Shopify payment gateway in Pakistan: what works, what it costs

What works on Shopify in Pakistan

Shopify Payments, Shopify’s built-in card system, is not available in Pakistan. A Shopify store here takes cash on delivery and bank transfers with no gateway. It takes cards through a local gateway such as Safepay, PayFast or Bank Alfalah, and Shopify adds its own fee on every gateway order.

Figures are from each company’s own pages, as of October 2026, with two caveats. Shopify’s Pakistan page prints no fee percentage, so those come from its pages for other countries. PayFast’s live site blocked automated readers again on October 20, 2026, so its rates are PayFast’s published rates as of January 2026: confirm them with PayFast.

For most new stores, the first two rows are enough. Cash on delivery costs Shopify nothing, so add a gateway when buyers start asking to pay by card.

Why Shopify Payments is not an option

Shopify’s supported countries page does not list Pakistan. It says that if your country is not listed, you need a third-party payment provider, and Shopify then charges a fee on every order that provider takes.

Shopify’s help page says the rate depends on your plan, and the Pakistan pricing page prints plan prices in dollars but no percentages. Shopify’s dollar-priced pages for the UAE and Hong Kong print the same rates by plan as its euro and Canadian pages. Rupee figures use about Rs 277 to the dollar, the interbank close on October 16, 2026.

The percentages are Shopify’s published figures for other countries, not a Pakistan quote. Ask Shopify support to confirm the rate for your plan before you budget around it.

The fee does not apply to manual payment methods. Shopify’s help page says transaction fees do not apply to manual payment methods, which include cash on delivery and bank deposits. For what the plans cost in rupees, see Shopify price in Pakistan.

The local gateways, one by one

Safepay. The State Bank of Pakistan’s list of authorised payment operators, updated September 2, 2026, lists Safepay as an e-commerce payment gateway, approved April 17, 2025. It has three Shopify routes:

• The Safepay Checkout app is free to install.
• The Safepay Checkout Raast app takes payments from supported local banks and wallets through Raast. It was listed on September 16, 2026 and has no reviews yet.
• Safepay’s Onsite version puts the card form on your own checkout page. Shopify bills US$11.99 a month for it after a 7-day trial, which is US$143.88 a year, about Rs 39,900.

Safepay’s pricing page lists 2.9% + Rs 30 per successful domestic card charge, 0.3% more for international cards, 1.5% on wallets and on Raast, no setup or monthly fees, and Rs 3,000 per dispute. Its fee breakdown page says the card fees are exclusive of tax and there are no yearly fees.

PayFast. Premier Payfast is on the same SBP list as an e-commerce payment gateway, approved May 21, 2021. Its Shopify app, listed under the developer Devsinc, is free to install, and its listing says transaction fees vary from merchant to merchant.

PayFast’s live pricing page blocked our reader on October 20, 2026. The latest copy we could read, an archived copy saved on January 13, 2026, lists Raast QR at 0.60%, Raast Request to Pay at 0.95%, bank accounts and wallets at 2.20%, local cards at 2.95% and international cards at 3.50%. All are exclusive of service tax, with no annual fee and a minimal setup fee. These are PayFast’s published rates as of January 2026, nine months old: ask PayFast for a written quote.

Bank Alfalah. The bank’s schedule of charges for July to December 2026 lists an internet payment gateway with a Shopify Integration App line:

• A 3.5% merchant discount rate, plus Rs 35 per transaction.
• 0.85% for the Shopify integration app.
• An integration charge of up to Rs 100,000 one time, and an annual fee of up to Rs 50,000.

Each line carries an asterisk, and the schedule says charges can vary at the bank’s discretion. These are list terms, not a quote for your shop. The schedule also lists a 2% surcharge on international transactions and a Rs 30 tokenization fee, which the totals below leave out.

JazzCash and Easypaisa. JazzCash has its own Shopify app, free to install, listed on February 18, 2026 with no reviews yet. Its listing says it takes cards, bank accounts, vouchers and JazzCash wallets, and gives no rate. Ask JazzCash for the fee and what an account needs. Our JazzCash business account guide covers the account itself.

We could not confirm an Easypaisa app in the Shopify App Store in October 2026. Ask Easypaisa whether it supports Shopify, and ask Safepay whether its Raast app covers Easypaisa wallets.

UNumPay. Shopify community threads recommend a UNumPay app for Pakistani banks. The listing we found, UNumPay BNPL by Devsinc, mentions BAF MPGS, which is Bank Alfalah’s gateway, and lists US$1 a month plus 0.9% per transaction. It was listed on June 23, 2022, has no reviews and names no other banks, so ask the developer which banks it covers before you rely on it.

Stripe and PayPal. Stripe’s global availability page does not list Pakistan, and we could not confirm a PayPal merchant service for Pakistani businesses in October 2026. For buyers abroad, Safepay and PayFast both list international card rates. Ask each whether a foreign buyer can pay by card, in which currency, and how you are settled. The payment gateway guide for Pakistan has the full comparison.

Which one to start with:

• You want a price you can check today. Safepay publishes its rates and PayFast published its rates in January. Bank Alfalah says its rates vary by business, so get its numbers in writing.
• Your buyers pay from bank accounts and wallets. Safepay lists 1.5% for Raast and wallets, and PayFast listed 0.60% for Raast QR and 2.20% for wallets. Ask each which of those its Shopify app supports.
• You already bank with Bank Alfalah and your orders are large. Ask the bank which one-time and annual fees it would charge you, in writing.

What a gateway costs per Rs 100,000 of sales

Assumptions: a Basic plan, 25 orders of Rs 4,000 in a month (25 x Rs 4,000 = Rs 100,000), and every order paid by domestic card. That is the most a gateway can cost you, because cash on delivery orders cost the gateway nothing. The totals leave out tax, PayFast’s setup fee and Bank Alfalah’s one-time and annual fees. PayFast’s column uses its January 2026 rate.

Four things change the result:

• Your Shopify plan. On Grow, Shopify’s fee is 1%, so every total above falls by Rs 1,000. Grow costs US$40 a month more than Basic when you pay monthly, which is US$40 x Rs 277 = Rs 11,080. For the fee alone, Grow pays off only above Rs 11,080 / 1% = Rs 1,108,000 of card sales a month. Paying yearly, the gap is US$30, or Rs 8,310, and the break-even is Rs 831,000.
• Tax. Safepay and PayFast both quote fees exclusive of tax, and neither page puts a rate on that tax. Ask for the all-in rate.
• Bank Alfalah’s one-time and yearly fees. If you were charged the full amounts listed, that is up to Rs 100,000 once and up to Rs 50,000 a year, which no small store recovers quickly. Ask what yours would be.
• Order size. The flat fee hurts small orders. On a Rs 1,500 order, Safepay’s 2.9% is Rs 43.50, plus Rs 30, plus Shopify’s 2% at Rs 30, a total of Rs 103.50, which is 6.9%.

If only part of your sales are by card, scale it. At Rs 4,000 an order the Safepay route costs 5.65% of card sales, so Rs 30,000 of card sales costs 5.65% x Rs 30,000 = Rs 1,695.

Then compare with cash on delivery after withholding tax, not before it. FBR’s withholding tax rate card lists, under section 153(2A), 1% of the gross amount withheld on online orders paid through a payment intermediary and 2% on cash on delivery paid out by a courier, for sellers on the Active Taxpayers List. Off the list, the rates are 2% and 4%. On Rs 100,000 of orders for a seller on the list:

• Safepay card orders: Rs 5,650 in fees + Rs 1,000 withheld (1%) = Rs 6,650.
• Cash on delivery orders: Rs 0 in gateway fees + Rs 2,000 withheld (2%) = Rs 2,000, before the courier’s own charge.
• The gap is Rs 6,650 minus Rs 2,000 = Rs 4,650, not the Rs 5,650 in the table, because Rs 1,000 less is withheld on card orders.

Withholding is an advance payment toward your tax, not a fee, so this compares what is held back at payout, not your final bill. The courier’s COD fee and the cost of returned parcels also sit on the cash on delivery side. The online business tax guide explains the withholding.

When a card gateway is worth adding

A gateway does not fix returns. Take a Rs 4,000 order paid by card through Safepay: 2.9% is Rs 116, plus Rs 30, plus Shopify’s 2% at Rs 80, so Rs 226. Assume a returned cash on delivery parcel costs you Rs 400 in courier charges both ways. Moving that order to a card pays off only if more than Rs 226 / Rs 400 = 56.5% of your cash on delivery parcels come back. If fewer than half do, the gateway does not pay for itself on returns. To bring returns down, read how to reduce COD returns.

Add a card gateway when one of these is true:

1. Buyers abroad or buyers who do not trust the rider want to order. They will not order on cash on delivery, so a gateway wins you orders you would not otherwise get.
2. Your orders are large. A fixed Rs 30 is small on Rs 10,000 and large on Rs 800.
3. Waiting for cash is hurting you. Our guide to the COD payment cycle shows how long money takes to reach you.

Until then, ask for an advance by bank transfer on risky orders. Neither Shopify nor the gateways charge a fee on it.

Set up cash on delivery and bank transfer first

Shopify’s manual payments page lists cash on delivery, money orders and bank transfers, and lets you create custom methods. Open Settings, then Payments, and add them.

1. Add Cash on delivery (COD). Write one line of instructions, such as “Pay the rider in cash”.
2. Add a custom method called Bank transfer. In the instructions, put your account title and number, and ask for a screenshot on WhatsApp.
3. If buyers prefer wallets, add a custom method called JazzCash or Easypaisa transfer with the account number, the same way. Ask your wallet provider whether the account you use may receive business payments.
4. Remember that these orders show as unpaid. Mark each one paid once the cash or transfer arrives.

How to apply and what to ask

Safepay lists the documents for a sole proprietor on its documents page:

• CNIC, front and back.
• A bank account maintenance certificate for an account in the name of the proprietorship or proprietor, no more than three months old.
• Your NTN certificate from FBR.

Without an NTN, start with registering an online business in Pakistan. Safepay’s onboarding page says it also checks your order and fulfilment history and your website content, so have a working store with products before you apply.

After approval, install the app, enter your API keys and turn test mode off. Once it is live, match each Shopify order to Safepay’s dashboard: the Payment field on the order in Shopify is the Order ID in Safepay, according to its Shopify integration guide.

Before you sign with any gateway, send this message and keep the replies:

1. What is your all-in rate per order, with tax, for Pakistani and foreign cards?
2. Are there any setup, monthly or yearly fees?
3. How many days until money reaches my bank account?
4. What is the chargeback fee, and do you hold a reserve?
5. Which documents do you need for a sole proprietor with an NTN?
6. Do you have a Shopify app, and on which Shopify plan does it work?

Where your store fits

Storelala adds JazzCash, Easypaisa and debit or credit cards at checkout on Core, Rs 2,000 a month or Rs 1,000 a month billed yearly. Lite is free forever and takes cash on delivery. Storelala takes no fees on any plan, though wallet and card providers still set their own charges. The Shopify alternative for Pakistan page compares the two side by side, and pricing lists every plan.

Questions sellers ask

Is Shopify Payments available in Pakistan?

No. Pakistan is not on Shopify’s list of supported countries for Shopify Payments, and Shopify says stores outside that list must use a third-party payment provider. Cash on delivery and bank transfers work without one.

Can I take cash on delivery on Shopify in Pakistan?

Yes. Cash on delivery is one of Shopify’s manual payment methods, which you switch on under Settings, then Payments. Shopify’s third-party transaction fee does not apply to it. Each order shows as unpaid until you mark it paid. Withholding tax on cash on delivery is 2% for sellers on the Active Taxpayers List and 4% for those off it, against 1% and 2% on gateway orders.

Which payment gateways work with Shopify in Pakistan?

As of October 2026, the Shopify App Store lists Safepay Checkout, Safepay Checkout Raast, the PayFast Gateway App and a JazzCash app, and Bank Alfalah lists a Shopify integration on its schedule of charges. Check that any gateway you choose is on the State Bank of Pakistan’s list before you sign.

How much does Shopify charge on top of the gateway?

Shopify’s pricing pages for other countries, including dollar-priced ones for the UAE and Hong Kong, list a third-party transaction fee of 2% on Basic, 1% on Grow, 0.6% on Advanced and 0.2% on Plus. Its Pakistan page prints no percentage and says only that the rate depends on your plan, so confirm it with Shopify before you budget. The fee applies to orders paid through a gateway other than Shopify Payments, not to cash on delivery or bank deposits.

Can I use Stripe or PayPal on a Shopify store in Pakistan?

Not as far as we could confirm in October 2026. Stripe’s global availability page does not list Pakistan, and we found no PayPal merchant service for Pakistani businesses. For buyers abroad, ask Safepay and PayFast whether a foreign card can pay, in which currency, and how you are settled.

Can I accept JazzCash and Easypaisa on Shopify?

JazzCash has its own free Shopify app, and its listing says it takes cards, bank accounts, vouchers and JazzCash wallets. We could not confirm an Easypaisa app in the Shopify App Store in October 2026, so ask Easypaisa whether it supports Shopify. Until then, a custom manual method with your account number works for either wallet.