The days of mailing checks, arguing with Barbara from Collections, and checking the PO box are numbered.
Nowadays paying a bill, sending an invoice, receiving a payment, and running a card can be done in an instant. All it takes is a tap or swipe on a touchscreen.
This is, of course, thanks to modern technology, but further focus has been put on finance and eCommerce innovation. The power of processing payments has now been optimized for mobile.
The B2B Mobile Payments Landscape
When hearing “mobile payments,” the first technologies to come to mind are probably peer-to-peer apps for consumers, like Venmo and Cashapp. But they’re not just for paying your friend for happy hour or ordering a late-night food delivery.
Mobile payment processing apps can do much more for businesses.
Take a look at payment processing technology reviews and you can see why they are so popular amongst enterprises.
B2B mobile payment processing systems have gone from a cool new tool to a downright necessity. And in this fast-paced world, solutions that are quick, secure, and efficient are imperative for customer satisfaction, financial security, and business efficiency.
There are times that an invoice or item inquiry cannot wait until someone gets into their desktop. Bills need to get paid, and customers have to have their goods and services. Thankfully, these issues can be solved right at your fingertips.
Want to know which mobile payment processing app is best for your business size? Some apps with lower fees are preferred by small businesses, while others, with flat fees and advanced features like talent management, are better for big business. Payment processing apps enable businesses to accept a broader range of payment types faster, as well as add a layer of financial security.
Read on to see which applications are best for companies of every size with their own unique features, perks, and downsides.
The Best Payment Processing Applications
Most mobile payment applications for business share a few similarities. They charge card swipe or transaction fees, are accessible on almost all mobile devices, and have compatibility with point-of-sale (PoS) hardware.
When looking through app reviews, it’s best to look for what fulfills a business’s requirements. This includes:
- Hardware: Some businesses prefer handheld mobile systems, while others require point-of-sale at a standstill register.
- Integrations: eCommerce, inventory, or CRM integrations may be necessary.
- Industry friendliness: Some industries have specific requirements – and favorites.
- Company size compatibility: Some apps have daily limits to the dollar amount of payment processing.
- Features: Emailed receipts and card readers are common features.
- Fees: Most processing apps have either flat monthly fees, fees associated with the amount of money that is being processed, or both.
Leading Payment Apps for Enterprise Businesses
You’re a big dog – with a large employee count, locations across the country (or the globe), and numerous verticals, and streams of incoming and outbound payments.
This requires payment systems that assist in organization, extra security, and overall efficiency. Solutions with robust reporting to accurately track costs and productivity, as well as endpoint protection to ward off hackers, are features to look out for.
These mobile payment processing apps are great for large enterprises:
Shopify
With its near-endless features and capabilities, Shopify carries solutions for businesses of any size. Starting as a humble eCommerce platform, it has expanded to accommodate large enterprises, including companies like Kylie Cosmetics and Fashion Nova.
Shopify focuses on consumer categories, including:
- Beauty and cosmetics
- Consumer electronics
- Fashion and apparel
- Food and beverage
- Home furnishings
A Shopify account is required, but there is a choice of different subscriptions, which come with an online store and a free card reader. The more expensive, higher-tiered memberships come with lower card processing fees. All Shopify plans have monthly terms.
To suit larger enterprises, Shopify offers personalized migration services as well as a wholesale sales portal, customizable API, and multi-channel campaign management.
Users can acquire features such as reporting, talent management, and inventory, through the Shopify app store. It contains tens of thousands of applications with both free and paid versions to allow more budget flexibility.
One major setback Shopify has compared to other payment processing apps is the lack of options for fund transferring, accessed through Shopify Payments. Users can move funds on a specific, set schedule, but there is no option for instant transferring.
Best for: Enterprise companies selling products on the web and wanting a sophisticated online store, with options for a physical store as well.
Dharma
Dharma is a sustainable company with a Benefit Corporation (BCorp) certification. At face value, it is a great merchant-services solution for B2B companies, retailers, restaurants, nonprofits, and green businesses.
Dharma comes with different payment-processing and credit-card processing packages for enterprise needs, including:
- Virtual: for both B2B and B2B businesses conducting online transactions
- Nonprofits: a reduced rate option for registered nonprofit organizations
- Storefront: a B2C retail solution with transaction and point-of-sale features
- Restaurant: for restaurants and bars wanting different card processing options
To meet customer-facing and back office needs, larger enterprises are offered features such as customer databasing, invoicing, recurring billing, business analytics, and a virtual terminal. All come with no long-term agreements.
Subscription packages have monthly fees which include transaction fees. (The Nonprofits package has the lowest transaction fees.) Every Dharma pricing plan has monthly terms.
Its operations are run through the MX Merchant management application, free for subscribers. For an optimal B2B experience, users will have to purchase MX B2B as a separate application.
Though Dharma has various other applications and features, it does not include employee and inventory management. Clover is a popular point-of-sale hardware company used by many financial enterprises, including Dharma. Subscribers also have to purchase card readers separately.
Overall, Dharma has a lot to offer for users, but its features have to be purchased a la carte.
Best for: Businesses wanting flexible payment options and to be a part of a group of socially-responsible enterprises, including minority and women-owned companies.
Top Apps for Midsize Businesses
For businesses that have gone through some decent growth, or plan to expand in the future, innovative features are needed. This includes add-ons, integrations, and marketing solutions to inspire and support enterprise expansion.
Payment Depot
Payment Depot is a credit-card processing vendor that gives wholesale card swipe prices to its members. This means users are charged the interchange (true cost) of swipe fees set by credit card enterprises.
Payment Depot compensates for its lack of card swipe markup with multiple, tiered subscriptions. Free readers and other hardware are offered in higher tiers, but not with the basic plan. Because the monthly and per-transaction costs are fixed, Payment Depot is best for large transactions. Terms are monthly.
For midsize companies, Payment Depot offers data breach protection, a free mobile reader and terminal, and 24-hour support. At an extra cost, users can get terminal upgrades every two years and choose from a variety of other branded hardware.
Payment Depot does not have any sort of employee or inventory management, making it its biggest downside. Having a lack of instant transferring is also another downside, but next day funding is available.
Best for: Fast-growing companies wanting to save on transaction fees with the low-cost “Costco” of mobile payment processing.
Square
One of the most popular payment processing and point-of-sale applications, Square has made an empire of eCommerce solutions. It also shares the same parent company as the makers of Cash App, the ever-so-popular P2P mobile app.
Like most other payment processing applications, starting with Square is easy. There are no monthly fees or subscriptions required, and it comes with a free card reader.
If a business wishes to expand, Square offers a selection of solutions and hardware. These solutions are made for specific industries, with packages such as Restaurants, Appointments, and Retail.
These solutions include point-of-sale software, an online store, team management, a card swipe reader, business analytics, a customer directory, and gift cards for customers – all of which come at no additional cost when you sign up.
For an additional price, users can choose different terminals and card readers, some of which come with a monthly payment option.
Square also has additional applications which include:
- Payroll
- Loyalty
- Marketing
- Photo Studio
In addition, Square has other financial services:
- Installments, a payment service similar to Klarna
- Capital, a loan service
- Business debit card
Square’s software integrates with several eCommerce platforms, including Magento, Wix, BigCommerce, GoDaddy, OpenCart, and WooCommerce. To fully take advantage of Square’s capabilities including integrations, a customizable API is offered.
Mid-sized companies like Square because it facilitates money transmissions from the app account to a bank account within 1-2 business days for free. Users can pay a 1% fee for an instant transfer.
Best for: Mid-sized companies with physical locations who want the option to expand in the future.
Stripe
Stripe, rival to Square, is better suited for online eCommerce companies, while Square may be better for businesses with physical locations. Neither charges monthly fees.
Stripe is well known for its accessible and malleable API. This gives a development team the chance to turn a company’s site into an eCommerce hub. It also has easy integration with WordPress to create the perfect blog or product pages.
This developer-friendly environment does come at a cost, since Stripe does not contain its own inventory or employee management systems. But maybe the biggest downside to Stripe is its inability to process PayPal payments, one of the largest online financial solutions enterprises. Companies using Stripe may miss out on a lot of business.
Stripe does not offer a free card reader to subscribers and has very limited hardware to choose from.
Best for: mid-sized companies with online stores and a strong development team
National Processing
National Processing treats its services like a bank, providing a variety of financial solutions for businesses.
It houses industry-specific solutions in different tiered subscriptions, including Restaurant, Retail, and eCommerce. In addition, National Processing has two high-tiered plans that have transaction fees for less than 10¢. The company requires a three-year service agreement, and early cancellation is subject to fees.
National Processing offers a free card reader with every plan. And unlike other free readers, it accepts contactless payments such as Apple and Google Pay.
Similar to Dharma, National Processing uses Clover hardware for point-of-sale needs, as well as employee and inventory management.
Best for: Mid-sized businesses wanting a simple solution that accepts a wide array of payments
Favorite Apps for Small Businesses
Whether you are just starting out or choosing to modernize your small business, certain solutions are necessary. This includes brand reputation, accounting, and mobility. Your name needs to get out there, and that income has to roll in.
PayPal Here
One of the first online payment solutions, PayPal now has a mobile processing application with a card reader for in-person, point-of-sale transactions. Rivaling Square, PayPal Here charges no monthly fees or subscriptions, and offers three hardware versions for mobile, moderate, and high-volume payment needs.
Users can move funds immediately to their PayPal Account, but transfers to a bank account take 1-3 business days. Instant transferring is available with a 1% fee at a maximum of $10. PayPal Here is a pay-as-you-go service with no cancellation fees.
Amongst its many other products and services, PayPal has a single sign-on service by the name of PayPal One Touch. It enables users to switch between PayPal products, including Here, without having to constantly log in. (And who can remember if their password ends with a number or a symbol?)
PayPal Here currently supplies a free card reader, like most other popular payment processing apps.
One thing Square has on Here, though, is a free workforce management feature. Here does not have a sophisticated employee management system; instead, it has a multi-user feature.
Best for: Small businesses that already utilize PayPal services and want a simple solution
Quickbooks GoPayment
GoPayment functions as the mobile version of one of the most popular accounting brands, Quickbooks. Even though GoPayment has limited features, it is a great option for a simple processor that accepts cash, checks, credit cards, or debit cards.
Users who want to use GoPayment are required to have an account with Quickbooks, TurboTax, or Mint (parent company Intuit makes all three). But there are no monthly fees, a free card reader is provided … and, hey, now you have great accounting software!
Premium membership offers exclusive features. These higher-tiered subscriptions have lower transaction fees, similar to how Shopify operates their memberships.
Also like Shopify and PayPal Here, GoPayment does not have instant transfers for funds, but instead has transfers that take 1-2 business days.
GoPayment’s major drawbacks include not having any other hardware besides its two card readers, employee management, or inventory management. But it is compatible with other select branded hardware for those who need terminals, more advanced readers, or other handheld devices.
Best for: Companies utilizing Quickbooks or other Intuit products, or planning to in the future
Payanywhere
True to its name, Payanywhere lets users accept payments, manage assets, and more, from a mobile device, in store, on site, or online.
Unlike other payment processing apps, Payanywhere has one membership package in the form of a pay-as-you-go subscription. The company also offers an option to request a customized subscription to better suit specific needs.
Any member to Payanywhere gets free employee and item management features. These systems come with scheduling, payroll, stock alerts and tracking, barcode scanning, and more. Subscribers also get a free card reader.
Best for: Small businesses wanting flexibility and quick setup with their plan
What Mobile Payment App to Choose?
No application is one-size-fits-all, which makes it important to choose one that suits every company’s unique needs. So it’s crucial to ask what features, hardware, and price point your business needs to optimize daily operations: What hardware should everyone use? How often do funds have to be transferred? What will integrate with your existing tech stack?
Though it can be daunting to compare every little feature of each app, choosing the right one can make all the difference for overall efficiency and profitability. A little research done can help users gain a new favorite solution to rely on, along the enterprise journey.