Choosing a payment processor for a Romanian store
Of the four usually considered, only two publish a price: Netopia (1.19% + 0.30 RON on a full card payment, rate card effective 1 August 2026) and Stripe (1.5% + 1.00 RON on European Economic Area cards). EuPlătesc publishes „from 1.2%”, explicitly marked as indicative. PayU Romania publishes nothing — no rate, no setup fee, no settlement time. The real decision isn't made on decimals of a percent but on three things: whether you need bank instalments, whether you sell in a category the processor refuses, and how many days until the money reaches you.
Who publishes a price and who doesn't
The first practical difference, before any rate, is transparency. Checked on 8 September 2026, on each provider's own pages.
Netopia publishes a full card: 1.19% + 0.30 RON for a full card payment, 2.3% + 0.30 RON for meal-voucher cards, and 1.45–11% + 0.30 RON for instalments, adding that rates are negotiated on volume. Source: netopia-payments.com, effective 1 August 2026.
Stripe publishes everything, in RON, on its Romanian page: 1.5% + 1.00 RON on EEA cards, 2.5% + 1.00 RON on UK cards, 3.15% + 1.00 RON on international cards, plus 2% where currency conversion is needed. Unlike everyone else, it also publishes the cost of disputes: 100 RON for a dispute received, and another 100 RON if you contest it manually. Source: stripe.com/ro/pricing.
EuPlătesc publishes „from 1.2% per transaction”, with its own caveat that „prices are set only after speaking to a representative”. Source: euplatesc.ro.
PayU Romania publishes nothing. No rate, no setup fee, no subscription, no settlement or chargeback cost. Their commercial offer page isn't publicly accessible. That doesn't make them expensive — it makes them impossible to compare before you talk to someone.
One ambiguity worth knowing: on its own site Netopia writes 1.19% without saying whether VAT is included. In its own Shopify App Store listing, the same offer reads 1.24% + 0.3 RON + VAT. Two different figures on two channels of the same company. Ask explicitly before you sign.
How many days until the money arrives
The line almost nobody checks in advance, and the one that hurts most for a small store with stock to buy.
Netopia is the only local processor that publishes a settlement time, and it does so on its forum rather than its site: transactions become eligible after 3 days, with payment on the fourth working day or the next one. There is also a 100 RON minimum threshold — below it, the money stays with them until the balance builds up. Source: community.netopia-payments.com, June 2023.
Stripe publishes Romania's timing in its official docs: 3 business days by default, but 7 calendar days for the first settlement, and a first payout typically within 7–14 days. Minimum payout: 5 RON. Source: docs.stripe.com/payouts.
PayU and EuPlătesc publish no settlement time anywhere.
Instalments — where the comparison breaks
If you sell above roughly 300–400 RON, this is probably the deciding line.
PayU publishes a figure of its own worth remembering: instalment payments hold about 24% of Romanian e-tail. Not a niche option. Source: romania.payu.com.
Netopia names eight banks: Card Avantaj (Nexent Bank), Bonus Card (Garanti BBVA), Star Card (Banca Transilvania), UniCredit, ING, Card George (BCR), Raiffeisen and BRD, with up to 12 interest-free instalments for the customer, while the merchant „collects the full basket value”. Their 1.45–11% instalment band suggests the difference shows up in the merchant rate, but their text doesn't say explicitly who carries the interest — don't assume without asking.
PayU and EuPlătesc offer instalments but publish neither the partner banks nor the cost.
Stripe has no instalments with Romanian banks. None. No BT Pay either, and no meal-voucher cards. Checked against Stripe's own payment-method support table for a Romanian business location. If instalments matter to you, Stripe is out before you look at the rate. Source: docs.stripe.com.
Stripe in Romania: what works and what doesn't
The most misunderstood option on the market, in both directions.
What works: it settles in RON to a Romanian IBAN, with a 5 RON minimum payout. Cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Link, PayPal and SEPA debit. The price is public and complete, including dispute costs.
What doesn't: there is no Romanian entity — the contract is with Stripe Payments Europe, Limited, in Ireland, as for every EEA country. No Romanian bank instalments, no BT Pay, no meal-voucher cards. And Klarna, though available with a Romanian business location, only works for customers in other countries — a Romanian buyer cannot pay with it through Stripe. Source: stripe.com/ro/legal/ssa and docs.stripe.com.
Practically: Stripe suits you if you sell mostly outside Romania, or if your products are bought on impulse, by card, without instalments. It suits a classic Romanian store with a large average basket poorly.
Worth knowing: Shopify Payments works in Romania and runs on Stripe underneath. It settles in RON or EUR, minimum 3 business days, 5 RON minimum payout. The same limits apply. Source: help.shopify.com, Romania.
Refused categories — check this before the price
The most expensive thing you can find out late: a store built and launched, and a processor that turns you down at approval.
Netopia publishes the most detailed list on the market. Prohibited: gambling and betting, pornographic material, cryptocurrency trading, prescription medicines without authorisation, weapons, THC substances, counterfeits. Currently not onboardable: donations, dropshipping, forex and stock trading.
EuPlătesc publishes one too: gambling, astrology and tarot are prohibited. Not onboardable: pharmacies, products containing melatonin, hemp, cannabis, HGH or Kava, dropshipping, marketplaces with third-party sellers, dating and video chat, cryptocurrency.
Note the pattern: both Netopia and EuPlătesc list dropshipping as not onboardable. If your model is pure dropshipping, check this by phone before anything else.
Stripe publishes a global list: adult services and pornography prohibited, as is gambling and unsafe pseudo-pharmaceuticals. Restricted but conditionally allowed: tobacco and e-cigarettes sold lawfully, CBD with negligible THC, online pharmacies. Food supplements aren't banned as such — the prohibition targets unsafe products or harmful claims.
PayU Romania publishes no restricted-category list on its Romanian site at all.
Integration: who maintains the plugin
A plugin abandoned three years ago is a security risk and a source of lost payments.
Netopia has official documentation for WooCommerce, PrestaShop, Magento and OpenCart, plus its own app in the Shopify App Store. Its WooCommerce plugin on wordpress.org has over 10,000 active installations and is tested against a recent WordPress release.
PayU maintains plugins on GitHub through the PayU EMEA team, and offers a certified API for Shopify rather than an app. One concrete warning: the methods listed in their WooCommerce plugin are heavily Poland-oriented — BLIK, PayPo, Twisto, PragmaPay. No list of covered countries is published anywhere, and Romania isn't mentioned. Check directly with PayU Romania before relying on it.
EuPlătesc has no plugin published on wordpress.org and no public modules page. Modules circulate through third-party developers.
Stripe has by far the best developer documentation of the group.
Twispay no longer exists under that name
If you find comparisons that include it, they're out of date. Verified 8 September 2026: twispay.com redirects to xmoney.com.
Card processing now runs through Capital Financial Services S.A., an electronic money institution licensed by the National Bank of Romania under authorisation IEME-RO-0001, based in Bucharest. The positioning has shifted heavily toward crypto and stablecoins. It publishes no rate, no settlement time, and has no e-commerce plugin page. For an ordinary Romanian store it's no longer an obvious competitor.
In short
Don't choose on the rate. Choose in this order: first check whether you sell in a refused category, then whether you need instalments — if you do, Stripe is out. Only then look at price, and compare only what is actually published. And when you ask PayU or EuPlătesc for a quote, ask in writing for all five lines: rate, setup, subscription, settlement time and chargeback cost. The rate alone is not the price.
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