If you run an eCommerce store in Aotearoa, building a seamless checkout experience is crucial for turning website visitors into paying customers. While platforms like WooCommerce and Shopify make setting up an online shop easy, choosing how you accept credit card payments locally can make a huge difference to your transaction costs, security, and cash flow.

By connecting your WooCommerce or Shopify store to a local payment gateway nz, you get fast daily settlements into your Kiwi bank account, direct bank relationship benefits, and local support whenever you need a hand.

Here is a straight up guide on how to integrate Paystation with WooCommerce or Shopify, and why a local gateway setup works best for Kiwi retailers.

Why use a dedicated local payment gateway?

Many store owners default to overseas payment processors that come pre-packaged with their shopping cart platform. While those tools are quick to turn on, they often charge high flat percentage rates and hold your payout funds in third-party accounts for days.

With Paystation, you operate as a linked gateway merchant. You hold your own Merchant ID directly with your local bank (ANZ, ASB, BNZ, Kiwibank, or Westpac). This gives you several key advantages:

• Negotiable bank fees: You can negotiate your Merchant Service Fees (MSFs) directly with your bank based on your sales volume, keeping per-transaction costs low.
• Fast daily settlement: Funds settle quickly into your bank account, with ASB even offering same-day settlement seven days a week.
• Minimal PCI burden: By using our fully hosted (3-party) checkout, your customers enter their card details on our Level 1 PCI DSS compliant page. Raw card numbers never touch your website server, keeping your pci compliance simple and straightforward.

Integrating Paystation with WooCommerce

WooCommerce powers thousands of online stores across New Zealand because of its flexibility and customisation options.

Integrating Paystation with your WooCommerce store is straightforward:

1. Download the plugin: Install our official Paystation WooCommerce plugin on your WordPress dashboard.
2. Add your gateway credentials: Enter your Paystation ID, Gateway ID, and HMAC key into the plugin settings.
3. Configure post-response webhooks: Set up the post-response notification URL in your Paystation admin portal. This ensures that when a customer completes a payment, Paystation automatically updates the order status in your WooCommerce backend—even if the customer closes their browser window before redirecting.

Our WooCommerce plugin also supports custom surcharging, multi-currency processing, and automatic order reference mapping so your accounts team can reconcile sales easily.

Integrating Paystation with Shopify

If your store runs on Shopify, setting up Paystation gives you a secure, local checkout option while keeping your store’s branding front and centre.

Connecting Paystation to Shopify takes just a few clicks:

1. Install the Paystation Shopify App: Search for the official Paystation App in the Shopify App Store and click ‘Install App’.
2. Link your Paystation account: Authorise the app and connect it using your Paystation credentials.
3. Select your gateway and activate: Select your active gateway in your Paystation admin portal, click ‘Save’, and activate the app in your Shopify payment settings.

Once activated, when a customer proceeds to checkout, they are seamlessly directed to our secure 3-party hosted page to complete their payment before returning to your order confirmation page.

3 simple steps to start taking payments

Whether you are launching a brand new eCommerce store or switching from a flat-rate payment aggregator, getting set up takes just three steps:

1. Apply online: Fill out a quick online application to trigger a development account immediately.
2. Get your Merchant ID: Obtain a ‘Linked Gateway’ Merchant ID from your local bank.
3. Integrate and go live: Install your plugin, test your checkout against our go-live checklist, and start accepting secure online payments.