Adyen vs PayPal

Adyen is a global payments company founded in Amsterdam in 2006 by Pieter van der Does and Arnout Schuijff, and listed on Euronext Amsterdam since 2018. Adyen runs its own acquiring, processing and risk stack in one system, so a merchant gets one contract and one report for card payments, local payment methods and in-store terminals across many countries. Customers include Uber, Microsoft, eBay and OpenAI.

The platform covers online checkout through Drop-in and Components SDKs, point-of-sale terminals, Tap to Pay on phones, RevenueProtect fraud scoring, network tokenization, payouts, and Adyen for Platforms for marketplaces that onboard and pay sub-merchants. Pricing is published and usage-based: a fixed $0.13 processing fee per transaction plus a payment method fee, such as Interchange++ plus 0.60% for Visa and Mastercard. There are no setup or monthly fees, though a minimum invoice can apply depending on industry.

Adyen fits large retailers, travel and mobility companies, and marketplaces processing high volumes across several regions, where unified data and acquiring margins matter. It is a poor fit for small shops: onboarding is sales-led, integration needs developers, and support is tuned for enterprise accounts. Stripe is easier for startups and SaaS billing, PayPal brings consumer wallet reach, and Square suits small in-person sellers.

Adyen keeps growing: H1 2026 net revenue was about EUR 1.3 billion, up 19% year on year, and in July 2026 it completed the acquisitions of Talon.One (loyalty and promotions) and Orb (usage-based billing).

PayPal Business is the merchant side of PayPal, the San Jose company founded in 1998 that was spun off from eBay in 2015 and also owns Venmo, Braintree and the Zettle point-of-sale business. A free business account lets companies accept PayPal wallet payments, Venmo in the US, cards and buy now, pay later options online, in apps and in person.

Merchants can add PayPal checkout buttons to an online store, send invoices and payment links, run subscriptions, and accept card payments through PayPal's own processing so they do not need a separate gateway for cards. Seller protection covers eligible transactions against unauthorized payments and item-not-received claims, and multi-currency balances help international sellers. There is no monthly fee for the standard account; pricing is a percentage plus a fixed fee per transaction that varies by country, payment method and cross-border status, with extra charges for currency conversion.

PayPal's recognizable brand raises checkout trust, which is why many stores offer it next to a card processor. Fees are usually higher than Stripe or Adyen, account limitations and fund holds are a known risk for new or fast-growing sellers, and the developer experience trails Stripe. PayPal has not operated in Turkey since 2016, when it withdrew after failing to obtain a local license, so Turkey-based businesses cannot open accounts there; they typically use local providers such as iyzico or PayTR, or a company abroad for international sales.