Shopify Payment Methods in Germany: PayPal, Klarna, Apple Pay & More

You want to set up Shopify payment methods and are wondering which ones you really need, what they cost and why PayPal doesn't show up under Shopify Payments? Here are the answers for stores based in Germany: step by step, with a fee overview and the solution for countries without Shopify Payments. For how payments, payouts and pricing fit together, see the overview Payments, payouts & pricing in Shopify.

Which Shopify payment methods do you really need?

You don't have to offer every payment method. You need the ones your customers want to pay with. In Germany, that mainly means PayPal, buy now, pay later by invoice (Kauf auf Rechnung, in Shopify usually via Klarna), cards and mobile wallets such as Apple Pay. Each additional payment method costs you nothing per month, but every payment comes with a fee.

A solid starter set for most stores:

• Shopify Payments: automatically includes credit cards, debit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Shop Pay. You enable Klarna separately.
• PayPal: in Germany, this runs separately via PayPal Express Checkout, not through Shopify Payments.
• Prepayment by bank transfer (Vorkasse, optional): no fees, but slower and more manual work.

The EUR fees for Shopify Payments and Klarna come from secondary sources. Check the current rates in your admin under Settings > Payments in the Shopify Payments section via Manage, or on the Shopify pricing page. What these fees add up to alongside your plan and apps is calculated in the article What does Shopify really cost?.

Activate Shopify Payments: step by step

Shopify Payments is Shopify's own payment provider. You don't need a separate contract with a card processor, and you don't need a credit card of your own to accept card payments. Customers pay with their card, and you receive the money as a payout to your bank account.

What you need beforehand

• a SEPA-enabled euro checking account with a German or other approved IBAN (no savings account, no multi-currency account)
• ID and proof of address, for example a certificate of registration (Meldebescheinigung)
• depending on your situation, your trade registration (Gewerbeanmeldung) or your VAT registration
• for companies: details on all beneficial owners holding 25% or more

According to Shopify, eligible business types include sole proprietorships, GmbH/UG, OHG/KG and GbR. If you haven't registered a business yet, Registering a business for your online store explains how. You'll find the complete list of documents in the Shopify Payments requirements for Germany.

How to proceed

1. In the Shopify admin, open Settings > Payments.
2. Start the setup in the Shopify Payments section and enter your business type, contact details and bank details.
3. Upload the requested documents. Make sure the name on the account exactly matches your business details. Mismatched names are a common reason for failed payouts.
4. Then check via Manage which payment methods are active. Cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Shop Pay are on automatically.
5. Place a test order before you go live. What else belongs on your launch list is covered in Launching your Shopify store: the checklist.

Shopify Payments is missing or the store doesn't accept payments

• Shopify Payments isn't shown at all: Check your business's country and address in the store settings. Shopify only offers Payments if your business is based in a supported country.
• The checkout says "This store can't accept payments right now": Usually no payment provider is fully set up, or Shopify Payments is still waiting for documents. The notice appears on the Payments page.
• Real payments fail: If test mode is still active, real cards won't go through.
• You're under 18: According to Shopify's terms of service, you must be of legal age to have your own account, and without your own account there are no payouts.

As a store based in Germany, you'll usually look for Stripe in vain: here, Shopify Payments is the intended card provider, and you don't need a separate Stripe contract.

Set up PayPal in Shopify

In Germany, you won't find PayPal under Shopify Payments. That's not a mistake: according to Shopify, PayPal through Shopify Payments only exists in France and the US. For you, PayPal runs as a separate provider via PayPal Express Checkout. When you create your store, Shopify automatically sets up an account with your store email for this, but you still need to finish setting it up.

1. Go to Settings > Payments.
2. Under the additional payment methods, click "Setup incomplete" next to PayPal and then "Complete setup".
3. Log in with your PayPal account or create a new one. Shopify requires a PayPal business account linked to your store email.
4. Enter your business details, agree to the permissions and return to Shopify.
5. Make a test payment with a different PayPal account than the one receiving the money.

Money from PayPal payments lands directly in your PayPal account, not in your Shopify payout. You'll still usually pay your supplier before a Shopify payout arrives. When which money arrives where is explained in the article Shopify payouts: when your money arrives.

The exact steps are in Shopify's guide Setting up PayPal Express Checkout.

Activate Klarna: through Shopify Payments or externally?

In Germany, Klarna is available as a local payment method in Shopify Payments. Unlike cards, it isn't on automatically: you activate it in the admin under Payments in the Shopify Payments section. Klarna is then shown depending on the customer's country.

The advantage over an external Klarna integration: no second contract, no Shopify transaction fee, and the money arrives with your regular Shopify payout. According to secondary sources, the fee is approx. 2.99% + €0.35 per payment.

When an external Klarna integration still makes sense

With high sales volume, a direct contract with Klarna can bring better terms. Then calculate like this: Klarna's terms plus your plan's Shopify transaction fee versus the Shopify Payments fee for Klarna. The transaction fee drops with higher plans (Advanced 0.6%, Plus 0.2%), so the external option is mainly interesting for large stores. For beginners, Klarna through Shopify Payments is almost always the simpler route.

Legally, the same applies to Klarna as to any payment method: your privacy policy (Datenschutzerklärung) should name Klarna as a payment service provider, and the payment methods you list in your terms and conditions (AGB) or payment information must match what the checkout actually offers. What else belongs in your legal texts is covered in Protecting your Shopify store from legal warnings.

Prepayment and other manual payment methods

You set up prepayment by bank transfer, cash on delivery or a custom payment method as a manual payment method. There are no payment fees and no Shopify transaction fees for these, not even with dropshipping.

1. Open Settings > Payments.
2. Under Manual payment methods, choose a suggested method or "Create custom payment method".
3. Under Additional details, enter what appears in the checkout, and under Payment instructions, your IBAN and the payment reference (ideally the order number).
4. Activate the method.

Orders with manual payment appear as "unpaid". You mark them as paid yourself once the money arrives, and only then ship. If the transfer doesn't arrive, you cancel the order after a deadline so that the reserved inventory is released. How that works is explained in Canceling and refunding orders in Shopify. All of this is manual work. For stores with many orders, prepayment is therefore mainly worthwhile as an addition for customers who don't want to pay online. Details are in the Shopify Help Center on manual payments.

Hide, reorder and rename payment methods

Common questions from practice: "How do I exclude individual products from PayPal?", "How do I show PayPal first?" or "Why is Klarna shown even though I don't want it?". For the last one, simply deactivating the method in the payment settings is enough. For anything that should work based on rules, you need an app.

Shopify lets apps hide, reorder and rename payment methods in the checkout using so-called payment customization functions. There are limits: you can hide wallets such as Apple Pay or Google Pay, but not reorder them. You can't rename methods with a logo, such as Shop Pay, Apple Pay or Google Pay. A maximum of 25 such functions can be active per store. Source: Shopify developer documentation.

Typical rules:

• invoice purchase only from or up to a certain cart value
• prepayment for personalized products, cash on delivery only in Germany
• hide a payment method for certain products, collections or customer groups
• show the preferred payment method at the top

For rules like these, we at Appsentials built our app Payment Rules (our app, for disclosure). It hides payment methods in the checkout, reorders them and, from the Basic plan, renames them. Conditions include cart value and country, and on the Pro plan also B2B and metafield conditions. You'll find alternatives in the Shopify App Store under search terms such as "hide payment methods". With any app, make sure it uses Shopify Functions and doesn't rely on scripts in the theme.

Whether you should show PayPal at the top or further down can't be answered across the board. PayPal is very widespread in Germany, but usually costs you more than a card payment. Test the order against your own numbers instead of following a general rule of thumb.

Shopify Payments is not available in your country: what now?

According to Shopify, Shopify Payments is available in 40 countries, including Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Check the current list of countries. What matters is your business's country, not your customers'.

If your country isn't on it, you have three options:

1. Choose a third-party provider: Under Settings > Payments, Shopify shows you the payment providers available in your country via "Choose a provider". The Shopify Payment Gateways page offers an overview by country. Only one credit card provider can be active at a time.
2. PayPal, provided PayPal is allowed to receive payments in your country.
3. Manual payment methods such as bank transfer or cash on delivery as a supplement.

With third-party providers, factor in the Shopify transaction fee: 2% per order on the Basic plan, on top of the provider's fee. With small margins, this quickly eats up a large part of your profit. How to factor it in properly is shown in Calculating prices in your online store.

For stores in Germany, the question is usually a different one: you want to sell to countries outside the EU. That works with Shopify Payments without any problem. You set up local currencies and payment methods abroad via Shopify Markets, see Shopify Markets: multiple languages & currencies.

Stores in Austria and Switzerland

Both countries support Shopify Payments, and setup works as described above. In addition to Klarna, you can activate EPS in Austria if needed (for Austrian customers paying in euros), and TWINT in Switzerland (for customers in Switzerland paying in CHF). If Klarna or TWINT is missing, Shopify Payments usually isn't fully set up yet or the method isn't activated. The current list is in the Help Center for Austria and Switzerland.

B2B and wholesale: payment terms, invoice purchases and business customers

If you sell to businesses or resellers, you need different rules than for consumers: purchase on invoice with payment terms and separate prices. Shopify has a B2B feature for this. According to the Shopify Help Center, it's available on the Basic, Grow, Advanced and Plus plans, but not on Starter or Retail. You create business customers in the admin as companies and set prices, payment terms and payment methods per location.

Source: Shopify, B2B features by plan. With payment terms, the company pays later through its customer account. According to the Help Center, Shopify doesn't charge a saved card automatically; you trigger that yourself in the admin.

• Payment methods by customer type: You set payment terms directly on the company. If, for example, PayPal or Klarna should disappear from the checkout for business customers, a payment customization app with B2B conditions helps, such as Payment Rules on the Pro plan.
• Invoices: Businesses need a proper invoice, gradually as an e-invoice from 2027 or 2028. What you need is explained in Invoices and accounting in your Shopify store.

Law: no surcharges on payment methods

You pay the payment fees, not your customers. Under German law (§ 270a BGB), you may not charge an extra fee for SEPA transfers, SEPA direct debits and, towards consumers, for common cards such as Visa and Mastercard. And if you charge a fee for any payment method, § 312a(4) BGB requires at least one common, reasonable and free alternative. The simplest and safest solution: no surcharges on any payment method. The fees belong in your price calculation.

FAQ

Do I have to offer all payment methods in Shopify?

No. You decide which payment methods you offer. Legally, the main thing is that you don't charge unlawful surcharges. For conversion in Germany, PayPal, invoice purchase and cards or Apple Pay are important. Additional payment methods don't create monthly costs, only fees per payment. You can deactivate any method under Settings > Payments.

Do I need my own credit card to accept card payments?

No. For Shopify Payments, you need a euro checking account that receives the payouts. Whether you own a credit card yourself doesn't matter. Customers pay with their own card. At most, you need a card to pay your Shopify bill, apps or ads.

Can I use Shopify Payments and PayPal at the same time?

Yes, that's the usual combination in Germany. Shopify Payments covers cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Klarna, while PayPal runs in parallel via PayPal Express Checkout. If Shopify Payments is your primary provider, there's no Shopify transaction fee on PayPal payments. The only thing you can't activate in parallel is a second credit card provider.

Why can't I find PayPal under Shopify Payments?

Because in Germany, PayPal doesn't run through Shopify Payments. PayPal is only integrated there in France and the US. For you, PayPal is listed under Settings > Payments among the additional payment methods. The account is usually already created but marked "Setup incomplete". Complete the setup with a PayPal business account.

Should I set up a separate bank account and PayPal account for the store?

Yes, that makes sense. Shopify requires a business account for PayPal anyway. A separate bank account for the store separates private and business payments and makes accounting and tax returns much easier. Many banks also prohibit business use of a personal account in their terms. Check this with your bank.

Should I keep Shop Pay in the checkout?

Shop Pay is automatically active with Shopify Payments. Customers who already have a Shop account can use it to pay faster with saved address and payment details. Whether it's actually used in your store, you can see from the payment methods of your orders. It costs you nothing extra as long as nobody uses it. If it bothers you, you can hide wallets such as Shop Pay with a payment customization app.

Can I disable PayPal for individual products?

Not with Shopify's built-in tools. For that, you need an app that hides payment methods based on rules, for example by product, collection, cart value or country. Shopify provides payment customization functions for this, which apps use in the checkout. This lets you hide PayPal for certain products, for example, while it stays visible in the rest of the store.

Is PayPal free of fees if I use Shopify Payments?

No. With Shopify Payments as your primary provider, only the additional Shopify transaction fee on PayPal payments is waived. You always pay PayPal's own fee, which for domestic payments is 2.99% + €0.39 per payment according to PayPal (as of 09/07/2026). It's deducted directly in your PayPal account.

As of: October 2026. Fees and availability change. Check the current values in your Shopify admin. This article is not legal or tax advice.