Choosing the wrong payment gateway for your subscription business is one of those mistakes that doesn’t show up immediately but will absolutely haunt you later.
You’ll be stuck with failed renewals, angry customers who can’t update their payment info, and that sinking feeling when you realize you have to manually process payments because your gateway can’t handle automatic renewals.
Not every payment gateway works the same way with WooCommerce subscriptions. Some are built for subscriptions and handle everything smoothly. Others… well, they barely function for one-time purchases and completely fall apart with recurring billing.
To run subscriptions on WooCommerce, you’ll need a subscription plugin like WPSubscription, which handles all the recurring billing functionality. Then you need to pair it with the right payment gateway.
Let me save you from making an expensive gateway mistake by breaking down what actually matters for subscription compatibility.
Why This Even Matters
With regular e-commerce, payment gateways are pretty interchangeable. The customer buys something, the gateway processes the payment, and you ship the product. Done. Any gateway that can take a payment works fine.
Subscriptions are a whole different animal. You need to charge customers automatically every month (or week, or year, whatever). This requires the gateway to securely save their payment method and process charges without the customer doing anything. Not every gateway can pull this off.
The difference between automatic and manual renewals is huge. Automatic renewals mean predictable cash flow and customers who stay subscribed longer because they don’t have to think about it.
Manual renewals mean constantly chasing people for payments and losing most of them to simple inertia.
Beyond basic renewals, gateway compatibility affects a bunch of other stuff. Can customers easily change their payment method? Can you adjust subscription amounts without cancelling everything?
Can you offer free trials without charging upfront? It all depends on your gateway working properly with your subscription plugin, like WPSubscription.
The Best Gateways for WooCommerce Subscriptions
Let me break down the payment gateways that actually work well with subscription plugins like WPSubscription. These have been tested, work reliably, and support all the features you need.
Stripe Payments
Stripe works flawlessly with WooCommerce subscription plugins. Automatic renewals, payment method updates, amount changes, everything just works. No surprises, no weird edge cases.
They handle tons of currencies and payment methods beyond basic credit cards. Customers can pay with Apple Pay, Google Pay, bank debits, or whatever makes sense for their location.
The Stripe plugin for WooCommerce is free and easy to set up. Installation takes maybe five minutes. Connect your Stripe account, turn on the gateway, and start accepting subscription payments.
Pricing is straightforward: 2.9 percent plus 30 cents per transaction for most cards. No setup fees, no monthly charges, no hidden nonsense.
The really cool feature is automatic card updating. When a customer’s card expires or their bank sends them a replacement, Stripe often gets the new card number automatically. Renewals that should fail just work instead because Stripe already has the updated card info.
Stripe also has excellent documentation and developer tools if you need to customize anything. Their API is solid, webhooks work reliably, and they rarely have downtime. For subscription businesses, Stripe is basically the safe choice that won’t let you down.
Paddle Payment
Paddle is excellent if you’re selling software, SaaS, or digital products. They handle not just payment processing but also tax compliance, which is huge for international businesses.
Automatic renewals work smoothly with WPSubscription. Paddle manages everything, including VAT, sales tax, and other regional tax requirements. You get paid, they handle the tax headaches.
Pricing is higher than Stripe at around 5 percent plus 50 cents per transaction, but that includes tax compliance and fraud protection. For international digital products, the tax handling alone can be worth it.
Nice feature: Paddle acts as the merchant of record, meaning they handle all the legal stuff for selling internationally. Less paperwork for you.
PayPal Payments
PayPal Payments is the official PayPal plugin from WooCommerce. Supports automatic renewals through PayPal accounts and card processing.
Customers paying with PayPal accounts authorize your subscription once, then PayPal charges them automatically each billing cycle. No action required from the customer.
The plugin also accepts credit and debit cards directly without requiring a PayPal account. These card payments support automatic renewals just like PayPal account payments.
Pricing is competitive, around 2.9 percent plus 30 cents per transaction. Volume discounts might be available if you process a lot.
The annoying part: alternative payment methods within PayPal, like Pay Later, don’t support automatic renewals. Stick to PayPal accounts and card payments for subscriptions.
Other Reliable Gateway Options
WPSubscription also integrates with several other payment gateways, depending on your region and needs:
Xendit works great for Southeast Asian markets. If you’re selling subscriptions in Indonesia, Philippines, or other SEA countries, Xendit supports local payment methods that Stripe and PayPal don’t. Check out the integration guide at https://docs.converslabs.com/en/wpsubscription-payment-with-xendit
Mollie is popular in Europe and supports a ton of European payment methods, including iDEAL, Bancontact, and SEPA direct debit. Great for European subscription businesses. Integration details at https://docs.converslabs.com/en/wpsubscription-payment-with-mollie
Razorpay is the go-to gateway for Indian subscription businesses. Supports UPI, cards, net banking, and all the payment methods Indian customers actually use. Set up instructions at https://docs.converslabs.com/en/wpsubscription-payment-with-razorpay
All three support automatic renewals, payment method updates, and work reliably with WPSubscription for recurring billing.
Features That Matter
Different gateways support different subscription features. Here’s what you should care about.
Automatic Renewals Are Non-Negotiable
Without automatic renewals, your subscription business will struggle. Stripe, WooPayments, PayPal Payments, Authorize.Net, and Braintree all support this fully.
Gateways without automatic renewal support force manual renewals. Customers must log in and manually pay each billing cycle. Churn rates go through the roof with manual renewals.
Check this first when evaluating any gateway. If automatic renewals aren’t supported, move on.
Handling Multiple Subscriptions in One Purchase
Some customers want to buy multiple subscription products at once. Maybe they subscribe to your basic and premium plans together. Or they add three different subscription boxes to their cart.
Stripe, WooPayments, and most major gateways handle this smoothly. Process one payment at checkout, then manage the different renewal schedules automatically.
Some older gateways struggle with multiple subscriptions. They might force separate checkouts for each subscription or limit customers to one at a time. Creates friction, reduces conversions.
Letting Customers Update Their Payment Method
Cards expire. People get new card numbers after fraud. They simply want to use a different payment method. All normal stuff.
Good gateways make payment method updates easy. Customer clicks a button, enters new payment info, and future renewals use the new method automatically.
Stripe and WooPayments excel here. Updates happen right in the WooCommerce account dashboard. No external sites, no complicated processes.
PayPal Payments works well if customers are switching between saved PayPal methods. Switching to a completely new card takes a few extra steps but remains manageable.
Some gateways don’t support updates at all. Customers must cancel their subscription and create a new one with the new payment method. Terrible experience, drives cancellations.
Changing Subscription Amounts
You’ll need to change subscription amounts sometimes. Price increases for inflation, loyalty discounts for long-term customers, whatever.
Stripe, WooPayments, and PayPal Payments all support changing amounts for active subscriptions. Adjust the amount in WooCommerce, the new price applies at the next renewal automatically.
Braintree supports this, too, and handles it smoothly.
Gateways without this force you to cancel existing subscriptions and create new ones at different prices. Disrupts customer experience, creates accounting headaches.
Admin Updates to Payment Methods
Sometimes you need to manually update a customer’s payment method for them. They called support with new card details. They can’t figure out how to update it themselves.
Best gateways let store managers update payment methods from the subscription edit screen. Enter new payment details, save, and future renewals use the new method.
This saves support time and reduces customer frustration. Without it, you’re constantly asking customers to log in and update things themselves.
Free Trials
Free trials let customers test your subscription without immediate payment. They sign up, try your service, and only get charged after the trial ends.
All major gateways support free trials when paired with subscription plugins like WPSubscription. Gateway stores the payment method during signup, but doesn’t charge untilthe trial expires.
Some require authorization holds during trial signups. Temporarily reserves a small amount on the customer’s card to verify it’s valid. The hold disappears within a few days.
Others don’t require any holds. Customers start free trials without seeing any charges on their cards.
Synchronizing Billing Dates
Subscription synchronization aligns all customers to the same billing date regardless of signup date. Simplifies fulfillment and accounting for certain business models.
Maybe all subscriptions renew on the first of each month. Customer signing up on the 15th pays a prorated amount for the remaining days, then starts paying full price on the first.
Stripe, WooPayments, and most modern gateways support this. They handle prorated initial payments and adjusted billing schedules automatically.
Gateways to Avoid
Not every popular gateway works well for subscriptions.
PayPal Standard Is Trash for Subscriptions
PayPal Standard is the old way to accept PayPal before PayPal Payments existed. Doesn’t support automatic renewals properly with modern subscription plugins.
PayPal Standard controls the billing schedule, not your subscription plugin. Prevents you from using most subscription management features. Can’t change amounts, update schedules, or handle payment method updates.
If you’re using PayPal Standard now, switch to PayPal Payments. It has all the features PayPal Standard lacks and works great with WPSubscription.
Manual Payment Methods
Cash on delivery, check payments, these manual methods don’t support automatic renewals at all. Every subscription requires manual customer action to pay each cycle.
Fine for one-time purchases. Terrible for subscriptions. Creates an awful user experience and high churn.
Only use these if you absolutely must have manual payment collection for regulatory or logistical reasons.
Gateways Without Tokenization
Payment tokenization is how gateways securely store customer payment methods for future charges. Without it, gateways can’t process automatic renewals.
Some older or regional gateways don’t support tokenization. They process one-time payments fine, but can’t save payment methods for recurring charges.
Always confirm tokenization support before choosing a gateway for subscriptions. Without it, you’re stuck with manual renewals.
Setting Up a Gateway for Subscriptions
Let me walk through setting up Stripe since it’s the most common choice, and the process is similar for others.
First, make sure you’ve got WPSubscription installed from https://wpsubscription.co/ to handle your subscription functionality. Then you can add your payment gateway.
Install the Stripe plugin. Go to Plugins in WordPress, click Add New, search for Stripe. Install the official one for WooCommerce.
Activate after installation. Navigate to WooCommerce, Settings, Payments tab. Stripe shows up as a payment method. Toggle it on.
Click Set Up or Manage next to Stripe. Opens the config page. Click Connect with Stripe to link your account. Don’t have a Stripe account yet? Create one during this process.
After connecting, configure settings. Enable Test Mode initially so you can test without processing real payments. Set your statement descriptor so customers know which business charged them.
Under the Subscriptions section, verify that automatic renewals are enabled. Should be on by default, but double-check.
Save settings. Create a test subscription product in WPSubscription. Set monthly billing with a small amount, like one dollar.
Buy the test subscription using Stripe’s test card numbers. They provide specific numbers that work in test mode without charging real money.
After the subscription is active, verify that automatic renewals work. Manually trigger a renewal immediately instead of waiting a month. Go to WooCommerce, Subscriptions, find your test subscription, and use the renewal action.
Check that the payment was processed through Stripe successfully. If everything works, switch off test mode and start accepting real payments.
Test thoroughly with any gateway you plan to use. Never assume it works without verification.
Using Multiple Gateways
Some subscription businesses benefit from offering multiple payment gateways.
The biggest benefit is customer choice. Some people only have PayPal. Others prefer credit cards. Offering both Stripe and PayPal Payments captures customers who’d otherwise be unable to subscribe.
Different gateways have different strengths, too. Stripe might be cheaper for cards. PayPal might convert better because of brand recognition. Using both lets you optimize for different preferences.
Downside is complexity. More gateways mean more configs to maintain, more reconciliation work, and more potential failure points. Only use multiple if benefits outweigh the administrative burden.
For most small to medium businesses, one good gateway is enough. Choose Stripe or WooPayments for reliability and features. Add PayPal only if you have data showing significant customer demand.
Enterprise businesses processing large volumes might use multiple instances for redundancy. If one gateway has an outage, subscriptions still process through the backup.
Regional Considerations
Gateway availability varies by country. What works in the US might not be available in Europe or Asia.
For international businesses, choose a gateway with broad support. Stripe operates in 45+ countries. PayPal works almost everywhere. These make international subscriptions much easier.
Some regions have local gateways that convert better than international options. In Germany, SEPA direct debit is popular. In Brazil, Boleto is common. Consider adding regional gateways if important to your market.
Just make sure any regional gateway supports automatic renewals. Many local payment methods don’t support recurring payments.
Currency support matters. If you sell in euros, pounds, and dollars, your gateway needs to handle all three smoothly. Most major gateways support dozens of currencies. Smaller regional ones might be limited.
Switching Gateways With Active Subscriptions
Switching gateways after you have active subscriptions is tricky.
You can’t directly transfer payment tokens from one gateway to another. If a customer’s card is stored in Stripe, you can’t move that token to PayPal. Security rules prevent it.
Migration path depends on your situation. If you’re adding a new gateway while keeping the old one, easy. Keep existing subscriptions on the old gateway; new subscriptions use the new gateway. Eventually, phase out the old gateway as subscriptions naturally expire or are canceled.
If you must switch completely, you need customer cooperation. Email explaining the change, asking customers to update payment methods to the new gateway.
Provide a direct link to the payment update page. Make the process as easy as possible. Consider offering an incentive, such as a discount for customers who update quickly.
Some subscriptions will go into manual renewal mode during transition. Happens when customers don’t update before the next renewal. Send reminders, make support available to help.
For high-value customers, reach out personally. Phone call or personal email explaining the situation and offering to help with the update maintains relationships and prevents churn.
Common Problems and Fixes
Even with compatible gateways, you’ll face occasional issues.
Subscriptions Stuck in Manual Renewal Mode
Usually means the gateway plugin isn’t properly connected or configured. Check gateway settings. Make sure API keys are entered correctly and the gateway is enabled for subscriptions.
Test with a new subscription product. If new ones work automatically but old ones don’t, the old subscriptions might have been created before automatic renewals were set up properly.
Payment Method Updates Not Working
Verify your gateway supports updates. Check WooCommerce documentation for your specific gateway.
Make sure the gateway API connection is active. Expired or invalid credentials prevent updates even if renewals are still processed.
Test the update flow yourself. Sometimes the issue is page layout or theme compatibility rather than the gateway.
Failed Automatic Renewals
Check the gateway webhook configuration. Webhooks notify WooCommerce about payment successes and failures. Without working webhooks, the system can’t respond to renewal attempts properly.
Verify the site URL matches the webhook URL configured in the gateway. Mismatched URLs cause webhooks to fail silently.
Check for PHP errors in site error logs. Sometimes gateway plugins encounter errors that prevent renewal processing but don’t display obvious messages.
Duplicate Charges
Happens when both WooCommerce and the gateway attempt to process renewals. Make sure you’re not using the gateway’s built-in subscription system alongside WooCommerce Subscriptions.
Don’t use Stripe Subscriptions directly, for example. Let WooCommerce manage the subscription schedule, use Stripe only for payment processing.
Review WooCommerce Subscriptions settings. Make sure the billing schedule is set correctly and is not creating unexpected renewal triggers.
Wrapping This Up
Payment gateway compatibility makes or breaks your subscription business. Choose one that supports automatic renewals, payment method updates, and all the features your business needs.
Start by setting up WPSubscription to handle your subscription management. Then pair it with a solid payment gateway.
For most businesses, Stripe or Paddle provides the best combination of features, reliability, and ease of use. Add PayPal Payments if you need broader payment method coverage.
Test thoroughly before going live. Create test subscriptions, process test renewals, and verify every feature works as expected. Fix issues in test mode before real customers experience problems.
Remember, you can switch gateways later if needed, though it requires careful planning and customer communication.
The right gateway turns subscriptions into a smooth, automated revenue stream. The wrong one creates daily headaches and lost revenue. Take the time to choose wisely and configure properly. Your future self will thank you.
