If you sell online anywhere in Africa, the payment gateway you pick shapes who can actually pay you. Paystack, Flutterwave, Pesapal, and DPO each grew up serving different corners of the continent, and none of them covers every country or every payment method equally well. This guide walks through what each one actually offers so you can match a gateway to your market instead of guessing.
Country coverage: where each gateway is strongest
Paystack started in Nigeria and remains most deeply integrated there, with solid coverage in Ghana, South Africa, and Kenya. Flutterwave has the broadest reach of the four, with active support across Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, South Africa, and several Francophone markets. Pesapal is built around East Africa, particularly Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania. DPO (Direct Pay Online) has a wider East and Southern African footprint, spanning countries like Zambia and Malawi where the bigger names have less depth.
None of these providers operate identically everywhere they’re listed. Coverage details, supported currencies, and available payment methods can vary by country, so always confirm on the provider’s own site that your specific market and currency are supported before committing.
Supported payment methods
Cards (Visa and Mastercard) are supported across all four gateways in most of their active markets. Where they really differ is mobile money and local bank transfer options.
- Paystack supports bank transfer and USSD payments in Nigeria, plus mobile money in Ghana, in addition to cards.
- Flutterwave has one of the widest mobile money footprints, covering services like M-Pesa, MTN Mobile Money, and Airtel Money depending on the country, alongside bank transfers and cards.
- Pesapal is strong on East African mobile money, including M-Pesa in Kenya, plus cards and local bank options.
- DPO supports cards, mobile money in several of its markets, and bank-based payments, with country-by-country variation.
Because mobile money is how a large share of African consumers actually pay, check each provider’s current documentation for the exact wallets supported in your target country rather than assuming coverage.
Settlement and payouts
All four gateways settle collected funds into your local bank account, but how quickly that happens and which currencies are supported depends on your country, your business type, and sometimes your transaction volume. Rather than quote settlement timelines here, which change and vary by market, check the settlement and payout section of each provider’s pricing or FAQ page for numbers that apply to your specific country and account type.
It’s worth asking directly, before you integrate, whether settlement lands in your local currency or requires an intermediate conversion, since that affects your accounting and your effective margin on international sales.
WooCommerce plugin availability
If you’re running a WooCommerce store, all four providers have official or actively maintained plugins listed in the WordPress plugin repository or available directly from the provider. Paystack and Flutterwave both offer polished, well-documented WooCommerce plugins with straightforward setup. Pesapal and DPO also provide WooCommerce integrations, though you may find slightly less community documentation around edge cases like subscriptions or partial refunds. In every case, install the plugin from the provider’s official source, keep it updated, and test a live transaction in sandbox mode before going live. See our WordPress hosting guide for general setup and hosting considerations that affect plugin performance.
Fees and pricing
We’re deliberately not listing percentage fees here. Pricing structures change and often differ by card type, currency, and volume, so a number printed today can be outdated by the time you read it. Every provider publishes current pricing on its own site. Open each one’s pricing page, plug in your typical transaction size and currency mix, and compare the real numbers for your business.
Which gateway suits which business
A Nigerian retailer selling mainly to local customers will usually find Paystack the smoothest fit, given its depth in that market. A business selling across several African countries, especially one that wants broad mobile money coverage, tends to lean toward Flutterwave. An East African business focused on Kenya, Uganda, or Tanzania, particularly one that wants strong M-Pesa support, often does well with Pesapal. A business spread across several East and Southern African countries where the bigger platforms have gaps may find DPO fills that space. If you’re just getting your store online and haven’t chosen a payment path yet, our guide on how to start an online store in Nigeria walks through the early decisions, including payments, in more detail. For general infrastructure behind any of these storefronts, see our complete guide to web hosting in Africa.
Getting set up
Plan for a short integration and testing period before you accept real transactions. Create a sandbox account first, run through a full purchase flow including a refund, and confirm settlement details with the provider’s support team for your exact country. Reliable hosting matters too: a store on slow or unreliable shared hosting can cause payment callbacks to fail or time out, which shows up as lost sales even when the gateway itself works fine.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use more than one payment gateway on the same store?
Yes, and many WooCommerce stores in Africa run two gateways side by side, for example Paystack for card and bank transfer plus a second option for mobile money in a country the first gateway doesn’t cover well. Check each plugin’s documentation for compatibility before combining them.
Do these gateways support international cards from customers outside Africa?
Generally yes, all four accept international Visa and Mastercard payments in most of their active markets, though acceptance rates and any extra verification steps can vary. Confirm this with the provider if a meaningful share of your customers pay from outside the continent.
Which gateway is easiest to set up on WooCommerce?
Paystack and Flutterwave are generally considered the quickest to configure thanks to detailed setup guides and active plugin support, but ease of setup also depends on your country and the payment methods you need, so it’s worth testing your top choice in sandbox mode first.
Do I need a local business registration to use these gateways?
Requirements vary by provider and by country. Some allow individual or sole-proprietor accounts, while others require formal business registration for full functionality or higher transaction limits. Check the onboarding requirements on each provider’s site for your country.
Can I accept payments in US dollars alongside local currency?
Support for multi-currency pricing and settlement varies by gateway and country. Some providers let you display and charge in USD or another foreign currency while settling locally; others are limited to local currency only. Confirm this directly with the provider before building it into your pricing.
Ready to get your store online? Start with a 3-day free trial on Shared hosting and connect the payment gateway that fits your market, or see our payments overview for more.