Ozow vs Payfast: which fits your South African business?

Ozow vs Payfast comes down to what most of your customers want to pay with. Ozow started as a pay-by-bank (instant EFT) specialist and still leads with bank-to-bank payments, while Payfast by Network is an all-round gateway with 18+ payment methods, subscriptions and a large plugin library. Many South African businesses end up using both: Ozow for low-cost bank payments and Payfast for cards and recurring billing.

This comparison is based on each provider's own website as of September 2026. Products and fees change, so confirm the details on Ozow's pricing page and Payfast's fees page before you sign.

Ozow vs Payfast at a glance

Where Ozow is strong

Bank payments are its core. Ozow built its business on letting a shopper pay straight from their bank account without typing in card details. Its site now lists several bank-specific options, including Capitec Pay, Nedbank Direct EFT, Absa Pay and FNB/RMB payment requests, plus PayShap requests for instant payments.

Lower cost on bank payments. As of September 2026, Ozow publishes a lower percentage for bank transfers and digital wallets than for local cards. If a large share of your customers pay by bank, that gap adds up. Always model it on your own volumes rather than a headline rate.

Broad reach beyond cards. Not every South African customer has a credit card, and some prefer not to use one online. Pay-by-bank gives those customers a way to pay instantly, and the merchant sees the payment confirmed rather than waiting for a manual EFT to clear.

It has grown beyond EFT. Ozow now offers card payments, Google Pay and Apple Pay, buy now pay later, payment links, QR codes and refunds and payouts, so it is no longer a single-method add-on.

Where Payfast is strong

One integration, many methods. Payfast lists 18+ payment methods, from credit and debit cards and Instant EFT to SnapScan, Zapper, Mobicred and BNPL options. For a small online store that wants to offer "everything" through one account, that breadth is its main appeal.

Recurring billing is built in. Payfast markets subscriptions (scheduled payments at regular intervals) and tokenisation for recurring card payments. If you sell memberships, boxes or software plans, that matters. Our guide to recurring card payments in South Africa explains the difference between the two models.

Plugins everywhere. With 70+ platform integrations, Payfast is often a one-click option in WooCommerce, Shopify-style builders and booking tools.

Extras for small businesses. Split payments, online invoice payments, payment requests, multi-currency pricing and a Network card machine for in-person sales round out the offer.

Pricing structure, not just rates

Both providers publish transaction-based pricing with no setup fee and no monthly fee on their standard offering (as of September 2026). Both also offer custom or enterprise pricing once you process higher volumes. The differences that usually matter are:

• Method mix. Card fees are higher than bank payment fees on both platforms. Your blended cost depends on how customers actually pay.
• Fixed per-transaction amounts. A fixed rand fee hurts more on small tickets. Test a R50 and a R2,500 sale, not just an average.
• Payouts and refunds. Check the fee to withdraw funds and to refund a customer.
• VAT. Check whether a quoted rate excludes VAT.

A clearly illustrative way to compare: take last month's sales, split them by payment method, and apply each provider's current published fee for each method. For example, R80,000 by card and R40,000 by bank transfer will give a very different result from R20,000 by card and R100,000 by bank transfer. Our overview of payment gateway fees in South Africa walks through that calculation.

Which should you choose?

Choose Ozow first if:

• Most of your customers already pay by EFT and you want that to be instant and confirmed.
• Your average order is high enough that card percentages feel expensive.
• You sell to customers who may not hold a credit card.
• You want strong coverage of bank-branded payment options such as Capitec Pay.

Choose Payfast first if:

• You want cards, EFT, QR codes and BNPL through a single sign-up.
• You need subscriptions or tokenised recurring card billing.
• Your e-commerce platform or booking system already has a Payfast plugin.
• You also want a card machine for in-person sales from the same provider group.

Use both if: you want to steer bank-paying customers to a lower-cost rail while keeping cards and recurring billing available. Offering Ozow alongside Payfast at checkout is a common pattern, and it also gives you a fallback if one provider has an outage. See running multiple payment gateways for the trade-offs.

Questions to ask before you sign

1. What will my blended fee be, based on my real payment-method mix?
2. How long does settlement to my bank account take, and what does a payout cost?
3. How are refunds processed and charged?
4. Is there a rolling reserve or volume cap for new merchants in my industry?
5. What documents does onboarding (FICA/KYC) need, and how long does approval take?
6. Does the provider support the recurring model I need (tokenised cards, subscriptions or debit orders)?
7. How are payment notifications (webhooks or ITNs) signed and verified?

How CentraPoint helps

CentraPoint does not replace either provider. It connects to the gateways you contract with directly, including Ozow and PayFast, which you enable as modules alongside others such as Yoco, Peach Payments and Paystack. You can offer more than one on a hosted checkout page you design, send HMAC-signed payment links, and bill subscriptions with trials and dunning retries. Inbound gateway notifications are signature-checked and re-verified server-side before an invoice is marked paid, and statement reconciliation matches payouts and fees back to your records. See the full list on our gateways page.

Frequently asked questions

Is Ozow cheaper than Payfast?

It depends on how your customers pay. As of September 2026, both publish lower fees for bank payments than for cards, so compare each provider's current rates against your own method mix on their official pricing pages.

Can I use Ozow and Payfast on the same website?

Yes. Many merchants offer both at checkout, for example Ozow for pay-by-bank and Payfast for cards and subscriptions. You hold a separate merchant account with each provider.

Does Payfast support instant EFT?

Yes. Payfast lists Instant EFT and Capitec Pay among its 18+ payment methods, alongside cards, QR codes and buy now pay later.

Which is better for subscriptions?

Payfast explicitly markets subscriptions and tokenisation for recurring card payments. If recurring billing is central to your business, confirm the exact recurring features each provider currently offers before choosing.