The best European payment provider for most online businesses is Mollie (Netherlands): self-serve sign-up, a developer API, subscriptions and 35+ payment methods, with no monthly fee and 1.80% + €0.25 per EEA consumer card. For enterprise volume, choose Adyen (Netherlands); for online plus in-store sales, Viva.com (Greece).
This is the overview of every European payment service provider (PSP) I would recommend for accepting online payments, with one line on who each one is for. If you are moving away from a specific provider, the deeper comparison is in Best European alternatives to Stripe. All prices and facts were checked on the providers’ own pages on 25 October 2026.
European payment providers compared
| Tool | HQ | Data hosted in | From | Free plan | Open source | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Mollie | Netherlands · EU | Google Cloud (region not stated) ⚠ US cloud | 1.80% + €0.25 per EEA card, no monthly fee | No | No | Self-serve online payments |
| 2. Adyen | Netherlands · EU | Netherlands · own network (behind Cloudflare) | Interchange++ + 0.60% + $0.13 per card payment | No | No | Enterprise payments |
| 3. Viva.com | Greece · EU | Microsoft Azure · behind Akamai ⚠ US cloud | 2.19% + €0.10 per EEA card (Germany), plans from €0 / month | No | No | Online and in-store payments |
| 4. Paddle | United Kingdom | Behind Cloudflare (origin not stated) | 5% + 50¢ per transaction, no monthly fee | No | No | SaaS merchant of record |
| 5. Unzer | Germany · EU | Germany · AWS Frankfurt ⚠ US cloud | On request | No | No | German shops, invoice payments |
| 6. Payone | Germany · EU | Germany · own network | €0 / month + 2.49% + €0.99 per payment (E-Com Starter) | No | No | German bank-linked merchants |
| 7. Checkout.com | United Kingdom | Ireland · AWS ⚠ US cloud | On request (flat or interchange++) | No | No | Global enterprise acquiring |
Prices from public pricing pages. Affiliate links and sponsored placements are labelled.
How I chose the best European payment providers
I compared 16 payment providers with a European connection and kept seven. Each one was checked on the same five points: feature match with Stripe (API, checkout, subscriptions, payment methods), jurisdiction and ownership including the cloud it runs on, the published fee for a standard EEA consumer card, whether small businesses can sign up online, and Trustpilot ratings read with the number of reviews. Two of the seven are British and flagged as outside the EU. PayPal and Lemon Squeezy are out because they are American or Stripe-owned.
The best European payment providers
1. Mollie – best overall
Dutch, founded in 2004 and licensed by the Dutch central bank, with self-serve sign-up, a clean API, subscriptions and payment links. EEA consumer cards cost 1.80% + €0.25 with no monthly fee, and it has 4.3/5 from 12,950 Trustpilot reviews; it runs on Google Cloud. Mollie review →
2. Adyen – best for enterprises
Amsterdam-based and listed on Euronext since 2018, with its own acquiring licence and its own servers. Interchange++ plus 0.60% and $0.13 per card payment, with a minimum invoice that depends on your business. Full review →
3. Viva.com – best for online and in-store
A Greek bank licensed by the Bank of Greece, active in 29 countries, with online payments, terminals and an IBAN account. JPMorgan owns 48.5% and the platform runs on Microsoft Azure. Full review →
4. Paddle – best for SaaS
A London merchant of record that sells your software and files sales tax in 100+ jurisdictions for 5% + 50¢ per transaction. UK-based, outside the EU. Full review →
5. Unzer – best for the DACH market
Berlin-based and BaFin-supervised, with invoice and instalment payments and plugins for Shopware, Shopify, WooCommerce and OXID. Prices only on request. Full review →
6. Payone – best German bank-linked provider
A Frankfurt e-money institution owned by Worldline and the German savings banks, on its own servers in Germany. E-Com Starter costs 2.49% + €0.99 per payment with no monthly fee. Full review →
7. Checkout.com – best for global enterprise volume
London-based with an EU entity in France, local acquiring in 50+ countries and tailored pricing only. UK-based, outside the EU, and runs on AWS. Full review →
European payment providers: FAQ
Which payment providers are based in the EU?
Mollie and Adyen (Netherlands), Viva.com (Greece), and Unzer and Payone (Germany). Paddle and Checkout.com are British, outside the EU, though both have EU entities in Ireland and France.
Which payment provider is common in Germany?
Payone calls itself the leading payment service provider in Germany and Austria, and Unzer serves 90,000+ merchants. Both are supervised by BaFin. Mollie and Adyen also offer German payment methods.
Which European payment provider has no monthly fee?
Mollie, Adyen and Paddle charge no monthly fee. Payone E-Com Starter has no monthly fee but a €49 setup fee, and Viva has a free account plan with a €4.99 minimum monthly charge.
My verdict
Pick Mollie if you want Stripe-style self-service from a European company, Adyen if you have enterprise volume and want own acquiring and own servers, and Paddle if you sell software worldwide and want the tax work done for you.
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Changelog · Oct 2026: first version, 7 providers