Today’s post will talk about the top payment solutions for bloggers and freelancers that will make receiving payments a lot easier for you. This post is a compilation based on in-depth research and the recommendation by some top freelancers who have already tried and tested these platforms. Keep the list short yet illustrative; I will talk about some of the payment platforms that you should consider. So let’s begin.
Wise
Wise is an international transfer service that is comparatively a new player in the market. What is unique about TransferWise is competitive exchange rates, upfront fees awareness. The time taken by TransferWise to process a payment is a variable factor depending on currencies, countries, payment methods, and amount. Once you log in to their site, you will have access to an inbuilt pricing conversion where you can select the currency for both the sender and the recipient and enter the amount. The live exchange rate calculator will convert the amount suitable to the recipient’s country and currency, apply its charges, provide you an approximate date for the transaction to complete. So you see, you know everything up front, and if you are happy, you can proceed. As a freelancer, you may choose to open a personal or business account; it is your choice. But, whatever you choose, it is FREE! You can send or receive payment from all the major countries, including the USA, India, China, United Kingdom, etc. If you are based in India, then it would be a great option to receive a USD and get paid in INR at best currency rate. BTW, TransferWise seems to be 19 times cheaper than PayPal.
Payoneer
If you are looking for an alternative to PayPal, Payoneer can be an excellent option for you. What makes Payoneer stand out is that users can receive & make online payments with a few clicks, track their account balance, and even the entire transaction history. Payoneer takes 3-5 business days to process payments, and it supports the following currencies.
USD EUR GBP CAD AUD JPY CHN CZK PLN RUB VND
You can send or receive payment from another Payoneer account or traditional bank accounts. Charges vary, and you can check the details on their fees page.
Revolut
Revolut already boasts of over 6 million loyal users just by making monetary transactions more straightforward,hassle-free, and at your fingertips. To start with Revolut, download the app from iStore or GooglePlay Store, register, and open an account. Being a freelancer, it is essential to keep track of where your money is coming from and where it is going personally and professionally. Revolut’s business account helps you get rid of unwanted changes in the name of exchange rates, cross-border transfers, and other kinds of fees that none of us remember and yet lose a chunk of our money in the long run.
Revolut also plays the role of your bookkeeper and manages your account, allowing you more time to be productive and do what you do best. It skillfully transacts up to 29 currencies.
Stripe
Stripe is the go-to payment processing solution for businesses that rely on the internet for their revenue and profit. The features that Stripe offers you are a smart payment page, customized UI toolkit, invoicing, payment options via cards, wallets, currencies, bank transfer, and more.
You can also use its mobile interfaces, authorization for revenue optimization option, Stripe radar, 3Dsecurity, and dispute handling to plug in any kind of fraudulent situations, financial reporting, consolidated reporting, accounting support, amongst many other such modern features. The standard time taken by Stripe to process payments is 5-10 business days. Stripe operates in more than 20 countries and deals in more than 135 currencies.
PayPal
This list won’t be complete without PayPal.
As many of you might already know, PayPal is an online payment service that lets you accept payment and get paid with total efficiency and in a quick and easy manner. With over 270 million users, spanning across 200 countries and transacting in more than 26 currencies, PayPal is the most widely accepted payment processing system globally that is super user-friendly. All you need to do is create your account in PayPal and then connect it with your credit/debit card. Your account should then be verified within 48 hours. You can then start accepting and sending money to people in different parts of the world from wherever you are. In return, it levies certain charges for processing payments. You will be charged 30 cents for every transaction done within the United States. If you are receiving money from the U.S.A, PayPal deducts 2.9% of the total amount. If the transactions are conducted between other countries, then the charges are 4.4% along with a specific percentage fee for the respective country. The usual time taken by PayPal to process payments is 3-5 business days (Sat, Sun & Holidays excluded). Some of the fantastic features that PayPal offers are PayPal.Me where you can create your link with your name, picture, share this link via SMS, social media, and emails with your clients. You can create custom invoices, send them to multiple accounts, send scheduled invoices according to preferred date, and send recurring invoices, track all invoices, and accept full or partial payments. You can also share a payment request via email directly. Your clients can make the payment using their own PayPal account or via their bank accounts, debit & credit cards. Conclusion These are some of the most popular payment services that you can opt for. Of course, there are other payment options that you can look into, such as Cash App, QuickBooks Online, Skrill, Venmo, Dwolla, Xero, Escrow, Western Union, Moneygram, Paymo, etc. So, there is no shortage of payment processing tools in the market. But be aware of scammers as they flock to these platforms. I hope this article helps you zero in on your preferred payment processing system and get started with your freelance career. Want a primer on freelancing? Visit beginner’s guide to starting a Freelancing career.
