StackShareStackShare
Follow on
StackShare

Discover and share technology stacks from companies around the world.

Follow on

© 2025 StackShare. All rights reserved.

Product

  • Stacks
  • Tools
  • Feed

Company

  • About
  • Contact

Legal

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Service
  1. Stackups
  2. Utilities
  3. Payments
  4. Payment Services
  5. PayPal vs Ripple

PayPal vs Ripple

OverviewComparisonAlternatives

Overview

PayPal
PayPal
Stacks19.6K
Followers14.8K
Votes665
Ripple
Ripple
Stacks30
Followers39
Votes0

PayPal vs Ripple: What are the differences?

Introduction:

PayPal and Ripple are both digital payment platforms, but they differ in several key aspects. In this article, we will explore the major differences between these two popular payment systems.

  1. Ownership and Control: PayPal is a centralized payment system, owned and controlled by PayPal Holdings Inc., a company registered in the United States. On the other hand, Ripple is a decentralized system that operates on a distributed ledger technology called XRP Ledger, with no central authority controlling it.

  2. Currency Support: PayPal primarily supports traditional currencies like the US dollar, euro, pound sterling, etc. It provides a platform for users to send, receive, and store fiat currencies. Ripple, however, focuses on digital currencies and aims to enable instant, low-cost international money transfers. It introduces XRP as a native cryptocurrency but also supports the issuance and use of other digital assets on its platform.

  3. Transaction Speed and Cost: PayPal transactions typically take a few minutes to process, depending on the payment method used. It charges fees for certain types of transactions, such as cross-border payments and currency conversions. Ripple, on the other hand, aims for almost instant transactions, settling within a few seconds. It also boasts significantly lower fees compared to traditional payment systems.

  4. Intermediaries: PayPal often requires intermediary banks and financial institutions to facilitate cross-border transactions, leading to increased costs and potential delays. Ripple eliminates the need for intermediaries by using its network of validators to reach consensus and verify transactions. This streamlined process reduces costs and enables faster transactions.

  5. Technology and Integration: PayPal operates on a traditional centralized infrastructure, making it easier to integrate with existing banking systems and online platforms. Ripple, being a decentralized system, utilizes blockchain and distributed ledger technology. Its decentralized nature and interoperability make it suitable for integration with various payment systems and financial institutions.

  6. Use Cases: PayPal is commonly used for online transactions, e-commerce, and peer-to-peer payments. It is widely accepted by merchants worldwide as a payment method. Ripple, on the other hand, primarily focuses on facilitating cross-border remittances and international money transfers, with an emphasis on enabling efficient transactions between financial institutions.

In summary, PayPal is a centralized fiat currency payment system widely used for online transactions, while Ripple is a decentralized platform that focuses on digital currencies and provides fast, low-cost international money transfers.

Share your Stack

Help developers discover the tools you use. Get visibility for your team's tech choices and contribute to the community's knowledge.

View Docs
CLI (Node.js)
or
Manual

Detailed Comparison

PayPal
PayPal
Ripple
Ripple

PayPal is an online payments and money transfer service that allows you to send money via email, phone, text message or Skype. They offer products to both individuals and businesses alike, including online vendors, auction sites and corporate users. PayPal connects effortlessly to bank accounts and credit cards. PayPal Mobile is one of PayPal’s newest products. It allows you to send payments by text message or by using PayPal’s mobile browser.

It is an open source protocol which is designed to allow fast and cheap transactions.

2.9% + $0.30 or less- With our flat, transparent pricing, you’ll never be surprised by hidden or variable fees. We also offer discounted rates when you sell a lot, or when you use our card reader.;Keeping every seller secure- If you’re sent an unauthorized payment, or a buyer claims they never received an item, our Seller Protection covers you for the full amount of the eligible payment.;Easy for them, easy for you- With just a few clicks, you can get paid by debit card, credit card, or a PayPal transfer. All someone needs to start buying from you is your e-mail address or mobile number.;Adaptive Payments- The Adaptive Payments API allows merchants and developers to pay almost anyone and set up automated payments.;Express Checkout- Express Checkout allows merchants and developers to minimize the number of steps customers must complete when they checkout.;PayPal Payments Advanced- PayPal Payments Advanced allows merchants to enable their online stores to collect payment directly via credit card or via PayPal Express Checkout.
Access; Speed; Certainty; Cost
Statistics
Stacks
19.6K
Stacks
30
Followers
14.8K
Followers
39
Votes
665
Votes
0
Pros & Cons
Pros
  • 196
    Most known service
  • 135
    Consumers know it
  • 113
    It's available for many countries
  • 70
    Easy
  • 54
    Best way to get paid outside US
Cons
  • 1
    Harder to get started with
  • 1
    Less countries supported
  • 1
    Not well written recurring payment api
No community feedback yet
Integrations
Formstack
Formstack
Wufoo
Wufoo
Constant Contact
Constant Contact
Shopify
Shopify
Recurly
Recurly
Golang
Golang
C++
C++
Python
Python
Rust
Rust
Wagyu
Wagyu
Blockchain
Blockchain

What are some alternatives to PayPal, Ripple?

Stripe

Stripe

Stripe makes it easy for developers to accept credit cards on the web.

Braintree

Braintree

Braintree replaces traditional payment gateways and merchant accounts. From one touch payments, to mobile SDKs and international sales, we provide everything you need to start accepting payments today.

Recurly

Recurly

Recurly is the leading pay-as-you-go recurring billing service because setup is easy, integrations are quick, and our service grows with the needs of your business.

Adyen

Adyen

A payments technology company that provides a single global platform to accept payments anywhere in the world. Businesses can process payments across online, mobile and in-store (POS) with over 250 payment methods and 187 currencies.

Ethereum

Ethereum

A decentralized platform for applications that run exactly as programmed without any chance of fraud, censorship or third-party interference.

Payoneer

Payoneer

It is a financial services company that provides online money transfer and digital payment services and working capital solutions

TransferWise

TransferWise

It bypasses pricey international payments entirely by using two local transfers instead of one international transaction. If you want to convert your pounds to euros, you send the money in pounds to its UK-based account.

Hyperledger Fabric

Hyperledger Fabric

It is a collaborative effort created to advance blockchain technology by identifying and addressing important features and currently missing requirements. It leverages container technology to host smart contracts called “chaincode” that comprise the application logic of the system.

Amazon FPS

Amazon FPS

With Amazon Flexible Payments Service developers can accept payments on their website for selling goods or services, raise donations, execute recurring payments, and send payments. Amazon customers can pay using the same login credentials, shipping address and payment information they already have on file with Amazon. Amazon FPS supports the processing of payments using credit cards, bank accounts and Amazon Payments account balances to send or receive money.

Zuora

Zuora

Zuora gives you the enterprise-class, cloud-based tools you need to launch and scale any subscription service, quickly and affordably. Design your pricing and packaging, start taking quotes and placing orders, automate your billing and payments, and keep tabs on your financials.

Related Comparisons

Bootstrap
Materialize

Bootstrap vs Materialize

Laravel
Django

Django vs Laravel vs Node.js

Bootstrap
Foundation

Bootstrap vs Foundation vs Material UI

Node.js
Spring Boot

Node.js vs Spring-Boot

Liquibase
Flyway

Flyway vs Liquibase