How to Accept Money on a WordPress Site

This article was published on March 4, 2021 and updated on July 1, 2024.

It’s 2021, and especially in light of recent global events, businesses must start accepting credit card payment online, on their websites, if they haven’t already done so. Holding 60.8% of CMS market shares and powering 14.7% of the world’s top websites, there’s no denying that WordPress is now the standard for content management systems in the world. 

Whether you’re running a blog or an e-commerce website, WordPress allows you to create a platform where you can build your brand, sell your products and just nourish a community of consumers and subscribers. 

But more than that, there are several ways to accept money on a WordPress website through various payment gateways.

Key Takeaways

• Selecting the right payment gateway and plugin is critical for a seamless and secure transaction process, impacting sales and building customer trust.
• WordPress supports various types of sites for payments, including eCommerce, subscription, membership, and charity sites, through integration with payment gateways like WooCommerce, PayPal, and Stripe.
• Ensuring prerequisites such as an SSL certificate, secure WordPress setup, user-friendly design, and reliable web hosting are essential for accepting payments securely on a WordPress site.

WordPress Payment Gateways

PayPal

When talking about payment gateways, PayPal almost always comes to mind first, and it’s how a lot of businesses accept money on their WordPress websites. 

As a trusted payment processor, PayPal offers a wide range of tools for you to use in processing payments and it’s also very transparent with its fee schedules and processing fees, although you can find cheaper rates from other payment gateways. 

Some of PayPal’s rates include 2.9%+$0.30 per transaction, 3.5%+$0.15 per transaction for mobile and in-store transactions, and 3.1%+0.30 per transaction for virtual terminals.

First Card Payments

If you’re categorized as a high-risk merchant account, you might find it hard to secure an account with more traditional payment gateways. But First Card Payments has you covered with its extensive solutions for both low-risk and high-risk businesses that you can easily integrate with your WordPress website. 

You just need to apply for an account with this payment gateway and you’ll have no problems processing credit and debit card payments on your website using the WooCommerce plug-in that also allows you to create customizable product pages, shopping carts, and checkout pages.

How to Accept Money on a WordPress Site: A Simple Guide

The first step involves selecting the appropriate payment gateway. A payment gateway is a third-party service that processes payments for your website, ensuring that the transaction is secure and seamless. The right payment gateway can significantly impact your business by preventing cart abandonment and boosting online sales.

On WordPress, conventional payment methods like WooCommerce, CartFlows, and Easy Digital Downloads are often employed for transaction processing and online sales management. These plugins ensure smooth integration for payment handling on the platform.

One standout option is WooCommerce Payments, which provides a native checkout experience, allowing customers to:

• Enter their payment information directly on your site without needing to create additional accounts
• Experience a seamless checkout process
• Enjoy a better user experience overall

This seamless experience can lead to higher conversion rates and increased customer satisfaction.

Tips for Accepting Payments on a WordPress Site

Now that you have two smart options for your payment gateway, you should also learn the tricks to making sure that you don’t encounter any problems when you accept money on a WordPress website. 

For one, you should only go for a credit card processing company that you can fully integrate with your website. This helps you avoid any errors that might affect checkouts and eventually make you lose money. 

It’s also very important to choose a web host that can handle online payments. The easiest way to determine this is by checking if your plan includes SSL/TLS certificates. 

If your web host doesn’t have this feature, you might need to purchase it separately, which means additional expenses on your end. So, if you don’t want to spend more, you have to go with a web host already equipped for online payment transactions. 

Types of WordPress Sites That Can Accept Payments

Whether you’re running an online store, a subscription website, a membership site, or even a charity, WordPress has you covered. Each type of site has unique needs and requires different payment gateways to provide the best user experience and security. Some popular payment gateways for WordPress include:

• WooCommerce
• PayPal
• Stripe
• Authorize.net
• Square

By choosing the right payment gateway for your specific needs, you can ensure a smooth and secure payment process for your customers.

For eCommerce sites, selecting the right payment gateway is key. A secure and reliable payment method can reduce cart abandonment rates and boost online sales. Popular plugins like WooCommerce and Easy Digital Downloads (EDD) offer a variety of payment gateway options suitable for selling physical and digital products. Some popular payment gateways include:

• Stripe: highly regarded for its robust feature set and ease of integration with WordPress
• PayPal: widely recognized and trusted by customers
• Authorize.net: offers a range of features and supports multiple currencies
• Square: known for its simplicity and ease of use

Prerequisites for Accepting Payments on a WordPress Site

• Having an SSL certificate
• A secure WordPress setup
• A user-friendly design
• Reliable web hosting

Each of these elements plays a crucial role in ensuring secure and efficient payment processing.

Any site that accepts payments must have an SSL certificate. It encrypts data transmitted between your website and your users, protecting sensitive information like credit card details. Having a secure WordPress setup is just as vital; it aids in protection against threats and ensures adherence to data regulations. Using a reputable web hosting provider can further enhance your site’s security and performance, ensuring smooth payment transactions.

Beyond security, a user-friendly design is key to improving user experience and boosting conversion rates. A well-designed site makes it easier for users to complete their transactions, reducing the likelihood of cart abandonment. Reliable web hosting underpins all these elements, providing the foundation for a smooth and secure payment process.

SSL Certificate

An SSL certificate is a security protocol that encrypts data transmitted between your website and your users’ browsers. This encryption ensures that sensitive information, such as credit card details, is protected from potential threats. Once an SSL certificate is enabled, your website URL changes from HTTP to HTTPS, indicating a secure connection and boosting user trust.

Secure WordPress Setup

A secure WordPress setup is vital to protecting your site against various threats. Implementing security plugins like Wordfence and Sucuri can significantly enhance your site’s security by providing features such as malware scanning and firewall protection. These plugins can also perform automated security scans and audits to identify and address vulnerabilities.

Another critical aspect of securing your WordPress site is enabling two-factor authentication (2FA). This adds an extra layer of security by requiring users to provide a secondary form of verification in addition to their password.

Keeping your WordPress core, themes, and plugins up to date is also essential, as updates often include security patches for known vulnerabilities.

User-Friendly Design

A user-friendly design is crucial for enhancing the user experience and improving conversion rates. A responsive and optimized design ensures that users can easily navigate your site and complete transactions on any device.

Reliable Web Hosting

Choosing a reliable web hosting provider is fundamental for ensuring smooth payment transactions on your WordPress site. A fast and secure web host underpins everything else, from site performance to transaction security. Poor web hosting can lead to slow load times and potential downtimes, negatively impacting user experience and causing customers to abandon their carts.

Managed cloud hosting is an excellent option, offering multiple layers of security and performance management. This type of hosting ensures your site runs efficiently, which is crucial for processing payments without interruptions.

How to Set Up Payment Gateways on Your WordPress Site

Setting up payment gateways on your WordPress site requires plugin installation, payment option configuration, and integration testing. This process ensures that your site can accept payments securely and efficiently.

Installing a Payment Gateway Plugin

To install a payment gateway plugin, follow these steps:

1. Navigate to the WordPress dashboard.
2. Click on ‘Plugins’.
3. Select ‘Add New’.
4. Search for the desired plugin.
5. Once you find the plugin, click ‘Install Now’.
6. Click ‘Activate’ to add it to your site.

For example, to set up the Stripe Payments plugin, install and activate the ‘WP Simple Pay’ plugin, and connect it with your Stripe account via the plugin’s settings.

Configuring Payment Options

After installing the payment gateway plugin, you need to configure the payment options. This involves entering the necessary API credentials for the payment gateway to activate and configure it properly.

Testing Payment Gateway Integration

Testing the payment gateway integration is crucial to ensure seamless and secure payment processing. Use test modes or sandbox environments provided by payment gateways to run trial transactions without processing real payments.

Accepting Credit Card Payments Without a Shopping Cart

Credit card payments can be accepted without a shopping cart using plugins such as Stripe Payments and WPForms. These plugins allow you to create payment forms or ‘Buy Now’ buttons that can be embedded anywhere on your site.

Using Stripe Payments Plugin

The Stripe Payments plugin enables you to:

• Create and embed Stripe ‘Buy Now’ buttons on your WordPress site
• Install and configure the plugin with your Stripe API credentials
• View all received payments directly from your WordPress admin dashboard.

This plugin is compatible with all devices and browsers, ensuring a responsive design.

Using WPForms Plugin

WPForms is another excellent option for accepting credit card payments without a shopping cart. To use Stripe with WPForms, you need the Pro version and the Stripe Addon. Once installed, you can create various types of forms, such as order forms, and integrate them with Stripe for payment processing.

Accepting PayPal Payments Without a Shopping Cart

With the right WordPress payment plugin, you can easily accept PayPal payments without a shopping cart. The PayPal Buy Now Button plugin and WPForms integration make it easy to collect payments directly from your WordPress site.

PayPal Buy Now Button Plugin

The PayPal Buy Now Button plugin allows you to add PayPal payment buttons to any page or post on your WordPress site. You can customize the appearance and functionality of the buttons via the plugin settings in the WordPress dashboard.

This plugin facilitates direct payments from users without needing a full shopping cart.

Integrating PayPal with WPForms

Integrating PayPal with WPForms is another effective way to accept payments. After installing the WPForms plugin and the PayPal Standard addon, you can create custom forms and add necessary payment fields.

This integration enables seamless payment collection through forms on your WordPress site.

The Takeaway

Online payment processing gives more leverage to your WordPress website because it doesn’t only allow you to sell your products faster online, but it also boosts your brand’s credibility to ensure that you get that much-needed edge from the competition. 

So if you haven’t decided on the right payment gateway yet, both PayPal and Pay Kings are smart options that you can try. 

Just do your research to make sure that your payment gateway would fit your exact business needs and offer you credible support in case you encounter some problems with your payment processor.

Contact us today to find out which option best suits your business when you open a merchant account with First Card Payments. 

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a payment gateway?

A payment gateway is a service that securely connects a customer’s shopping cart to the processing network, encrypting payment data to ensure security.

How do I install a payment gateway plugin on my WordPress site?

You can install a payment gateway plugin on your WordPress site by navigating to the WordPress dashboard, clicking on ‘Plugins’, selecting ‘Add New’, searching for the desired plugin, and then clicking ‘Install Now’ and ‘Activate’.

Why do I need an SSL certificate for my WordPress site?

You need an SSL certificate for your WordPress site to encrypt data, protect sensitive information, like credit card details, and ensure secure transactions. This helps to establish trust and security for your users.

What are the benefits of using Stripe as a payment gateway?

Using Stripe as a payment gateway offers benefits such as supporting multiple payment methods and currencies, transparent pricing, and easy integration with platforms like WordPress. These features make it an efficient choice for handling online payments.

How can I enhance transaction security on my WordPress site?

To enhance transaction security on your WordPress site, enable two-factor authentication, conduct regular security audits, and keep your WordPress core, themes, and plugins updated. This will help protect your site from potential security threats.

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