How to Accept STC Pay on Shopify (and on Salla or Zid)

Shopify doesn't have an STC Pay button. But you can add one in an afternoon, once your Saudi gateway is set up.

The trick is choosing a gateway that supports it. Amazon Payment Services, Telr and the PayTabs plugin all offer STC Pay on Shopify. On Salla and Zid, it's already built in.

Why bother? STC Pay is the biggest home-grown wallet in Saudi Arabia, and its users are young, mobile and happy to spend.

Below you'll find which gateways support it, how to set it up, what it costs next to mada, and whether it's worth adding for your store.

What is STC Pay now?

STC Pay started as Saudi Arabia's leading e-wallet. It has since become STC Bank, a digital bank licensed by SAMA (the Saudi Central Bank). Old wallet accounts were moved into bank accounts.

For you as a seller, not much changed. Gateways still list the checkout option as "STC Pay", and shoppers still recognise the name.

Here's how it works at checkout:

1. The shopper picks STC Pay at checkout.
2. They confirm the payment with a one-time code sent to their phone.
3. The money leaves their STC Bank account, and your gateway confirms the order.

STC Pay isn't a card. It's a wallet payment from the shopper's account, so it needs its own setup with your gateway, separate from mada and Apple Pay.

Who uses it? It skews towards younger shoppers and expat workers. Many of them keep their spending money in STC Bank rather than a traditional bank.

The bigger picture is on our guide to payment methods in Saudi Arabia.

Does Shopify support STC Pay?

Not directly. Shopify Payments isn't available in Saudi Arabia, and there's no standalone STC Pay app in the Shopify App Store.

Instead, STC Pay comes through your payment gateway. If the gateway supports it, STC Pay shows up as an option in its checkout.

Here's where the main Saudi gateways stand:

So which should you pick? If you want a published price, Amazon Payment Services and Telr are the clearest. If you want the quickest plugin setup, PayTabs is a popular choice.

Tap is a strong Shopify gateway for mada and Apple Pay. Its native checkout app just doesn't include STC Pay yet.

STC Pay is just one part of your checkout. Our guide to setting up mada on Shopify covers the payment method most of your shoppers will actually use.

How do you add STC Pay to Shopify?

You need two accounts: a Saudi gateway that supports STC Pay, and an STC Pay merchant account linked to it. Most of the work is paperwork, not code.

1

Get your Saudi documents ready

A CR (commercial registration, your Saudi business licence), an IBAN letter for a Saudi business account, the owner's ID and a live store with a refund policy.

2

Open a gateway account

Pick a gateway from the table above and apply. Ask for STC Pay on your rate card from day one.

3

Register as an STC Pay merchant

Some gateways, such as PayTabs, ask you to sign up through STC Pay's merchant registration and send them your STC Pay merchant ID (MID). Others handle the link for you.

4

Let the gateway switch it on

The gateway shares your details with STC Pay and turns the method on in your account.

5

Connect the gateway to Shopify

Install the gateway's Shopify app or plugin, then go to Settings > Payments in Shopify and activate it.

6

Run a real test order

Pay with a real STC Bank account, then refund it. Check that the order shows as paid in Shopify and that the refund lands.

Approval usually takes days, not weeks, if your documents are in order. The STC Pay link can add a few more days, so ask for it in the same application.

Where does the money go? It depends on the gateway.

At PayTabs, STC Pay payments settle into your STC Pay merchant account rather than with your card payouts. Get the payout route in writing.

No Saudi company yet? Compare gateways that can onboard you in our directory of Saudi payment gateway providers.

What does STC Pay cost on Shopify?

STC Pay is one of the cheapest ways to get paid in Saudi Arabia. The two gateways that publish a rate both charge 0.9%, just under mada's 1%.

You'll pay three layers on every STC Pay order:

• The gateway fee. A percentage of each sale, set by your gateway. Gateways that don't publish rates quote on application.
• Shopify's third-party fee. It runs from 2% on Basic down to 0.2% on Plus. Cash on delivery orders are exempt.
• VAT on the gateway fee. 15% in Saudi Arabia, charged on the fee, not on your sale.

Then there are one-off and monthly costs. Amazon Payment Services charges SAR 500 to set up STC Pay and SAR 200 a month for the account. Telr's Saudi plans run SAR 99–259 a month.

Worked example: a SAR 300 order on Shopify Basic

Here's what the same SAR 300 order costs you by payment method, using Amazon Payment Services' published rates.

STC Pay saves you SAR 0.34 against mada on this order. That's small change.

The real saving is against credit cards: almost SAR 8 per order. And notice that Shopify's 2% is the biggest line on both cheap methods. Moving up to the Grow plan halves it.

So STC Pay won't transform your margins. Its value is in winning orders, not in cutting fees.

Is STC Pay worth adding to your store?

For most Saudi stores, yes, as long as your gateway offers it at a fair price. It's a cheap method that some shoppers prefer, and it costs little to keep.

Add it if:

• Your shoppers are young or mobile-first. Fashion, gaming, beauty and gadgets attract exactly the STC Pay crowd.
• You sell to expat workers. Many keep their everyday money in STC Bank.
• Your gateway has no setup fee for it. Then there's no reason to wait.
• You're on Salla or Zid. It's a free switch, so turn it on.

You can wait if:

• You're still launching. Get mada, Apple Pay, cards, BNPL and COD working first.
• The setup fee is steep for your volume. SAR 500 at Amazon Payment Services pays back quickly for busy stores, but not for a store with ten orders a month.
• Your checkout already looks crowded. Show four to six methods that matter, not every logo you can find.

Here's a quick way to test the setup fee. If your profit is SAR 60 per order, nine extra STC Pay orders cover the SAR 500.

Want the full method-by-method picture for Shopify? See our ranking of the best Shopify payment gateways in Saudi Arabia.

Test STC Pay before you go live

A broken payment button costs you more than a missing one. Run through this list once STC Pay is switched on.

Notes for Salla and Zid stores

• STC Pay is built in. Salla and Zid both include STC Pay in their own payments, next to mada, Apple Pay, cards, Tabby and Tamara.
• On Salla, it's a switch. Go to Settings > Payment methods > Salla Payments and turn on STC Pay. Salla says linking is now instant for all merchants, with no extra setup cost.
• Salla needs a paid plan. Online payments start on Plus, at SAR 99 a month.
• On Zid, use Zid Payments. STC Pay comes with it once you activate online payments, which starts on the Rise plan at SAR 99 a month. Zid pays out in two to three days.
• Moving to Shopify later? Line up a gateway with STC Pay before you switch, so your STC Pay shoppers don't lose their favourite button.

Notes for UAE and foreign companies

• You'll need a Saudi entity. STC Pay runs through Saudi gateways, which onboard companies with a Saudi CR.
• You can still reach STC Bank customers. Their STC Bank cards work as cards, so they can pay through Visa, Mastercard or Apple Pay on your foreign gateway.
• Marketplaces are the shortcut. Selling on Amazon.sa or noon lets the marketplace handle Saudi payments for you.

Our guide to whether a foreign company can accept mada maps the routes to a Saudi setup. For every other payment guide, head back to the payments hub.

Compare Saudi payment gateways

These providers were independently researched. Ask each one whether STC Pay works inside its Shopify integration, and at what rate.