Razorpay vs Stripe for Indian Businesses (2026): Onboarding, Security, International Payments and Fees Compared

Indian founders often start with a simple question: Razorpay or Stripe? Both are well known, both have strong developer documentation, and both can take card payments from Indian and overseas customers. In 2026, though, the comparison is shaped less by features and more by one constraint: Stripe is invite-only in India.

This guide compares the two for businesses registered in India that need a primary gateway for domestic and international collections. It covers onboarding, payment methods, export compliance, security controls and fees at a high level, using each provider’s own pricing pages and documentation as checked in October 2026.

Quick answer: For most India-registered businesses, Razorpay is the practical primary gateway in 2026. It accepts self-serve sign-ups, supports UPI, netbanking, RuPay, wallets and EMI, holds RBI authorisation for cross-border payments, and handles export paperwork from its dashboard. Stripe India accounts are available by invite only, and Stripe’s India support page says UPI, netbanking, EMI and pay later are not supported on them. Stripe is the stronger choice if you have, or plan to set up, an overseas entity and need multi-country billing, or if Stripe has already invited your business for international expansion.

What is Stripe’s status in India in 2026?

Stripe stopped open sign-ups for Indian businesses on 31 May 2024, citing the evolving regulatory landscape. As of October 2026, its support article still says Indian businesses cannot sign up on the website and must request an invite through Stripe’s sales team. Stripe says it currently supports only a select number of businesses, with a focus on international expansion.

What that means in practice:

• Existing active Stripe India accounts continue to be supported.
• A new India account, even for an existing Stripe user, needs an invite. Applicants on the waitlist are told by email if their account can be activated.
• Platforms using Stripe Connect in India can add connected accounts only by invite.
• Stripe’s India documentation refers to supported accounts as part of an “India preview”, and an account’s country cannot be changed to or from India after creation.

For a new Indian business, the honest reading is that you cannot plan your launch around Stripe India unless you already hold an invite. Stripe India Private Limited was reported to have received final RBI approval as an online payment aggregator in January 2024, so the restriction is a product decision rather than a lack of licence.

There is one route Indian founders do use. Stripe accounts registered in countries such as the US, UK, Singapore and much of Europe can accept UPI from customers in India. That helps a founder with an overseas entity, but it is a different setup with its own tax and compliance obligations, not a substitute for a domestic gateway.

How do Razorpay and Stripe compare side by side?

The table summarises what each provider documents for India-registered accounts. Stripe’s column reflects its India support pages; Razorpay’s reflects its pricing page and product documentation.

The payment-method gap is the biggest operational difference. UPI is the default way many Indian customers pay online, and a gateway that cannot accept it on an India account will need a second provider for domestic sales.

How does onboarding and KYC differ?

Razorpay’s onboarding is self-serve. You register with an email or mobile number, choose registered or unregistered, enter a PAN and let Razorpay pull the details, then complete KYC through CKYC, DigiLocker or manual document upload. Registered businesses add a GST or Udyam certificate plus one supporting document such as a Shop Establishment Certificate. Razorpay verifies the bank account with a Rs 1 deposit, and you can use the test dashboard before live mode is approved.

Stripe’s India onboarding, once you have an invite, asks for business type, PAN (personal for sole proprietors, entity PAN for companies and LLPs), a website or social profile, address, representative details and bank account. Companies and LLPs also submit incorporation documents, MOA and AOA or a partnership deed, proof of annual turnover and ownership details for anyone holding more than 10%.

Both review applications before going live. The difference is that with Razorpay you can start today, while with Stripe the first step is getting an invite.

Which is better for international payments from India?

International collections are where Stripe has historically been strong, and its India documentation is detailed. To accept non-INR payments, a Stripe India account must be a registered business that opts in to exports during onboarding, selects an RBI transaction purpose code, and provides an Importer Exporter Code (IEC) when selling physical goods or accepting American Express from international customers. Each export charge needs the customer’s name, billing address and a description, plus a shipping address for goods. International card payments require 3D Secure. Stripe lists a per-transaction export limit of Rs 25 lakh.

Razorpay’s process is similar in substance. Itsinternational payments documentationsays you request the feature from the dashboard, Razorpay’s banking partners approve the request, and you need a completed KYC, published policy pages (terms, privacy, refunds and shipping), an IEC for tangible goods, and a purpose code. Unregistered businesses such as freelancers must use PayPal for international collections. Razorpay supports 3D Secure 2.0 for international cards.

Three differences matter for Indian exporters:

• Regulatory status. Razorpay announced RBI authorisation as a Payment Aggregator, Cross-Border (PA-CB) on 2 December 2025, covering inward and outward payments. Under RBI’s 2025 payment aggregator directions, PA-CB is the category that governs collecting export proceeds. OurRBI payment aggregator guidelines checklistexplains the categories.
• Remittance paperwork. Razorpay makes monthly FIRC or FIRS certificates available in the dashboard for each month. Stripe’s partner bank emails a payment advice listing export charges, which you take to your own bank to request a FIRC.
• Methods beyond cards. Razorpay’sinternational payments pagelists PayPal and international bank transfers through SWIFT, ACH and SEPA as well as cards. Stripe India’s export support is card-based.

If you sell B2B software or services abroad and bill in several currencies, compare these flows against your invoicing model. OurRazorpay vs PayU for SaaSguide covers subscription billing in more depth.

How do their security controls compare?

Both providers operate at the top level of PCI DSS and both publish their security practices, includingRazorpay’s security documentation. The differences are mostly in fraud tooling and access controls.

Fraud tooling. Stripe Radar is the more configurable product. It gives merchants a risk score, a rules engine that can allow, block, review or request 3D Secure, and lists of trusted or blocked customers. Razorpay documents platform-level checks such as hotlisted cards and pattern monitoring, and sells Chargeback Shield, which covers fraud chargebacks on international card payments for a per-transaction fee agreed with sales. Its terms exclude disputes about product quality or delivery, and it applies only to fraud reason codes.

Card tokenisation. Since October 2022, Indian merchants cannot store card numbers, and gateways use network tokens for saved cards. Both providers comply. Stripe notes it does not offer tokenisation as a service, so you cannot take tokens away to store yourself. Our guide tosaved-card payments and tokenisation in Indiaexplains how consent and token lifecycle work.

Authentication. Domestic card payments in India need two-factor authentication under RBI rules, and both gateways route through 3D Secure. Sending complete 3D Secure 2 data reduces unnecessary challenges; see our article on3D Secure 2 and checkout friction.

Webhooks and dashboards. Both sign webhooks with HMAC and both publish IP lists for allowlisting. Always verify the signature against the raw request body and deduplicate by event ID, as covered in our guide topayment API and webhook security. On dashboards, Stripe offers more options, including phishing-resistant passkeys and SSO. Razorpay lets the account owner enforce two-step verification for the whole team. Ourpayment gateway dashboard securitychecklist applies to both.

How do Razorpay and Stripe fees compare?

This is a high-level view from theRazorpay pricing pageand Stripe’s India pricing page in October 2026. For method-by-method calculations, see ourRazorpay vs Cashfree pricingbreakdown.

Two notes on reading these figures. Razorpay’s 90-day offer excludes prepaid cards, corporate credit cards, American Express, Diners and EMI, applies one per PAN, and may come with a Rs 199 KYC processing fee. Razorpay also offers custom enterprise pricing for businesses processing more than Rs 5 lakh a month. On Stripe, the fee depends on how you present the charge: presenting in the customer’s currency improves approval rates but moves you to the higher 4.3% rate.

Which should you choose: Razorpay or Stripe?

We weighed five documented criteria: whether a new Indian business can open an account today, coverage of Indian payment methods, export compliance support, security controls, and published pricing. On that basis, Razorpay leads for India-first businesses.

Choose Razorpay if:

• You are an Indian business without a Stripe invite. Razorpay accepts self-serve sign-ups, including unregistered individuals.
• Most of your customers pay with UPI, RuPay, netbanking, wallets or EMI. Stripe India accounts do not support UPI, netbanking, EMI or pay later.
• You export services or goods and want purpose codes, FIRC downloads and a gateway with announced PA-CB authorisation in one place.
• You want one provider for domestic and international collections, settled in INR.

Choose Stripe if:

• Stripe has invited you, and your business is focused on international customers paying by card.
• You operate, or plan to operate, an overseas entity and need multi-country billing, subscriptions, invoicing and tax tooling under one platform. Overseas Stripe accounts can also accept UPI from Indian customers.
• Your fraud team wants a configurable rules engine and risk scoring, which Radar documents in more depth than Razorpay’s public tools.
• Your security team wants SSO, passkeys and fine-grained restricted API keys on the payments dashboard.

Frequently asked questions

1. Can a new Indian business open a Stripe account in 2026?

Only by invitation. Stripe’s support page says Indian businesses cannot sign up on the website and must request an invite through sales, and that it supports a select number of businesses focused on international expansion.

2. Does Stripe support UPI for Indian businesses?

Not for India-registered accounts. Stripe’s India support page lists UPI, netbanking, EMI and pay later as unsupported. Stripe accounts in countries such as the US, UK and Singapore can accept UPI from customers in India.

3. Will my existing Stripe India account keep working?

Yes. Stripe says currently active India accounts continue to be supported. Opening an additional India account still needs an invite.

4. Does Razorpay accept international payments?

Yes, once enabled. You request international payments from the dashboard, and approval depends on Razorpay’s banking partners. You need completed KYC, published policy pages, a purpose code and an IEC if you sell physical goods.

5. How do I get a FIRC or e-FIRA for export payments?

With Razorpay, monthly FIRC or FIRS certificates appear in the dashboard. With Stripe, Standard Chartered Bank emails a payment advice on payout day, which you take to your own bank to request a FIRC.

6. Which is more secure, Razorpay or Stripe?

Both are PCI DSS Level 1 and both sign webhooks with HMAC. Stripe offers more configurable fraud rules and dashboard sign-in options, while Razorpay covers Indian methods such as UPI under the same controls. Your own integration practices matter as much as the provider.

7. Are Razorpay and Stripe fees charged with GST?

Yes. Both apply 18% GST on their fees. Razorpay deducts the fee and GST at source, while Stripe deducts GST through the month and issues a monthly tax invoice.

8. Can I use both Razorpay and Stripe?

Yes, if you have a reason to. A common pattern is Razorpay for domestic collections and Stripe through an overseas entity for international billing, which means two reconciliation flows and two vendor reviews.