7 Mobile Payment Solutions for Your Small Businesses

Choosing a flexible payment solution that works for your small business does more than help customers complete transactions. Today, the best payment solutions go well beyond just taking credit cards. With ever-advancing technology, businesses can now choose from a variety of methods, tools, and platforms for accepting payments at checkout, which streamlines how they get paid.

But which payment solution is best for your small business? In this article, we'll discuss the essential considerations when selecting a mobile payment system. We'll also explore the seven most popular mobile payment solutions and highlight their accepted payment options, location coverage, and fees.

What are mobile payments?

In the ecosystem of payment options, mobile payments are transactions that occur digitally through a mobile device such as a smartphone, tablet, or watch. Mobile payment methods can be local or remote, and include:

• Payments made with a credit or debit card through a swipe reader attachment for the merchant’s mobile device
• Payments made with credit or debit cards that have a chip through a mobile chip reader attachment
• Card payments made on a mobile device without a physical card present
• Payments made by scanning a QR code
• Mobile payment apps that allow users to transfer money
• Digital wallet apps that communicate with near-field communication (NFC) technology

Mobile payments enable businesses to meet customers where they are at — both physically and technologically. Many customers today prefer the convenience and relative security of mobile payments, and not giving them this option can mean missing sales.

How to choose the best payment solution

Here's a list of questions to keep in mind when evaluating which mobile payment services make sense for your business.

• How much will I pay for this payment option? What are the fees, membership dues, hardware costs, and transaction rates?
• Which payment methods are accepted with this platform?
• Is this payment processor secure? Does the service provider offer a safe solution for customer data, transaction data, and fraud protection?
• What hardware, software, and technology are required for this payment system?
• Where do customers interact with my business? Does this payment method cover all of the areas where my customers are trying to complete transactions?
• If I have an issue or question, what do I do? Is there a customer service person or online knowledge base that I can access?

What are the best mobile payment solutions?

With these questions in mind, let's highlight seven of the most popular mobile payment solutions.

1. Stripe

Stripe is a complete small business payment solution with multiple transaction methods, a straightforward checkout process, and additional features that allow business owners to expand their mobile payment capabilities.

• Accepted payment options. Stripe accepts credit and debit payments, in-app payments, subscription billing, mobile wallets, and bank transfers.
• Location coverage. Stripe is available for businesses in 46 countries, and the Stripe Atlas program allows global business owners to incorporate a U.S. company to receive and process payments.
• Fees. Credit card payments are charged 2.9% plus $0.30 per domestic transaction‍.

There are no setup fees or recurring monthly payments.

2. Square

Square is a leader in mobile payment solutions for small businesses. It has an easy, user-friendly system for both companies and customers. Square offers an app, physical card scanners, and a point of sale (POS) system for small businesses.

• Accepted payment options. Square accepts all major credit cards, including American Express, Visa, and Mastercard.
• Location coverage. Square is currently available in the U.S., Canada, Japan, Australia, France, Spain, the Republic of Ireland, and the United Kingdom, with its point of sale available in most countries listed in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

Fees include:

• Standard swiped transactions: 2.6% plus $0.15
• Keyed-in, Card on File and Virtual Terminal transactions: 2.9% plus $0.30
• E-commerce transactions, invoices: 3.3% plus $0.30‍

There are no setup fees or monthly payments, and the basic Square swipe card reader is free.

3. PayPal Point of Sale

PayPal is a leading payment solution that offers a variety of methods for small businesses to accept money. PayPal Point of Sale is a POS system that expands PayPal's online payment methods for companies with physical locations.

• Accepted payment options. PayPal Point of Sale accepts various card payments and allows small businesses to record cash and check transactions and create invoices. PayPal's broader service offering also accepts online payments and bank transfers. (Venmo is another mobile app for requesting, sending, and receiving money, and is owned by PayPal.)
• Location coverage. PayPal Point of Sale's card reader and merchant processing system is available for businesses in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and Hong Kong.

Fees include:

• Swiped transactions: 2.29% plus $0.09
• Keyed-in or scanned transactions: 3.49% plus $0.09
• Manual card entry transactions: 3.49% plus $0.09

There are no setup, PCI, monthly, or equipment fees.

4. Chase Payment Solutions

Chase Payment Solutions is a merchant service and payment processing business from JPMorgan Chase that enables small business owners to take real-time payments on mobile devices.

• Accepted payment options. Chase Payment Solutions accepts all types of credit and debit cards, as well as digital, alternative, and mobile payment options.
• Location coverage. Chase Merchant Services is able to accept international payments in more than 130 different currencies.

Pricing and fees may differ depending on the country and currency.‍

5. Shopify POS

Shopify is one of the most popular e-commerce and online sales platforms. Shopify POS is designed for small businesses to accept mobile payments in physical locations using a mobile device or tablet.

• Accepted payment options. Shopify POS can accept any credit or debit card payment through a swipe on an iPad or iPhone or via contactless payments using EMV-compliant readers.
• Location coverage. Shopify POS is available worldwide with an internet connection, but your store needs to be based in a country where Shopify has supported credit card providers.

Shopify POS offers multiple plans with different credit card rates, features, and add-ons:

• Basic. $39 per month plus an online per credit card transaction rate of 2.9% plus $0.30 and an in-person per credit card transaction rate of 2.6% plus $0.10.
• Shopify. $105 per month plus an online per credit card transaction rate of 2.7% plus $0.30 and an in-person per credit card transaction rate of 2.5% plus $0.10.
• Advanced. $399 per month plus an online per credit card transaction rate of 2.5% plus $0.30 and an in-person per credit card transaction rate of 2.4% plus $0.10.‍

6. PaySimple

PaySimple's business model combines a mobile payment solution with a transitional merchant services provider. To empower small businesses, PaySimple offers mobile payment options and appointment scheduling features for phones and tablets.

• Accepted payment options. PaySimple accepts credit cards, debit cards, and e-checks while offering the ability to create invoices and manage multiple other invoice payment options through a secure portal.
• Location coverage. PaySimple is currently only available to businesses in the U.S. that process payments in USD.
• Fees. PaySimple offers a pro plan that starts at $89.95 per month. Variable rates depend on payment type (starting at 2.90% plus $0.30 for qualified credit cards)‍.

‍7. GoPayment POS (Intuit QuickBooks)

GoPayment POS is a point of sale and mobile card reader app that allows businesses to receive payments on iOS or Android devices. The sales through the GoPayment POS integrate with QuickBooks Online so that business owners can easily manage funds and expenses.

• Accepted payment options. GoPayment POS accepts all major credit or debit cards with magnetic stripe or EMV chip cards, bank transfers, Google Pay, Apple Pay, and Samsung Pay.
• Location coverage. QuickBooks offers solutions for nearly every country. GoPayment POS availability may differ across countries and currencies.
• Fees. GoPayment offers a free plan or a fee-based plan. Cards and digital wallet transaction fees start at 2.5%. Keyed-in card transaction fees are 3.5%.

FAQ about mobile payments

Check out the answers to a few common questions small business owners may have about mobile payment solutions.

Are mobile payment systems secure for small businesses?

Yes, most modern mobile payment systems use protection measures such as encryption and tokenization to safeguard sensitive customer information.

What privacy concerns should small businesses be aware of?

Since mobile payment apps collect customer data — including purchase history, location, and device identifiers — you should review your provider's privacy policy to understand how that data is stored and shared. If your business handles customer information directly, create your own privacy policy to outline how you protect it.

What financial risks come with using mobile payment systems?

The main financial risks include fraudulent transactions, chargebacks, and variable transaction fees that can add up over time. Choose a provider with built-in fraud monitoring and dispute resolution tools to reduce these risks.

How much does it cost to adopt a mobile payment solution?

Costs vary depending on the provider and the types of transactions you process. Watch for monthly subscription fees, hardware costs, or flat per-transaction charges.

Can mobile payment platforms integrate with my existing POS or accounting systems?

Most major mobile payment solutions offer APIs or native integrations with popular inventory management and accounting software.

What challenges might I face when integrating mobile payments with legacy systems?

In some cases, integration may require middleware or third-party connectors to properly sync data between platforms. Always test the system in a controlled environment before a full rollout.

What happens if my internet connection drops during a transaction?

Fortunately, many mobile payment apps, such as Shopify, offer offline transaction modes that can queue payments until your internet connection is restored.

Find payment processing specialists on Upwork

There are many payment solutions on the market. The best option for your small business should be affordable and allow your customers to add their payment details with ease. To find the right choice for your business, you'll need to consider the fees and pricing, security features, location coverage, hardware and software requirements, customer support, and more.

Hiring a payment processing specialist on Upwork can help avoid the hassle of researching payment solutions and facilitate the payment process. Upwork also offers a complete payment solution for hourly and fixed-price work contracts. 

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‍Upwork is not affiliated with and does not sponsor or endorse any of the tools or services discussed in this article. These tools and services are provided only as potential options, and each reader and company should take the time needed to adequately analyze and determine the tools or services that would best fit their specific needs and situation. 

Prices and fees are current at the time of writing and may change over time based on each service's offerings.