Adyen Reviews & Complaints
Company Overview
Headquartered in Amsterdam, Adyen is a merchant account provider that offers online, mobile, and in-person international payment processing. The company prominently advertises interchange-plus pricing. The service claims that it was founded in 2006 and that it is a direct global processor with Visa and MasterCard that can process and settle payments in any country or currency. In December 2014, Adyen raised $250 million in venture capital to expand its payments platform. As of February 2017, it claimed to process more than $90 billion internationally per year resulting in revenues reaching $727 million. In February 2018, the online marketplace eBay announced plans to gradually replace its default payment processor PayPal with Adyen over the next three years, and the process is already underway. Adyen is partnered with numerous acquiring banks in order to process payments internationally and claims to be a direct processor.
Adyen Payment Processing
Adyen processes all major debit and credit cards for most business types. Their services include mobile payments, POS solutions, EMV readers, data reporting and analytics, payment gateways, virtual terminals, card issuing, and fraud and chargeback protection.
Adyen's Online Payments
The company provides a range of online payment options, including credit cards, e-wallets, and bank transfers. Their platform is designed to handle multiple currencies and is geared towards international transactions.
Adyen's Mobile Payments
Adyen extends its services to mobile platforms, supporting in-app payments. This allows businesses to accept payments through mobile applications, enhancing the customer experience.
Risk Management Features
Adyen has risk management features integrated into its payment platform. Their system includes fraud prevention measures that analyze payment data to flag potentially fraudulent activities.
Unified Commerce Platform
One of Adyen's standout features is its Unified Commerce Platform. This enables businesses to track customer transactions across different sales channels, from online to in-store, on a single dashboard.
Subscription Billing
Adyen offers subscription billing services that automate recurring payments. Businesses can easily set up and manage subscription models through the Adyen platform.
Payout Services
Adyen provides payout services, enabling businesses to send funds to customers or between accounts. This is often used for refunds, prize money, or remittances.
Local Payment Methods
The platform also supports a wide array of local payment methods. This is particularly useful for businesses looking to expand internationally, as it allows them to cater to local payment preferences.
Location & Ownership
Adyen's global headquarters can be found at Simon Carmiggeltstraat 6-50, 1011 DJ Amsterdam, The Netherlands, while its U.S. office is located at 274 Brannan Street, Suite 600, San Francisco, California 94107. The co-founder, president, and CEO of Adyen is Pieter van der Does.
Adyen Customer Reviews
Here's What Their Clients Say
| Total Online Complaints | <10 |
|---|---|
| Live Customer Support | No |
| Most Common Complaint | N/A |
| Recent Lawsuits | No |
Moderate Complaint Volume
We have found only a handful of negative Adyen reviews across various consumer protection websites, with none accusing the company of fraudulent practices. Feedback from users includes concerns about customer service quality, particularly for larger or rapidly growing businesses, along with issues like fund-holds and fraudulent transactions. While Adyen generally receives positive feedback from its employees on Glassdoor.com, its mobile app ratings are average, scoring 3.5 out of 5 on the Google Play Store and 3.7 out of 5 on the iTunes App Store.
Adyen Legal Issues
While there are no outstanding class-action lawsuits or FTC complaints against Adyen, the company faced legal scrutiny in 2023 related to its access to FedNow, the Federal Reserve’s new 24-hour payment system. A lawsuit filed by Caitlin Long, CEO of Custodia Bank, questions Adyen’s entry into the system and accuses the Federal Reserve of misapplication of the law. This case, while not directly impacting customers, warrants monitoring. Clients seeking alternative resolution avenues can consider reporting concerns to relevant supervisory organizations.
Adyen Customer Support Channels
Adyen offers phone numbers for its offices but primarily directs clients to its email ticketing system for support. While this setup may suit some users, others may prefer more immediate assistance. Currently, Adyen’s support channels operate at a standard comparable to top-rated credit card processors for customer support.
Adyen Online Ratings
Here's How They Rate Online
| BBB Reports | 6 |
|---|
Note: We have adjusted this company’s BBB rating according to our own standards. To better understand why we adjust BBB ratings, please see our Rating Criteria.
Over 5 Complaints
Adyen currently has an “F” rating with the BBB and has received 6 complaints in the past 36 months. 1 of these 6 complaints was resolved by the company to the satisfaction of the client. The remaining complaints were resolved to the dissatisfaction of the client or received no final response.
What Merchants Are Saying
There have been no informal reviews against the company in the last 3 years, though there was 1 negative review added to the company’s profile previously. The review detailed a client who was refused service:
Adyen may make a decision to refuse their services to your company based on the company business model exclusively but they collect sensitive personal (SSN, etc.) information unnecessary anyway. The company doesn’t have a mechanism for you to access the personal information they collected even after they refused to provide any services.
Adyen is adverse to taking on high-risk clients, as reflected by the company’s policy to reserve the right to cancel accounts based on excessive chargebacks. Businesses facing this predicament can benefit from researching which services are better suited for high-risk merchants.
An “A” Performance
Given the size of the company and the fact that Adyen has only received a small number of complaints to its BBB profile, we have adjusted the BBB’s rating to an “A.” However, readers should be aware that there are good reasons to view the BBB’s information with skepticism.
Adyen Fees, Rates & Costs
A Closer Look at The Contract
| Cancellation Penalties | No |
|---|---|
| Monthly & Annual Fees | Yes |
| Processing Rates | Interchange + |
| Equipment Leasing | Yes |
Adyen Pricing Structure
Adyen’s pricing model is structured based on the currency and card network. Each transaction incurs interchange costs plus a $0.13 processing fee. For Visa and MasterCard payments, the company employs interchange-plus pricing, while American Express and Discover Card payments are charged at 3.95% plus $0.13 per transaction. Transactions via Google and Apple Pay incur an additional $0.13 fee on top of the respective digital wallet rates. Account holders must meet a monthly minimum of either $120 or 1,000 transactions.
For ACH transfers, Adyen charges $0.27 each, UnionPay at 3% plus $0.13 per transaction, and Paysafecard payments at 10-12%, varying by industry. Adyen’s contract is open-ended, requiring two months’ written notice for termination, with some conditions allowing immediate cancellation. The company’s terms do not explicitly mention an early termination fee or PCI compliance fee, though this doesn’t guarantee their absence.
Virtual Terminal and Payment Gateway Pricing
Adyen extends its services to include a virtual terminal and payment gateway, applying its standard pricing schedule to online payments. It remains unclear whether additional costs such as gateway fees, technical support fees, or batch fees are applicable to its e-commerce services.
Discontinued mPOS
Adyen previously offered a mobile POS solution named “Shuttle,” priced at €99 for purchase and €10 monthly, but this service no longer seems to be featured. Instead, the company now provides various EMV/NFC countertop terminals, reflecting its expansion in the POS hardware market.
Industry-Average Terms
Adyen’s publicly disclosed rates align with industry standards for the services offered. No prevalent complaints have been found about excessive fees charged by Adyen. Given this, an “A” rating is appropriate at this time. However, businesses are encouraged to compare Adyen’s rates with those of more affordable merchant account providers. For detailed terms, see Adyen Terms and Conditions.
Adyen Employee Reviews & Sales Tacitcs
Should You Work For Them?
| Uses Independent Resellers | No |
|---|---|
| Telemarketing | No |
| Misleading Marketing | No |
| Discloses All Important Terms | Yes |
No Sales Complaints
Adyen primarily markets itself through web-based advertising and strategic partnerships. There is no indication at this time that the company employs independent sales agents or engages in telemarketing campaigns, and there are also no Adyen complaints that accuse the company’s representatives of misrepresentation or nondisclosure.
No Deceptive Quotes
Adyen’s official materials do not list any “teaser” quotes, and its official pricing sheet and terms and conditions appear to outline all of the important contract terms in plain language. We therefore award the company an “A” rating at this time, but if you suspect that Adyen is charging you undisclosed fees, we recommend seeking a third-party statement audit to find and eliminate hidden charges.
Our Adyen Review Summary
Our Final Thoughts
Adyen appears to be a robust and effective international credit card processing solution for most merchant types. The merchant services provider has aggressive growth plans and claims to have established the necessary banking relationships to truly offer global payment acceptance. Despite its low complaint rate and seemingly transparent contract terms, business owners are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the company’s fund-holding policies and customer support apparatus before signing up. Readers should also compare Adyen’s services to the value offered by top-rated payment processors.
If you found this article helpful, please share it!
nbsr
I recently purchased using Coach stores texting or email using Adyen.
Apparently, a fraud approach to using Adyen from a shoppers perspective is sexist, biased, and discriminates against women or women’s names.
over the period of 2 days tried to purchase coach items and was able to using their paythrutext system from Adyen 4 times.
after the 4th time, for the last 36 hours, it will not let me make a purchase on my own accoutn even using two different credit cards with huge creditlines.
I have over 850 CC score and yet using my husband’s Coach account and his credit cards was able to do 6 on his or more.
yet I am still unable to do over 4 the 24 hours ago. I messaged and talked to both my banks and they both said they didn’t deny the charges at any point!
yet this company wants to stop only me-not my husband from purchasing. also being sent to the same address. but using a different text number for the account!
criminals if you ask me, talk about gender and discrimination by gender or name.
You should be ashamed of your selves and I am starting a complaint to the BBB and the California consumer protection group for your wrong stop of my purchasing.
Thomas Bodetti
The idea of Ebay failing to disclose its choice of a payment processor located in the same geological area as the most active hacking locations in the world is both concerning and challenging to the mind. Additionally this undisclosed (payment entity) referred to by ebay in its now mandatory payment management service fails to give users the choice of storing credit card information instead requiring users to store credit card information and bank information without any defined recourse. Funds collected by said (payment provider are not FDIC insured) as well as data that may be subject to hacking leaves the user with higher than normal risk which ebay fails to disclose to the end user as required by federal laws. Houston we have a really big problem at ebay
Jack Burr
It is heartening to see that you are such a zealous advocate of merchants who are routinely abused by credit card processing companies. Unfortunately your site doesn’t seem to take an interest in customers (“consumers”) who are jerked around by those same credit card processing companies. When a company like Authorize.com or Adyen.com rejects a transaction and incorrectly accuses the customer of trying to buy merchandise with fraudulent credit card information, it creates ill-will between merchant and customer. The customer does not take it out on the credit card clearing house; he takes it out on the merchant. He takes his business elsewhere and the merchant loses the customer.
You need to address the issue of the processor that throws thousands of false FRAUD flags and rejects millions of dollars of transactions every year. Adyen is one of those negligent companies. Write to me and I will provide full particulars, with copious documentary evidence.
Anna
Ayden is working for a fraudulent online shopping site. They are aware that the shopping site is a scam but Ayden continues to take money from innocent people all over the world for this fraudulent online shopping site. This make Ayden equally guilty of fraud.
Stella
Negative 5 stars for Customer Service ( Lisanne )
Our website is under construction and we are a new startup that looking for a payment gateway. Recently, we reached out to Adyen and try to ask some simple questions and she refused to answer those simple question. Saying that they are unable to proceed with our inquiry as our website isn’t fully functional at the moment. Maybe we are from Asia? Or she’s just trying to chase away beginner merchant? Not helpful at all. We are just asking information, not applying for a live account yet. Is it so difficult for you to provide some information on those simple questions? We consider that as rude. We will never ever think of using Adyen again.
Please state on the website that new merchants are not welcomed if you don’t like to accept new merchant. It’s wasting everybody’s time. Feeling disappoints with Adyen’s Customer Service.
This post will help: Best Merchant Accounts for New Businesses
-Phillip
Robyn O'Dale
I continually get the response ” Invalid Request
Unfortunately we were unable to process this request
Previous” when trying to purchade from Chemist Warehouse – I have contacted both Paypal & Chemist Warehouse and they both cannot find any problem – i have purchaded from other merchants without problems
Michael
Scammers who refuse to answer mails.
I bought membership on a game platform, adyen.com was involved as 3rd party as they’re a merchant account provider securing payments from and to other parties.
Everything went alright till 3 days after payment my account got blocked.
I had to pay more than double the amount I paid for the membership I bought to unblock my account.
The game support told me they’re was a chargeback from my bank account but my bank wouldn’t do something like that without my knowledge.
After mailing Adyen they told me the same as game support.
I replied the same as I did to game support but never got an answer.
The money I used to pay the membership was gone, not my bank, nor Jagex, nor Adyen knew where it was.
In other words, I paid more than 3 times the amount for 1 membership and never got any refund.
I saw Jagex and Adyen have quit working together, can’t be a coïncidence.
Ursula
Somebody stole my VISA credit card account number and made purchases through ADYEN. I believe they should be more thorough with the information when opening accounts to give their service. My card was charged $300.00 USD
Kathy
Adyen is one of 5 payment providers we use across several platforms. We only implemented Adyen as other providers could not cover some of the European countries we offer our services too.
Their system interface looks nice. They use a fraud scoring module that cannot be customised to your business needs therefore leaving you exposed to fraud or issues with receiving genuine payments. They offer the worst customer service – no service at all really, you have to email a ticketing support queue only to receive links to their manuals. They state very clearly in their contract that they will adjust the settlement deposit whenever they feel necessary – without warning. Their transactions are coded with a 16 digit transaction number that does not fully export to excel meaning any accounting reconciliations are nearly impossible to do at month end. They offer lots of reporting that sadly only supports card data (not other payment methods like SEPA/Sofort, etc).
For a small business starting out or companies wanting to try other European countries, they offer a wide range of payment methods allowing you to easily test the market. My favourite feature of their system is the duplication of user tool. My only criticism is that their system and service is not sustainable if you want to grow your revenues and are looking for a longer term service.
Justin
I used Adyen for 3 months. In that time I turned over £2674 in card payments, about half of this mail or telephone order (MOTO) transactions. Adyen retained a total of £1545 of that turnover as a “deposit” to protect them from potential chargebacks. They deducted this money from payouts (more than £1000 in one go once) with no advance warning and no notification and I am told that I will have to wait months to get it back. It has caused me serious cashflow problems. They do not disclose anywhere how the deposit calculations are made, so you have no way of knowing how much money they will retain and when.
Furthermore, the wait for payouts is between 11 and 14 days – difficult to justify when they will have the money within 2 days.
Needless to say I have cancelled my account, but advise others to steer well clear of this company. Also, customer support is not good and the software is buggy.
Vladimir
Are you still using them? how fast payouts are now?