GoCardless Alternatives: Choosing The Right Payment Gateway

Selection of a payment provider does not involve only the execution of transactions. To breweries, distributors, or any companies, the true value is the ease of doing business and making payments, and making the process of interest to sale as effortless as a keg order or booking an event, or even purchasing a hoodie, t-shirt, concert ticket, etc. 

On the one hand, GoCardless provides good functionality in some aspects; at the same time, the most appropriate decision to make in terms of sustainable growth can be achieved depending on your growth strategy, reach to your existing markets, and customer experience purposes. In this handbook, we will assist you in evaluating your requirements and exploring better GoCardless alternatives to future-proof your payments infrastructure.

Know What You Need

Prepare to compare before comparing providers. What is your solution?  As an example, it might be helpful to have a fast setup, mobile SDKs, and direct/easy-to-understand UX when it comes to businesses that add payments to mobile applications. Some of them may require an international scope or extensive support for the e-commerce plug-ins.

We might as well be specific: 

• Do you have anything to do with recurring payments? 
• Are your users demanders of card options, or pay-by-bank? 
• Do you have dev resources constrained, or can you deal with complete API integrations?

The decisions you make early on will drive which provider is a good choice on the global stage and will prevent miserable migrations in the future.

Where GoCardless Starts To Limit You

GoCardless was set up to handle recurring bank transfers in the UK and EU, and as such, GoCardless does that very well. However, it can be too limiting for hopeful producers with other broader requirements, particularly those growing largely outside Europe or creating mobile-first items.

You can see the restrictions in e-commerce plugin support, payment options (can be of e.g., you cannot use card payments), and no-code tools. This complicates the ability to service cross-border customers or the rapid rollout of new payment flows. In simple terms, will they grow with you when you are growing at a pace?

Features To Prioritise In A GoCardless Alternative

When evaluating alternative payment gateways, look for solutions that:

• Offer seamless SDKs, API, or web UI modules
• Support both pay-by-bank and card payments
• Provide out-of-the-box integrations with e-commerce platforms (if that’s your thing)
• Enable no-code tools like payment links and QR codes
• Have transparent pricing and multi-currency support
• Offer solid documentation and responsive support

These features make a real difference in speed to market and ease of ongoing maintenance.

Best GoCardless Alternatives For B2B And Mobile Businesses

Let’s finally look at a few top contenders based on what your business might need.

• Noda is particularly strong if you want open banking payments plus e-commerce tools. It supports both cards and pay-by-bank across 28 countries, and offers no-code features like QR codes and payment links. For companies that want fast, secure, and low-fee transactions without chargebacks, it’s a compelling choice.
• Stripe offers a robust global platform, supporting payments in 46 countries and providing highly customisable options alongside tools for billing, tax compliance, and subscription management. However, the level of complexity and the higher cost structure can be a challenge for smaller teams or operations that prioritise straightforward, easy-to-manage solutions.
• Plaid is less of a payment gateway and more of a data powerhouse. If your business relies on open banking data, identity checks, transaction histories, and balance validation, Plaid could be useful. But don’t expect full e-commerce or checkout features.
• TrueLayer is strong in European open banking and pioneering VRPs in the UK. However, it lacks checkout tools, plugins, or payment links, which may limit its appeal to businesses needing more than just API access.

GoCardless Alternatives: Feature Comparison Table

Test The Flow Before You Commit

Before making a final decision, simulate real usage. Create a sandbox environment and run your core flows. See how the payment journey feels on your website or app. Is the checkout clean and mobile-friendly? Is integration straightforward for your developers?

Even better, speak to the provider’s support team. How fast do they respond? Do they understand your business model? These small signals tell you a lot about what day-to-day collaboration will feel like.

Payments That Power Growth

Your payment gateway determines the interaction of the customer with it, beginning with the initial browser and ending at the time of purchase. The correct decision may help to improve conversion, reduce the workload in the back office, and enter new markets. GoCardless is not perfect for everyone, and that is not a problem! 

Solutions such as Noda are more flexible, have an enhanced mobile app process, and offer more payment methods, but they do not increase prices and make integration difficult, making them ideal for optimizing brewery operations. Each of Stripe, Plaid, and TrueLayer has its strengths and weaknesses, and not all of them fit B2B operations or mobile-led ordering the same. Choosing the right gateway now saves time, money, and frustration in the long run. Think long-term, and choose a partner that grows with you.