Head to head
Stripe vs Airwallex
Which payment gateway keeps more in your pocket? We rank both purely on estimated card costs — then weigh contract and settlement. Ranked on cost, with no paid placements.
How Compayr makes money: some providers pay Compayr when a merchant switches via our links — a one-off amount, an ongoing share while you process, or both. Others pay us nothing. This never affects rankings, which are ordered purely on lowest estimated card acceptance cost. How we compare
The "Compayr pick" is editorial — decided by the weighted side-by-side comparison below, led by lowest estimated card cost. It cannot be bought or influenced by any provider. How we compare
The Compayr verdict
Weighing card costs, contract and settlement together, Airwallex edges out Stripe as the stronger all-round choice for most merchants.
Airwallex lands about $10/month — roughly $120/year — cheaper at a sample $20,000 in monthly card sales.
Any savings shown exclude exit or early-termination fees payable to your current provider — check your agreement before switching. Not all products offered by each provider are compared: we compare one standard published plan per provider, and actual savings depend on your circumstances.
Choose Stripe if you want…
- a payments partner built for online-first businesses, SaaS and marketplaces needing powerful APIs.
Choose Airwallex if you want…
- the lowest card processing cost at a typical volume
- a lower headline card rate
Side by side
| Feature | Stripe | Airwallex |
|---|---|---|
| Card processing costs / month | $401/mo | $391/mo |
| Card rate (ex-GST) | 1.55% | 1.50% |
| Fixed monthly fee | $0 | $0 |
| Hardware from | — | — |
| Chargeback fee | $23 | $23 |
| Settlement speed | Standard payouts (2–3 days) | Varies by currency |
| Contract | No lock-in | No lock-in |
Figures ex-GST, estimated at a sample $20,000 in monthly card sales. A highlighted cell marks the better result on that row.
Stripe
Typical use case: Online-first businesses, SaaS and marketplaces needing powerful APIs. (as positioned by the provider)
Airwallex
Typical use case: Businesses selling internationally that want multi-currency accounts and FX savings. (as positioned by the provider)
Leaning towards Airwallex?
Run your own numbers by sector in our free calculator — ranked on estimated card acceptance cost.
Compayr may earn a referral fee when a merchant switches via our links. This never affects rankings, which are based purely on lowest card processing costs. Quote-only providers are never ranked as cheapest while a complete-cost option exists. Rates last verified 2026-09-03. This head-to-head is generated from published pricing and third-party review scores — always confirm current pricing with each provider before switching.