multiple payment methods.
Stripe Checkout supports over 135 currencies and more than 40 popular payment methods, including credit/debit cards, digital wallets (Apple Pay, Google Pay, etc.), local payment systems, and others. Offering preferred payment options for each customer increases the likelihood of successful transactions. - Responsive design for mobile devices.
Approximately 42% of all online purchases in 2022 were made from mobile devices. Stripe Checkout automatically adapts to mobile interfaces, providing an excellent user experience on smartphones and tablets. - Localization and internationalization.
Checkout uses geolocation to determine the customer’s country and automatically localizes the checkout page in the native language, displays relevant fields (e.g., VAT for Europeans), and complies with local tax laws. This reduces declines due to localization issues. - Real-time data validation.
Thanks to machine learning, Checkout detects and allows instant correction of common data entry errors, reducing declines for this reason. - Accelerated checkout and discount integration.
Stripe Checkout allows returning customers to pay in one click, as well as easily integrate coupons, discounts, and promotions, increasing conversion. - Analytics and A/B testing.
Stripe analytics provides detailed sales data, including average ticket size, purchase frequency, and customer lifetime value. The A/B testing tool enables comparing the effectiveness of different payment methods. - Fast page loading.
Stripe Checkout is optimized for quick loading, which is critical, as delays significantly reduce conversion rates.
Thus, by using Stripe Checkout with its numerous optimizations for various devices, regions, and customer preferences, you can significantly increase conversion during the checkout process on your website.
How to choose the right Stripe tool for your business
- Define your business model: online store, marketplace, or platform.
- Assess your payment scenario: one party receives payment or you need to split funds among participants.
- Choose the solution: Checkout for quick payments, Connect for multi-party payouts, or both together.
When to choose Stripe Connect, and when Stripe Checkout
- Choose Stripe Connect if you have a marketplace, SaaS platform, or service with vendors or contractors.
- Choose Stripe Checkout if you need a quick, convenient, and optimized payment form for customers.
- Use both tools together if you want to combine payment distribution and a strong checkout experience for the client.
Key Idea
Stripe Connect solves the complexity of multilateral payments, and Stripe Checkout simplifies checkout for customers and helps increase conversion rates.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the main difference between Stripe Connect and Stripe Checkout?
What is the main difference between Stripe Connect and Stripe Checkout?
Stripe Connect solves the problem of distributing payments and payouts among multiple participants, while Stripe Checkout manages a convenient payment process for the end customer.
Who is Stripe Connect suitable for?
Who is Stripe Connect suitable for?
Stripe Connect is suitable for marketplaces, platforms, SaaS services, and businesses that need to register sellers, verify them with KYC, and manage payouts.
Who is Stripe Checkout suitable for?
Who is Stripe Checkout suitable for?
Stripe Checkout is best suited for online stores and brands that require a quick launch of the payment page with support for various payment methods and mobile responsiveness.
How many payment methods does Stripe Checkout support?
How many payment methods does Stripe Checkout support?
The article states that Stripe Checkout supports over 40 popular payment methods, including cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, local payment methods, and BNPL services.
How many currencies does Stripe Checkout support?
How many currencies does Stripe Checkout support?
The article states that Stripe Checkout supports over 135 currencies, although the availability of individual currencies depends on the payment method and the buyer’s location.
Choose the right payment solution
Planning to launch an online store, marketplace, or platform? Determine whether you need Stripe Checkout, Stripe Connect, or a combination of both to scale payments without unnecessary complexity.
