How do I check an online store’s checkout and payment gateway setup?

Walk through the purchase yourself. Try a guest order, a returning customer, a discount code and a different payment method. Watch for extra steps, surprise shipping costs, slow pages and error messages. Ask the seller for abandoned-cart data showing where shoppers leave, since a clumsy checkout quietly costs sales.

Then look behind the screen. Ask for payout statements and compare them with the sales reports. Differences should be explainable by fees, refunds and timing. Request the history of declined payments, disputes and any holds the processor placed on funds, and ask how the seller dealt with each one.

Last, settle ownership. Find out whose name and bank account sit behind each gateway, and whether the processor will move the account to you or require a new application. Ask how long the changeover takes, what happens to money in transit, and whether saved customer payment details can move at all. Your lawyer and accountant can advise on how to handle the transfer cleanly. It also helps to ask which tax and shipping settings are built into checkout, and who last changed them, since mistakes there tend to repeat on every order.

Key takeaways

• Place real test orders on both a phone and a computer.
• Compare payout statements with sales reports and ask about disputes and holds.
• Confirm who owns each payment account and how it moves to you.
• Ask who last changed checkout settings and how mistakes would be noticed.