{
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    "slug": "payment-methods-in-germany",
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        "rendered": "Payment Methods in Germany: What to Set Up First"
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        "rendered": "<div class=\"wh-article\"><figure class=\"wh-article-cover\"><img width=\"800\" height=\"534\" src=\"https:\/\/webhive.agency\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/payment-methods-in-germany-e9a558-1024x683.webp\" class=\"wh-article-cover__img\" alt=\"A face-down smartphone, bank card and parcel on a small online shop packing table\" loading=\"eager\" decoding=\"async\" srcset=\"https:\/\/webhive.agency\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/payment-methods-in-germany-e9a558-1024x683.webp 1024w, https:\/\/webhive.agency\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/payment-methods-in-germany-e9a558-300x200.webp 300w, https:\/\/webhive.agency\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/payment-methods-in-germany-e9a558-768x512.webp 768w, https:\/\/webhive.agency\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/payment-methods-in-germany-e9a558-18x12.webp 18w, https:\/\/webhive.agency\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/payment-methods-in-germany-e9a558.webp 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/figure><p>For a small B2C shop in Germany, a sensible starting point is PayPal alongside debit and credit card payments. Consider enabling Apple Pay and Google Pay at the same time if your chosen integration supports them without separate development. Provider-managed payment by invoice can be considered as a next step.<\/p>\n<nav class=\"wh-toc\">\n<p><strong>Contents<\/strong><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"#s1\">Decide how customers will pay first<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#s2\">PayPal and cards: test both routes separately<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#s3\">Enable wallets early if you can, but test them on a suitable device<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#s4\">Payment by invoice and SEPA serve different purposes<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#s5\">How to compare Stripe and PayPal<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#s6\">Test the order journey from a customer\u2019s phone through to a refund<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#s7\">Do not add a payment surcharge without checking<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#s8\">What to send a provider before connecting<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/nav>\n<p>This is a practical launch order, not a legal requirement. If you sell subscriptions, assess SEPA Direct Debit earlier. For B2B sales, payment by invoice needs separate consideration.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"s1\">Decide how customers will pay first<\/h2>\n<p>Asking \u201cStripe or PayPal?\u201d combines two different decisions: which payment options customers need and which provider will process them for your shop.<\/p>\n<p>A card is a payment method. Stripe is a payment provider that gives a shop access to the methods available to it. PayPal is both a familiar payment service for customers and a provider for merchants.<\/p>\n<p>Start by listing what you need: PayPal, a separate card option and, where possible, mobile wallets. Then find out which integration covers that list on your platform. One provider will not necessarily cover everything, so confirm that both PayPal and card payments are available with your specific integration and merchant account.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"s2\">PayPal and cards: test both routes separately<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/de\/business\/accept-payments\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">PayPal\u2019s business page<\/a> lists ways to accept payments through a single integration, including cards. Being on that list does not guarantee an option is available to your shop: that depends on the merchant and the integration.<\/p>\n<p>Ask your developer or provider to demonstrate both routes: one customer pays with PayPal, another chooses to pay by card. A PayPal button alone is not proof that a separate card payment option works.<\/p>\n<p>If you are considering Stripe for cards, ask separately how PayPal will be connected. Do not assume that every Stripe module automatically adds all the payment options you need.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"s3\">Enable wallets early if you can, but test them on a suitable device<\/h2>\n<p>Consider Apple Pay and Google Pay alongside cards if your chosen integration supports them without a separate development project. PayPal lists both on its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.paypal.com\/de\/business\/accept-payments\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">payment acceptance page<\/a>, but you still need to confirm availability for your setup.<\/p>\n<p>Before launch, check what is needed for each button to appear: a suitable device and browser, and a wallet set up by the customer. Then test payment under those conditions. A missing button in one browser does not necessarily mean the shop has been configured incorrectly.<\/p>\n<p>If wallets need extra development, they can wait. First make sure the main payments go through, orders receive the right statuses and staff know what to do next.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"s4\">Payment by invoice and SEPA serve different purposes<\/h2>\n<p>Assess provider-managed payment by invoice, or Kauf auf Rechnung, separately from sending goods yourself and waiting for a bank transfer. Before connecting it, find out when funds become available to you, who carries the risk of non-payment and when the provider may make a claim against your shop.<\/p>\n<p>Ask how full and partial refunds, order cancellations and disputes are handled. A promise to take on non-payment risk does not protect you from every possible customer claim.<\/p>\n<p>For a subscription shop, consider SEPA Direct Debit earlier. <a href=\"https:\/\/docs.stripe.com\/payments\/sepa-debit\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Stripe\u2019s documentation<\/a> describes recurring euro debits, the need for a customer mandate and delayed payment confirmation.<\/p>\n<p>In practice, submitting a debit request is not the same as receiving a confirmed payment. Agree in advance which status the order should receive and when it is safe to provide the goods or service.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"s5\">How to compare Stripe and PayPal<\/h2>\n<p>Send both providers the same description: what you sell, which platform your shop uses, whether you need subscriptions and which payment methods you want to offer. Ask for terms that apply to your account and integration.<\/p>\n<p>Comparing only the fee for a successful payment is not enough. Use this table as a short list of questions for the provider or your developer.<\/p>\n<table>\n<thead>\n<tr>\n<th>What to compare<\/th>\n<th>What to ask Stripe and PayPal<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>Payment methods<\/td>\n<td>Which methods are available to your merchant account and work with the chosen shop module?<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Payments, refunds and disputes<\/td>\n<td>What fees apply in each case? What happens to the original fee when a payment is refunded?<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Payouts and holds<\/td>\n<td>When are funds paid into your bank account? Under what conditions can payouts be delayed or held?<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Compatibility<\/td>\n<td>Is your platform supported? How are payments, fees and refunds passed to your accounting system?<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>Problem resolution<\/td>\n<td>Who should you contact about a stuck payment, mismatched statuses or a delayed payout? Who is responsible for the shop module?<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p>One integration is easier to maintain if it genuinely covers everything you need. Two providers can work too, but plan in advance how you will reconcile payments and manage two dashboards.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"s6\">Test the order journey from a customer\u2019s phone through to a refund<\/h2>\n<p>When preparing an <a href=\"https:\/\/webhive.agency\/en\/online-shops\/\">online shop<\/a>, include payment testing in your acceptance checks. Being told that the module is installed does not prove that the whole process works.<\/p>\n<ol>\n<li>Place an order on a phone. Check the total, including delivery, and whether the chosen payment method is available.<\/li>\n<li>In the provider\u2019s test environment, check a successful payment, a declined payment and a cancellation by the customer. Do not use random real cards to simulate declines.<\/li>\n<li>Compare the payment result with the order status. A decline or cancellation must not look like a paid order to staff.<\/li>\n<li>Check notifications: what the customer received and where staff can see the order, amount and payment status.<\/li>\n<li>Issue a refund. If you expect to make partial refunds, test those too: the amount should match in the shop and the provider dashboard.<\/li>\n<li>Once the shop is live, make an agreed test purchase. Follow it through to payout into the bank account and reconcile the amount after fees.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p>Write down what to do if the provider has accepted a payment but the order still shows as unpaid. Staff should be able to find the payment by its ID, check the amount and currency, and pass the issue to the person responsible. Asking the customer to pay again before those checks is risky.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"s7\">Do not add a payment surcharge without checking<\/h2>\n<p>If you want to pass a payment fee on to the customer, discuss it with a specialist first. Use <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gesetze-im-internet.de\/bgb\/__270a.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Section 270a of the German Civil Code<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gesetze-im-internet.de\/bgb\/__312a.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Section 312a(4)<\/a> as starting points for checking the current rules and whether they apply.<\/p>\n<p>The date on which these provisions were last checked for this article has not been recorded. The links are a starting point, not legal advice. Before launch, ask a specialist to confirm whether a surcharge is permitted and what requirements apply to a free payment option, and record the date of that check.<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"s8\">What to send a provider before connecting<\/h2>\n<p>Prepare a short list covering the payment methods you need, your shop platform, the type of goods you sell, subscriptions, full and partial refunds, and your accounting data requirements. Add the questions from the table and ask the provider to confirm availability for each item in your setup.<\/p>\n<p>Choose additional methods after you have tested the starting set. Base that decision on actual customer enquiries and checkout problems, rather than trying to fill the payment page with every available button.<\/p>\n<p>If you are planning a similar launch, you can <a href=\"https:\/\/webhive.agency\/en\/contacts\/\">discuss the payment options and testing process with Ruslan<\/a> in Russian or Ukrainian.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wh-article-note\">Author: Ruslan Trinko, founder of WebHive. Building websites since 2020, now working with businesses in Germany.<\/p>\n<\/div>",
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        "rendered": "<p>For a small B2C shop, PayPal and card payments are a sensible starting point. Here is how to choose a provider and test the full payment journey, from checkout to payout and refund.<\/p>",
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