Comparison · 2026 edition
Adyen vs Airwallex: payment processing compared 2026.
Adyen and Airwallex side by side in the Payment Processing and Acquiring Index 2026: scores, evidence, published facts and awards.
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Adyen and Airwallex side by side in the Payment Processing and Acquiring Index 2026: scores, evidence, published facts and awards.
In the Payment Processing and Acquiring Index, Adyen scores higher overall: 3.9 out of 5 (77 out of 100) against 3.5 (71), ranking 2 and 5 of 10. Adyen also scores higher in every segment.
Overall and segment scores out of 100, and the score out of 5.
| Score | Adyen | Airwallex |
|---|---|---|
| Score out of 5 | 3.9 | 3.5 |
| Score out of 100 | 77 | 71 |
| Overall rank | 2 of 10 | 5 of 10 |
| For small and mid-sized merchants (out of 100) | 69, rank 5 | 66, rank 6 |
| For enterprise and cross-border merchants (out of 100) | 83, rank 2 | 74, rank 4 |
| For platforms and regulated firms (out of 100) | 79, rank 2 | 74, rank 4 |
| Type | Global acquirer and bank | Payments and business account platform |
Each score with the evidence behind it.
| Criterion | Adyen | Airwallex |
|---|---|---|
| Published pricing | 4/5 Processing fee and card margin over interchange plus plus published; card cost depends on interchange. | 5/5 Exact rates for UK, EEA, international, Amex and UnionPay cards and local methods published. |
| Payment methods | 5/5 150+ currencies and 200+ local payment methods published. | 4/5 160+ local payment methods and settlement in 20+ currencies published. |
| Merchant reach | 5/5 Licences in ten regions plus EEA passporting published. | 4/5 Regional sites in 18 markets including Europe, with acquiring licences named. |
| Payout speed | 2/5 Choice of payout timing and currency stated without times. | 0/5 Not published for card sales on the pages read. |
| Integration | 3/5 Single API published; no self-serve sign-up or test environment on the pages read. | 4/5 APIs, SDKs, plugins, payment links and a self-serve trial; no test environment confirmed on the pages read. |
| Regulatory standing | 4/5 Banking licences in the EEA, UK and US and payment licences elsewhere; few licence numbers and PCI DSS not stated on the pages read. | 4/5 Licences with numbers in more than five regions; PCI DSS stated without its level. |
Each criterion is scored 0 to 5 against the best published offer in the Payment Processing and Acquiring Index. 0 means not offered or not published. How it is scored
What each provider publishes on its own pages, read on 26 October 2026.
| Fact | Adyen | Airwallex |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | "For each transaction, we charge a fixed processing fee + a fee determined by the payment method." Processing fee $0.13; cards "Interchange+ + 0.60%". "No setup fee"; "no setup or monthly fees". | "1.30% + £0.20 for UK cards", "2.40% + £0.20 for EEA cards", international cards "3.15% + £0.20", Amex 2.40% + £0.20, UnionPay 3.15% + £0.20; local payment methods "£0.20 plus payment method fees"; subscription management 0.50% per successful transaction. |
| Payment methods | Homepage: "150+" currencies and "200+" local payment methods. | Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Apple Pay and Google Pay; "WeChat Pay, GrabPay and 160+ other methods"; "Like-for-like settlement in 20+ currencies". |
| Merchant reach | Licence pages for Australia, Canada, EMEA, India, the United States, Malaysia, Singapore, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Japan; banking licence passported to "all EEA countries". | Regional sites for 18 markets including Europe, the UK, the US, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan and Malaysia; registered as a merchant acquirer in Malaysia and authorised for acquiring in Brazil (licence page). |
| Payout speed | "Flexible payouts: Choose when and in which currency you want to settle." No payout times published. | Not published for card sales on the pages read. |
| Integration | "One API that supports multiple use cases and channels"; sales contact to start. No self-serve sign-up or test environment on the pages read. | "Custom website checkout via components, APIs, and SDKs", eCommerce plugin integrations, no-code payment links, free one-month trial. |
| Regulatory standing | "Adyen N.V. is authorised as a credit Institution under the supervision of Dutch Central Bank"; UK branch with Part 4A permission supervised by the PRA and FCA; US federal branch "licensed by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Reserve Board"; MAS Major Payments Institution; CBUAE licence number 08.01.02.035. | FCA EMI licence number 900876; Bank of Lithuania EMI licence no. 88; MAS Major Payment Institution PS20200541; ASIC AFSL 487221; HKMA SVF0009; US money transmitter licences. "Airwallex meets the highest international security standards including PCI DSS, SOC1, and SOC2" (level not stated). |
| Date read | 26 October 2026 | 26 October 2026 |
Not published or not stated by Adyen: payout speed and regulatory standing.
Not published or not stated by Airwallex: payout speed and regulatory standing.
Facts read on 26 October 2026 from: adyen.com, adyen.com/pricing, adyen.com/licenses, adyen.com/licenses/emea, adyen.com/licenses/united-states, adyen.com/licenses/singapore; and airwallex.com/uk/pricing, airwallex.com/uk/business-account, help.airwallex.com/hc/en-gb/articles/….
Awards follow from the published scores and cannot be bought.
From each provider's strongest criteria and published terms.
Large merchants wanting local acquiring and many payment methods from one licensed bank.
Businesses wanting card acceptance with settlement into a multi-currency account.
Tell us what you need and where you operate.