Softwr

Personal Finance · head to head

Apple Pay vs Braintree

Apple Pay logo

Apple Pay

Personal Finance

The easier way to pay and send money

From
Free
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
B

Braintree

E-commerce

End-to-end checkout experiences for businesses, from PayPal

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Only Apple Pay has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
  • Each has a real cost: Apple Pay apple Pay works only in countries and regions that support contactless payments and is not available in all markets; Braintree vendor overview page names no transaction fee percentage or fixed charge, requiring a separate signup flow to see pricing

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Apple Pay and Braintree actually diverge.

Attributes where Apple Pay and Braintree differ
AttributeApple PayBraintree
Starting priceFreeOn request
Pricing modelfreetransaction
Free tierYesNo
PlatformsIOS, WatchOS, MacOSWeb
CategoryPersonal FinanceE-commerce
Founded2014Unknown

Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Apple Pay

  • Digital wallet
  • Secure payments
  • Contactless transactions
  • P2P money transfers
  • Credit cards
  • Debit cards
  • Bank accounts
  • IOS support

Only in Braintree

Nothing recorded that Apple Pay does not also cover.

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Apple Pay

  • Contactless in store payment from iPhone and Apple Watchnot Braintree
  • Paying in apps and on the web without entering card detailsnot Braintree
  • Sending money between Apple users with Apple Cash and Tap to Cashnot Braintree

Braintree

No use cases recorded yet. See the Braintree review.

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Apple Pay

  • Apple Pay works only in countries and regions that support contactless payments and is not available in all markets
  • Apple Cash is available only in the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico
  • Apple Cash Family accounts and Tap to Cash transactions are each capped at 2000 USD within a rolling seven day period
  • Mac support requires a Touch ID equipped model
  • A card works only if the issuing bank supports Apple Pay, and banks may charge their own overseas usage fees

Braintree

  • Vendor overview page names no transaction fee percentage or fixed charge, requiring a separate signup flow to see pricing
  • Now marketed and hosted directly under the PayPal brand at paypal.com rather than a standalone braintreepayments.com site, which now redirects

Pricing, plan by plan

Apple Pay

Free
  • FreeFree
    • Secure payments
    • P2P transfers
    • Transit passes

Braintree

On request

No published plan breakdown. See the Braintree review.

Which should you pick?

Choose Apple Pay if

  • You need digital wallet.
  • You want to start without paying.
  • You work on IOS, WatchOS, MacOS.
  • You also want secure payments.
Apple Pay review

Choose Braintree if

Nothing in the data separates Braintree from Apple Pay on the points above - pick on price and on how each one feels to use.

Braintree review

Questions people ask

Is Apple Pay or Braintree better?
Neither clearly leads. Apple Pay starts at Free and Braintree at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Apple Pay or Braintree?
Apple Pay has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at Free for Apple Pay and On request for Braintree.
Does Apple Pay or Braintree run on more platforms?
Apple Pay runs on IOS, WatchOS, MacOS. Braintree runs on Web.
Can I use Apple Pay for free?
Yes. Apple Pay has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Braintree starts at On request.
What is Apple Pay best used for?
Apple Pay is most often used for contactless in store payment from iphone and apple watch, paying in apps and on the web without entering card details, sending money between apple users with apple cash and tap to cash. Of those, contactless in store payment from iphone and apple watch and paying in apps and on the web without entering card details are not what Braintree is typically brought in for.
What can Apple Pay do that Braintree cannot?
Apple Pay covers Digital wallet, Secure payments, Contactless transactions, P2P money transfers.
ShareXLinkedInRedditWhatsAppEmail

Related pages

More on Apple Pay

More on Braintree

Keep looking

Other head to heads