If you’re running a business in India — whether you’re a startup, a scaling SaaS platform, or an enterprise with global ambitions — Razorpay has probably crossed your radar. It’s one of India’s most recognised payment gateways, and for good reason. But it isn’t the right fit for every business.

In this guide, we break down the top 10 Razorpay alternatives in 2026 — with pros, cons, features, and market position to help you make the right call.

Razorpay built the category. It gave Indian developers their first truly modern payment gateway — clean APIs, fast onboarding, and a product that actually kept pace with India’s UPI-first payments revolution.

But it isn’t the only answer anymore.

India’s payment infrastructure has matured significantly. The Indian payment gateway market was valued at USD 2.07 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach USD 4.01 billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 11.66%. There are now excellent alternatives purpose-built for UPI-first India, multi-currency international payments, developer-heavy platforms, and everything in between.

Businesses today have needs that a single gateway cannot satisfy. Some need modular banking infrastructure they can build on top of. Others need multi-currency international collections paired with domestic UPI flows. Many want lower transaction fees, faster settlements, or simply a provider whose product focus matches their use case more precisely.

This listicle covers the top 10 Razorpay alternatives in India for 2026 — what each one is built for, where it wins, and where it doesn’t. All information is based on publicly verified, current sources.

A Quick Glance

S.No.	Gateway	Best For
1	Decentro	API-first fintech, UPI infrastructure, B2B platforms
2	Cashfree Payments	Startups, payouts, instant settlements
3	PayU India	Enterprise e-commerce, large volumes
4	CCAvenue	SMEs, multi-currency checkout
5	BillDesk	Enterprise bill payments, utilities
6	Paytm Payment Gateway	Wallet-heavy flows, retail
7	Juspay	Orchestration, large platforms, UPI optimisation
8	Easebuzz	Cost-conscious SMEs, ed-tech, NGOs
9	PhonePe for Business	UPI-dominant flows, retail, FMCG
10	Instamojo	Freelancers, solo sellers, no-code stores

Decentro

Category: Fintech Infrastructure & Payment Aggregator 

HQ: Bengaluru, India | Founded: 2020

Decentro is India’s leading full-stack API banking and fintech infrastructure platform. While most payment gateways focus on the checkout experience, Decentro operates at the infrastructure layer — offering businesses modular APIs and SDKs to build, launch, and scale their own financial products.

After receiving its RBI Payment Aggregator (PA) license in 2024, Decentro launched Flow 2.0 — a next-generation payment stack built around UPI collections, recurring mandates, and instant payouts. In May 2026, Decentro partnered with Unlimit to extend its infrastructure to cross-border payments, making it one of the few Indian platforms that covers both domestic UPI depth and international multi-currency collection under one integration.

If you are building a marketplace, a lending platform, a subscription business, or any B2B payments workflow, Decentro is purpose-built for the complexity that a generic gateway can’t address cleanly.

Top Features

• UPI Payment Gateway: End-to-end UPI collections with high success rates for e-commerce, logistics, gaming, edtech, hyperlocal commerce, and more
• Multi-Currency International Payments: Cross-border payment infrastructure through the Unlimit partnership — enabling Indian businesses to accept payments from global customers
• Recurring Payments (eNACH + UPI AutoPay): Fully managed mandate flows for subscriptions, EMIs, OTT, insurance, and mutual fund SIPs
• Virtual Accounts (Multi-Collect): Dynamic virtual account creation for automated, scalable reconciliation
• Instant Payouts (24×7): Disburse via UPI, IMPS, NEFT, RTGS — with resilience against bank downtimes
• KYC & Identity APIs: Aadhaar, PAN, CKYC, Video KYC, Penny Drop, DigiLocker, and 15+ verification modules
• Ledgers: Automated multi-party reconciliation for platforms and marketplaces
• OmniScore & Risk APIs: Intelligent transaction risk scoring for fraud prevention
• Offline QR Collections: Physical merchant QR with digital reconciliation (launched Feb 2026)
• Sandbox from Day One: Developers get full API access and a test environment from account creation — no paperwork, no branch visits

Pros

• Modular API architecture — integrate only the modules your business needs
• RBI-licensed PA with deep compliance coverage
• Purpose-built for fintech infrastructure, lending apps, marketplaces, and B2B platforms
• Developer-first: clean documentation, sandbox access from day one
• Strong KYC and identity verification stack alongside payments
• Multi-currency international collections 
• Covers both collections and payouts within one platform

Cons

• Does not support card-based collections (credit/debit) natively — focused on UPI and bank transfer rails
• Pricing is custom and not publicly listed; best suited for businesses with defined technical requirements
• Not designed for no-code or non-technical merchants who need a hosted checkout without API work

Pricing: Custom, API-usage-based. Contact the Decentro team for a quote specific to your use case.

Cashfree Payments

Category: Full-Stack Payment Gateway | Instant Settlements

HQ: Bengaluru, India | Founded: 2015 

Cashfree Payments is a full-stack payment and API banking platform that supports both domestic and cross-border transactions. Backed by SBI, Y Combinator, Krafton, and Apis Partners (with early incubation from PayPal), Cashfree was the first company to receive the RBI’s PA-CB (cross-border) license in July 2024 — giving it a meaningful compliance head start on international payments.

Where Cashfree genuinely stands out is settlement speed: it offers T+0 instant settlements, which most competitors don’t match. For cash-flow-sensitive businesses, this alone is worth paying attention to.

Top Features

• 180+ payment methods: UPI, credit/debit cards, wallets, net banking, BNPL, EMI
• FlowWise smart routing for improved payment success rates
• T+0 instant settlements — the standout differentiator in the Indian market
• International payments via Visa, Mastercard, Amex + Global Collection Accounts
• Bulk payouts, eNACH, UPI AutoPay for recurring billing
• Secure ID APIs for KYC and identity verification
• Plugins for Shopify, WooCommerce, Wix, Magento

Pros

• T+0 instant settlement is unmatched among Indian gateways
• First-mover advantage with the RBI PA-CB license
• Strong API documentation and developer experience
• 35+ BNPL options at checkout
• 180+ payment methods in one integration

Cons

• International card fees are higher relative to domestic rates
• Per-payment FIRA is not available for international collections — only consolidated FIRS reports, which can complicate GST refund filings
• Support quality can vary for smaller merchants

Pricing: See Cashfree’s official pricing page — domestic transactions from ~1.95%; custom pricing for high-volume accounts.

PayU India

Category: Enterprise Payment Gateway | International Coverage

HQ: Gurugram, India | Founded: 2011 | Parent: Prosus 

PayU India is one of India’s most established payment gateways with genuine global scale — operating across 50+ markets internationally. In India, PayU’s acquisition of BillDesk created one of the highest-volume payment processing entities in the country, particularly dominant in utility bill payments and recurring transactions. PayU received its PA-CB license in November 2025, completing full-stack RBI licensing.

It is the go-to gateway for large enterprises in e-commerce, travel, insurance, and financial services that need both broad domestic coverage and international currency acceptance.

Top Features

• 150+ payment options: UPI, cards, net banking, wallets, EMI, BNPL
• International payments in 130+ currencies across 150+ countries
• One-click checkout (Visa Safe Click, Native OTP)
• GST-compliant invoicing via email and WhatsApp
• Subscription and recurring billing infrastructure
• Fraud protection with advanced encryption
• T+2 settlements with priority settlement options available

Pros

• No setup fees
• Widest international currency coverage among Indian-origin gateways (130+ currencies)
• Strong enterprise-grade reliability
• Diners, AmEx, and EMI support
• Seamless access to BillDesk’s bill payment infrastructure for enterprise use cases

Cons

• KYC activation can be slower for certain business types
• Customer support response times are inconsistent
• Less developer-friendly for smaller teams compared to Razorpay or Cashfree

Pricing: See PayU’s official pricing page — standard domestic rate 2% + 18% GST; Diners, AmEx, EMI, and international: 3% + GST; custom pricing for enterprise volumes.

CCAvenue

Category: Veteran Gateway | SME & Multi-Currency Checkout

HQ: Mumbai, India | Founded: 2001 (Infibeam Avenues) 

CCAvenue is India’s longest-running payment gateway — launched in 2001 and battle-tested across over two decades of India’s digital payments evolution. With 200+ payment modes and support for 27 major currencies, it is one of the most complete out-of-the-box multi-currency solutions available to Indian businesses without needing custom international infrastructure.

Its particular strengths are in multilingual checkout (18 languages), payment recovery (Smart Retry), and reliable service for sectors like government, education, travel, and retail.

Top Features

• 200+ payment modes: cards, EMI, net banking, UPI, wallets
• Multi-currency checkout in 27 currencies with real-time INR conversion
• Checkout pages in 18 Indian and international languages
• Instant digital KYC onboarding
• Smart Retry: helps customers recover from failed payment attempts
• Mobile app for tracking payments across channels
• No setup fees on the Popular plan

Pros

• Most established Indian gateway — proven reliability over 20+ years
• Multilingual checkout is rare and valuable for regional businesses and government deployments
• Smart Retry reduces revenue loss from checkout failures
• Brand customisation: custom colours and logo uploads on checkout pages
• Ready SDKs and APIs with no setup fee on standard plan

Cons

• Annual maintenance charges apply after the first year
• Higher fees for certain payment methods (Diners, AmEx)
• UI and developer experience less modern than newer alternatives
• Trustpilot reviews reflect mixed support experiences

Pricing: See CCAvenue’s plan details — Verify current rates directly with CCAvenue.

BillDesk

Category: Enterprise B2B | Recurring Bill Payments

HQ: Mumbai, India | Founded: 2000 (now part of PayU / Prosus)

BillDesk is India’s original bill payment infrastructure company, founded in 2000. Now a subsidiary of PayU, it operates as critical backend infrastructure for utility companies, telecom providers, insurance firms, and financial institutions. If you are an enterprise deploying high-volume recurring bill collection, BillDesk is the incumbent.

BillDesk was among the first cohort of companies to receive the RBI PA-CB license, which it secured in late 2024.

Top Features

• High-volume recurring bill payment infrastructure
• Direct issuer bank integrations for higher payment success rates
• Automated refund processing
• Seamless integration for one-time and recurring transactions
• BBPS (Bharat Bill Payment System) compliance
• Custom enterprise pricing with dedicated account management

Pros

• The most trusted name in India’s bill payment infrastructure
• Extremely high transaction reliability for recurring payments
• Deep bank integration relationships built over 25 years
• Strong compliance and regulatory track record
• Suitable for government and regulated-sector deployments

Cons

• Not suited for startups or SMEs — primarily an enterprise sales motion
• No self-serve onboarding; requires a direct sales engagement
• The checkout experience is functional, not modern
• Less developer-friendly compared to API-first alternatives

Pricing: Custom enterprise pricing. Contact BillDesk directly for rates.

Paytm Payment Gateway

Category: Full-Stack Gateway | Wallet + UPI Ecosystem

HQ: Noida, India | Founded: 2010 (One97 Communications) 

Paytm Payment Gateway leverages one of India’s largest digital wallet ecosystems and a deep UPI presence to deliver competitive checkout experiences for merchants. Setup takes under 30 minutes, and the T+1 settlement cycle is faster than the standard T+2 most gateways offer.

Despite the regulatory challenges around Paytm Payments Bank in 2024, the payment gateway business continues to operate independently and remains a viable option, particularly for merchants whose customer base overlaps heavily with the Paytm wallet and Paytm Postpaid user base.

Top Features

• 100+ payment options: UPI, wallets, cards, net banking, Postpaid, no-cost EMI
• International payments across multiple currencies, settled in INR
• Quick checkout via saved credentials and direct UPI
• PCI-DSS compliant with end-to-end encryption and tokenisation
• Real-time analytics dashboard across all payment methods

Pros

• No setup or maintenance fees
• T+1 settlement — faster than most standard gateways
• Strong integration with Paytm’s own wallet and BNPL user base
• Quick fully-online onboarding

Cons

• Regulatory uncertainty around the Paytm brand post-2024 — worth monitoring ongoing developments
• API stability less consistent than Razorpay or Cashfree per developer feedback in 2025–26
• Support is generalised rather than personalised for specific use cases

Pricing: See Paytm’s pricing page — SMB transactions (standard): 1.99% + 18% GST; Diners, AmEx, international: 2.99% + GST. Always verify current rates directly, as these are subject to change.

Juspay

Category: Payment Orchestration | Checkout Optimisation

HQ: Bengaluru, India | Founded: 2012

Juspay is not a traditional payment gateway — it is a payment orchestration and optimisation platform. It powers the checkout infrastructure for many of India’s largest consumer apps and financial institutions. Its HyperCheckout product improves payment success rates by intelligently routing transactions across multiple acquirers and payment rails.

Juspay is best suited for large platforms and enterprises that already have transaction volume and want to maximise checkout conversion — not for businesses just getting started.

Top Features

• Payment orchestration across 300+ payment methods in 50+ countries
• HyperCheckout: conversion-optimised, pixel-perfect checkout UI
• Network tokenisation for improved card payment success rates
• Fraud and risk management
• End-to-end reconciliation
• Open-source orchestration layer
• Global payouts infrastructure
• White-label payment gateway solutions for banks and large platforms

Pros

• The most sophisticated payment orchestration solution built in India
• Measurable improvement in checkout success rates at scale
• Trusted by India’s largest consumer internet platforms
• Open-source flexibility for engineering teams
• Broad global payment method coverage (50+ countries, 300+ methods)

Cons

• Not designed for small or mid-sized businesses — built for enterprise scale
• Setup and integration complexity is higher than standard gateways
• Pricing is not publicly available; requires direct enterprise engagement

Pricing: Custom enterprise pricing. Contact Juspay directly for a quote.

Easebuzz

Category: Cost-Effective SME Gateway | Ed-Tech & NGOs

HQ: Pune, India | Founded: 2016 

Easebuzz has carved out a strong position as one of India’s most affordable full-service payment gateways, with an average transaction fee among the lowest in the market. It is particularly popular with education platforms, coaching institutes, NGOs, and mid-market SMEs that need multi-method payment collection without the overhead of enterprise-tier platforms.

Easebuzz received both its PA and PA-CB licenses from the RBI, making it a compliant choice for businesses that also have cross-border payment needs.

Top Features

• Cards, UPI, net banking, wallets, EMI, BNPL
• Payment links, smart pages, and embeddable checkout
• Subscription and recurring billing
• Data insights and analytics dashboard
• Zero setup and joining fees

Pros

• Among the most competitive pricing of any full-service Indian gateway
• PCI-DSS Level 1 compliant
• High payment success rates
• Zero joining fees — simple to get started
• Well-suited to ed-tech, coaching, NGOs, and subscription businesses

Cons

• Smaller developer ecosystem and fewer third-party platform integrations compared to Razorpay or Cashfree
• International payment capabilities are limited in depth
• Documentation and developer tooling less polished than the larger gateways
• Smaller support team relative to larger competitors

Pricing: See Easebuzz pricing — zero setup fee; approximately 1.5% average per transaction. Custom pricing available for enterprise volumes.

PhonePe for Business

Category: UPI-First Gateway | Consumer & Retail

HQ: Bengaluru, India | Founded: 2015 | Parent: Walmart / Flipkart

PhonePe for Business is the merchant-facing product from one of India’s three dominant UPI apps. With a claimed 99% UPI success rate and one of the widest merchant networks in the country, PhonePe’s gateway is valuable for businesses where UPI accounts for the bulk of transactions — food delivery, FMCG, hyperlocal retail, and quick commerce.

Top Features

• Deep UPI infrastructure with high success rates
• Sound Box, QR, and POS payment solutions for offline merchants
• UPI promotional pricing (0% MDR in qualifying cases)
• Fast merchant onboarding for small businesses
• Real-time payment confirmations and dashboards

Pros

• Among the highest UPI acceptance and success rates in the market
• Widest offline merchant QR and Sound Box coverage in India
• Strong for businesses unifying offline + online UPI payments
• Zero MDR on UPI under promotional terms

Cons

• No meaningful international payment support
• Not a full-stack gateway for card-heavy or cross-border businesses
• Developer documentation for custom integrations is thinner than Razorpay or Cashfree
• Best suited to UPI-dominant use cases — not a general-purpose gateway replacement

Pricing: Enterprise pricing available on request.

Instamojo

Category: No-Code Payments | Freelancers & Solo Sellers

HQ: Bengaluru, India | Founded: 2012

Instamojo is India’s go-to payment solution for freelancers, creators, and solo business owners who need to accept payments without any technical setup. With over a million merchants, it lets anyone create a payment link, build a basic online store, and start collecting payments in minutes using only an email address.

It is not designed to replace Razorpay for a high-growth startup — but for independent professionals who need a frictionless entry into digital payments, it remains one of the most accessible options in India.

Top Features

• Payment links, smart pages, and embedded checkout buttons (no website required)
• Built-in online store builder — zero coding required
• 100+ payment methods
• GST invoice generation
• Basic analytics and payment tracking
• PCI-DSS compliant

Pros

• Easiest onboarding of any gateway on this list — email only, live within minutes
• Free to join with zero setup fees
• Built-in store removes the need for a separate e-commerce platform
• Good for digital goods, courses, consulting, and individual creators

Cons

• Transaction fees are among the highest across all plans (2%–5% + ₹3 per transaction)
• International payments are limited and require special KYC approval
• No multi-currency support
• Not suitable for high-volume or enterprise use cases
• Annual plan fees are high relative to the feature set at the paid tiers

Pricing: See Instamojo’s pricing — Payment links from 2% + ₹3 per transaction (free plan). Online store from free (5% + ₹3) to ₹14,999/year (2% + ₹3). Always verify current rates on the Instamojo website.

How to Choose the Right Razorpay Alternative

No single gateway is the best for everyone. Here’s how to match your needs to the right product:

Building a fintech product, marketplace, or lending platform? 

Decentro’s modular API banking stack gives you infrastructure-layer control — collections, payouts, KYC, reconciliation, and mandates — without being locked into a consumer-facing checkout product.

Need the fastest possible settlements? 

Cashfree’s T+0 instant settlement is the market leader and meaningfully differentiates it for cash-flow-sensitive businesses.

Enterprise-scale utility or bill payment infrastructure? 

BillDesk (now part of PayU) is the proven incumbent for high-volume recurring collections in regulated sectors.

Widest international currency coverage? 

PayU (130+ currencies) leads among Indian-origin gateways. CCAvenue (27 currencies) is a practical option with multi-language checkout for businesses that don’t need the full international range.

Heavy UPI volume and need the highest success rates? 

PhonePe for Business or Juspay’s orchestration layer are purpose-built for this.

Cost-conscious SME, ed-tech, or NGO? 

Easebuzz’s pricing is the most competitive among full-service Indian gateways.

Freelancer or solo creator who wants zero technical setup? 

Instamojo requires no code, no website, and no technical background.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is the best alternative to Razorpay in India for 2026?

There is no single best alternative — it depends on your use case. For API-first fintech and UPI infrastructure, Decentro is a strong choice. For instant settlements, Cashfree stands out. For enterprise bill payments, BillDesk is the incumbent. For the widest international coverage, PayU leads.

Q: Which payment gateway has the lowest transaction fees in India?

Easebuzz is among the lowest at approximately 1.5% average per transaction. Cashfree also offers competitive domestic rates from around 1.95%. UPI transactions specifically are zero MDR across most gateways in India under RBI guidelines. Always verify current pricing directly on each gateway’s pricing page, as rates change.

Q: Does Decentro support international payments?

Yes. Decentro supports multi-currency international payments through its partnership with Unlimit (announced May 2026), enabling Indian businesses to collect payments from global customers in addition to its core domestic UPI and banking infrastructure.

Q: Which payment gateways in India have the RBI’s PA-CB (cross-border) license?

As of mid-2026, companies that have received the PA-CB license include Cashfree Payments (the first, July 2024), Amazon Pay India, BillDesk, Adyen, Worldline, PayGlocal, Pine Labs, Easebuzz, PayU, and Razorpay, among others. Always verify current license status on the RBI’s official website.

Q: Can I use multiple payment gateways at the same time?

Yes. Many businesses run two or more gateways in parallel — either for redundancy (routing traffic away from a gateway during downtime) or to support different customer segments. Juspay’s orchestration layer is specifically designed to intelligently manage this kind of multi-gateway routing.

Q: What should I look for when switching from Razorpay to another gateway?

Key things to evaluate: supported payment methods (UPI, cards, wallets, BNPL), settlement speed, transaction fees, international payment support, API documentation quality, sandbox access, RBI compliance status (PA/PA-CB licenses), and customer support responsiveness. For platforms and marketplaces, also check split payment and payout capabilities.

Q: Is Paytm Payment Gateway still reliable in 2026?

The Paytm Payment Gateway (operated by One97 Communications) continues to function independently from Paytm Payments Bank, which faced regulatory action in early 2024. The gateway business is operational, but businesses evaluating Paytm should monitor ongoing regulatory and business developments before making long-term infrastructure commitments.

Q: Which gateway is best for UPI collections specifically?

For pure UPI collection infrastructure with API-level control, Decentro’s UPI Payment Gateway is purpose-built for businesses that need programmatic control over UPI flows. For consumer-facing checkout with high UPI success rates, PhonePe for Business and Cashfree are strong options. Juspay’s orchestration layer is the choice for maximizing success rates across multiple acquirers at high volumes.

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All pricing and feature information is based on publicly available sources and official product pages as of June 2026. Transaction fees, product features, and licensing status are subject to change. Always verify current details directly with each provider before making decisions.

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