HitPay vs Stripe in Singapore: Fees, PayNow and Which to Choose

HitPay vs Stripe: summary table

Standard online rates for a Singapore business, taken from Stripe's Singapore pricing and HitPay's Singapore pricing. These are approximate, as of October 2026, before any custom pricing.

Payment methods supported

For a typical Singapore shop or service business, both cover what customers expect: PayNow, Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Apple Pay and Google Pay.

Where HitPay goes further

HitPay leans into regional wallets and buy-now-pay-later. Its pricing page lists ShopeePay, ShopeePay Later, Atome, Paylater by Grab, ShopBack, WeChat Pay and UPI, plus cross-border QR methods from Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam. If your customers ask for Atome or ShopeePay, HitPay is the simpler route.

Where Stripe goes further

Stripe covers more international payment methods and currencies. It suits a business selling to customers in Europe, the US or Australia as well as Singapore. It also lists Alipay and WeChat Pay at 2.2% + S$0.35.

PayNow differences that matter

• With Stripe, customers see Stripe's company name in their banking app, not yours (Stripe PayNow docs). Stripe's PayNow QR codes expire after one hour.
• HitPay's PayNow fee has two tiers: a percentage for small payments and a percentage plus 30 cents from S$100. For many small orders the gap between the two providers is a few cents; for larger orders it adds up.

Fees, worked through

Approximate fees per transaction on standard published rates (October 2026), before GST. HitPay figures include its 0.2% plugin fee, as most websites use a plugin.

On S$10,000 a month of card sales, the headline card rates differ by 0.6 percentage points, or about 0.4 once HitPay's 0.2% plugin fee is added: roughly S$40 to S$60 a month. Whether that matters depends on what you get in return, which is mostly about subscriptions, invoicing and tools.

Payouts

Cash flow matters for a small business, and the two differ here.

• HitPay says non-card payments (including PayNow) reach your HitPay balance on T+1 calendar day, and card balances from T+1 business day. Its compliance team sets the final schedule case by case.
• Stripe says your first payout typically completes within 7 to 14 days of your first live payment, depending on industry and risk (Stripe payouts guide). After that, payouts follow your account's schedule, and Stripe lists PayNow funds as available on T+1.

Either way, your bank may take a little longer to show the money. Plan your first fortnight with Stripe accordingly if you are launching with stock to pay for.

Subscriptions and invoicing

This is where the two are furthest apart.

Stripe

Stripe Billing handles monthly and yearly plans, trials, upgrades, failed-payment retries and a hosted customer portal where members update their card or cancel. It costs 0.7% of billing volume on top of payment fees. Stripe Invoicing (Starter) is 0.4% per paid invoice. PayNow can be used on Stripe subscriptions and invoices. PayNow is customer-initiated, though, so the customer pays each invoice themselves; automatic renewals in practice rely on cards.

HitPay

HitPay offers recurring billing (cards, GIRO and some wallets) and invoicing with PayNow, each with a 0.2% software fee on top of payment fees. HitPay lists GIRO for recurring payments at S$2.25 + 0.65%, which can suit higher-value monthly fees such as tuition.

For a gym, studio or membership with many plans, proration and a self-service portal, Stripe Billing is usually the stronger tool. For simple monthly charges and PayNow invoices to local clients, HitPay is often enough and cheaper.

Integrations: Shopify, WooCommerce and Xero

• Shopify: cards usually run through Shopify Payments, which in Singapore does not list PayNow. HitPay's Shopify app adds PayNow (0.5% app fee). Shopify also charges its own third-party transaction fee on those orders: 2% on Basic down to 0.2% on Plus, per Shopify Singapore pricing. Our guide to accepting PayNow on your website works through the total cost.
• WooCommerce: both have WooCommerce plugins. HitPay adds 0.2%; Stripe charges its normal rates.
• Xero: Stripe has an app in the Xero Singapore app store that can add a pay button to Xero invoices and feed transactions into Xero. HitPay offers a Xero integration at 0.2%.
• Custom builds and developers: Stripe's API, documentation and test mode are extensive. HitPay also has a documented API, sandbox and plugins. If you are building a custom app, check which SDKs and webhooks you need before choosing.

Which suits which business

You do not have to pick only one. Some businesses use HitPay for PayNow and Stripe for card subscriptions. That means two dashboards and two payout streams to reconcile, so only split if the saving or feature is real.

Do it yourself or get help?

Opening either account takes under an hour if your ACRA details, director ID and business bank account are to hand. Verification can take longer if your website or business description is vague, so publish clear prices, refund terms and contact details first. Before going live:

1. turn on only the payment methods you will actually support;
2. make a real low-value payment and refund it;
3. check that receipts show your business name, address and contact email;
4. decide how gateway fees and payouts will be recorded in your accounts.

If you would rather hand it over, Online Payment Setup (S$290) sets up Stripe or HitPay in your name with checkout, payment links and test transactions. Subscriptions & Recurring Billing (S$490) builds plans and a customer portal in Stripe. IT Sorted does not earn commission or referral fees from either provider, and you pay their fees directly.