Payment methods by country · Payment methods
What payment methods do US shoppers use online?
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US shoppers mostly pay online by credit or debit card, often through Apple Pay or Google Pay, and by PayPal. Stripe calls Cash App Pay a popular US wallet that draws on a Cash App balance or linked debit card. ACH Direct Debit pulls money from a US bank account but takes up to four business days to confirm. Buy now, pay later is common too: Affirm offers pay-in-4 and monthly plans, and Afterpay splits a purchase into four payments.
- Currency
- US dollar (USD)
- Cards
- Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover
- Wallets
- Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal, Cash App Pay
- Bank payments
- ACH Direct Debit: confirmation in up to 4 business days
- Buy now, pay later
- Affirm, Afterpay, Klarna, Zip (Zip is invite-only on Stripe)
- PlatformDTC offers
- Cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, PayPal, Klarna, Afterpay
What PlatformDTC does
PlatformDTC checkout takes cards, Apple Pay and Google Pay (subscriptions included) and the store's own PayPal in US dollars. Stores with a US Stripe account also get Klarna on one-time orders from $1 to $10,000 and Afterpay from $1 to $2,000. Cash App Pay, ACH Direct Debit and Affirm are not offered today.
How the main US methods work
Cash App Pay uses the shopper's Cash App balance when it covers the whole order, otherwise their linked debit card. On a phone the shopper is sent to Cash App; on a computer they scan a QR code. Refunds can be sent for 90 days and the shopper has 120 days to dispute.
ACH Direct Debit needs the shopper to sign in to their bank and accept a mandate. A personal-account holder can dispute a debit through their bank for up to 60 days, and those disputes can't be contested.
| Method | How the shopper pays | Repeat billing on Stripe |
|---|---|---|
| Cards | Card form, Apple Pay or Google Pay | Yes |
| Cash App Pay | Approve in the Cash App | Yes |
| ACH Direct Debit | Bank login plus mandate | Yes |
| Affirm | Log in to Affirm, pick a plan | No |
| Afterpay | Four payments, one every two weeks | No |
Buy now, pay later in the US
Affirm works only when the store and shopper are in the same country. In the US it runs from $35 to $30,000: pay in 30 days for small carts, four payments every two weeks from $50 to $500, and monthly plans from $100. The store is paid upfront and Affirm collects from the shopper.
On PlatformDTC, Klarna and Afterpay never appear on a subscription cart, because a pay-later plan can't fund renewals. A shopper buying a subscription pays by card, wallet or PayPal.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I need Cash App Pay to sell in the US?
- Not to start. Cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay and PayPal cover most US shoppers. Stripe recommends Cash App Pay for orders under about $2,000 because Cash App sets its own per-customer limits.
- Can US shoppers use Klarna on a PlatformDTC store?
- Yes, on one-time orders from $1 to $10,000, when the store's Stripe account is in the US. Klarna in the US works only for shoppers in the same country as the store.
- Why does PayPal sometimes show Venmo or Pay Later?
- PayPal's own button can add them for shoppers PayPal finds eligible. That doesn't happen on stores that take cards through PayPal card fields, where the button shows PayPal only.
Sources
- Cash App Pay payments — Stripe
- ACH Direct Debit payments — Stripe
- Affirm payments — Stripe
- Afterpay and Clearpay payments — Stripe
- Payment method support — Stripe
- Cards: supported card brands — Stripe
Related
- Canada — Credit cards and wallets online; Interac Debit reaches the web through Apple Pay and Google Pay.
- Mexico — Cards (often in interest-free installments) and OXXO cash vouchers paid at convenience stores.
- Brazil — Pix instant bank payments and Boleto vouchers sit beside cards as everyday ways to pay.
- United Kingdom — Cards and wallets, with open-banking Pay by Bank and BNPL from Clearpay and Klarna.
- Germany — E-payment wallets such as PayPal lead online, alongside Klarna invoices and SEPA Direct Debit.
- France — Bank cards on the Cartes Bancaires network dominate, almost all co-badged with Visa or Mastercard.