Zoho Payments vs Paytm Business: Complete Comparison of UPI, Debit Card, Credit Card, Net Banking and Payment Gateway Charges in India
Choosing a payment gateway for an Indian business is not simply about finding the lowest advertised transaction fee. The actual cost depends on how customers pay, whether payments are collected online or in person, which merchant pricing plan applies, and whether additional charges such as GST, device rental, recurring payment fees or settlement fees are involved.
Two major options are Zoho Payments and Paytm Business, both of which support digital payment collection in India. However, their published pricing structures differ significantly.
Zoho Payments publishes detailed charges for individual payment methods, including UPI, debit cards, credit cards, net banking, wallets and bank transfers. Paytm Payment Gateway advertises a standard online platform fee of 1.99%, while other Paytm-related documentation publishes different rates for specific payment instruments.
This comparison examines the actual published pricing, identifies inconsistencies between official sources, and explains what merchants should verify before selecting a provider.
Pricing reference: Official provider documentation checked on 24 October 2026. All monetary values are in Indian rupees (INR). Published tariffs are not necessarily identical to the negotiated charges on an individual merchant account.
Understanding the Difference Between Zoho Payments and Paytm Business
Before comparing charges, it is essential to distinguish online payment gateways from physical merchant payment services.
Zoho Payments provides online payment collection, payment links, recurring billing, bank transfers and in-person POS acceptance. It also integrates with Zoho’s accounting and business applications.
Paytm Business covers several payment products, including Paytm Payment Gateway for websites and applications, QR code collections, Soundbox devices and card-payment machines.
These services do not necessarily share the same pricing.
For example, an ordinary bank-account UPI payment through an in-store Paytm QR code can have a published merchant discount rate of 0%, while Paytm’s online payment gateway pricing page advertises a 1.99% standard platform fee.
Similarly, Zoho Payments publishes a 0.5% online UPI platform fee but lists 0% for ordinary in-person UPI transactions.
The difference is important because 0% MDR, 0% gateway platform fee and zero total merchant cost are not interchangeable statements.
Zoho Payments vs Paytm Payment Gateway: Online Transaction Charges
The following table compares Zoho Payments’ official method-specific online tariffs with Paytm Payment Gateway’s current publicly advertised standard plan.
All percentages exclude applicable GST.
| Payment method | Zoho Payments online | Paytm Payment Gateway online |
|---|---|---|
| Bank-account UPI | 0.50% | 1.99% advertised standard platform fee |
| RuPay credit card through UPI | 2.15% | Specific instrument rate not separately published |
| Credit line through UPI | 2.00% | Not separately published |
| Visa/Mastercard domestic debit card | 2.00% | 1.99% advertised standard platform fee |
| RuPay domestic debit card | 2.00% | 1.99% advertised standard platform fee |
| Visa/Mastercard domestic credit card | 2.00% | 1.99% advertised standard platform fee |
| Corporate credit card | 2.75% | Specific rate not separately published |
| American Express consumer card | 3.00% | Specific rate not separately published |
| American Express corporate card | 3.50% | Specific rate not separately published |
| Net banking | 2.00% | 1.99% advertised standard platform fee |
| Digital wallets | 2.00% | Specific wallet rate not separately published |
| International Visa/Mastercard | 3.00% published tariff | Specific rate not separately published |
| International American Express | 3.50% published tariff | Specific rate not separately published |
| NEFT/RTGS/IMPS collection | 1%, capped at ₹10 | Not separately published |
| Gateway setup fee | ₹0 | ₹0 |
| Annual gateway maintenance fee | ₹0 | ₹0 |
Sources: Zoho Payments official pricing and Paytm Payment Gateway official pricing.
Paytm’s 1.99% figure is its publicly advertised standard online platform fee, not a confirmed payment-method-specific total for every transaction type. Its pricing terms allow different commercials for certain merchant categories, integrations and negotiated plans.
Zoho’s international card prices also require qualification: although international card rates appear on its pricing page, its help documentation states that the India edition currently supports collections within India in INR and describes domestic-card acceptance. International-card eligibility must therefore be verified before relying on the advertised international rates.
Why Paytm’s Published Payment Gateway Rates Appear Inconsistent
One of the most important findings is that different official sources publish different Paytm payment charges.
Paytm Payments Services Limited advertises a standard online platform fee of 1.99%, applicable to all transactions, plus GST.
However, Zoho Books and Zoho Billing integration documentation lists the following Paytm gateway fees:
| Payment method | Paytm charge listed in Zoho integration documentation |
|---|---|
| Standard UPI | 0% |
| RuPay debit card | 0% |
| Visa/Mastercard debit below ₹2,000 | 0.40% |
| Visa/Mastercard debit above ₹2,000 | 0.90% |
| Visa/Mastercard credit card | 1.99% |
| Net banking | 1.80% |
| Paytm Wallet | 1.70% |
These numbers are not estimates. They appear in Zoho’s published documentation for integrating Paytm with its financial applications.
Zoho also states that it does not add an additional gateway transaction charge for those integrations.
Source: Zoho Books Paytm integration and fee schedule.
An older Paytm Business pricing page also retains an instrument-wise online tariff, including 0% standard UPI and 0% RuPay debit card transactions.
However, these documents do not prove that every new Paytm merchant automatically receives the same rates.
Paytm’s own pricing terms explain that the final commercial rate communicated after account creation can differ from its website’s standard pricing, including for businesses using hosted e-commerce platforms or bank integrations.
Consequently, the correct interpretation is:
- Paytm’s current primary online gateway page publicly advertises 1.99%.
- Other published integration material lists substantially lower charges for selected instruments.
- The final charges payable by a particular merchant must be established from that merchant’s approved commercial plan and settlement records.
It would be inaccurate to describe either 0% or 1.99% as the universally guaranteed online UPI rate for every Paytm Business account.
UPI Charges: Zoho Payments vs Paytm Business
UPI is especially important for Indian online businesses because it is widely used for everyday purchases, service payments, subscriptions and invoice collections.
Zoho Payments UPI Charges
Zoho publishes the following online rates:
| UPI payment type | Zoho platform fee |
|---|---|
| Ordinary bank-account UPI | 0.50% |
| RuPay credit card linked to UPI | 2.15% |
| Credit line through UPI | 2.00% |
The ordinary 0.5% online UPI fee is a platform charge.
Although zero MDR applies to ordinary UPI transactions under the relevant payment-system rules, a payment service provider may publish separate platform fees for the payment processing services it supplies.
Zoho explicitly explains this distinction in its pricing documentation.
Paytm UPI Charges
Paytm requires the distinction between online and offline acceptance.
Its in-store standard rate card lists 0% for bank-account UPI.
Its main online gateway standard plan advertises a 1.99% platform fee, while other integration documents list 0% for UPI.
An online merchant should therefore verify whether the gateway’s standard platform fee applies to UPI transactions on its particular MID (Merchant ID).
Example: A ₹10,000 UPI Transaction
Using only the advertised online platform fees and 18% GST:
| Particulars | Zoho Payments | Paytm advertised standard plan |
|---|---|---|
| Customer payment | ₹10,000.00 | ₹10,000.00 |
| Published platform fee | ₹50.00 | ₹199.00 |
| GST on platform fee | ₹9.00 | ₹35.82 |
| Total calculated deduction | ₹59.00 | ₹234.82 |
| Balance after these deductions | ₹9,941.00 | ₹9,765.18 |
This is an arithmetic illustration of published tariffs, not an observed merchant settlement or proof that these are the complete charges on a Paytm MID.
If an eligible Paytm merchant actually has an approved 0% UPI tariff with no additional processing charge, its UPI cost would instead be zero under that agreement.
Debit Card Charges: Visa, Mastercard and RuPay
Debit-card payments introduce another significant distinction between regulated MDR rates and payment-gateway platform charges.
For Zoho’s online gateway, the published domestic-card platform rate is 2%, including transactions using Visa, Mastercard and RuPay debit cards.
Zoho states that its platform fee includes applicable MDR, even where an underlying instrument has zero MDR.
Paytm’s primary online pricing page advertises the standard 1.99% platform fee. However, its published Zoho integration documentation lists 0% for RuPay debit cards, 0.40% for eligible Visa/Mastercard debit transactions below ₹2,000, and 0.90% above ₹2,000.
This makes Paytm potentially less expensive for debit-card processing under certain merchant agreements, but those lower tariffs should not be assumed without checking the specific commercial arrangement.
For physical POS payments, both companies publish more granular debit-card rates, covered separately below.
Credit Card Charges: Domestic, Corporate and American Express
Standard online domestic credit-card acceptance is competitively priced between the two advertised plans.
Zoho Payments publishes 2% for ordinary domestic cards, while Paytm’s standard online platform rate is 1.99%.
For a ₹10,000 domestic credit-card payment, the published platform fees and GST produce:
| Particulars | Zoho | Paytm standard plan |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction amount | ₹10,000.00 | ₹10,000.00 |
| Platform fee | ₹200.00 | ₹199.00 |
| GST at 18% | ₹36.00 | ₹35.82 |
| Total calculated fee | ₹236.00 | ₹234.82 |
The difference in this example is just ₹1.18 per transaction.
The more important variations arise with corporate cards, American Express, international cards and merchant-specific arrangements.
Zoho publishes separate higher rates for corporate and American Express transactions. Paytm does not provide a complete equivalent breakdown on its main standard online pricing page.
Therefore, merchants expecting significant corporate-card volume should obtain Paytm’s category-specific card tariff rather than applying 1.99% without verification.
Net Banking and Bank Transfer Charges
Net banking is a payment-gateway method in which customers select their bank at checkout and authorize an online payment.
Both Zoho and Paytm support net banking.
Zoho publishes a 2% net banking platform fee. Paytm’s standard online page advertises 1.99%, while its Zoho integration documentation lists a net banking fee of 1.80%.
A separate option offered by Zoho is bank-transfer collection through NEFT, RTGS and IMPS.
For this service, Zoho publishes a fee of 1% of the transaction amount or ₹10, whichever is lower.
| Collection amount | Zoho bank-transfer platform fee before GST |
|---|---|
| ₹500 | ₹5 |
| ₹1,000 | ₹10 |
| ₹5,000 | ₹10 |
| ₹10,000 | ₹10 |
| ₹50,000 | ₹10 |
| ₹1,00,000 | ₹10 |
For high-value collections, the ₹10 cap can be attractive compared with a percentage-based online card or net banking fee.
However, Zoho’s bank-transfer collection is an additional feature that must be enabled. It should not be confused with an ordinary bank transfer directly into a merchant’s account outside a gateway.
Zoho also states that refunds for its bank-transfer collection method must be handled offline rather than through its normal gateway refund functionality.
In-Store Payment Charges: Zoho POS vs Paytm Business QR and Card Machines
Online checkout pricing should not be used to evaluate in-person payment acceptance.
Both companies publish separate rates for in-store transactions.
Paytm’s in-store table distinguishes small and big merchants. It defines small merchants as those with previous-financial-year turnover below ₹20 lakh and big merchants as those above ₹20 lakh.
The following comparison uses publicly published in-person merchant rates, excluding applicable GST.
| Payment method | Zoho in-person | Paytm small merchant | Paytm big merchant |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bank-account UPI | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| RuPay debit card | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Other debit cards below ₹2,000 | 0.40% | 0.40% | 0.40% |
| Other debit cards above ₹2,000 | 0.90% | 0.40% | 0.90% |
| Standard consumer credit card, other categories | 1.99% | 1.99% | 1.99% |
| Credit card, grocery/supermarket category | 1.30% | 1.40% for eligible grocery/kirana merchants | 1.40% for eligible grocery/kirana merchants |
| Credit card, eligible government/utility/education category | 1.10% | 1.20% | 1.20% |
| Corporate credit card | 2.75% | 2.75% | 2.75% |
| RuPay credit card through UPI | 2.15% | 0% below ₹2,000; 1.99% above | 1.99% |
The category definitions are not identical. Zoho also lists fuel, insurance and transport in its 1.10% credit-card group, whereas Paytm’s published 1.20% group refers to tolls, government, utilities and education. Eligibility must therefore be evaluated using each provider’s actual merchant-category definitions.
Paytm also publishes special in-store rates for American Express, international cards and additional networks, including higher Amex pricing for some hotel, lodging and car-rental categories.
For the exact ₹2,000 boundary and ₹20 lakh merchant-turnover boundary, the applicable provider agreement should determine the correct classification where the published table is unclear.
Sources: Zoho in-person payment pricing and Paytm Business in-store MDR pricing.
POS Machine and Soundbox Charges
A merchant can pay zero MDR on an ordinary UPI transaction and still incur fees for the device used to accept or announce the payment.
Zoho Payments POS Device Charges
Zoho publishes pricing for two in-person devices:
| Device | Published enablement fee | Published monthly rental |
|---|---|---|
| Zoho All-in-One Android POS | ₹4,999 | ₹299 or ₹399 depending on the stated transaction condition |
| Zoho POS Mini | ₹499 | ₹199, ₹299 or ₹399 depending on the stated transaction condition |
The Android POS includes features such as receipt printing and payment acceptance, while POS Mini supports card and UPI payments with audio confirmation.
These are limited-period advertised device offers. Zoho states that the amounts exclude applicable taxes and that device rental is separate from payment-processing fees.
Source: Zoho Payments POS devices and prices.
Paytm Soundbox and Card Machine Charges
Paytm’s current Soundbox product catalogue includes multiple models with different capabilities.
Its device agreements also contain more than one commercial plan. For example, published contractual schedules include Soundbox plans with a ₹400 setup charge and ₹99 monthly rental, as well as an alternative ₹1,699 one-time setup plan with zero monthly rental. Other agreements publish different rental and setup combinations.
These are documented plan examples, not guaranteed offers for every currently available Soundbox model.
Paytm’s EDC agreements separately mention installation, rental, SIM, maintenance, deposits and other equipment-related charges.
Consequently, a merchant should evaluate the actual device order and its commercial agreement, not assume that free QR acceptance includes free hardware.
Sources: Paytm Soundbox and Paytm EDC device agreement.
GST on Payment Gateway Charges
Gateway fees and GST must be distinguished when calculating the merchant’s net receipt.
The general calculation is:
Gateway fee = Transaction amount × applicable platform fee percentage
GST on fee = Applicable gateway fee × 18%
Net amount after those deductions = Transaction amount − gateway fee − applicable GST
Zoho and Paytm both publish 18% GST on applicable processing fees.
An important Zoho-specific clarification is that its documentation explicitly excludes domestic card transactions up to ₹2,000 from the stated 18% GST on the platform fee.
This exemption should not automatically be applied to every other payment instrument or provider without checking the relevant tax treatment and provider documentation.
GST on payment-processing fees is also distinct from GST charged on the goods or services being sold.
Recurring Payments and UPI AutoPay Charges
Subscription businesses need to evaluate recurring-payment pricing separately from ordinary one-time payment rates.
Zoho publishes the following UPI AutoPay fee structure:
| Recurring payment activity | Zoho published charge |
|---|---|
| UPI AutoPay mandate enrollment | ₹7.50 |
| Mandate execution up to ₹1,000 | ₹5.00 |
| Mandate execution above ₹1,000 | ₹15.00 |
| RuPay credit card UPI mandate execution | 2.15% according to the main pricing page |
| Credit-line UPI mandate execution | 2.00% according to the main pricing page |
Zoho’s payment-method help page contains a differing 2% figure for RuPay credit-card mandate executions, so that specific recurring rate should be confirmed before deployment.
Paytm supports recurring payment solutions, but its primary current standard pricing page does not disclose a complete comparable schedule covering mandate enrollment, execution and instrument-specific recurring fees.
It would therefore be inappropriate to invent a Paytm AutoPay price or apply its 1.99% headline rate to every recurring-payment operation without confirmation.
Refund Charges and Chargebacks
Refund costs are particularly relevant for e-commerce businesses, marketplaces, subscription services and businesses that experience frequent cancellations.
Zoho Payments Refund Charges
Zoho states that it does not impose an additional fee for initiating a refund.
However, the original platform fee and associated tax are not returned to the merchant when the underlying payment is refunded.
A refunded sale can therefore still leave the business with the original payment-processing expense.
Paytm Refund Charges
Paytm’s merchant support documentation states that there is no additional charge for issuing a refund.
It also explains that commission is charged when the original payment is received, even if that transaction is subsequently refunded.
This means that both providers distinguish the cost of processing the original payment from the act of issuing a refund.
Chargebacks are different from ordinary voluntary refunds. They can involve disputed funds, investigation, documentation requirements and network or contract-specific financial consequences.
Neither provider’s main public standard pricing page establishes one universal fixed chargeback-processing fee suitable for every merchant scenario.
Sources: Zoho refund policy and Paytm refund commission explanation.
Settlement Time and Faster Settlement Charges
A low payment fee is only one consideration. Merchants must also know when collected money becomes available in their bank accounts.
Zoho publishes the following availability periods for standard online collections:
| Zoho payment method | Published payout availability |
|---|---|
| UPI | T+1 business day |
| Domestic cards | T+2 business days |
| Standard net banking | T+2 business days |
| Banking Connect net banking | T+1 business day |
| Digital wallets | T+2 business days |
| Bank-transfer collection | T+1 business day |
Zoho also states that its ordinary daily bank payouts have no additional payout fee.
Paytm’s settlement documentation is less uniform because it covers different products.
One Paytm Payment Gateway support page identifies a default T+2 settlement cycle and says T+1 or same-day settlement options are available at additional cost.
Other Paytm for Business documentation describes ordinary merchant collections as generally settling around T+1, subject to bank and processing conditions.
These statements should not be combined into a single universal settlement promise.
For online Paytm Gateway integration, the approved merchant settlement schedule should be checked directly. For QR, POS or Soundbox collections, the corresponding in-store settlement terms should be used.
Sources: Paytm gateway settlement cycle and Paytm merchant settlement explanation.
How to Check the Charges Actually Deducted by a Payment Gateway
A published fee schedule identifies a provider’s advertised pricing, but the most reliable evidence of charges actually applied to a merchant is its settlement data.
For Zoho Payments, transaction records can show the customer payment, platform fee, tax, refunds and related settlement information.
For Paytm, merchant settlement records can include the payment instrument, transaction commission, GST, acquiring fee, platform fee, associated taxes and settled amount.
Paytm’s Settlement Order Detail API documents distinct fields for acquiring fees, platform fees and taxes. The presence of these fields does not establish that every merchant is billed for every fee component. It allows the components that actually appear in a transaction to be inspected.
A useful reconciliation is:
Gross customer payments − actual gateway fees − fee taxes − refunds − other applicable adjustments = net settled amount
Differences should be investigated against the merchant’s contract and transaction-level reports.
Source: Paytm Settlement Order Detail API.
Which Is Cheaper: Zoho Payments or Paytm Business?
The most economical provider depends on the actual payment mix and the merchant’s contracted pricing.
| Business scenario | Finding from published pricing |
|---|---|
| Online store receiving predominantly UPI | Zoho’s 0.50% is lower than Paytm’s advertised 1.99% standard platform fee |
| Online store with confirmed Paytm 0% UPI agreement | Paytm is cheaper for ordinary UPI, provided no separate fees apply |
| Online store primarily receiving standard domestic cards | Published headline rates are close: 2% Zoho versus 1.99% Paytm |
| Online net banking collections | Published standard rates are close; Paytm integration documents also list 1.80% |
| High-value NEFT/RTGS/IMPS collection | Zoho’s ₹10 platform-fee cap is attractive where the service is enabled |
| In-person standard bank-account UPI | Both publish 0% processing rates |
| Physical shop requiring a Soundbox or POS | Compare transaction MDR together with setup, rental, device and tax charges |
| Subscription platform using UPI AutoPay | Zoho publishes a clearer fee schedule; Paytm requires an account-specific recurring-payments quotation |
| International customer payments | Availability, eligibility, supported currency and negotiated charges require confirmation |
For an Online Business With Mostly UPI Customers
Zoho’s public online tariff is straightforward, but Paytm could be substantially less expensive if the merchant qualifies for the documented zero-fee UPI arrangement.
The correct choice cannot be established from Paytm’s headline advertisement alone.
For an Online Business With Mostly Credit Card Customers
Zoho and Paytm have nearly identical advertised standard domestic-card rates.
Differences in payment success rates, checkout compatibility, refunds, settlement schedules and custom rates may be more important than the small published percentage difference.
For a Physical Retail Shop
Both providers publish zero processing charges for standard in-person bank-account UPI.
The decision may therefore depend more heavily on card MDR, payment hardware, audio notifications, billing integrations and monthly device rental.
For a Subscription Business
Recurring mandate enrollment and execution charges should be evaluated independently of one-time transaction fees.
A provider with a low headline checkout fee is not automatically the least expensive option for a business processing large numbers of recurring payments.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is UPI free on Zoho Payments?
For ordinary online UPI collection, Zoho Payments publishes a 0.5% platform fee. For ordinary in-person UPI acceptance, its published processing rate is 0%. These are different collection channels.
Does Paytm Business charge 0% for UPI?
Paytm’s in-store standard rate card lists 0% for ordinary UPI. Its current main online gateway pricing page advertises a 1.99% standard platform fee, while some integration documentation lists 0% UPI. The actual online rate depends on the applicable merchant agreement.
Does Paytm charge more for credit cards?
Paytm’s online standard plan advertises 1.99% platform fees. Additional instrument-specific pricing or negotiated commercial terms may apply. Its in-store tariff separately lists different card rates by category.
Does Zoho charge more for RuPay debit cards?
Zoho’s published online domestic-card platform fee is 2%, while its in-person RuPay debit-card rate is 0%. The channel of payment acceptance determines which published rate is relevant.
Which gateway has lower net banking fees?
Zoho publicly lists 2%. Paytm’s main online standard plan advertises 1.99%, while Zoho’s Paytm integration documentation lists 1.80%. Paytm’s final merchant-specific rate must be verified.
Are refunds free on both payment gateways?
Both providers publish guidance indicating no separate ordinary refund initiation fee. However, the original transaction-processing charges remain payable and are not automatically reversed.
Does zero MDR mean there are no charges?
No. MDR is only one possible component of the total merchant payment cost. Platform fees, applicable taxes, subscriptions, equipment rental and other service charges may still exist.
Does a merchant need a Soundbox to collect UPI payments?
No. A Soundbox is primarily a payment notification device. QR-based payment collection does not inherently require a paid Soundbox subscription.
Final Verdict
Zoho Payments and Paytm Business each have strengths, but their pricing should be compared only within the same collection channel and merchant plan.
Zoho Payments offers clearer publicly documented online instrument-wise pricing. Its published structure is easy to understand: 0.5% for ordinary online UPI, 2% for standard domestic cards and net banking, and a capped fee for enabled bank-transfer collection.
Paytm Business can be competitively priced, especially for in-store UPI and for merchants who qualify for lower instrument-specific gateway charges. However, the difference between its current headline online pricing and other published Paytm rate schedules means that the merchant-specific agreement is essential.
Neither provider should be selected solely because its advertising mentions zero MDR, zero setup fees or a low introductory transaction rate.
The decisive comparison is the complete amount deducted from successful payments, together with settlement costs, recurring-payment charges, refunds and any hardware fees.
For a business selecting a gateway today, the best pricing evidence is a combination of the provider’s current official rate card, the signed merchant commercial agreement and transaction-level settlement reports. This approach makes it possible to compare real merchant costs without relying on assumptions or potentially outdated promotional claims.
Official References
- Zoho Payments — Official Pricing
- Zoho Payments — Platform Fee FAQ
- Zoho Payments — Supported Payment Methods
- Zoho Payments — POS Device Pricing
- Paytm Payments Services — Online Gateway Pricing
- Paytm Business — In-Store Pricing
- Paytm — Pricing Terms and Conditions
- Zoho Books — Paytm Integration Fees
- Paytm — EDC and Soundbox Agreement
- Paytm — Settlement Order Detail API
Pricing and payment-service availability are subject to revision, merchant eligibility, regulatory requirements and the final applicable merchant agreement.