Airwallex is a Melbourne-founded global payments company offering online card acceptance, multi-currency accounts and settlement, and global payouts for marketplaces and platforms.
Best for
Online businesses and cross-border marketplaces that want card acceptance, multi-currency settlement and global payouts on one platform.
Online card acceptance through a hosted payments page, payment links, invoicing and e-commerce plugins, on a monthly subscription waived above a deposit or balance threshold.
Every fee we track, grouped by where it applies.
EFTPOS terminal and tap-to-pay transactions.
Airwallex POS Payments is explicitly listed as "Coming Soon" for Australia (live today only in UK, EU, Singapore, Hong Kong). Source: airwallex.com/en-au/payments/pos-payments, read 2026-07-16 (personally verified in browser).
Explore Tier subscription is $29/mo (GST inclusive), waived to $0/mo if the merchant deposits at least $5k/mo through bank deposits, direct debits or payment acceptance volume, or holds a minimum combined wallet and yield balance of $10k. Grow is $99/mo, Accelerate from $999/mo. Source: airwallex.com/en-au/terms/fee-schedule (Fee Schedule, last updated 12 September 2025) and airwallex.com/en-au/pricing, read 2026-07-16.
No card machine or POS hardware is sold in Australia yet; POS Payments is Coming Soon. Source: airwallex.com/en-au/payments/pos-payments, read 2026-07-16.
Airwallex Checkout does not charge additional setup fees, monthly account fees, or require a minimum, per the Checkout FAQ. Source: airwallex.com/en-au/payments/checkout, read 2026-07-16 (personally verified in browser).
Online checkout and keyed-in card transactions.
Domestic cards (Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Apple Pay, Google Pay), applies for new online payments customers approved on or after 8 November 2023. International cards (incl. UnionPay) are 3.40% + $0.30. Same blended rate across the Explore, Grow, Accelerate and Custom tiers. Source: airwallex.com/en-au/terms/fee-schedule, read 2026-07-16.
Explore Tier subscription is $29/mo (GST inclusive), waived to $0/mo if the merchant deposits at least $5k/mo through bank deposits, direct debits or payment acceptance volume, or holds a minimum combined wallet and yield balance of $10k. Grow is $99/mo, Accelerate from $999/mo. Source: airwallex.com/en-au/terms/fee-schedule (Fee Schedule, last updated 12 September 2025) and airwallex.com/en-au/pricing, read 2026-07-16.
Airwallex Checkout does not charge additional setup fees, monthly account fees, or require a minimum, per the Checkout FAQ. Source: airwallex.com/en-au/payments/checkout, read 2026-07-16 (personally verified in browser).
Chargeback Fee is $25.00 AUD per chargeback request, per the AU Fee Schedule. A separate Success Fee of 25% of the disputed amount (max USD 200) applies only when the AI Dispute Automation product wins a challenge. Source: airwallex.com/en-au/terms/fee-schedule, read 2026-07-16.
Amex is included in the standard domestic card rate. A separate additional 1.25% surcharge applies to domestic Amex transactions only for merchants in specific B2B industries (listed Merchant Category Codes). Source: airwallex.com/en-au/terms/fee-schedule, read 2026-07-16.
International cards are 3.40% + $0.30 versus 1.65% + $0.30 for domestic cards, a 1.75 percentage point difference; both figures also carry a 1.00% Foreign Currency Settlement Fee and/or 2.00% FX Conversion Fee where currency conversion applies. Source: airwallex.com/en-au/terms/fee-schedule, read 2026-07-16.
No early-termination or exit fee is published in the Fee Schedule or SaaS Services Terms; termination and suspension are governed by the (non-public) Customer Agreement. Source: airwallex.com/en-au/terms/fee-schedule, airwallex.com/en-au/terms/saas-services-terms, checked 2026-07-16.
No instant-payout product for card processing settlement was found (standard settlement is T+2 to T+3 business days). The only "instant" fee published is a 0.20% Yield Instant Withdrawal Fee (0% on Grow/Accelerate) for withdrawing from the separate Airwallex Yield investment product, which is not a payments settlement feature. Source: airwallex.com/en-au/terms/fee-schedule, checked 2026-07-16.
Refund Fee is $0.30 AUD per refund request, per the AU Fee Schedule. Source: airwallex.com/en-au/terms/fee-schedule, read 2026-07-16.
No PCI compliance fee appears anywhere in the comprehensive AU Fee Schedule (subscription, business account, spend, payment acceptance, general, pre-chargeback, subscription management, tax, custom links, yield); Airwallex states it "meets the highest international security standards including PCI DSS, SOC1, and SOC2 compliance" as part of the core platform. Source: airwallex.com/en-au/terms/fee-schedule, read 2026-07-16.
Explore, Grow and Accelerate are billed as recurring monthly subscription fees; no minimum contract term is published on the pricing page, Fee Schedule or SaaS Services Terms. Source: airwallex.com/en-au/pricing, airwallex.com/en-au/terms/fee-schedule, airwallex.com/en-au/terms/saas-services-terms, read 2026-07-16.
Payouts are typically processed on a T+2 or T+3 business day settlement cycle, per the Airwallex Checkout FAQ. Source: airwallex.com/en-au/payments/checkout, read 2026-07-16 (personally verified in browser).
Least-cost routing applies to in-person EFTPOS terminal transactions; Airwallex has no live in-person acceptance product in Australia (POS Payments Coming Soon), and no LCR feature is described for its online payment methods.
Subscription Management: collect recurring subscription payments from customers, charged at 0.40% to 0.50% per successful transaction. Source: airwallex.com/en-au/terms/fee-schedule, airwallex.com/en-au/pricing, read 2026-07-16.
Side-by-side with the closest alternatives by estimated cost.
Based on $15,000/mo card volume at a $50 average transaction, 70% in person and 30% online.
Airwallex
Square
$267/mo est.
Zeller
$248.25/mo est.
Stripe
$295.50/mo est.
Marketplace payouts and multi-currency collection through connected accounts with hosted KYC, funds held in wallets and programmatic payouts, priced as tiered plans plus transaction fees.
Every fee we track, grouped by where it applies.
Side-by-side with the closest alternatives by estimated cost.
Based on $50,000/mo card volume at a $75 average transaction.
Airwallex
Stripe
$1,050/mo est.
PayPal
Adyen
The same questions Australian merchants ask before signing up.
Airwallex Payments for Platforms lets you collect funds from buyers via connected accounts, deduct your platform fee programmatically, and route the seller share to their Airwallex wallet. From there, sellers can withdraw in their preferred currency or via their preferred payout rail. The split logic is API-driven and can work alongside an existing primary payment provider.
On the entry-level Explore plan, the transaction rate is 1.65% + $0.30 plus a $0.30 fixed fee per charge. Higher-volume plans carry different rates and feature sets; pricing details for those plans are available on request.
The Explore plan has a monthly platform fee of $29/mo (Explore; $0/mo if you deposit $5k+/mo or hold a $10k+ balance) with no minimum volume. This makes Airwallex accessible for early-stage Australian marketplaces that want to avoid fixed overhead while they grow.
Yes. Airwallex holds an Australian Financial Services Licence (AFSL 487221) and is regulated by ASIC. It is one of the few marketplace payment providers with a direct Australian regulatory footprint, which simplifies compliance obligations for Australian platforms.
Airwallex can pay out to sellers in more than 200 countries and settle in more than 20 currencies on a like-for-like basis, avoiding unnecessary conversion. It collects in more than 170 currencies. This cross-border depth is particularly useful for Australian platforms with international seller bases.
Airwallex provides hosted KYC onboarding flows for connected accounts that collect the identity and business information required under AML/CTF rules. The onboarding can be embedded into your platform UI or handled via a hosted link. AML screening runs during and after onboarding.
Both have no monthly fee and offer developer-friendly APIs. Airwallex holds an Australian AFSL, offers a broader payout network (200+ countries), and may appeal more to platforms with strong cross-border flows. Stripe Connect has more mature documentation and a larger developer community. Transaction rates are broadly comparable at entry level, though Airwallex plan fees apply at higher tiers.
Cards, wallets, and other methods supported by Airwallex for Australian merchants.
Airwallex offers Payments for Platforms, letting marketplaces embed global payment acceptance, connected seller accounts and programmatic payouts. It collects in 180+ countries, pays out to 200+ countries and settles across multiple currencies, with a unified layer of global licences handling KYC and AML. Founded in Melbourne in 2015 and regulated by ASIC (AFSL 487221), Airwallex suits platforms with international sellers and buyers that need true multi-currency settlement.
Airwallex was founded in 2015 and is headquartered in Melbourne, Australia.
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