Overview
If the choice you need to make between Airwallex or GoCardless is for incoming bank payments, GoCardless could be the better option.
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Platform details
Payment gateway
For both international transaction fees are over 2%. For GoCardless these start at 2%, but increase to 2.4% to unlock all features.
You will also pay £50 per month with GoCardless to show your store name on customer bank statements. Branded payment pages start at £150 per month.
With Airwallex there is a fee of 2.8%, but the other elements are already covered. Plus you get the multi-currency option.
On paper GoCardless starts cheaper, but depending on use, Airwallex may be the better option.
🏆 Airwallex | GoCardless | |
|---|---|---|
Transaction fees | From 2.80% + $0.30 | From 2% + $0.20 / £0.20 / €0.20 |
Refund fees | $0.30 | £/€0.50 |
Settlement timeframe | From 7 days (30 day reserve) | 5 days |
Chargebacks and disputes | $30 | £5 / $5 / €5 |
For reference, here’s the overall GoCardless tiered costs:
Standard | Advanced | Pro | |
|---|---|---|---|
Domestic fees | 1% + $0.20 / £0.20 / €0.20 | 1.25% + $0.20 / £0.20 / €0.20 | 1.4% + $0.20 / £0.20 / €0.20 |
Price cap per transaction (domestic only) | £4 | £5 | £5.60 |
High-value transaction fees (over £2,000) for UK bank debit | 0.30% | 0.30% | 0.30% |
International fees | 2% + $0.20 / £0.20 / €0.20 | 2.25% + $0.20 / £0.20 / €0.20 | 2.4% + $0.20 / £0.20 / €0.20 |
Refund fees | $0.50 / £0.50 / €0.50 | $0.50 / £0.50 / €0.50 | $0.50 / £0.50 / €0.50 |
Chargeback fees | $5 / £5 / €5 | $5 / £5 / €5 | $5 / £5 / €5 |
Another option outside of Airwallex and GoCardless, is Sokin. With Sokin you also get local accounts, but costs just from 1.2% and settlements start from a day. For growing businesses in need of quicker access to their funds, Sokin is a nice alternative.
Other features
The other features within Airwallex is where the platform shines. You can access 12 local accounts through a multi-currency business account. This means bank details in core currencies including USD, EUR, CAD, and EUR. The benefit of these is you can use them for business banking as well.
So this includes card issuance, paying suppliers or staff, and managing currency risk.
All–in-all there is a lot to like about the Airwallex offering. There's a lot of elements you will get with Airwallex which aren’t in the GoCardless product range.
GoCardless and Airwallex both offer partner directories. There’s a little more focus from Airwallex on accounting and money management. The GoCardless options are more towards ecommerce.
However, you’ll find both support most options (across accounting and storefronts).
Using Airwallex it is possible to make up to 1,000 outbound batch payments. For paying staff and suppliers from within your existing account. This is a huge time saver, it means being able to sync transactions without having to move funds into multiple locations.
Both offer API support, but with Airwallex offering a wider selection of products, the API naturally offers more as well.
🏆 Airwallex | GoCardless | |
|---|---|---|
Access to local accounts | 12 local accounts | Not available |
Access to IBAN accounts | N/A | Not available |
Supported integrations | Accounting Xero, Quickbooks, Asperato, Approval Max, Odoo, Sage Ecommerce Amazon, Lazada, Magento, Shopee, Shopify, Shoplazza, Fnac, WooCommerce | Kashflow, Sage, Xero, Directli, Freeagent, Clearbooks, Quick File There’s also an extensive partner directory as well. |
Batch payments | Up to 1,000 per batch | No |
API Integration | Yes | Yes |
Physical checkout support | No | Yes |
Making and receiving cross border payments
Sending money
Something that full service platforms like Airwallex offer are outgoing cross border payments.
This could be in the form of money transfers, card payments, or paying staff and suppliers.
These often are cheaper than using a traditional bank. Also, for companies with cross border needs, can be a reason business switch from Stripe.
GoCardless is similar in this sense to Stripe, in that it does payments very well, but does not necessarily cover 100% of the picture.
Airwallex offers one of the strongest multi-currency platforms on the market. Exchange rates are competitive, at 0.5% and speeds are fast. Many transactions are the same day, with most complete within 3 days.
If sent from one of the 12 local accounts, into the same currency, there is no cost at all. This would be the same as making a transfer in a native currency.
Fee Type | 🏆 Airwallex | GoCardless |
|---|---|---|
Domestic Transfers | Free or minimal fee | Not available |
International Transfers | Low fees plus small FX margin | Cross border transactions only |
Currency Conversion Fee | 0.5% above interbank rate for major currencies 1% for exotic currencies | 0.0% + a fee |
Withdrawal to Bank Account | Free | Fee |
Card Spending (No Conversion) | No cost | Not available |
Card Spending (With Conversion) | From 0.5% | Not available |
Receiving money
Having local accounts available reduces the cost of receiving international business payments.
The wide range of accounts offered by Airwallex means that receiving money is low cost. This is. because there’s less likely to have to pay exchange rates for an incoming transfer.
Again, if this needs to be paid, the cost starts at 0.5%.
The 0% GoCardless exchange rate means it is cheaper than Airwallex where currency conversion is needed.
Of course, if you need to receive things like bank transfers, GoCardless won’t be appropriate.
Fee Type | 🏆 Airwallex | GoCardless |
|---|---|---|
Receiving Funds (Domestic) | Free | Not available |
Receiving Funds (International) | Free for supported currencies | Not available |
** Currency Conversion Fee | 0.5% above interbank rate for major currencies, 1% for exotic currencies | 0.0% |
Multi-currency and local accounts
Currency and Country | 🏆 Airwallex local accounts | GoCardless |
|---|---|---|
AUD: Australia | Account number and BSB code | Not available |
CAD: Canada | Account number, Transit number, Bank number | Not available |
DKK: Denmark | Account number, SWIFT code, and IBAN | Not available |
EUR: EU | IBAN, SWIFT Code | Not available |
HKD: Hong Kong | Account number, Bank code, SWIFT code | Not available |
IND: Indonesia | Account number | Not available |
JPY: Japan | Account number, Bank code | Not available |
NZD: New Zealand | Account number, Bank code, Branch code | Not available |
PLN: Poland | Account number, SWIFT code, IBAN | Not available |
SGD: Singapore | Account number, Bank Code, SWIFT Code | Not available |
AED: United Arab Emirates | Not available | Not available |
GBP: United Kingdom | Account number, IBAN, Sort code | Not available |
USD: United States | Account number, ACH routing number, Fedwire routing number, SWIFT code | Not available |
Platform and API
Overview
Aspect | 🏆 Airwallex | Go Cardless API |
|---|---|---|
Core Services | End-to-end multi-currency API with the ability to use within your business, or to white label products. | Global payments, primarily in the B2B space |
Target Users | Business with a range of needs including international payments, expense management and multinational operations. | Business with large subscription numbers and high levels of invoicing |
Supported Countries | Over 75 supported currencies | 30 markets covered in total |
Pricing Model | Pricing is split depending on the product used, but largely consists of the exchange rate for transfers and fee percentages for payment gateways | Tiered model, with higher transaction costs for additional features |
Key Features | Scalable for any business Ability to whitelabel products Custom work flows |
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Integration Support | API support and a huge amount of plugins available | Developer support for API integrations |
Security Measures |
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Documentation and Developer Support | Detailed API docs with code examples, SDKs, sandbox and dedicated tech support are all offered. | Online support and community documentation available |
Payment Methods Supported | Supports debit and credit card payments, bank transfers and local payments in many countries | Bank transfers only |
Settlement Currencies | Settlement in 12 local currency accounts available, exchange rates from 0.5% to convert after this | Transactions settled in your base currency, with 0% markup on conversion |
Compliance and Regulation | AML and KYC procedures in place, fraud detection and account teams will monitor for unexpected payment amounts | AML//KYC procedures in place |
Payments and foreign exchange
Aspect | 🏆 Airwallex | GoCardless |
|---|---|---|
Payments | Manage domestic and international payments. Supports bank transfers, debit cards, and alternative payment methods Batch and scheduled payment support. Real time FX rates and currency conversion | Not available |
Experience and support
For both, access to account support can be a little difficult.
One of the main reasons people opt for alternatives to GoCardless is a lack of customer support.
With Airwallex, there is onboarding and support is accessible.
However, for either, be aware that online documentation might be the quickest route to solving any problems within an account.
Choosing a winner
Airwallex is our winner. This is based on:
Offering a well rounded product that covers more than just a payment gateway
Having access to local accounts and international card spending
All features being available in one price, without the need for tiered pricing to unlock everything
Use cases for Airwallex and GoCardless
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Alternative options and comparisons
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Find a platform by solution
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