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A table summarising the differences between credit card (CPA), cash, cheque or Bacs transfer and Direct Debit.
There are a number of different ways to take regular payments. You could use standing orders, regular payments by credit card (known as a ‘continuous payment authority’), cash, cheque or Bacs payment. Or you could use Direct Debit.
While we obviously think Direct Debit is the simplest and most efficient option, which is best for you will depend on your business. To help you decide which is the right option for you, we’ve summarised each in this short table.
| Cash/cheque/Bacs | CPA | Standing Order | Direct Debit | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| What is it? | One-off payments by cheque or bank transfer. | A pre-authorisation from customers to take any future payments from their credit card. | A fixed, regular bank transfer set up and managed by the customer. | A pre-authorisation from customers to take any future payments direct from their bank account. |
| Transaction fees | ~£1.50 + 1 hour to pay in | 3% + 20p | Free | Varies (see our pricing) |
| Failure rates | Variable | ~5% | Variable | < 1% |
| Flexibility | Low | High | Low | High |
| Late payment risk | High | Mid | Mid | None |
| Admin required | High | Mid | High | Low |
| Best for | Elderly customers and one-off, high value payments | Consumer subscriptions, low value payments | Strictly fixed payments to small businesses | All consumer subscriptions, regular bills & regular B2B invoicing. |
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