Head to head
Compared side by side on published facts and the same six criteria every review is graded on — generated from the live directory, not a sales page.
PayPal
Payment Processor · 4.0/5 mean
PayPal is a global, feature-rich digital payments platform (consumer wallet + merchant services) with extensive integrations and brand reach. It is trusted by many businesses but criticized in public reviews for dispute handling and account-hold practices.
Read the full review →WooPayments (Automattic)
Payment Processor · 3.7/5 mean
WooPayments is the official, Stripe-powered payment solution built exclusively for WooCommerce stores, offering no monthly fees and deep dashboard integration, but plagued by account suspension issues and inconsistent customer support that undermine trust for serious merchants.
Read the full review →PayPal holds the higher standing — by grade, then mean category score. The row-by-row picture below is what should actually decide it for your business.
Both graded against the same six criteria. How we grade · Last fact-checked September 2, 2026 and August 19, 2026.
| Criterion | PayPal | WooPayments (Automattic) |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing transparency | 3.0 | 4.0wins this criterion |
| Feature set | 5.0wins this criterion | 4.0 |
| Ease of use | 4.0 |
Straight from each provider's published documentation. Where a number isn't published, we say so rather than estimate.
| Metric | PayPal | WooPayments (Automattic) |
|---|---|---|
| Online rate | 2.89% + $0.29 per transaction | 2.9% + $0.30 |
| Monthly fee | $0 Pay-as-you-go | Enterprise agreements have monthly fees | 0 |
| Payout | 1-3 business days (standard bank transfer) | About 2 business days after the pending period clears (first payout takes roughly 7 days for new accounts) |
| Contract | Pay as you go or month-to-month business accounts | Month-to-month (no long-term contract) |
| In-person rate | 2.29% + $0.09 per card-present transaction (PayPal's published POS rate, not Tap to Pay only) | 2.6% + $0.10 |
| Keyed rate | 3.49% + $0.09 for manually entered cards, published on PayPal's POS pricing page |
From the WooPayments (Automattic) review
PayPal adds a globally recognized wallet that helps checkout conversion, plus instant transfers available in up to 30 minutes, and it integrates with WooCommerce alongside most major platforms. WooPayments holds up as the tighter native fit, keeping payments and payouts in the store's own dashboard with simpler published pricing.
Pick PayPal if you want a wallet buyers already trust and instant transfers at checkout
Ideal for
Not recommended for
Ideal for
Not recommended for
The full reviews carry the pricing narratives, contract analysis and everything else behind these numbers — or let the matching funnel score the whole directory against your business.
| 4.0 |
| Customer support | 3.0wins this criterion | 2.0 |
|---|
| Contract terms | 4.0 | 5.0wins this criterion |
|---|
| Industry reputation | 5.0wins this criterion | 3.0 |
|---|
| 2.9% + $0.30 |
| International rate | Cross-border fee +1.50%; currency conversion spread 4.00% (3.00% on some transaction types) | For US merchants +1.00% (for cards outside the US) |
|---|
| PCI fee | None | 0 |
|---|
| Statement fee | Varies by product/region | 0 |
|---|
| Chargeback fee | Region dependent ($20 US) | 15.00 |
|---|
| Early termination | Not applicable for standard pay as you go accounts; enterprise/reseller contracts may have terms | 0 (No Contract) |
|---|
| Last fact-checked | September 2, 2026 | August 19, 2026 |
|---|