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Stripe vs Mercury
Of the 170 countries we track, Stripe onboards businesses in 42 (and 1 more with limits) and Mercury in 1. Both serve businesses in 1.
Only Stripe · 42
🇨🇦 Canada🇲🇽 Mexico🇧🇷 Brazil🇬🇧 United Kingdom🇮🇪 Ireland🇩🇪 Germany🇫🇷 France🇳🇱 Netherlands🇧🇪 Belgium🇱🇺 Luxembourg🇦🇹 Austria🇪🇸 Spain🇵🇹 Portugal🇮🇹 Italy🇬🇷 Greece🇨🇾 Cyprus🇲🇹 Malta🇸🇪 Sweden🇩🇰 Denmark🇳🇴 Norway🇫🇮 Finland🇵🇱 Poland🇨🇿 Czechia🇸🇰 Slovakia🇭🇺 Hungary🇷🇴 Romania🇧🇬 Bulgaria🇭🇷 Croatia🇸🇮 Slovenia🇪🇪 Estoniaand 12 more →
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Onboards businesses in United States
Stripe
AvailableMercury
AvailableAccept payments
Stripe
Cards, wallets and 100+ local payment methods. You can sell to customers in almost every country.Mercury
Invoices your customers pay by card or ACH debit, also available through the API.Pay people abroad
Stripe
Connect pays out to sellers and contractors, and Global Payouts sends money to recipients in many countries.Mercury
Domestic ACH and wires, international wires, and API payments to saved recipients.Multi-currency account
Stripe
Hold and settle balances in multiple currencies. Financial accounts with routing numbers are offered to US businesses.Mercury
US dollar checking and savings with FDIC insurance through partner banks, plus Treasury for idle cash.Business cards
Stripe
Issue physical and virtual cards for your business or your users.Mercury
Debit cards and the IO corporate credit card with spend controls.Stablecoins
Stripe
US businesses can accept stablecoin payments that settle as dollars. Stablecoin financial accounts (via Bridge) are offered in 100+ countries.Mercury
Not offeredYield on idle cash
Stripe
Stripe Treasury gives US businesses 1% a year in credits on balances above $2,000, applied to Stripe fees. Stripe says it pays no cash interest on balances.Mercury
Mercury Treasury invests idle cash in government money market funds and, since August 2026, an ultra-short bond fund. It is not FDIC insured, may lose value, and carries a 0.15–0.60% fee.Yield on idle cash
A return on money you are not using. How safe it is depends on where the return comes from, not on how high the rate is.
Where the return comes from
Stripe
Low risk, not insuredCredits against feesMercury
Low risk, not insuredMoney market fundModerate riskShort-term bond fundIs the money protected?
Stripe
Your balance is not invested. The return is paid as credits toward the provider’s own fees, not as cash.Mercury
Money market fund: Not a deposit and not insured. The fund holds short-term government debt and aims to keep its value stable, but that is not guaranteed. Broker protection (SIPC in the US) covers the broker failing, not investment losses.Short-term bond fund: Not insured, and the price moves every day, so you can get back less than you put in.Does the rate change?
Stripe
Set by the provider, and only worth as much as the fees you pay.Last seen: 1% a year, as fee creditsMercury
Floats daily with central bank rates, so it falls when rates are cut. Moves with interest rates and bond prices.Last seen: Up to about 3.6% net, for the largest balances (May 2026)Platform & marketplace
Run payments for other businesses: sign them up, take a cut, pay them out.
Sub-accounts for your users
Stripe
YesConnect creates and verifies accounts through hosted onboarding, embedded components or the API. Accounts v2 lets one account be a merchant, customer and payout recipient at once.Mercury
NoMercury’s API manages your own accounts; there is no product for creating accounts for your users.Split payments and platform fees
Stripe
YesDestination charges, separate charges and transfers, and application fees.Mercury
NoNot a payment processor.Embeddable UI
Stripe
YesConnect embedded components for onboarding, payments, payouts and account management.Mercury
NoNo embeddable components.Pay out to your users
Stripe
YesPayouts to connected accounts, including instant payouts in some markets. Global Payouts sends fiat to 100+ markets and stablecoins to 160.Announced, not yet live: EU marketplaces paying sellers in 100+ countries with stablecoinsMercury
PartlyAPI payments to saved recipients by ACH or wire. Fine for paying vendors, not built for paying a platform’s users at scale.Embedded finance for your users
Give your users financial products under your brand.
Accounts that hold money
Stripe
PartlyFinancial accounts for platforms (formerly Treasury) give US business users routing numbers and FDIC pass-through eligibility. US only.Announced, not yet live: Financial accounts for platforms’ users in the eurozoneMercury
NoNot offered to platforms.Cards for your users
Stripe
YesIssuing for connected accounts: virtual and physical cards via the API. Cardholders can be individuals or companies.Announced, not yet live: Stablecoin-backed cards in 100 countriesMercury
NoCards are for your own team.Financing for your users
Stripe
YesCapital for platforms offers financing to connected accounts in selected markets.Mercury
NoNot offered to platforms.Consumer apps
Build for individuals, not just businesses, the way Bridge allows.
End users can be individuals
Stripe
PartlyStripe’s own account products are built for businesses. Consumer apps (wallets, stablecoin cards) go through its subsidiary Bridge.Mercury
NoMercury Personal is Mercury’s own consumer banking; you cannot build consumer products on it.Consumer wallets or accounts
Stripe
PartlyThrough Bridge custodial wallets, not Stripe accounts.Mercury
NoNot offered to platforms.Consumer cards
Stripe
PartlyStablecoin-linked consumer cards through Bridge and Stripe Issuing, rolling out by country (65+ countries, targeting 100 by end of 2026).Announced, not yet live: Stablecoin-backed cards in 100 countriesMercury
NoNot offered to platforms.Stablecoins
Dollar-backed tokens as a payment and treasury rail.
Accept stablecoins
Stripe
YesStablecoin payments at checkout, settled to the business in fiat.Mercury
NoNo stablecoin product found in public materials.Hold stablecoin balances
Stripe
YesStablecoin financial accounts in 101 countries: USDC balances with USD (ACH, wire) and EUR (SEPA) rails.Announced, not yet live: Stablecoin financial accounts in 50 more countriesAnnounced, not yet live: Move stablecoin balances to and from local bank accountsMercury
NoNo stablecoin product found in public materials.Pay out in stablecoins
Stripe
YesInstant stablecoin payouts to recipients in 160 markets through Global Payouts.Announced, not yet live: EU marketplaces paying sellers in 100+ countries with stablecoinsMercury
NoNo stablecoin product found in public materials.Issue your own stablecoin
Stripe
YesThrough Bridge Open Issuance.Mercury
NoNo stablecoin product found in public materials.Regulatory risk in United States
Stripe
Low riskMercury
No stablecoin productsAI agents
Build with AI tools, and let AI agents shop and pay.
Official MCP server
Stripe
YesHosted MCP server at mcp.stripe.com with OAuth, plus an agent toolkit for the major agent frameworks.Mercury
YesHosted MCP server in beta: AI assistants can read balances, transactions, cards and recipients, with OAuth sign-in.Checkout for AI agents
Stripe
YesCo-developed the Agentic Commerce Protocol with OpenAI, which powers Instant Checkout in ChatGPT. Shared payment tokens let an agent pay a seller without seeing card numbers.Mercury
NoDoes not process checkout payments, so there is nothing for an agent to check out with.Cards for AI agents
Stripe
YesIssuing can create single-use virtual cards for agents buying online.Mercury
Not confirmedNot found in public materials.Working with them
How easy it is to get started.
Self-serve signup
Stripe
YesSign up online and go live without sales in supported countries.Mercury
YesApply online.Published pricing
Stripe
YesStandard rates are on the pricing page; volume discounts are negotiated.Mercury
YesFree core plan; paid plans are published.Public API and sandbox
Stripe
YesPublic API, test mode and sandboxes.Mercury
YesREST API for accounts, transactions, payments and invoicing, with webhooks and OAuth for partner apps.Coming soon
Announced but not launched. These are plans, not products you can sign up for today: timing often slips, and some never ship.
Announced, not yet live
Stripe
Preview or betaStablecoin-backed cards in 100 countriesExpected by the end of 2026
AnnouncedStablecoin financial accounts in 50 more countriesExpected Q4 2026
Preview or betaMove stablecoin balances to and from local bank accountsExpected Q4 2026
3 more and details →Mercury
Awaiting approvalMercury Bank, N.A.No date given · Includes United States
Details and sources →In short
Countries onboarded
Stripe
42 of 170Mercury
1 of 170Designed for
Stripe
Online businesses that want one integration for checkout, subscriptions and marketplaces.Mercury
US startups that want a fast, API-friendly bank account, including founders based outside the US.Limitations
Stripe
Your business must be registered in a country on Stripe’s supported list. Most of Africa and South Asia are not on it.Mercury
Only for US-registered companies, and not designed for building products on top of.| Stripe Payment processor | Mercury Business banking | |
|---|---|---|
| Onboards businesses in United States | Available | Available |
| Accept payments | Cards, wallets and 100+ local payment methods. You can sell to customers in almost every country. | Invoices your customers pay by card or ACH debit, also available through the API. |
| Pay people abroad | Connect pays out to sellers and contractors, and Global Payouts sends money to recipients in many countries. | Domestic ACH and wires, international wires, and API payments to saved recipients. |
| Multi-currency account | Hold and settle balances in multiple currencies. Financial accounts with routing numbers are offered to US businesses. | US dollar checking and savings with FDIC insurance through partner banks, plus Treasury for idle cash. |
| Business cards | Issue physical and virtual cards for your business or your users. | Debit cards and the IO corporate credit card with spend controls. |
| Stablecoins | US businesses can accept stablecoin payments that settle as dollars. Stablecoin financial accounts (via Bridge) are offered in 100+ countries. | Not offered |
| Yield on idle cash | Stripe Treasury gives US businesses 1% a year in credits on balances above $2,000, applied to Stripe fees. Stripe says it pays no cash interest on balances. | Mercury Treasury invests idle cash in government money market funds and, since August 2026, an ultra-short bond fund. It is not FDIC insured, may lose value, and carries a 0.15–0.60% fee. |
| Yield on idle cashA return on money you are not using. How safe it is depends on where the return comes from, not on how high the rate is. | ||
| Where the return comes from | Low risk, not insuredCredits against fees | Low risk, not insuredMoney market fundModerate riskShort-term bond fund |
| Is the money protected? | Your balance is not invested. The return is paid as credits toward the provider’s own fees, not as cash. | Money market fund: Not a deposit and not insured. The fund holds short-term government debt and aims to keep its value stable, but that is not guaranteed. Broker protection (SIPC in the US) covers the broker failing, not investment losses.Short-term bond fund: Not insured, and the price moves every day, so you can get back less than you put in. |
| Does the rate change? | Set by the provider, and only worth as much as the fees you pay.Last seen: 1% a year, as fee credits | Floats daily with central bank rates, so it falls when rates are cut. Moves with interest rates and bond prices.Last seen: Up to about 3.6% net, for the largest balances (May 2026) |
| Platform & marketplaceRun payments for other businesses: sign them up, take a cut, pay them out. | ||
| Sub-accounts for your users | YesConnect creates and verifies accounts through hosted onboarding, embedded components or the API. Accounts v2 lets one account be a merchant, customer and payout recipient at once. | NoMercury’s API manages your own accounts; there is no product for creating accounts for your users. |
| Split payments and platform fees | YesDestination charges, separate charges and transfers, and application fees. | NoNot a payment processor. |
| Embeddable UI | YesConnect embedded components for onboarding, payments, payouts and account management. | NoNo embeddable components. |
| Pay out to your users | YesPayouts to connected accounts, including instant payouts in some markets. Global Payouts sends fiat to 100+ markets and stablecoins to 160.Announced, not yet live: EU marketplaces paying sellers in 100+ countries with stablecoins | PartlyAPI payments to saved recipients by ACH or wire. Fine for paying vendors, not built for paying a platform’s users at scale. |
| Embedded finance for your usersGive your users financial products under your brand. | ||
| Accounts that hold money | PartlyFinancial accounts for platforms (formerly Treasury) give US business users routing numbers and FDIC pass-through eligibility. US only.Announced, not yet live: Financial accounts for platforms’ users in the eurozone | NoNot offered to platforms. |
| Cards for your users | YesIssuing for connected accounts: virtual and physical cards via the API. Cardholders can be individuals or companies.Announced, not yet live: Stablecoin-backed cards in 100 countries | NoCards are for your own team. |
| Financing for your users | YesCapital for platforms offers financing to connected accounts in selected markets. | NoNot offered to platforms. |
| Consumer appsBuild for individuals, not just businesses, the way Bridge allows. | ||
| End users can be individuals | PartlyStripe’s own account products are built for businesses. Consumer apps (wallets, stablecoin cards) go through its subsidiary Bridge. | NoMercury Personal is Mercury’s own consumer banking; you cannot build consumer products on it. |
| Consumer wallets or accounts | PartlyThrough Bridge custodial wallets, not Stripe accounts. | NoNot offered to platforms. |
| Consumer cards | PartlyStablecoin-linked consumer cards through Bridge and Stripe Issuing, rolling out by country (65+ countries, targeting 100 by end of 2026).Announced, not yet live: Stablecoin-backed cards in 100 countries | NoNot offered to platforms. |
| StablecoinsDollar-backed tokens as a payment and treasury rail. | ||
| Accept stablecoins | YesStablecoin payments at checkout, settled to the business in fiat. | NoNo stablecoin product found in public materials. |
| Hold stablecoin balances | YesStablecoin financial accounts in 101 countries: USDC balances with USD (ACH, wire) and EUR (SEPA) rails.Announced, not yet live: Stablecoin financial accounts in 50 more countriesAnnounced, not yet live: Move stablecoin balances to and from local bank accounts | NoNo stablecoin product found in public materials. |
| Pay out in stablecoins | YesInstant stablecoin payouts to recipients in 160 markets through Global Payouts.Announced, not yet live: EU marketplaces paying sellers in 100+ countries with stablecoins | NoNo stablecoin product found in public materials. |
| Issue your own stablecoin | YesThrough Bridge Open Issuance. | NoNo stablecoin product found in public materials. |
| Regulatory risk in United States | Low risk | No stablecoin products |
| AI agentsBuild with AI tools, and let AI agents shop and pay. | ||
| Official MCP server | YesHosted MCP server at mcp.stripe.com with OAuth, plus an agent toolkit for the major agent frameworks. | YesHosted MCP server in beta: AI assistants can read balances, transactions, cards and recipients, with OAuth sign-in. |
| Checkout for AI agents | YesCo-developed the Agentic Commerce Protocol with OpenAI, which powers Instant Checkout in ChatGPT. Shared payment tokens let an agent pay a seller without seeing card numbers. | NoDoes not process checkout payments, so there is nothing for an agent to check out with. |
| Cards for AI agents | YesIssuing can create single-use virtual cards for agents buying online. | Not confirmedNot found in public materials. |
| Working with themHow easy it is to get started. | ||
| Self-serve signup | YesSign up online and go live without sales in supported countries. | YesApply online. |
| Published pricing | YesStandard rates are on the pricing page; volume discounts are negotiated. | YesFree core plan; paid plans are published. |
| Public API and sandbox | YesPublic API, test mode and sandboxes. | YesREST API for accounts, transactions, payments and invoicing, with webhooks and OAuth for partner apps. |
| Coming soonAnnounced but not launched. These are plans, not products you can sign up for today: timing often slips, and some never ship. | ||
| Announced, not yet live | Preview or betaStablecoin-backed cards in 100 countriesExpected by the end of 2026 AnnouncedStablecoin financial accounts in 50 more countriesExpected Q4 2026 Preview or betaMove stablecoin balances to and from local bank accountsExpected Q4 2026 3 more and details → | Awaiting approvalMercury Bank, N.A.No date given · Includes United States Details and sources → |
| In short | ||
| Countries onboarded | 42 of 170 | 1 of 170 |
| Designed for | Online businesses that want one integration for checkout, subscriptions and marketplaces. | US startups that want a fast, API-friendly bank account, including founders based outside the US. |
| Limitations | Your business must be registered in a country on Stripe’s supported list. Most of Africa and South Asia are not on it. | Only for US-registered companies, and not designed for building products on top of. |
Common questions
Is Stripe or Mercury available in more countries?
Stripe. Of the 170 countries we track, Stripe onboards businesses in 42 (and 1 more with limits) and Mercury in 1. Both serve businesses in 1. Only Stripe: Canada, Mexico, Brazil, United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, France, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Austria, Spain and 30 more.
What do Stripe and Mercury offer?
Accept payments: Stripe yes, Mercury yes. Pay people abroad: Stripe yes, Mercury yes. Multi-currency account: Stripe yes, Mercury yes. Business cards: Stripe yes, Mercury yes. Stablecoins: Stripe yes, Mercury no. Yield on idle cash: Stripe yes, Mercury yes.
How do Stripe and Mercury differ for platforms and embedded finance?
Sub-accounts for your users: Stripe yes, Mercury no. Split payments and platform fees: Stripe yes, Mercury no. Embeddable UI: Stripe yes, Mercury no. Pay out to your users: Stripe yes, Mercury partly. Accounts that hold money: Stripe partly, Mercury no. Cards for your users: Stripe yes, Mercury no. Financing for your users: Stripe yes, Mercury no. End users can be individuals: Stripe partly, Mercury no. Consumer wallets or accounts: Stripe partly, Mercury no. Consumer cards: Stripe partly, Mercury no. Accept stablecoins: Stripe yes, Mercury no. Hold stablecoin balances: Stripe yes, Mercury no. Pay out in stablecoins: Stripe yes, Mercury no. Issue your own stablecoin: Stripe yes, Mercury no. Checkout for AI agents: Stripe yes, Mercury no. Cards for AI agents: Stripe yes, Mercury not confirmed.
Who is Stripe designed for?
Online businesses that want one integration for checkout, subscriptions and marketplaces. Limitations: Your business must be registered in a country on Stripe’s supported list. Most of Africa and South Asia are not on it.
Who is Mercury designed for?
US startups that want a fast, API-friendly bank account, including founders based outside the US. Limitations: Only for US-registered companies, and not designed for building products on top of.
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