Alternatives to cards across Europe - Introduction

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The GoCardless content team comprises a group of subject-matter experts in multiple fields from across GoCardless. The authors and reviewers work in the sales, marketing, legal, and finance departments. All have in-depth knowledge and experience in various aspects of payment scheme technology and the operating rules applicable to each. The team holds expertise in the well-established payment schemes such as UK Direct Debit, the European SEPA scheme, and the US ACH scheme, as well as in schemes operating in Scandinavia, Australia, and New Zealand. See full bio

Last editedJan 20201 min read

Guide to the major local payment methods across Europe.

Introduction

The global reach of credit and debit cards, along with the facility to set up recurring card payments with a single upfront customer authorisation, has led to them becoming the default payment method for many global subscription businesses.

But cards don’t always offer the best solution for your business or your customers:

Transaction costs can be high for you as merchant: card payments typically cost 3% per transaction, compared to bank to bank payment methods which are typically less than 1%.
Card payments fail more often, because of expiry dates and spending limits, hitting subscription businesses where it really hurts - involuntary customer churn.
Payment preferences vary greatly across Europe. Subscription businesses must optimise for local preferences as much as possible to improve customer experience and conversion.

So, offering alternatives to cards can reduce costs, reduce churn and improve customer experience, but what alternatives should you offer?

We’ve created this guide to the major local payment schemes across Europe to help you decide what’s right for your business.