How we work with clientsStart your applicationClient login
Speak to an expert
Home › Buckingham Intelligence › Providers › Stripe Issuing
Provider profile · 2026 edition

Stripe Issuing review 2026: scores, pricing and alternatives.

Stripe's card issuing product for platforms and businesses.

See the scoresAlternatives
Research by Buckingham Intelligence, the research unit of Buckingham Capital Consulting · Facts read 26 October 2026 · Dated copies of source pages kept · Method
4.3 / 5Buckingham Intelligence score
7Awards 2026
1Index
1 of 11Rank, Card Issuing Index

Short answer.

Stripe Issuing scores 4.3 out of 5 (87 out of 100) in the Buckingham Intelligence Card Issuing Index 2026 and ranks 1 of 11. It is strongest for platforms wanting published prices and self-serve launch, with 5 out of 5 for card range, published pricing and regulatory standing. Not published or not stated on the pages read: programme support.

Awards and scores.

Scores from the Card Issuing Index 2026.

Card Issuing Index

4.3 / 587 out of 100 · rank 1 of 11
Leader 2026Best for fintechs and e-money firms 2026Best for expense and B2B payment platforms 2026Best for banks and lenders 2026Top rated for card range 2026Top rated for published pricing 2026Top rated for regulatory standing 2026
SegmentScore out of 100Rank
For fintechs and e-money firms871 of 11
For expense and B2B payment platforms851 of 11
For banks and lenders891 of 11

The score out of 5 is the overall score out of 100 divided by 20. Leader goes to the top three overall, Best for to the first in each segment, and Top rated for to a score of 5 out of 5 on a criterion. Awards cannot be bought.

Strengths and watch-outs.

Where it scores best, and where to check closely, as shown in each ranking.

Strongest for

Platforms wanting published prices and self-serve launch.

  • Card range (5/5). Virtual, physical, debit, prepaid, credit and charge cards and digital wallet support all published.
  • Published pricing (5/5). Per-card, per-dispute and cross-border transaction prices published on the pricing page.
  • Regulatory standing (5/5). Named issuing banks and own UK and EU entities, PCI DSS Level 1 and SOC 2 Type II.
Watch out for
  • Issuing countries (3/5). Local issuing in 22 listed countries published.

Published facts.

What Stripe Issuing publishes on its own pages, read on 26 October 2026.

Stripe's card issuing product for platforms and businesses. It is the only provider in this edition with a full published price list, names its US issuing banks, issues in the UK and EU through its own regulated entities, and holds PCI DSS Level 1 and SOC 2 Type II. Local issuing is live in 22 countries.

FactWhat the provider publishes
Card rangeVirtual and physical cards; commercial secured and charge cards; consumer revolving credit and prepaid debit cards with digital wallet support. US programmes support commercial and consumer debit cards.
Pricing$0.10 per virtual card; $3.50 per standard physical card (custom cards cost extra, shipping not included); $15.00 per dispute; 1% + 30¢ for cross-border transactions, plus 1% where currency conversion is needed.
Issuing countries"Stripe Issuing is live with local Issuance in 22 countries", listed by country code; cards for subsidiaries of US multinationals "in over 40 countries"; homepage states "75+ global markets".
IntegrationAPI and documentation; "Start now" self-serve dashboard registration; "Go from integration to live cards in minutes, not months."
Regulatory standingUS issuing banks named: Celtic Bank, Lead Bank, Fifth Third Bank, Cross River Bank and Sutton Bank. UK and EU cards issued by Stripe Payments UK Limited and Stripe Technology Europe Limited. "PCI Service Provider Level 1"; "SOC 1 and SOC 2 Type II reports are produced annually".
Programme supportLocal issuance "meets local KYC and compliance requirements"; fraud tools "trained on data from trillions of transactions"; real-time spend controls; published dispute fee. Named clients include Ramp, Navan, Shopify and Emburse.
Date read26 October 2026

Not published or not stated by Stripe Issuing

  • Programme support. Programme management not described as a separate service.

A fact that is not published is scored as not offered or, for a fee, as if it were high. It is never estimated.

Facts read on 26 October 2026 from: stripe.com/au/issuing, stripe.com/pricing, docs.stripe.com/issuing/global, docs.stripe.com/security.

Criterion scores.

Each score with the evidence behind it.

  • Card range: 5/5. Virtual, physical, debit, prepaid, credit and charge cards and digital wallet support all published.
  • Published pricing: 5/5. Per-card, per-dispute and cross-border transaction prices published on the pricing page.
  • Issuing countries: 3/5. Local issuing in 22 listed countries published.
  • Integration: 4/5. API, self-serve sign-up and a stated time to go live; no test environment described on the pages read.
  • Regulatory standing: 5/5. Named issuing banks and own UK and EU entities, PCI DSS Level 1 and SOC 2 Type II.
  • Programme support: 4/5. Bank sponsorship, KYC, fraud tools and dispute handling published; programme management not described as a separate service.

Each criterion is scored 0 to 5 against the best published offer in the Card Issuing Index. 0 means not offered or not published. How it is scored

Stripe Issuing alternatives.

The other providers in the same ranking, ordered by score.

ProviderScore out of 5RankStrongest for
Marqeta3.12 of 11Large programmes needing high volumes across many countries
Nium3.03 of 11Travel and B2B platforms issuing in Asia Pacific, Europe and the US
Enfuce3.04 of 11UK and EEA programmes wanting issuing and BIN sponsorship from one firm
Lithic2.95 of 11Developers wanting a self-serve sandbox and full programme management
Paymentology2.86 of 11Banks and fintechs in emerging markets across many countries
Airwallex2.57 of 11Platforms wanting multi-currency cards across many countries
Thredd2.58 of 11Programmes with their own issuer needing wide country coverage
Galileo (SoFi Tech Solutions)2.49 of 11North and Latin American programmes wanting a stated launch time
Highnote2.310 of 11US firms wanting debit, credit, charge and prepaid on one platform
Adyen Issuing2.211 of 11Platforms already using Adyen for payments in Europe, the UK and US

Full Card Issuing Index ranking

Stripe Issuing compared.

Side by side on every criterion, fact and award.

All comparisons

Back to the rankings.

Ranking · 4.3 out of 5

Stripe Issuing in the Card Issuing Index

Rank 1 of 11, with the full method and every other provider.

Directory

All provider pages

Every provider ranked by Buckingham Intelligence, by index.

Speak to an expert.

Tell us what you need and where you operate.

Start the conversation