Ecommerce · Website glossary

Payment gateway

Quick answer · What is Payment gateway?

A service or integration that connects checkout to payment processing and communicates payment results.

IN PRACTICE

Payment gateway: an example

A shop's checkout hands payment details to its configured gateway and receives a payment status.

KEEP IN MIND

Gateway availability, supported methods, and setup requirements vary; a plugin installation alone may not activate payments.

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Frequently asked questions

What is a practical example of Payment gateway?

A shop's checkout hands payment details to its configured gateway and receives a payment status.

Does installing a gateway plugin automatically activate payments?

Gateway availability, supported methods, and setup requirements vary; a plugin installation alone may not activate payments.

Which concepts should I read alongside Payment gateway?

Payment authorization: A payment-processing step that checks and, for supported payment flows, reserves an amount for a potential later capture.
Payment capture: The step that requests collection of a previously authorized payment amount in a supported payment flow.