Which payment gateway is cheapest in Malaysia?

It depends on order size and payment method. For FPX on orders above roughly RM70, Billplz's flat RM1.25 fee is hard to beat. For small card orders, percentage pricing such as Billplz's 1.8% or HitPay's 1.2% plus RM1 often costs less.

Do Indian payment gateways charge for UPI?

Usually yes. UPI carries zero MDR, but gateways such as Razorpay charge a platform fee on their standard plans, 2% plus 18% GST on that fee. Negotiated rates for larger businesses are lower.

Can a Malaysian business accept UPI payments?

Yes, through gateways that support it. Curlec by Razorpay lists UPI on its Malaysian pricing page at 2% on the Basic plan, which is useful for businesses selling to Indian customers or tourists.

How long does payment gateway approval take?

Typically a few working days to a couple of weeks, depending on the provider and how complete your business documents are. Apply early in the project, because a site can't take live payments until approval comes through.

Payment gateway fees in Malaysia and India

Payment gateway fees in Malaysia run about 1.2% to 3% for cards, sometimes plus RM1, while FPX is priced either as a flat fee from RM0.75 or as a percentage. In India, standard plans charge about 2% on cards, UPI and net banking, plus 18% GST on the fee. Order size decides which is cheapest.

Oct 10, 2026·5 min read

Malaysia: payment gateway fees compared

These are standard published rates, checked on each provider's own pricing page in October 2026.

Stripe: 3% + RM1 for domestic cards and for FPX, plus 1% for international cards. No monthly fee.
Billplz Basic (free plan): FPX at a flat RM1.25 per transaction, cards at 1.8%, e-wallets including DuitNow QR and Touch 'n Go at 1.5%.
Billplz Standard (RM999 a year): FPX at RM0.75, cards at 1.5%.
Curlec by Razorpay Basic: FPX at 1.5% or RM1, whichever is greater; domestic cards 2.4%; DuitNow Pay 1.2% (minimum RM0.30); Touch 'n Go and Boost 1.5%.
HitPay: FPX at 1.8% + RM0.40, DuitNow at 1.2%, domestic cards 1.2% + RM1, Touch 'n Go 1.9%. No setup or monthly fee.

The structures differ more than the headline numbers suggest. A flat FPX fee favours large orders; a percentage favours small ones.

India: payment gateway fees compared

Indian gateways look simpler on paper, because standard plans charge one rate across most methods.

Razorpay standard plan: 2% on domestic cards, UPI, RuPay debit, net banking and wallets, and up to 3% on international cards. No setup or annual fee. 18% GST applies to Razorpay's fee.
Cashfree: a 1.95% platform fee as its standard rate, 2.99% on international Visa and Mastercard, and zero setup fee. GST at 18% is charged on top.

Rates below these are common for established businesses with steady volume. The published standard rate is a starting point for negotiation, not a ceiling.

Why UPI isn't free at checkout

UPI payments carry zero merchant discount rate (MDR), so many business owners expect them to cost nothing. At a payment gateway, they usually don't.

Razorpay's pricing page lists UPI as "Zero MDR" and then a 2% platform fee on the standard plan. You're paying for the gateway's checkout, order matching, refunds, reporting and settlement, not for the UPI transfer itself. A static UPI QR code at a shop counter is a different product with different pricing.

What one order costs on each gateway

Here's what the gateway takes from a RM200 order in Malaysia on standard plans:

Stripe, card or FPX: RM7.00
Curlec Basic: RM4.80 by card, RM3.00 by FPX, RM2.40 by DuitNow
Billplz Basic: RM3.60 by card, RM3.00 by e-wallet, RM1.25 by FPX
HitPay: RM3.40 by card, RM4.00 by FPX, RM2.40 by DuitNow

And from a ₹2,000 UPI order in India:

Razorpay standard: ₹40 platform fee + ₹7.20 GST = ₹47.20
Cashfree standard: ₹39 platform fee + ₹7.02 GST = ₹46.02

On that RM200 order, the most expensive Malaysian option costs over five times the cheapest. Across a year of orders, that's a real line in the budget.

A year of fees: worked example

Per-order differences look small until you multiply them. Take a Malaysian online store with 500 orders a month at RM150 each, mostly paid by FPX:

Billplz Basic, FPX at RM1.25: RM625 a month.
Curlec Basic, FPX at 1.5%: RM1,125 a month.
HitPay, FPX at 1.8% + RM0.40: RM1,550 a month.
Stripe, FPX at 3% + RM1: RM2,750 a month.

The gap between the cheapest and most expensive option is RM2,125 a month, or RM25,500 a year, for the same sales. That's often more than the store cost to build.

In India the published standard rates sit closer together. On ₹3,00,000 a month of UPI sales, Razorpay's standard plan costs about ₹7,080 including GST and Cashfree's about ₹6,903. At that level the better saving comes from negotiating a custom rate than from switching providers.

Flat fee or percentage: the break-even point

A flat FPX fee only wins above a certain order size. On Billplz Basic, FPX at RM1.25 beats the 1.8% card rate on orders above RM69.44; below that, a card payment is cheaper for you. On Billplz Standard, the crossover is RM50 (RM0.75 against 1.5%).

So the right gateway depends on your average order. A café selling RM25 orders and a furniture store selling RM2,500 orders should not pick the same pricing.

Payment methods to offer in each market

Offer the methods your customers expect, or they leave at checkout:

Malaysia: FPX online banking, DuitNow QR, cards, and e-wallets such as Touch 'n Go, Boost and GrabPay. Instalment options like Atome cost the merchant far more (6% on both Billplz and Curlec's Basic plans), so offer them only where higher order values justify it.
India: UPI first, then cards, net banking and wallets. Customers who are used to paying in a few taps through a UPI app notice when it's missing.

Every method you add is a little more testing, and each may need its own approval from the provider. Start with the two or three that cover most of your customers.

Costs beyond the per-transaction fee

The headline rate isn't the whole bill. Check these before you sign:

Annual or setup fees: Billplz Standard costs RM999 a year; Curlec's Premium plan has a RM999 setup fee in exchange for lower rates.
GST in India: 18% on the gateway's fee, which turns a 2% fee into an effective 2.36%.
Platform fees on top: Shopify adds its own fee when you use a third-party gateway, which is every gateway in Malaysia and India. Our ecommerce website cost guide works through those numbers.
International payments: foreign cards cost more everywhere, from 3% to 3.8% on the plans above.
Refunds and chargebacks: check whether the original fee is returned on a refund, and what a dispute costs.

How to choose a gateway

Start from how your customers pay and how much they spend, then match the pricing:

Your payment mix. If most Malaysian customers pay by FPX or DuitNow, compare those rates first, not the card rate. In India, UPI usually dominates.
Your average order value. Large orders favour flat fees; small orders favour percentages.
Your platform. Check the gateway has a maintained plugin or API library for Shopify, WooCommerce or your custom build.
Cross-border needs. Curlec lists UPI at 2% on its Basic plan, which matters if you sell to Indian customers from Malaysia.
Volume. Above a few lakh rupees or tens of thousands of ringgit a month, ask for a custom rate.

Gateway setup is usually a few days of development, plus whatever time the provider takes to approve your business documents. Apply in the first week of the project so approval doesn't hold up launch. Our web development work covers payment integrations end to end.

For the full cost of a site with payments, see our website cost guide, or ask us which gateway fits your order sizes.

Frequently asked questions

Which payment gateway is cheapest in Malaysia?: It depends on order size and payment method. For FPX on orders above roughly RM70, Billplz's flat RM1.25 fee is hard to beat. For small card orders, percentage pricing such as Billplz's 1.8% or HitPay's 1.2% plus RM1 often costs less.
Do Indian payment gateways charge for UPI?: Usually yes. UPI carries zero MDR, but gateways such as Razorpay charge a platform fee on their standard plans, 2% plus 18% GST on that fee. Negotiated rates for larger businesses are lower.
Can a Malaysian business accept UPI payments?: Yes, through gateways that support it. Curlec by Razorpay lists UPI on its Malaysian pricing page at 2% on the Basic plan, which is useful for businesses selling to Indian customers or tourists.
How long does payment gateway approval take?: Typically a few working days to a couple of weeks, depending on the provider and how complete your business documents are. Apply early in the project, because a site can't take live payments until approval comes through.