Set up Shopify Payments or another payment provider

Before you start

You need at least one payment provider before customers can pay. Shopify gives you three routes: Shopify Payments, a third-party credit card provider, and manual methods such as Bank Deposit.

• Country. Shopify Payments is available only if your business is located in a supported country. Shopify lists 40, including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, Japan, Mexico and most EU countries. Your business type must also be eligible¹.
• Security. You must turn on two-step authentication for your account to use Shopify Payments². Payouts may be held until it is on³.
• Owner only. Only the store owner can activate Shopify Payments or add or change a third-party provider. Staff cannot^3,7.
• Currency. Choose your store currency before your first sale. After that, changing it needs Shopify Support³.
• Plans. Shopify's Shopify Payments pages do not state which plans include it.

Steps

1. Open payment settings. From your Shopify admin, go to Settings > Payments³.
2. Start Shopify Payments. In the Shopify Payments section, click Activate Shopify Payments³.
3. Enter your personal details. Provide your personal, address and identification details, then click Next³.
4. Enter your business details. Provide your business information. Enter the phone number customers will see on their bank statement, then click Next³.
5. Confirm and submit. Check your Business type and Store details, click Confirm, then click Submit for verification. If Shopify asks for documents, upload them only through the secure banners in your admin. Photograph ID in color, with all four borders visible. Review can take up to 24 hours³.
6. Connect your payout bank account. After verification, go to Settings > Payments, click Connect a bank account in the Shopify Payments section, enter your bank details, and click Save³.
7. Set your statement names and cards. In the Shopify Payments section, click Manage. In Customer billing statement, enter a Statement name (2 to 19 characters) and a Phone number. In the Cards section, select the cards you accept, then click Save⁴.
8. Run a test payment. In Manage, go to the Test mode section, select Enable test mode, and click Save. Place an order on your store with test card 4242424242424242, any future expiry date, a two-word name and any 3-digit code. Turn test mode off when you finish⁵.
9. Or add a third-party provider. In Settings > Payments: if Shopify Payments is active, click Manage, then Switch to a third-party provider. If it is not active, click See all other providers. If it is not available in your country, click Choose a provider. Select the provider, enter your account credentials, click Activate, then Save⁷.
10. Add manual methods if you need them. In the Payment providers section, select Cash on Delivery (COD), Bank Deposit or Money Order. Fill in Additional details and Payment instructions, then activate it. For anything else, click Create custom payment method in Manual payment methods⁸.

Check your work

• Place a test order in test mode with 4242424242424242 and confirm it succeeds. Then try the declined card 4000000000000002 to see the failure message⁵.
• Open Settings > Payments and confirm the right provider is active and test mode is off^5,7.
• For a manual method, place an order and check that your payment instructions show on the order confirmation screen⁸.

Common problems

• "Shopify Payments isn't offered to me." Your business is not in a supported country, or your business category is not supported. Use a third-party provider instead¹.
• "My payouts are on hold." Turn on two-step authentication for your account³.
• "I can't add a second card provider." Only one credit card provider can be active at a time. Click Choose another provider to replace it⁷.
• "The provider I want isn't in the list." Check that your store address in Settings > General matches the provider's region. Some buy now, pay later and regional methods, such as PayPal Express Checkout, sit under Additional payment methods instead⁷.
• "Why am I paying extra fees?" Third-party transaction fees apply to every transaction through a third-party or alternate gateway. If Shopify Payments is your primary provider, PayPal transactions are exempt⁶.
• "My custom method name is rejected." Bank Deposit, Cash on Delivery (COD) and Money Order are reserved names. Add those through the Payment providers section⁸.

Further reading

• The full list of supported countries¹.
• Payout name and payout email settings⁴.