How to Accept Payments Online in South Africa: PayFast vs Paystack

The moment a small business wants to sell online — whether it is products, a service deposit or a booking fee — the same question comes up: how do I actually take the money? In South Africa the answer is usually one of two payment gateways: PayFast or Paystack. Both are solid, widely used and well suited to small businesses. Here is what actually matters when choosing between them.

What a payment gateway does

A payment gateway is the secure layer between your website and the bank. When a customer pays, the gateway handles the card, EFT or wallet transaction, takes a small percentage as its fee, and pays the rest into your business bank account. Your website never touches the card details — the gateway carries that responsibility and its security burden.

PayFast

PayFast is one of the longest-established South African gateways. It supports Visa and Mastercard, Instant EFT, SnapScan, Zapper and more, which matters because many South African customers still prefer EFT over card. Sign-up is done online, and smaller businesses can usually get going without lengthy merchant account negotiations.

Paystack

Paystack (owned by Stripe) is a newer, developer-friendly option with clean documentation and modern checkout experiences. It supports cards and other local payment methods, and its fees are competitive. It is a popular choice for stores built on platforms like WooCommerce and Shopify, and for custom-built sites.

How they compare in practice

• Fees: both charge a percentage per transaction, typically in the region of 2.9–3.5% depending on the payment method. Check the current published pricing before deciding — fees change.
• Payment methods: PayFast has a slight edge on local EFT and scan-to-pay options; Paystack's checkout is often considered more modern for card payments.
• Payouts: both settle to your South African bank account on a regular schedule, usually within a few business days.
• Integration: both offer ready-made plugins for common platforms and proper APIs for custom websites.
• Onboarding: both require your business details, bank account and FICA-style verification documents.

What you need before you apply

Whichever gateway you choose, you will need a South African bank account, your ID, proof of address, and your business details. Registered companies will be asked for their registration documents; sole proprietors can typically sign up in their own name. Having a live website with clear product or service pages, contact details and pricing also helps the approval process.

How it connects to your website

If your site is built on a platform like WooCommerce, connecting PayFast or Paystack is usually a plugin and a few settings. On a custom-built website, the developer integrates the gateway directly — which is also the moment to make sure the checkout flow is short, trustworthy and works properly on a phone. Either way, this is a one-time setup; after that, payments just arrive.

The practical takeaway

For most South African small businesses, either gateway will serve you well. If your customers lean towards EFT and local payment methods, PayFast is a comfortable default. If you want a modern card checkout and strong developer tooling, Paystack is excellent. The bigger decision is having a website that presents your products clearly and makes paying effortless — the gateway is the easy part.