Coinbase Commerce is no longer an option for new integrations. Coinbase set 31 March 2026 as the cutoff for the Commerce portal and directs eligible merchants to Coinbase Business. Compare NOWPayments, Coinbase Business and BitPay using the same checkout, refund and settlement scenario.
Side-by-side comparison
| Decision factor | NOWPayments | Coinbase Business | BitPay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary orientation | Crypto payment gateway and business ecosystem for acceptance, conversion and payouts | Stablecoin payments within a custodial business platform | Merchant crypto-payment processing, invoices and settlement options |
| Best starting point | Business needing broad asset support and combined payment or payout tooling | Eligible merchant evaluating a replacement for Coinbase Commerce | Merchant seeking an established crypto-payment service with commercial settlement considerations |
| Operational question | How are accepted assets, conversion, balances, payouts and support handled? | What changes for custody, integration and settlement compared with Commerce? | How do checkout, settlement, pricing, refunds and reconciliation fit the business? |
| Customer-experience question | Supported wallets, assets, network selection and payment confirmation | Wallet flow, confirmation, refund process and shopper support | Checkout option, payment instructions, customer communication and refund handling |
| Main diligence point | Exact supported assets, service fees, countries and payout availability | Merchant eligibility, service scope, wallet responsibility and current product availability | Supported jurisdictions, settlement options, pricing, dispute process and integration fit |
| Do not assume | Accepting many assets means every asset is suitable for treasury or accounting | A crypto payment is automatically reversible, protected or regulated like a card payment | A gateway solves tax, licensing, sanctions, consumer disclosure or refund obligations |
Vendor profiles
NOWPayments
NOWPayments publicly presents a crypto business ecosystem for accepting and managing digital-asset payments, with payment APIs, invoices, payment links, plugins, conversion and mass-payout capabilities. It may be relevant where asset breadth, stablecoin support and operational tooling are important to the merchant.
Good fit: Global digital businesses that need to compare acceptance, conversion and payout options across a wide range of digital assets and networks.
Potential limitation: Verify the exact merchant entity, assets, countries, settlement routes, fees, conversion timing, custody or balance model, refund workflow and accounting exports that apply to the buyer's business.
Coinbase Business (replacing Coinbase Commerce)
Coinbase's transition notice set 31 March 2026 as the cutoff for creating Commerce charges and accessing its portal. Coinbase Business uses a custodial model. An existing Commerce integration is not a drop-in integration for the replacement.
What to check: Confirm your business entity's eligibility, supported settlement routes and API requirements before committing. If you are migrating, verify how your finance team will retain access to historical records; Coinbase says Commerce history does not transfer to Business.
BitPay
BitPay publicly presents merchant payment-processing services for accepting cryptocurrency, with checkout, invoice and settlement-related tools. It may be relevant for businesses seeking a specialist payment provider rather than building a direct wallet-payment flow.
Good fit: Merchants that need to compare an established crypto-payment operating model with their settlement, customer-service and reporting requirements.
Potential limitation: Payment products differ by merchant location, asset, settlement currency and customer route. Confirm contract terms, pricing, refunds, risk controls, dispute process and finance-team reconciliation evidence.
Best fit by buyer scenario
| Buyer scenario | Likely starting point | Reason to investigate |
|---|---|---|
| Global digital service accepting multiple crypto and stablecoin assets | NOWPayments after settlement and payout verification | The buyer may value broad acceptance, but should standardise which assets it will actually retain or convert. |
| Merchant already operating in the Coinbase ecosystem | Coinbase Business after eligibility and migration review | The relevant question is whether the current product and settlement model fit the merchant's entity and operational controls. |
| Merchant comparing managed crypto-payment processing | BitPay after commercial and support review | A managed payment model may fit where reporting, settlement and merchant support are more important than direct wallet control. |
| High-volume stablecoin collections | Treasury and compliance design first | Define wallet governance, conversion, liquidity, sanctions screening, reconciliation and accounting before choosing the checkout interface. |
| Consumer checkout with refunds | Test full payment and refund journeys | A successful payment flow is incomplete if the customer, finance and support teams cannot reliably handle reversals, overpayments or wrong-network transfers. |
Test payment, refund and reconciliation together
Run a small purchase with the currency and checkout flow you plan to offer. Then test an underpayment, a late payment and a customer asking for a refund after settlement. Ask what the merchant sees in each case, who contacts the customer and which file or API record finance can match to the order. A successful checkout screen alone does not close the payment.
Sources
- NOWPayments integration guide: plugins, invoices, payment links and mass payouts.
- Coinbase Commerce transition notice: cutoff, custody model and migration requirements.
- BitPay merchant account setup: invoices, refunds, reporting and settlement preferences.
These are vendor documents, not independent benchmarks or confirmation that a specific merchant is eligible.
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