Comparison · Updated October 28, 2026
NOWPayments vs CoinGate for crypto payments
NOWPayments
B-
NOWPayments is a cryptocurrency payment gateway launched in 2019 by the team behind the ChangeNOW crypto exchange. It lets a business take payments in more than 350 crypto assets through an API, invoices, payment links, plugins, donation widgets, subscriptions and a browser-based point of sale. Each payment can be forwarded to the merchant's own wallet or held in an optional custody balance, which a third-party provider runs. As of October 2026 its pricing page lists a 1% service fee on payments received and settled in the same coin and 1.5% when the payment is converted or taken at a fixed rate, plus blockchain network fees. Payouts and mass payouts carry no service fee, only network fees. There is no monthly fee, setup fee or contract. The operator is FD Transfers LLC, registered in St. Vincent and the Grenadines with a postal address in Tallinn, Estonia. Its Terms of Service, updated 19 October 2026, say (in section 15.1) that the services are not provided to residents or citizens of the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, the UAE or Russia, and that the company can close an account at any time without giving a reason. The US, UK and EU exclusion was already in the April 2026 terms; the UAE and Russia were added later in 2026. We found no regulator licence for NOWPayments itself. Trustpilot rates it 4.5 from 1,122 reviews, but 13% are one-star, and some of those describe blocked accounts and withheld funds.
CoinGate
B-
CoinGate is a crypto payment gateway run from Vilnius, Lithuania, by UAB Decentralized. The company was registered in 2014 as UAB Virtualios Valiutos and began trading in 2015. Customers pay in crypto at checkout, and the merchant settles in euros, pounds, US dollars, a stablecoin or crypto. On 16 December 2025 the Bank of Lithuania authorised it as a crypto-asset service provider under the EU's MiCA regulation and licensed it as a payment institution. As of October 2026 the Standard plan charges 1% per payment with no monthly or setup fee. Crypto and SEPA withdrawals are free, with a 50 EUR minimum withdrawal, and SWIFT withdrawals cost 0.50% with a 50 EUR minimum fee. Automatic settlement runs weekly. Enterprise pricing is negotiated by volume. CoinGate's own pricing policy says the exchange rate on a payment includes a risk margin on top of the 1% fee, and it does not publish the size of that margin. Merchants must be based in a country on CoinGate's supported list, and that list does not include the United States. Trustpilot withholds CoinGate's rating for a breach of its guidelines and says it has removed fake reviews from the profile. Recent one-star reviews there describe payments held for compliance checks.
VS
Overview
We compare the two for a business accepting crypto payments online, using each provider's standard published merchant pricing and terms as of October 2026: NOWPayments' pricing page and Terms of Service (updated 19 October 2026), and CoinGate's Standard plan, General Terms and payment-processing Special Terms. The first question is not price but eligibility. NOWPayments' terms say its services are not provided to residents or citizens of the European Union, the United Kingdom, the United States, the UAE or Russia, even though it still runs UK, German, French, Spanish and Portuguese versions of its website. CoinGate's supported-countries list covers the EU, the UK and 32 other countries, but not the United States. So of the two, only CoinGate is open to an EU or UK business under its terms, and the fee comparison below applies to a business based in a country both serve, such as Canada, Australia, Switzerland, Norway, Singapore, Japan or Brazil. On headline fees the two are close: NOWPayments charges 1% when you keep the coin you were paid in and 1.5% when the payment is converted, and by default deducts blockchain network fees from the payment, though a merchant can pass its fees to the shopper at the 1.5% fixed-rate price. CoinGate charges 1% on its Standard plan and adds a fee for network costs to the shopper's invoice, but its Commercial Policy says it also adds a risk margin to the exchange rate, and it does not publish the size of that margin. The bigger differences are elsewhere. NOWPayments accepts more than 350 assets, including USDT and Monero, lets you forward payments straight to your own wallet and charges no service fee on payouts. CoinGate accepts 12 assets, with no USDT, but settles to EUR by free SEPA transfer or to USD and GBP by SWIFT, and it is authorised by the Bank of Lithuania as a crypto-asset service provider under the EU's MiCA regulation. NOWPayments is run by FD Transfers LLC of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, which names no licence, and its terms let it close an account at any time without a reason.
Key Takeaways
- ✓It depends first on where you are. NOWPayments' terms exclude residents and citizens of the EU, UK, US, UAE and Russia, so of the two only CoinGate is open to an EU or UK business. Neither serves a US-based merchant.
- ✓Headline fees are close: NOWPayments charges 1% on same-coin payments and 1.5% on converted ones, plus network fees deducted from the payment by default; CoinGate charges 1% on its Standard plan plus an exchange-rate risk margin it does not publish.
- ✓NOWPayments accepts far more coins (350+, including USDT and Monero), can forward each payment to your own wallet, and charges no service fee on payouts. CoinGate accepts 12 assets and no USDT.
- ✓CoinGate is the regulated option: a MiCA crypto-asset service provider and payment institution authorised by the Bank of Lithuania since 16 December 2025, settling to EUR by free SEPA transfer. NOWPayments' operator is offshore and names no licence.
- ✓Both carry account-hold risk. NOWPayments can close an account at any time without notice or a reason; CoinGate needs 30 days' notice to close without cause but can suspend immediately on a list of grounds, and it charges steep fees on payments stuck in compliance.
NOWPayments
NOWPayments suits a business outside the EU, UK, US, UAE and Russia whose customers pay in a wide range of coins, especially USDT, and which wants to keep its money in crypto: payments can go straight to its own wallet, and payouts and mass payouts carry no service fee. It is a poor fit for anyone who needs a licensed counterparty, bank settlement in currencies other than EUR, or contractual notice before an account is closed.
CoinGate
CoinGate suits an EU, UK or other supported-country business that wants to add crypto at checkout without holding crypto: it locks the rate for 20 minutes, settles to EUR by free SEPA transfer (or USD and GBP by SWIFT), and holds EU authorisations of its own under MiCA. It is a weaker fit if your customers pay mainly in USDT, if you need settlement faster than weekly without negotiating Enterprise terms, or if you are based in the United States.
The Verdict
It Depends on Your Needs
Why?
For an EU or UK business the choice is made for you: NOWPayments' terms exclude residents and citizens of the EU and UK, so CoinGate is the only one of the two open to you. Outside those markets it depends on what you value. NOWPayments accepts far more coins, including USDT and Monero, can send each payment straight to your own wallet, and charges no service fee on payouts, but it deducts network fees from payments by default, charges 1.5% when it converts, and is run by an offshore company with no named licence that can close your account without a reason. CoinGate has a 1% headline fee, adds network costs to the shopper's invoice, settles to a bank in EUR, USD or GBP, and is authorised under MiCA, but it accepts only 12 assets, adds an unpublished exchange-rate margin and settles weekly on its Standard plan.
Feature by feature
Detailed Comparison
Filter Options
Who can sign up, and who regulates them (October 2026)
| Feature | NOWPayments | CoinGate |
|---|---|---|
| EU and UK businesses | Excluded by its terms | Supported Winner |
| Section 15.1 of NOWPayments' Terms of Service (updated 19 October 2026) says the services are not provided to residents or citizens of the European Union, the United Kingdom, the United States, the UAE, the Russian Federation or any jurisdiction where crypto services are restricted, and that anyone from those places who uses them anyway does so at their own risk. Because it names citizens as well as residents, it may also catch a business owned by an EU or UK citizen living elsewhere. NOWPayments' website does not match its terms: it still publishes UK pages (nowpayments.io/gb, including a pricing page) and German, French, Spanish and Portuguese pages, all in its sitemap. We follow the terms, which are what a merchant signs. CoinGate's supported-countries page lists all 27 EU member states and the UK plus 32 other countries, including Switzerland, Norway, Canada, Australia, Japan, Singapore, India and Brazil, and its General Terms make being based in a listed country a condition of use. Neither serves a US-based merchant: NOWPayments excludes the US and CoinGate's list omits it. | ||
| Licence | None named; offshore operator | MiCA CASP and payment institution (Bank of Lithuania) Winner |
| NOWPayments' contracting entity is FD Transfers LLC, registered in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, with a postal address at a serviced office in Tallinn, Estonia. Its terms and site name no financial-services licence of its own; the terms say custody and fiat withdrawals may be provided by unnamed third parties, which its pricing FAQ calls licensed partners. CoinGate is UAB Decentralized (Lithuanian company code 303423510). The Bank of Lithuania's register lists its MiCA crypto-asset service provider licence (LB002323) and a payment institution licence (LB002324, which its site says covers transfers of e-money tokens), both valid from 16 December 2025. The CASP licence covers custody, exchange for funds, exchange for other crypto-assets and transfers, and France's AMF lists the same authorisation as passported to France. MiCA's rules for crypto-asset service providers have applied since 30 December 2024, and the transitional period for firms operating under national rules ended across the EU by 1 July 2026 at the latest. CoinGate balances are not deposits: its General Terms say they earn no interest and carry no deposit insurance. | ||
| Onboarding checks | Email and wallet; KYC/KYB may follow | Identity and AML checks at onboarding |
| NOWPayments lets a merchant start with an email address and a wallet. Its terms reserve the right to run KYC on individual partners and to ask for documents for ongoing due diligence, and its third-party fiat off-ramp provider can require business verification (KYB). CoinGate's General Terms make the service conditional on identity, fraud, background and AML checks at onboarding and at any time afterwards, including ultimate beneficial owners and source of funds. | ||
| Governing law | St. Vincent and the Grenadines | Lithuania (Vilnius courts) |
| From each provider's terms as read on 28 October 2026. | ||
EU and UK businesses
NOWPayments
Excluded by its terms
CoinGate
Supported
Winner
Section 15.1 of NOWPayments' Terms of Service (updated 19 October 2026) says the services are not provided to residents or citizens of the European Union, the United Kingdom, the United States, the UAE, the Russian Federation or any jurisdiction where crypto services are restricted, and that anyone from those places who uses them anyway does so at their own risk. Because it names citizens as well as residents, it may also catch a business owned by an EU or UK citizen living elsewhere. NOWPayments' website does not match its terms: it still publishes UK pages (nowpayments.io/gb, including a pricing page) and German, French, Spanish and Portuguese pages, all in its sitemap. We follow the terms, which are what a merchant signs. CoinGate's supported-countries page lists all 27 EU member states and the UK plus 32 other countries, including Switzerland, Norway, Canada, Australia, Japan, Singapore, India and Brazil, and its General Terms make being based in a listed country a condition of use. Neither serves a US-based merchant: NOWPayments excludes the US and CoinGate's list omits it.
Licence
NOWPayments
None named; offshore operator
CoinGate
MiCA CASP and payment institution (Bank of Lithuania)
Winner
NOWPayments' contracting entity is FD Transfers LLC, registered in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, with a postal address at a serviced office in Tallinn, Estonia. Its terms and site name no financial-services licence of its own; the terms say custody and fiat withdrawals may be provided by unnamed third parties, which its pricing FAQ calls licensed partners. CoinGate is UAB Decentralized (Lithuanian company code 303423510). The Bank of Lithuania's register lists its MiCA crypto-asset service provider licence (LB002323) and a payment institution licence (LB002324, which its site says covers transfers of e-money tokens), both valid from 16 December 2025. The CASP licence covers custody, exchange for funds, exchange for other crypto-assets and transfers, and France's AMF lists the same authorisation as passported to France. MiCA's rules for crypto-asset service providers have applied since 30 December 2024, and the transitional period for firms operating under national rules ended across the EU by 1 July 2026 at the latest. CoinGate balances are not deposits: its General Terms say they earn no interest and carry no deposit insurance.
Onboarding checks
NOWPayments
Email and wallet; KYC/KYB may follow
CoinGate
Identity and AML checks at onboarding
NOWPayments lets a merchant start with an email address and a wallet. Its terms reserve the right to run KYC on individual partners and to ask for documents for ongoing due diligence, and its third-party fiat off-ramp provider can require business verification (KYB). CoinGate's General Terms make the service conditional on identity, fraud, background and AML checks at onboarding and at any time afterwards, including ultimate beneficial owners and source of funds.
Governing law
NOWPayments
St. Vincent and the Grenadines
CoinGate
Lithuania (Vilnius courts)
From each provider's terms as read on 28 October 2026.
Best For Your Business
Recommendations based on your business type
EU or UK online business
Recommended
CoinGate
NOWPayments' Terms of Service exclude residents and citizens of the EU and UK. CoinGate supports both, is authorised under MiCA by the Bank of Lithuania, and pays out in EUR by free SEPA transfer.
US-based business
Neither. NOWPayments' terms exclude US residents and citizens, and the United States is not on CoinGate's supported-countries list.
Business outside the EU, UK and US whose customers pay mostly in USDT
Recommended
NOWPayments
NOWPayments accepts USDT on several networks and charges 1% if you keep it as USDT. USDT is not on CoinGate's supported list; its stablecoins are USDC and EURC.
Business that wants to receive fiat in a bank account and never hold crypto
Recommended
CoinGate
CoinGate converts at checkout at a rate locked for 20 minutes and settles to EUR, USD or GBP from its own licensed account. NOWPayments' fiat withdrawal is EUR only, through a third-party provider, after you activate custody.
Platform paying affiliates, sellers or players in crypto
Recommended
NOWPayments
NOWPayments charges no service fee on payouts or mass payouts, only network fees. CoinGate charges 0.50 EUR + 0.5% per crypto payout, or 0.50 EUR + 1.5% with conversion. NOWPayments is available only if you are outside its excluded jurisdictions.
NOWPayments: Best for 2 use cases
CoinGate: Best for 2 use cases
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about this comparison
Not under its current terms. Section 15.1 of NOWPayments' Terms of Service, updated 19 October 2026, says the services are not provided to residents or citizens of the European Union, the United Kingdom, the United States, the UAE or Russia, and that anyone from those places who uses them does so at their own risk. Its website still has UK, German, French, Spanish and Portuguese pages, but the terms are what a merchant agrees to. CoinGate accepts merchants from the EU, the UK and 32 other countries on its supported list, but not from the United States.
On headline fees they are close. NOWPayments charges 1% when you keep the coin you were paid in and 1.5% when it converts, and by default deducts network fees from each payment. CoinGate's Standard plan charges 1% and adds network costs to the shopper's invoice, but its Commercial Policy says it also adds a risk margin to the exchange rate and does not publish its size. NOWPayments charges no service fee on payouts; CoinGate charges 0.50 EUR + 0.5% on crypto payouts but nothing for SEPA or crypto withdrawals of 50 EUR or more.
CoinGate's operator, UAB Decentralized, was authorised by the Bank of Lithuania on 16 December 2025 as a crypto-asset service provider under MiCA (LB002323) and also holds a payment institution licence (LB002324). France's AMF lists it as passported there. NOWPayments is operated by FD Transfers LLC, registered in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and names no regulator licence; its terms say custody and fiat services may be provided by unnamed third parties.
No. As of October 2026 CoinGate accepts 12 assets, with USDC and EURC as its stablecoins; USDT is not on its supported-currencies list. NOWPayments accepts USDT on several networks, including Tron, Ethereum, BNB Smart Chain, Solana and Polygon.
CoinGate settles to EUR by SEPA (free, 50 EUR minimum) and to USD or GBP by SWIFT (0.50%, 50 EUR minimum fee), with automatic settlement weekly on its Standard plan. NOWPayments' terms limit fiat withdrawal to EUR, through a third-party provider, from a custody balance, with fees set by that provider.
Both can. NOWPayments' terms let it suspend or cancel an account at any time without notice or a reason. CoinGate can close an account without cause on 30 days' notice, or immediately on grounds such as suspected money laundering or missing documents, and charges a 1% daily administrative fee on payments held for compliance if the refund and requested information are not supplied within 100 days. Withdrawing balances regularly limits your exposure with either.
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