Payment Gateway Philippines: GCash, Maya and Card Fees Compared 2026
A neutral comparison of Philippine payment gateways — PayMongo, Xendit, Maya Business, GCash for Business, Dragonpay, 2C2P and Paynamics — on card, GCash, Maya and over-the-counter fees, with BSP's 2026 transfer-fee reform explained.
The Philippines is an e-wallet-first market, not a card-first one — GCash and Maya both publish direct merchant rates that undercut what a third-party gateway charges to accept the same wallet. For a domestic-only store that wants transparent, published pricing, PayMongo or accepting GCash/Maya directly are the simplest calls. For multi-country SEA expansion on one integration, Xendit. For customers who still pay cash at a physical counter, Dragonpay's 85+ channel over-the-counter network is unmatched here. For enterprise orchestration or mass payouts, 2C2P and Paynamics respectively. On settlement, BSP's Circular No. 1238 (June 2026) forced banks toward cost-based transfer pricing, and several banks have since cut or waived InstaPay and PESONet fees — a fast-moving fact worth reconfirming before you quote a customer a transfer cost.
| Gateway | Card fee | GCash / Maya / QR Ph fee | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| PayMongo | ~3.5% + ₱15 | ~3% flat (GCash/Maya) | PH-only SMBs wanting published, transparent rates |
| Xendit | Custom (quote-based) | Custom (quote-based) | Multi-country SEA expansion on one integration |
| Maya Business | 3.50% | Maya QR/QR Ph 1.50%; GCash 2.0% | Businesses wanting a full per-method MDR table |
| GCash for Business | 3.2% | QR Ph 1.0% | Selling directly to GCash's own large wallet base |
| Dragonpay | Variable/evaluation-based | ₱10 online banking; ₱15-20 OTC (85+ channels) | Customers who pay cash at 7-Eleven, Cebuana or other OTC |
| 2C2P | Custom/usage-based (enterprise quote) | Custom/usage-based | Enterprise, travel and cross-border orchestration |
| Paynamics | Custom/usage-based (enterprise quote) | 50+ PH channels via its DGATE payout rail | Mass payouts and a business wallet for SMEs |
SEA Operational Reasoning
Card-first playbooks from other markets don't transfer well to the Philippines, where GCash and Maya are the primary consumer payment habit. That changes the real decision: a merchant can integrate GCash or Maya directly at their own published rate (2.0% and roughly 3% respectively for wallet acceptance, cheaper on the QR side at 1.0% and 1.50%), or go through an aggregator like PayMongo or Xendit that bundles both wallets plus cards and other rails behind one API. PayMongo publishes its blended rates up front, which suits a domestic-only store that wants to calculate cost before signing up; Xendit doesn't publish Philippine pricing but covers Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam too, which matters if this integration needs to follow you regionally. Dragonpay's edge is entirely about reach into cash-paying customers — 85-plus channels and 35,000-plus branches including 7-Eleven and Cebuana — a segment the wallet-first and card-first gateways don't cover as deeply. 2C2P and Paynamics sit at the enterprise end: full payment orchestration and mass payout/business-wallet tooling respectively, priced per merchant rather than published.
Related Expert Guides
The questions operators actually ask.
Is GCash or Maya bigger in the Philippines?
By registered users, GCash is the larger network — Globe Telecom has disclosed roughly 94 million registered GCash users versus Maya's reported 50 million-plus. A 2025 sari-sari-store survey found 85% of store owners use GCash for business versus 15% for Maya, but no single authoritative source publishes an overall e-wallet market-share percentage across the whole Philippine market, so treat these as directional data points rather than a definitive split.
What is the difference between InstaPay and PESONet?
Both are BSP-regulated interbank transfer rails, but InstaPay settles in real time, 24/7, with a typical per-transaction cap around ₱50,000, while PESONet is a batch system with three daily settlement windows (10am, 1pm and 4pm) and no scheme-wide transfer cap. BSP Circular No. 1238, signed June 2026, requires transfer fees to be reasonable and cost-based rather than a flat markup, and several banks have since cut or waived fees on both rails — confirm current terms with your bank, since this is still settling in as of mid-2026.
Which Philippine gateway has the most transparent pricing?
PayMongo, Maya Business and GCash for Business all publish exact merchant discount rates by payment method. Xendit, 2C2P and Paynamics use custom, quote-based pricing negotiated per merchant. Dragonpay publishes flat per-channel fees (for example ₱10 for online banking) rather than a single percentage rate.