Stripe

Stripe is an online payment platform that allows businesses to accept digital payments through their website, ecommerce store or app. The platform processes credit cards, iDEAL, Bancontact and dozens of other payment methods, without the need for a bank contract for each method. For Dutch SMEs selling internationally or offering subscriptions, Stripe offers a flexible infrastructure that you can integrate into your own systems via APIs.

How Stripe processes payments

Stripe works as an intermediary between your customer, the bank and your business account. When a customer pays, Stripe sends the encrypted payment data to the appropriate financial party, verifies the transaction and credits the amount to your Stripe balance after approval. You can have that balance paid daily or weekly to your business bank account. All transactions can be tracked in real time in the Stripe Dashboard, including refunds, failed payments and disputes. Unlike traditional payment service providers, you don't have to pay a monthly fixed fee. Stripe only charges a percentage per successful transaction, usually 1.4% plus €0.25 for European cards.

Why Stripe came into being and why it matters now

Stripe was founded in 2010 by brothers Patrick and John Collison, with the goal of making online payments easier for developers and startups. Before then, companies often had to wait weeks for a merchant account and sign complex contracts. Stripe made it possible to go live within minutes via a few lines of code. By now, the platform processes hundreds of billions of euros per year and is a standard for SaaS companies, marketplaces and ecommerce stores that want to scale quickly. For Dutch SMEs, Stripe is especially relevant if you sell internationally, manage recurring payments or need custom integrations that are not standard in WooCommerce or Shopify.

What Stripe delivers for SMBs

With Stripe, as an SMB, you can quickly build a professional checkout without having to handle PCI compliance yourself or store payment data on your own server. That reduces legal risks and technical overhead. You can automate subscriptions, send invoices, set up payment reminders, and even display dynamic prices based on location or currency. For companies launching an ecommerce store with international ambitions, Stripe supports over 135 currencies and local payment methods such as Swish in Sweden or Przelewy24 in Poland. The API documentation is comprehensive, allowing developers to quickly build custom flows. In practice, we’ve found that Stripe works particularly well for businesses that want control over the checkout experience and are willing to invest time in the technical integration.

In practice, Stripe is deployed for scenarios where standard payment solutions are too limited or customization is needed. Think of platforms with multiple vendors, SaaS tools with variable pricing models or ecommerce stores that sell globally. Below you can read about the most common applications within Dutch SMEs, including when Stripe is and is not the right choice.

Subscriptions and recurring payments

Stripe Billing allows you to fully automate subscriptions, from initial payment to renewals, upgrades and cancellations. You can set different price levels, offer trial periods and send invoices automatically. For an online course platform or SaaS tool, this means you don't have to manually track who pays and when. Stripe sends reminders when payments fail and automatically tries to collect again. In practice, this works well for companies with at least 50 subscribers, because otherwise you spend more time on setup than you save. For one-time sales or small numbers of customers, a simpler solution like Mollie is often more convenient.

International ecommerce stores with multiple currencies.

If you sell to customers in the UK, Germany and Scandinavia, Stripe allows you to automatically display prices in the local currency and checkout using the payment method common there. Stripe converts the exchange rate and pays you in euros to your Dutch bank account. That saves conversion loss, because customers don't have to convert or see unexpected costs. An ecommerce store with 200 orders per month from at least three countries derives measurable benefit from this. For companies that only sell in the United States and Belgium, this functionality adds little and it is better to choose a cheaper local provider. Read more about international optimization in our knowledge base on localization.

Marketplace platforms with split payouts

Stripe Connect is designed for platforms where multiple sellers operate, such as a marketplace for freelancers or a platform for local artisans. Connect allows you to split payments automatically: part goes to the seller, part to your platform as commission. Stripe handles compliance and makes sure each seller gets their own payout. For a platform with at least 10 active sellers, this is an efficient solution. For smaller initiatives or platforms where you manage all products yourself, the complexity is not necessary. In those cases, a standard checkout with manual processing or a simpler API integration will suffice.

When Stripe is the right choice and when it is not

Stripe is a good fit for companies that need technical flexibility, sell internationally or want to automate complex payment flows. It is less suitable if you only sell in the United States, have few transactions or do not have an in-house developer. For a standard ecommerce store with iDEAL and credit card, Mollie or a built-in WooCommerce solution is often sufficient. Stripe requires more configuration, but offers more control and scalability. When in doubt: start with a simpler solution and switch to Stripe as soon as you grow internationally or need customization.