Estonians love bank links. Unlike Americans who reach for a credit card, Estonians want to log into their bank (Swedbank, LHV, SEB) and pay directly. If checkout feels complicated or unfamiliar, carts are abandoned. Payment choice is a strategic decision.

Market leaders: Montonio vs Maksekeskus

In 2026 the Estonian market is dominated by local aggregators.

Feature	Montonio	Maksekeskus (Luminor)
Bank link fee	Very low (often fixed € per transaction)	Percentage + fixed fee
Delivery integration	Yes (automatic parcel labels)	Yes
Installments	Strong focus (“Split” solutions)	Available

Stripe and the outside world

If you sell outside Estonia, Stripe is essential. A foreign customer doesn’t know what “Swedbank” is. They want Visa, Mastercard or American Express.

Stripe’s advantage is user experience — the payment form stays on your site instead of redirecting to a bank, which increases conversion. The downside is higher fees (about 1.5%–3%).

Apple Pay and Google Pay

This is “one‑click” payment. On mobile, Apple Pay is already set up. The customer taps, authenticates with face ID and it’s done.

Pro tip:

In 2026, Apple Pay/Google Pay support is mandatory. It can reduce mobile cart abandonment by up to 20% because people don’t want to type card numbers or log into banks.

Security and PSD2

Make sure your solution complies with EU security rules (SCA — Strong Customer Authentication). The providers above (Montonio, Maksekeskus, Stripe) handle it automatically. If you use an old custom solution, you can get into trouble.