WooPayments Fees and UK Online Shop Costs
Understand WooPayments’ UK online card fees, VAT conditions and the hosting, maintenance and plugin costs to include in a WooCommerce budget.
The short answer
WooPayments is a payment service used with WooCommerce. Its processing tariff is only part of the shop budget. Calculate eligible online payment fees, check any tax on those fees and then add hosting, maintenance and paid extensions. Keep the payment-service comparison separate from the cost of running the website.
In this guide
Published UK online card charges
| Charge | Published UK position |
|---|---|
| Base online card fee | 1.5% + 25p |
| International payment addition | 2% where applicable |
| Currency conversion addition | 2% where applicable |
The documentation defines the international addition by the payment method’s origin relative to the account country. Conversion depends on payment and payout-bank currencies. Confirm the applicable combination rather than adding every percentage to every payment.
Check the VAT treatment of the fees
WooPayments lists 20% VAT on UK service fees. It says that VAT is not charged where a VAT-registered merchant provides a valid VAT ID, with the supply subject to the reverse charge mechanism. Check your account details and the fee documents; a zero VAT charge is not the same as having no VAT accounting obligations.
Use the invoice treatment that applies to your business. Keep cash paid and any recoverable tax separate. If you need help with the accounting treatment, ask your accountant rather than assuming all payment-service fees are treated alike.
Worked example: fees plus the website budget
Fictional shop using the published base card rate. Assume £20,000 across 500 domestic GBP online card payments. No international, conversion, refund or dispute charges apply. The merchant is charged 20% VAT on the fees and cannot recover it.
| Monthly component | Amount |
|---|---|
| £20,000 × 1.5% | £300 |
| 500 × 25p | £125 |
| Processing before VAT | £425 |
| 20% VAT on £425 | £85 |
| Processing cash cost | £510 |
| Fictional hosting allowance | £35 |
| Fictional maintenance allowance | £50 |
| Total listed cash costs | £595 |
Twelve identical months total £7,140 for the listed items. The website allowances account for £1,020 of that total. Replace both allowances with the actual services you need; a payment percentage alone cannot describe the whole shop budget.
Budget for refunds and maintaining the checkout
WooPayments’ documentation says transaction fees are not returned when customers receive refunds. Preserve those original processing costs in your workings instead of treating refunded orders as though no payment had been processed.
- List hosting, domain renewal, backups and any maintenance agreement.
- Identify paid extensions required for your actual order and subscription workflow.
- Ask who checks checkout compatibility after updates and fixes failures.
- Confirm how refunds and payouts reconcile with accounting records.
These are budget questions, not a claim that every shop needs every paid service. Check what is included in your existing arrangement before adding another subscription.
Compare another gateway without rebuilding the budget
If the website stays on WooCommerce, hold genuinely common website costs constant. Compare the alternative payment integration’s rates, maintenance requirements and implementation costs. If the whole platform changes, include the website costs on both sides and show migration separately.
Enter the online volume, count and applicable card categories in the calculator. Include fixed services and any non-recoverable tax as appropriate. The calculator does not automatically apply WooPayments’ VAT rules or currency-conversion conditions. Use separate workings for those adjustments and read the gateway cost guide for the comparison structure.
Common questions
Is WooPayments’ processing fee the whole cost of a WooCommerce shop?
No. The payment fee covers only part of the arrangement. Add the hosting, maintenance, extensions and other services your particular shop requires.
Should every UK business add 20% VAT to WooPayments fees?
Check the applicable account and invoice treatment. WooPayments describes a valid-VAT-ID condition for VAT-registered merchants. The worked example specifically assumes VAT is charged and cannot be recovered.
Put your own figures to work.
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Sources and how to use this guide
Primary references checked on 15 October 2026:
Trading profiles and any explicitly invented quotes or allowances are fictional. Published provider tariffs are identified and dated; they are not personalised quotations. Worked totals include only the stated components and tax assumptions. They are not customer results or market averages. Provider prices, eligibility and terms can change. Check your written agreement before deciding.
Our guides explain costs and comparison methods. They do not rank the whole market or claim hands-on product testing. Source links are references, not a claim of partnership. Read the calculation method and limitations, or about the service.
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