Revolut or Stripe? Complete 2025 Comparison for Online Payments

Receiving payments from your clients abroad should ideally be simple and quick. However, in most cases, you are left dealing with delays, high conversion costs and tools that don’t fully work in India. This is why, before choosing a platform, you need to know exactly what it can do for you.

Two well-known options for global payments are Revolut and Stripe. Both offer strong features internationally,  however, they work very differently when you try to incorporate them into your payment operations in India.

In this article, we compare Revolut vs Stripe in great detail, so that you can choose the platform that fits your global payment needs as an India-registered business.

Revolut is a global financial and banking platform that gives your business access to multi-currency accounts, international transfers, corporate cards and expense management. It is a digital alternative to traditional banking and helps companies manage money across borders in one place.​

Revolut’s features are widely used in the UK, Europe, and the US. However, most business features are not available in India due to RBI and FEMA restrictions.

Here is what Revolut offers internationally:

• Multi-currency accounts to hold, receive, and exchange 35+ currencies.
• Local account details such as GBP sort codes, EUR IBANs, and USD account numbers.
• Competitive FX rates with lower conversion costs than traditional banks.
• International transfers to 150+ countries.
• Physical and virtual corporate cards for your team.
• Gives you spend controls, budgeting tools, and approval workflows.
• Automates expense management with receipt capture and reporting.
• Invoicing tools and payment links.
• Integrations with accounting platforms like Xero and QuickBooks.

Stripe is a global payments infrastructure platform that helps your business accept online payments, manage subscriptions, run marketplaces, and automate billing. It is used widely across SaaS, e-commerce, and digital commerce businesses around the globe.

In India, Stripe is available in a controlled, invite-only mode. This means, as an Indian business, you can use Stripe to mainly accept international card payments, which then get settled in INR as per RBI norms.

Here’s what Stripe offers globally:

• Online payment acceptance in 135+ currencies.
• Pre-built checkout pages and customizable payment form components.
• Offers support for Apple Pay, Google Pay, Revolut Pay and other digital wallets.
• Stripe Billing for subscriptions, recurring payments, invoicing, and smart retries.
• Stripe Connect for building marketplaces that pay multiple vendors or service providers.
• Stripe Radar for real-time fraud detection using machine learning.
• Stripe Atlas for incorporating a US company remotely and accessing global financial tools.
• Detailed reporting, reconciliation, and automated payout tools.

While both Revolut and Stripe can help you handle money across borders. However, they are built for different purposes and offer different features. Here’s a comparison of what they offer and what’s available in India:

Here’s how the two platforms compare in terms of pricing and the actual cost you bear as an India-registered business receiving payments from clients abroad.

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Stripe fees

Stripe’s fees apply directly to Indian businesses accepting international client payments. Here is what you pay:

• ​International card processing fee: Usually around 4.3% per successful transaction.
• Currency conversion markup: Around 2% applied during conversion from USD/EUR/GBP to INR (mandatory under RBI rules).
• Total effective cost: Approximately 6.3% of the transaction value.
• Chargeback fee: Around ₹1,500-₹2,000 if a dispute is lost.

Revolut fees

Since Revolut Business is not available to India-registered companies, the only relevant charges are from Revolut’s consumer-facing and remittance features. These include:

• ​Card issuance fee: Around ₹199 + GST for a physical card.
• FX conversion: Competitive interbank rates with a small markup after free limits.
• Weekend FX markup: Typically 1-2%.
• ATM withdrawals: About 2% after monthly free limits.

Stripe settles payments in India based on strict RBI rules, which makes the process predictable but slow. International card payments usually take around 5 business days to become available, and all funds must be converted to INR before payout. Your first payout also comes with a mandatory waiting period, so cash flow can feel delayed, especially if most of your revenue comes from overseas clients.

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Revolut offers much faster settlement in its supported markets, with funds reaching your Revolut Business account as early as the next business day. These speeds, however, are not available to India-registered companies.

Stripe supports payments in more than 135 currencies. This gives your international clients the freedom to pay in the currency they prefer and generally use. This improves conversion rates and simplifies global sales, but as an Indian business, you still receive all payouts in INR.

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Revolut excels at holding and managing multiple currencies, enabling businesses abroad to store USD, EUR, GBP and more in one account. This flexibility, however, is not available to India-registered companies because of FEMA restrictions.

Stripe is built as a global payments processor and follows the highest card security norms:

• PCI DSS Level 1 compliance for secure card handling.
• 3D Secure support for authentication.
• Stripe uses its Radar capability to detect fraud with machine learning.
• RBI data localization for storing sensitive card information within India.

On the compliance side:

• You must provide purpose codes, IEC details, and correct export information.
• Stripe gives you a Payment Advice, but you still need to obtain FIRA/eBRC from your bank.
• All payouts must settle in INR, as required by FEMA.

Revolut follows strict global security standards for encryption, tokenization, fraud screening, and 2FA, and its India launch operates under regulated licences such as PPI and AD-II.

​However:

• Revolut cannot offer multi-currency business accounts or global IBANs to India-registered companies.
• It cannot receive export payments or provide FIRA/eBRC.
• Compliance rules under FEMA prevent Indian companies from holding foreign currency in Revolut Business.

Here’s how both platforms compare when you look at their strengths and limitations

Stripe is the better choice when you want to accept payments from clients abroad without changing your business structure. It works well for SaaS products, digital services, international freelancers, and any business that needs subscriptions, billing automation, or marketplace payouts. If your goal is simple global payment acceptance with INR settlement, Stripe is a good option.

Revolut becomes useful only when you operate through a foreign entity, such as a US or UK company. In that setup, Revolut helps you hold USD/EUR, pay international vendors, manage global treasury, and convert currency when rates are favourable. For an India-registered business, Revolut’s full features are restricted, so its value appears mainly when you manage finances outside India.

Revolut and Stripe offer strong global capabilities, but both come with limitations when you operate from India. Stripe’s fees are high, and its payout speed is slow because every payment moves through international card rails and must comply with RBI-mandated INR conversion. Revolut’s most useful business features are not available to India-registered companies at all. This is where Xflow stands out as a purpose-built solution for Indian exporters.

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Here is what Xflow offers your business:

• Transparent FX with no markup: Xflow converts incoming payments at the mid-market rate, so you do not lose money to hidden currency conversion spreads.

• Lower and predictable pricing: Instead of paying 4-6% in card fees, you pay a simple flat fee plus a low percentage depending on invoice size, which keeps your costs under control as your billing grows.

• Faster settlement to your bank account: Payments received through ACH, SEPA, and other bank transfer rails reach your Indian account as early as the next business day, improving your cash flow.

• Automated FIRA/eFIRC documentation: Xflow handles export compliance end-to-end, generating your FIRA or eFIRC (often within 24 hours) so you do not have to coordinate with your bank manually.

• Better global payment methods for B2B clients: Your clients pay through low-cost local bank transfers, such as ACH in the US or SEPA in Europe, rather than expensive international cards.

• Control over when you withdraw funds: You get a guaranteed INR rate at withdrawal and the ability to wait for a better exchange rate if you prefer.

• Built for India without restrictions: Xflow is openly available to Indian businesses, freelancers, and service exporters, without invite-only onboarding or cross-border structural workarounds.

Xflow gives you a simpler, faster and more cost-effective workflow. Start receiving international payments the smart way. Explore Xflow for your business today.