There is no single best payment provider for Europe, because Europe is not one market. A checkout that converts beautifully in the UK can underperform badly in Germany or the Netherlands. This is the country-by-country reality.
Germany runs on invoice, not cards
German consumers overwhelmingly prefer paying after delivery — Rechnungskauf. Klarna's invoice product, PayPal and direct debit dominate; card penetration is far lower than Anglo markets expect. A German store offering only cards is leaving a large share of the market unserved.
The Netherlands means iDEAL
iDEAL accounts for the majority of Dutch online payments. It is not an optional extra there. Similarly: Bancontact in Belgium, Swish in Sweden, MobilePay in Denmark and Finland, BLIK in Poland. Each is a local default, not a nice-to-have.
The UK is card-first, with BNPL rising
Cards plus Apple Pay and Google Pay cover most UK volume, with Klarna and Clearpay taking a growing share in fashion and higher-ticket categories. Shop Pay's accelerated checkout is worth enabling everywhere it is available.
What the fees actually look like
Card processing through Shopify Payments or Stripe typically sits around 1.5% plus a fixed fee for domestic European cards — Shopify's UK list runs from 2% + 25p on Basic to 1.5% + 25p on Advanced — and higher for international cards. Klarna charges more — typically 2–4% — but lifts both conversion and average order value in the markets where it is the norm. Judge it on contribution margin, not on the percentage.
Every extra method has a cost too
More logos at checkout is not automatically better. Each one adds a decision, and some add a script that slows the page. Offer the two or three local defaults plus one wallet, and stop. We usually remove providers during optimisation as often as we add them.
How to decide with your own data
Look at where your traffic already comes from in GA4, then match the local defaults for the top three countries. If a market is fewer than 5% of sessions, do not add a provider for it yet — revisit when it earns the attention.
Accelerated checkout is the cheapest win
Shop Pay, Apple Pay and Google Pay skip card and address entry, which matters most on mobile, where most traffic now lands. Enable them in every market where they are available, and check they appear on the product page and in the cart rather than only at the final step.
If Shopify Payments is not available or not the right fit, see payment providers without Shopify Payments; card fees per plan are compared in Shopify plans compared.