Adyen

What is Adyen?

Adyen is a global payment technology platform that offers end-to-end payment processing, acquiring, fraud prevention, and data analytics, all within a single system. Based in the Netherlands and operating in over 30 countries, Adyen serves some of the world’s largest and fastest growing brands, including Spotify, Uber, H&M, and eBay.

For UK businesses, Adyen provides a future ready payment infrastructure designed for international expansion, omnichannel commerce, and enterprise-grade integration. It supports businesses that want full visibility, control, and scalability, particularly retailers, marketplaces, travel firms, and digital platforms that operate across multiple regions and currencies.

Unlike resellers or third-party gateways, Adyen is a direct acquirer with its own banking licenses, infrastructure, and acquiring connections. That means fewer intermediaries, better authorisation rates, and access to deep data insights from checkout to settlement.

Pricing and How Adyen Compares to Other UK Providers

Adyen uses a combination of interchange++ and blended pricing models. With interchange++, you see the cost breakdown for each transaction, including interchange fees (paid to the customer’s bank), scheme fees (Visa/Mastercard), and Adyen’s markup. This model provides clarity and potential savings for high volume merchants. Blended pricing, by contrast, rolls all costs into a fixed rate and is typically offered to smaller businesses for simplicity.

For UK-based merchants, Visa and Mastercard transactions usually cost between 0.6% and 2.9%, depending on the card type, currency, and region. Adyen applies a markup of around £0.10 to £0.25 per transaction, plus a small percentage fee which varies based on monthly processing volume. There are no setup or monthly fees, although minimum billing thresholds may apply.

Compared to other providers, Adyen stands out for offering full stack acquiring (unlike Stripe, which often relies on third-party acquirers). While Stripe offers industry-leading APIs and a powerful online toolkit, it doesn't provide native in person payments or its own hardware like Adyen. Worldpay offers acquiring and card terminals but lacks Adyen’s global reach and unified commerce capabilities. Square is excellent for small UK businesses with its free POS software and hardware options, but it doesn’t offer the advanced customisation or enterprise-level support that Adyen provides.

Adyen is best suited to mid sized and large businesses seeking scale, flexibility, and international coverage. It’s especially strong in retail, travel, and marketplace sectors where unified reporting and seamless multi region payments are critical.

FAQs about Adyen UK

Is Adyen Right for Your Business?

Adyen is one of the most advanced and reliable payment platforms on the market and it’s built for scale. If your business is expanding internationally, operating across online and in person channels, or needs deep control over fraud, reporting, and custom payment flows, Adyen is a future proof solution.

It may not be the right choice for small merchants or those looking for a quick start card machine. But for medium to large UK businesses with technical resources and big ambitions, Adyen offers a unified infrastructure that supports growth, compliance, and exceptional customer experiences.

Still comparing options? See how Adyen stacks up against other UK payment providers or speak to our experts to explore your best fit solution.