Authorize.net vs. Braintree, a PayPal service

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Authorize.net
Score 8.2 out of 10
N/A
Authorize.net is a payment gateway software solution offered by Visa featuring secure data processing and fraud protection.
$25
monthly gateway
Braintree, a PayPal service
Score 6.6 out of 10
N/A
Braintree, a Paypal service and subsidiary, is a billing platform which stores credit card data directly from the merchant’s systems on secure servers, and it allows for cards to be recharged or refunded . Braintree also supports international payments. Pricing is 2.9% plus a 30c transaction fee.N/A
Pricing
Authorize.netBraintree, a PayPal service
Editions & Modules
All-in-One Option
25 & 2.9% + $0.30
monthly gateway/per transaction
Payment Gateway Only
$25
monthly gateway
Standard Pricing
2.9% +$0.30
per transaction
Custom Pricing
Contact for quote
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Authorize.netBraintree, a PayPal service
Free Trial
NoNo
Free/Freemium Version
NoNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional Details——
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Authorize.netBraintree, a PayPal service
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Considered Both Products
Authorize.net
Chose Authorize.net
While other gateways (like Braintree) are a little fresher and more innovative than Authorize.Net, no one has the track record that AuthNet has. Plus you have to consider that if you want to use the Braintree gateway (or many others) without using their payment processing, you …
Chose Authorize.net
Authorize.net in a pure e-commerce environment is a very good choice for small to medium/small e-commerce businesses. It is not a good solution for brick-and-mortar businesses or relatively large e-commerce retailers.
Braintree, a PayPal service
Chose Braintree, a PayPal service
Prior to Braintree, we used Authorize.Net which is actually great however Authorize.Net's rates were not as competitive as Braintree's. One advantage that I would have to give to authorize over Braintree is their incredibly robust system which has settings and customization …
Chose Braintree, a PayPal service
Braintree allows our customers to integrate their existing merchant processor to the Braintree gateway, whereas the other options require you use their merchant processor (full stack).
Top Pros
Top Cons
Best Alternatives
Authorize.netBraintree, a PayPal service
Small Businesses
Apple Pay
Apple Pay
Score 9.1 out of 10
Stripe Payments
Stripe Payments
Score 8.4 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
Apple Pay
Apple Pay
Score 9.1 out of 10

No answers on this topic

Enterprises
Adyen
Adyen
Score 8.8 out of 10

No answers on this topic

All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Authorize.netBraintree, a PayPal service
Likelihood to Recommend
8.3
(31 ratings)
1.8
(14 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
9.1
(2 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
Usability
-
(0 ratings)
8.1
(2 ratings)
Support Rating
5.0
(1 ratings)
1.6
(5 ratings)
Implementation Rating
-
(0 ratings)
10.0
(1 ratings)
User Testimonials
Authorize.netBraintree, a PayPal service
Likelihood to Recommend
Visa
Authorize.net is reliable and I feel confident that customers' information is protected. The security protocols used by Authorize.net appear to be as good, and probably better than many credit card payment processors. However, the initial setup process was very difficult. I distinctly recall getting up and running as being very cumbersome and time-consuming. I also was disappointed with how the processing and deposit of payments were not consistent. I distinctly remember regretting the decision to go with Authorize.net. However, as mentioned before, with the time and effort required to get the account set up and running, I refused to go through the process again and try a different provider.
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PayPal
Braintree is a lower cost alternative to many of the options business owners have through their bank. However, they will need to be techy or be working with a developer to set up. The setup and backend isn't as user friendly as alternatives. Braintree is a great option if you'll need to manually type in credit card details. Banks will sometimes charge a lot more for that option. The manual option is nice if your clients aren't as tech savvy and prefer to pay over the phone than to pay on your website.
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Pros
Visa
  • Very smooth workflow to authorizing, capturing, voiding, and refunding charges. This can all be done via API calls, or through their online dashboard.
  • Their AVS settings for validating credit cards are substantial and have been reliable in ensuring that our customers cards are being used safely and properly.
  • Their uptime and response times are very good in general. The only issues we ever have communicating with their services is when our connection quality is compromised.
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PayPal
  • Braintree has excellent integration with the BigCommerce platform. The switch of our previous payment processing gateway to Braintree was very easy and only required a few clicks.
  • Tying into Braintree's BigCommerce integration, for company's like ours that are on the BigCommerce enterprise plan, Braintree's rates for BigCommerce enterprise customers are extremely competitive and saved us money.
  • Braintree has a pretty easy to use portal that can be accessed through the same login we use for PayPal which we are using in conjunction with Braintree with ease.
  • I've only had to call Braintree twice and my customer service issues were handled extremely quickly and easily.
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Cons
Visa
  • The lack of data portability is a big issue for me.
  • Authorize.net uses the same $49.00 gateway setup fee to scam merchants out of money, which is no better than any of the other gateways out there.
  • Their customer service is not up to the mark. You can get stuck if you need any help from their end.
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PayPal
  • Not a very good subscription management platform for a Saas business, but they make up for it on the API with others that are
  • Doesn't have a lot of additional features, but that's what you'd expect out of a payment processor
  • Very expensive per transaction, but the reality is that any processor who helps early stage companies accept online payments are expensive.
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Likelihood to Renew
Visa
Authorize.net has been a useful system for our Chamber. We appreciate the ease of use and access to our Main Frame. Connecting Authorize.net to our system for membership, event and other payment ease has been excellent and we have experienced no problems whatsoever.
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PayPal
There's a huge cost in migrating payment providers, and we're very happy with Braintree so far.
Read full review
Usability
Visa
No answers on this topic
PayPal
It just works.
Read full review
Support Rating
Visa
I have no experience directly with the support offered by Authorize.Net.
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PayPal
Their support is a joke. There's nothing "supportive" about them. Every time I call in with an issue no one has an answer or even a recommendation. I am put on hold and no one ever comes back. It's time to find another processor.
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Implementation Rating
Visa
No answers on this topic
PayPal
It is simple for a developer to do.
Read full review
Alternatives Considered
Visa
Authorize.net is a reliable and affordable payment processing service that offers more robust security than other services, such as Stripe or PayPal with their monthly fees at $25 dollars month lot of people may be turned off by these high prices but you get what you pay for - protection against fraud in risky transactions so I would recommend using Authorize.net if this matters to your business!
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PayPal
Braintree is better at handling international payments and supporting a variety of payment methods that can all be configured from the same dashboard. Braintree supports PayPal, Venmo, Apple Pay, Google Pay, etc. in addition to simply credit cards like Stripe. Braintree has a vault of existing user payment methods so the user doesn't have to re-enter their information each time.
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Return on Investment
Visa
  • Lets us charge cards so we can get paid on time, every time.
  • It was very difficult to setup the DocuSign integration the first time, but after we got it setup, it's made the onboarding process very easy. That probably saves about 30 minutes every time we get a new client.
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PayPal
  • Simplified billing so we spend less time on it
  • Saved $20 a month or more when compared to alternatives that have a monthly charge.
  • It gives peace of mind because we know that any service we use in the future will likely integrate with Braintree
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