Top 5 Bitcoin WordPress Plugins

It’s one of the biggest questions in e-commerce: “Should I accept Bitcoin on my website?”. Bitcoin, the world’s most popular cryptocurrency, has been popularized by major e-commerce giants such as Overstock and Microsoft, as well as a growing number of merchants in nearly all sectors of online shopping. It’s quickly becoming a perfect alternative to existing payment merchants such as PayPal and other credit card services. To make it easier for WordPress site owners, there are a healthy number of plugins to allow you to accept Bitcoin.

There are many benefits too:

• Free or cheaper transaction fees (up to 1%) than PayPal
• No chargebacks
• Minimized fraud
• Entrance into new markets and countries
• Another segment of customers ready to spend
• A chance to gain more capital from the rising value of Bitcoin

In this list, I’ve put together 5 of the most popular WordPress plugins to check out. I’ve also identified what makes each different than the next, to help those who are mostly overwhelmed by the process.

Blockonomics

For people who hate the middle man — Blockonomics allows you to accept payments directly into your wallet instead of utilizing a central wallet hosted by a payment gateway. From the ground up, their payment module is the only 100% decentralized gateway that removes the need for a middle man, saving additional transaction fees. Great for those that want to be their own bank. Transaction fees are 1%, and the first 10 transactions are free.

Coinbase

For those not completely familiar with wallets & exchanges — Coinbase is the most popular exchange in the world, and has recently introduced the ability to transact both Bitcoin and Litecoin using Coinbase Commerce. Free transactions are great at first glance, but with nonexistent customer support, implementation may become a challenge. However, as most experienced Bitcoiners know very well, Coinbase is the trusty training wheels you use before you really start to pedal.

BitPay

For merchants looking to automatically convert to cash — BitPay is one of the original Bitcoin payment processors, and for that reason, is used by most e-commerce sites that accept Bitcoin. However, BitPay does have restrictions on goods and services sold on your e-commerce site — especially those in high risk industries. Transaction fees start at 1% and up.

Coingate

For traders and merchants interested in making cryptocurrency exchanges — Coingate does more than just accept Bitcoin from your e-commerce site. They also allow you to buy cryptocurrencies straight from their website, and allow you to sell Bitcoin into Euros. Transaction fees are capped at 1%, and is also ahead of the curve in relation to Lightning beta payments.

CoinPayments

For natively accepting altcoins — CoinPayments is popular for those looking to branch into more than just Bitcoin. While most payment gateways offer altcoins using a Shapeshift integration, CoinPayments is one of the few gateways that natively support Ethereum, Litecoin, and over 800 other cryptocurrencies at a 0.5% transaction fee. It also offers an in-person, point-of-sale interface for those with brick & mortar locations. Another neat feature is that CoinPayments offers zero-confirmation payments with their Woocommerce plugin.

It’s a great time to consider accepting Bitcoin as a payment method. With 2018 reaching affordable value, collecting Bitcoin as a payment may lead to future gains, as Bitcoin heads back upwards for the latter half of the year. Who knows — that $500 purchase in August may end up being $1000 by December!