How to Add More Payment Options on Shopify

Introduction

Providing a variety of payment options is one of the most effective ways to increase your store's conversion rate. When a customer reaches your checkout and finds their preferred payment method is missing, they often abandon their cart. Expanding your payment stack allows you to cater to international markets, accommodate different age demographics, and build trust with new visitors.

Because adding multiple gateways can lead to a cluttered checkout experience, we developed HidePay on the Shopify App Store to help merchants manage how these options appear. This guide explains how to add various payment methods to your Shopify store and how to organize them to ensure a high-converting customer journey. You will learn the technical steps for activation and the strategic logic behind payment customization.

Whether you are a new merchant setting up your first gateway or an established brand looking to localize for a global audience, this article provides the practical steps you need. By the end, you will understand how to balance a wide range of payment choices with a clean, professional checkout design.

Why Diversifying Payment Options Matters

Adding more payment methods is not just about convenience. It is a strategic move to reduce friction at the final stage of the buying process. Different regions have vastly different preferences. While credit cards dominate in the United States, digital wallets like AliPay are essential in China, and bank transfers like iDEAL are the standard in the Netherlands.

Beyond geography, different payment types serve different psychological needs. Express checkout buttons like Shop Pay or Apple Pay cater to mobile users who want to finish a purchase in seconds. Conversely, Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) services like Klarna or Affirm make high-ticket items more accessible by spreading out the cost.

A diverse payment selection also serves as a safety net. If one gateway experiences a technical outage or a temporary processing issue, having alternative methods available ensures your business can continue to take orders without interruption. For a deeper look at the thinking behind HidePay and checkout optimization, see our Introducing HidePay for Shopify blog post.

Activating Shopify Payments

Shopify Payments is the simplest way to accept payments online. It eliminates the need to set up a third-party provider and allows you to manage your business and finances in one place.

To activate it, navigate to the Payments section within your Shopify admin settings. If your store is in a supported country, you can complete the setup by providing your business details, personal information, and banking details for payouts. Once active, Shopify Payments automatically enables major credit cards, including Visa, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover.

One significant benefit of Shopify Payments is the integration of Shop Pay. This accelerated checkout saves customer information, allowing for a much faster transaction during future visits. Because Shopify Payments is a first-party solution, it generally offers lower transaction fees compared to using a third-party gateway with an external merchant account.

Adding Express Checkout Buttons

Express checkouts, also known as accelerated checkouts, store customer payment and shipping information so they don’t have to manually enter it every time. These are particularly important for mobile conversion rates.

The most common express options include:

• PayPal: One of the most recognized payment brands globally.
• Apple Pay: Essential for users on iOS devices.
• Google Pay: The primary choice for Android and Chrome users.
• Amazon Pay: Allows customers to use the addresses and payment methods stored in their Amazon accounts.

You can enable these through the Payments menu in your Shopify admin. Most are found under the "Manage" section of Shopify Payments or as a separate "Alternative payment methods" section. Note that some express buttons appear at the top of the checkout page by default. While this is great for speed, it can sometimes distract from your primary checkout flow. Using a tool like HidePay allows you to create rules that show or hide these buttons; see our help doc on how to hide express checkout buttons with HidePay.

Integrating Third-Party Payment Providers

If Shopify Payments is not available in your region, or if you require a specific merchant account, you will need to use a third-party provider. Shopify integrates with hundreds of external gateways, such as Stripe, Authorize.net, and 2Checkout.

To add a third-party provider:

1. Go to Settings > Payments in your Shopify admin.
2. In the "Payment providers" section, select "Choose a provider."
3. Search for your provider by name or by the payment methods they support.
4. Enter your account credentials provided by the third party (usually an API key or Merchant ID).
5. Test the integration using a test mode or a small live transaction to ensure it is connected correctly.

Be aware that using a third-party provider often incurs an additional transaction fee from Shopify, depending on your current subscription plan. Always check your plan details before committing to an external gateway.

Expanding with Alternative Payment Methods (APMs)

Alternative payment methods include anything that isn't a traditional credit card or debit card. This category includes BNPL services, cryptocurrency, and regional digital wallets.

To add these, look for the "Alternative payment methods" section in your Shopify admin settings. From here, you can search for services like Klarna, Afterpay, or BitPay. These services usually require you to create an account on their respective platforms before connecting them to Shopify.

APMs are highly effective for increasing average order value. Customers are often more willing to purchase premium products when they see an option to pay in four interest-free installments. However, these providers often charge higher transaction fees than standard credit card processors. It is important to monitor your margins when offering these options.

Setting Up Manual Payment Methods

Manual payment methods are processed outside of your online store. The order is created in a "Pending" state, and you must manually mark it as paid once you receive the funds.

Common manual methods include:

• Bank Deposits: The customer receives your bank details and initiates a transfer.
• Cash on Delivery (COD): Common in specific international markets where trust in digital payments is low.
• Money Orders: Traditional paper-based payments.
• Custom Manual Payments: Often used for "Pay on Invoice" or "Net 30" terms for B2B customers.

To set these up, go to the "Manual payment methods" section in your Payments settings. You can provide specific instructions for the customer that will appear on the checkout confirmation page and in their order confirmation email.

Action Summary for Adding Methods:

• Enable Shopify Payments for the lowest fees and easiest setup.
• Add PayPal and at least one BNPL option (like Klarna or Affirm).
• Search "Alternative payment methods" for regional favorites like iDEAL or Bancontact.
• Configure manual payments only if your business model requires offline settlement.

The Challenge of Payment Method Overload

While adding more options is generally positive, there is a point of diminishing returns. A checkout page with ten different icons and five express buttons can look unprofessional and overwhelm the customer. This phenomenon, known as "choice paralysis," can actually lead to lower conversion rates.

When you offer too many choices, the customer has to stop and think about which one to use. Any moment of hesitation in the checkout process is an opportunity for the customer to change their mind. The goal is to provide the right options to the right people, not every option to everyone.

This is where advanced management becomes necessary. You need a way to filter these options so that a customer in London doesn't see a regional payment method only used in Brazil, or a customer buying a $10 item doesn't see a financing option designed for $1,000 purchases.

Organizing Your Checkout with HidePay

To solve the problem of a cluttered checkout, our app, HidePay, uses Shopify Functions to give you granular control over your payment methods. Because it is built on native Shopify infrastructure, it runs directly within the checkout without slowing down your site or requiring complex code edits. If you're looking for a codeless way to work with Shopify Functions more broadly, check out SupaEasy — codeless Shopify Functions.

You can use the app to create logic-based rules that clean up your checkout experience. This ensures that you can add as many payment options as you want in your Shopify settings while only displaying the most relevant ones to each specific shopper.

Strategic Sorting and Reordering

The order in which payment methods appear matters. Most customers select the first or second option they see. By default, Shopify determines the order, but you may want to prioritize methods with lower transaction fees or higher conversion rates. With the app, you can drag and drop your payment methods into a custom order. Placing your most trusted or cost-effective method at the top can directly impact your bottom line. For details on handling payment methods that share the same name, see our help doc on How to sort payment methods with the same name.

Renaming for Clarity

Sometimes the default name of a payment gateway is confusing to customers. A gateway might be called "GlobalPay," but your customers know it as "Credit/Debit Card." We allow you to rename any payment method. For example, if you offer a manual bank transfer for B2B clients, you can rename it to "Pay on Invoice (Net 30)" to make it look more professional. See the help guide on How to create a payment customization in HidePay for step-by-step instructions.

Using Conditional Logic to Hide Methods

The most powerful way to manage multiple payment options is through conditional hiding. Instead of showing all your methods to everyone, you can set triggers based on the details of the order or the customer.

Hiding by Geography

If you accept Cash on Delivery, you likely only want to offer it in specific zip codes or countries where your logistics team can handle it. Showing it to international customers is confusing and leads to orders you cannot fulfill. You can create a rule to hide COD for every country except your home market — learn how to organize payment methods by country or by Shopify Market.

Hiding by Cart Total

BNPL services like Klarna are excellent for expensive items but may not be worth the transaction fee for a $5 purchase. You can set a rule to hide specific payment providers if the cart total is below a certain threshold. Conversely, you might want to hide certain methods for very high-value orders to reduce the risk of fraud or high chargeback fees. For an example workflow, see our tutorial on Preventing Fraud: How to Hide Cash on Delivery for Expensive Orders.

Hiding by Customer Tags

For merchants running a wholesale or B2B operation on the same store as their retail business, customer tags are essential. You can set a rule so that only customers tagged as "Wholesale" see the "Bank Transfer" or "Purchase Order" options. This keeps the checkout simple for your retail customers while providing the necessary flexibility for your professional clients.

Key Takeaway:

• Reorder: Move low-fee gateways to the top.
• Rename: Use customer-friendly labels (e.g., "Pay via Crypto" instead of "BitPay").
• Hide: Use rules to remove irrelevant options based on country, total, or customer type.

Best Practices for International Expansion

When adding payment options for global selling, don't guess what your customers want. Research the "Big Three" methods for every major market you enter. In Germany, this is often Sofort and credit cards. In the Netherlands, iDEAL is non-negotiable.

Once these are added, use geography-based rules to ensure they only appear for customers in those regions. This localization makes your store feel like a local business to international buyers, which significantly boosts trust.

Also, consider currency. If you are using Shopify Markets to sell in multiple currencies, ensure your chosen payment providers support those currencies. Some third-party gateways will only settle in your store's base currency, which might lead to unexpected conversion fees for you or the customer. For a broader look at combining payments and shipping controls, see the Nextools post about the HideSuite bundle.

Reducing Chargebacks and Fees

Adding more payment options can sometimes increase your risk. Some payment methods have higher rates of chargebacks, while others have non-refundable transaction fees.

To protect your margins, use payment rules to limit your exposure. For example, if you notice a high rate of fraudulent orders from a specific region, you might choose to hide "Guest" checkout options or certain high-risk digital wallets for that region, forcing customers to use more secure methods like Shopify Payments (which includes 3D Secure in many regions).

You can also pair HidePay with an order-validation app such as CartBlock — order validation and checkout blocking to add another layer of protection against bots and risky orders.

By managing your payment options actively, you are not just improving the user experience; you are protecting your business from unnecessary costs. The ability to sort, hide, and rename gives you a level of control that standard Shopify settings do not provide.

Testing Your Payment Mix

After adding new payment options, it is vital to test them. Use a development store or put your gateway into "Test Mode" to ensure the redirect and payment confirmation work as expected.

Beyond technical testing, perform a "Visual Audit." Look at your checkout on a mobile device. Is the list of payment methods too long? Do the express buttons push the "Continue to Shipping" button off the screen? If so, it is time to refine your rules.

Regularly review your payment analytics in the Shopify admin. Look for which methods have the highest abandonment rates. If a specific BNPL provider has a high "started checkout" count but a low "completed" count, there may be an issue with their approval process or the way the option is presented.

Conclusion

Expanding your payment options is a proven way to increase conversion and reach new markets. By moving beyond basic credit card processing and adding local methods, BNPL services, and express checkouts, you cater to the specific needs of every shopper. However, more options require more management to avoid a cluttered and confusing checkout.

With HidePay, you can maintain a clean, high-converting checkout regardless of how many gateways you activate. Our tool allows you to:

• Sort methods to prioritize your preferred gateways.
• Rename labels for better customer clarity.
• Hide options based on geography, cart total, or customer tags.

Optimizing your checkout is a continuous process. As you add more ways for customers to pay, ensure you are using the right rules to keep the experience fast and relevant. Start refining your checkout today — install HidePay and take full control over your payment display.

FAQ

Can I add more than one credit card processor to Shopify?

No, Shopify generally allows only one primary credit card processor at a time. If you use Shopify Payments, you cannot simultaneously use an external provider like Stripe for credit cards. However, you can add multiple "Alternative Payment Methods" and "Manual Payment Methods" alongside your primary credit card processor.

How do I offer local payment methods like iDEAL or Klarna?

These are added through the "Alternative payment methods" section in your Shopify Payments settings. Many regional methods are natively supported through Shopify Payments if you are in a supported country. If not, you must select a third-party provider that specializes in those specific regional methods and connect it to your store.

Will adding many payment options slow down my checkout?

Adding options in your settings does not significantly impact technical loading speeds, but it can slow down the "human" speed of the checkout. Too many icons and choices cause cognitive load, which leads to shoppers hesitating or abandoning the cart. Using a management tool to hide irrelevant options based on the customer's location ensures your checkout stays fast and efficient.

Can I change the order in which payment options appear?

By default, Shopify controls the sequence of payment methods, often prioritizing its own gateways or express buttons. To gain full control over the order, you need an app that uses Shopify Functions. This allows you to drag and drop payment methods into a specific order, ensuring your preferred or most trusted methods appear first.