Braintree

What is Braintree?

Braintree is a PayPal owned online payment gateway with developer APIs and built in PayPal and wallet acceptance. Founded in 2007 and acquired by PayPal in 2013, it lets online businesses accept cards, PayPal, Venmo and digital wallets through flexible APIs, combining developer friendly online payments with native access to PayPal's network and buyer base. For online businesses that want robust, customisable card processing and to accept PayPal and wallets seamlessly in one integration, Braintree offers a strong option backed by PayPal's scale. For PayPal connected online payments with developer flexibility, Braintree is a leading choice.

Braintree's distinction is combining developer friendly online card processing with native PayPal, Venmo and wallet acceptance, backed by PayPal. Rather than choosing between a flexible gateway and PayPal acceptance, businesses get both in one integration, with APIs for customisation and PayPal's network built in. That blend of developer control and native PayPal and wallet support sets it apart for online businesses.

Who Braintree is best for

Braintree is best for online businesses that want developer friendly card processing combined with native PayPal, Venmo and wallet acceptance in one integration, backed by PayPal's scale. It suits online and e-commerce businesses wanting both flexibility and PayPal. It is a weaker fit for in person retail, where Square fits, businesses wanting the broadest developer ecosystem and products, where Stripe fits, or enterprises needing unified global processing, where Adyen fits.

Key features

The core strengths are developer APIs for online card processing, native acceptance of PayPal, Venmo and digital wallets, and support for many payment methods and currencies, backed by PayPal. Braintree offers recurring billing, fraud tools, and a drop in or custom integration. Its combination of flexible online processing with built in PayPal and wallet support, plus PayPal's backing, are its defining advantages.

Braintree pricing

Braintree uses flat rate online pricing, around 2.59 percent plus 49 cents per transaction for cards and PayPal, with additional fees for international and currency conversion, and custom pricing at volume. Its transparent, pay as you go model suits online businesses, with total cost depending on volume and transaction size. Because it includes PayPal acceptance, weigh it against using PayPal and a gateway separately. Confirm current figures on the Braintree pricing page.

Integrations and ecosystem

Braintree integrates with e-commerce platforms and offers APIs for custom online payments, with native PayPal, Venmo and wallet acceptance and PayPal's broader ecosystem behind it. Its integrations and the built in PayPal network let online businesses accept a wide range of payments through one gateway, which is central to its value as a PayPal connected online processor.

Braintree and PayPal acceptance

Native PayPal and wallet acceptance is Braintree's signature: because it is PayPal owned, businesses accept PayPal, Venmo and wallets alongside cards seamlessly in one integration, capturing customers who prefer those methods without a separate setup. For online businesses that want flexible card processing and PayPal acceptance together, this native integration is the main reason to choose Braintree.

Ease of use and support

Braintree offers developer friendly APIs and a drop in integration, with PayPal's backing, suiting online businesses with some development capability. Its G2 reviews praise the APIs and native PayPal and wallet acceptance, with it being online focused and backed by PayPal, rather than the broadest ecosystem like Stripe, the main consideration.

Is Braintree worth it?

For online businesses that want developer friendly card processing combined with native PayPal, Venmo and wallet acceptance in one integration, Braintree is a strong, PayPal backed choice. The main caution is that in person retail suits Square, the broadest developer ecosystem Stripe, and enterprise global processing Adyen, but for PayPal connected online payments with flexibility Braintree excels.