Payment Gateways

Mercado Pago vs Stripe

Both are payment gateways. The short answer: choose Mercado Pago if you are businesses accepting payments in Latin America; choose Stripe if you are online businesses and SaaS companies taking card payments internationally.

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Mercado Pago logo Mercado PagoStripe logo Stripe
Best forBusinesses accepting payments in Latin AmericaOnline businesses and SaaS companies taking card payments internationally
Free planVerifyVerify
PricingSee providerSee provider
Built for IndiaGlobalGlobal
CategoriesPayment GatewaysPayment Gateways
Strengths
  • Widely used across Latin America
  • QR and card readers
  • Online checkout
  • Excellent API and documentation
  • Subscriptions, invoicing and tax tools
  • Available in dozens of countries
Watch out for
  • Latin America only
  • Fees vary by country
  • Pay-per-transaction fees add up at scale
  • Account reviews can delay payouts for new businesses
Visit Mercado PagoVisit Stripe

Which should you choose?

Mercado Pago: Payments and fintech platform from Mercado Libre with QR codes, card readers, payment links and online checkout.

Stripe: Global payments platform for accepting cards, wallets and local payment methods online, with subscriptions, invoicing and strong developer tools.

The best way to decide is to run the same week of real work through both — most offer a free plan or trial — and compare how long tasks take, what your team prefers, and the total cost for your number of users including renewal pricing.

Not sure either fits? See all payment gateways compared.