Cashfree Payments vs PayU India

Updated November 2026 · AppBreakup editorial

Cashfree Payments

Indian payment gateway and payouts platform for collecting and sending money via UPI, cards and bank transfers.

Paid

Visit Cashfree Payments Cashfree Payments profile

PayU India

Online payment gateway for Indian businesses, covering cards, UPI, netbanking, EMI, pay-later and wallets.

Paid

Visit PayU India PayU India profile

The short answer

Cashfree Payments suits Indian businesses that need to both collect and send money, since payouts and verification APIs sit next to the gateway. PayU India suits merchants selling higher-priced goods who want a long-established gateway with wide EMI and pay-later options. The biggest difference is scope: Cashfree is collections plus payouts, PayU is a collections-focused gateway with strong affordability options.

Cashfree Payments or PayU India: our take

Both are online payment gateways for businesses registered in India, managed from a web dashboard with developer APIs. Each accepts UPI, cards, netbanking, wallets, EMI and pay-later, and both offer payment links and subscriptions. Cashfree lists 180+ payment modes; PayU lists 150+. Neither charges a setup fee on its standard plan, and PayU also has no annual maintenance fee.

On the standard rate, Cashfree is slightly cheaper: a 1.95% platform fee per transaction plus taxes, against PayU's 2% on cards, netbanking, wallets and BNPL. The gap narrows or flips on premium methods. Cashfree charges a 2.99% platform fee for international cards, and Amex and Diners also cost more; PayU charges 3% for EMI, Amex, Diners and international payments. Larger merchants on either can negotiate custom or enterprise pricing.

The real difference is what surrounds the gateway. Cashfree sells a payouts API for paying vendors, customers and employees in bulk (from ₹3 per NEFT payout), plus identity and bank-account verification APIs. That makes it a natural fit for marketplaces, lenders, insurers and D2C brands that onboard many users and send money out as well as in. It also collects international cards and PayPal across 140+ currencies with settlement in INR, and has a native Shopify integration for Indian stores.

PayU, owned by Prosus, is one of the older gateways in the country and is used by both small sellers and big brands in travel, education and ecommerce. Its strength is affordability: a wide range of card EMI and buy-now-pay-later options that matter when customers are buying expensive items. It has fewer adjacent banking products than some rivals. Pick Cashfree if payouts or verification are part of the job; pick PayU if the priority is a simple flat rate and strong EMI choices at checkout.

Choose Cashfree Payments if…

Indian businesses that need both payment collection and high-volume payouts
Standard rate slightly below the common 2% Indian benchmark
Payouts and verification APIs sit alongside the gateway

Choose PayU India if…

Indian merchants who want a long-established gateway with strong EMI and pay-later options
Simple flat rate across most domestic payment methods
Wide range of EMI and buy-now-pay-later options

What is Cashfree Payments?

Cashfree Payments is an Indian payments company offering a payment gateway, hosted checkout, payment links, subscriptions and a payouts API for sending money to vendors, customers and employees. Merchants can accept UPI, cards, netbanking, wallets, EMI and pay-later options, and can collect international card and PayPal payments that settle in rupees. It is popular with marketplaces, lending and insurance companies and D2C stores that need both collections and bulk payouts, and it has a native Shopify integration for Indian stores. Pricing is a per-transaction platform fee with no setup charge on the standard plan; card networks such as Amex and international cards cost more, and enterprises can negotiate custom pricing. Cashfree also sells identity and bank-account verification APIs, which helps businesses that onboard many users. It is aimed at businesses registered in India and is managed through a web dashboard and APIs.

What is PayU India?

PayU India is the Indian arm of PayU, a payments group owned by Prosus, and one of the older online payment gateways in the country. Merchants use it to accept cards, UPI, netbanking, wallets, EMI and buy-now-pay-later options on websites and apps, with payment links, invoices, subscriptions and plugins for common ecommerce platforms. Its standard plan is pay-as-you-use with a flat percentage on most domestic methods, a higher rate for Amex, Diners, EMI and international cards, and no setup or annual maintenance fee; larger merchants can ask for enterprise pricing with a dedicated account manager. PayU is used by a mix of small sellers and big brands, especially in travel, education and ecommerce, and offers affordability options like card EMIs that matter for higher-priced purchases. It is meant for businesses registered in India and is managed from a web dashboard with developer APIs.

Side by side

Attribute	Cashfree Payments	PayU India
Pricing	Paid	Paid
Open source	No	No
Self-hostable	No	No
Platforms	Web	Web
Best for	Indian businesses that need both payment collection and high-volume payouts	Indian merchants who want a long-established gateway with strong EMI and pay-later options
Status	Active	Active

Verified facts, compared

Facts both apps publish, checked on each vendor's own site.

Fact	Cashfree Payments	PayU India
Setup fee	None	None, and no annual maintenance fee
Payment methods	180+ payment modes	150+