Quick answer: Razorpay is India's broadest payments ecosystem — gateway, payment links and invoices, subscriptions, POS, plus RazorpayX business banking and payroll. Gateway charges are per successful transaction as a percentage that varies by payment method, plus GST, with international cards priced materially higher. The reason companies pick Razorpay is usually not price; it is that one vendor covers collections, payouts, banking and payroll.
The ecosystem, and why it matters
| Product | What it does |
|---|---|
| Payment Gateway | Website and app checkout across UPI, cards, net banking, wallets, EMI |
| Payment Links / Pages | Collect without a website |
| Invoices | Issue an invoice with a payment link attached |
| Subscriptions | Recurring billing on UPI AutoPay, e-NACH and card mandates |
| Magic Checkout | One-click checkout aimed at reducing cart abandonment |
| POS | Card and UPI acceptance in store |
| RazorpayX | Current account, payouts, vendor payments |
| RazorpayX Payroll | Payroll with automated salary and statutory disbursal |
For a growing company, the value is consolidation: the same vendor collects your revenue, holds your operating account, pays your vendors and runs payroll. That is convenient and it concentrates dependency — a reasonable trade, made knowingly.
How gateway pricing works
Razorpay charges a percentage per successful transaction, plus GST, with the rate differing by method:
- UPI and RuPay debit — nil MDR for most merchants under current rules, making them by far the cheapest rails.
- Other debit cards — low, with category caps in some cases.
- Credit cards — the highest domestic rate.
- Net banking and wallets — vary by bank and wallet.
- International cards — significantly higher, plus forex considerations.
- EMI — additional charges, sometimes passed to the customer.
Your effective blended rate therefore depends on your customer mix, not the rate card. An Indian D2C brand collecting 75% by UPI pays a fraction of what a business taking mostly international cards pays, on the same contract. Model your own mix. Our UPI gateway charges and MDR guide explains the regulatory background.
Also confirm: settlement cycle (commonly T+1 or T+2, longer for some categories), refund and chargeback fees, whether a rolling reserve applies, and any setup or annual charges. Negotiated rates are available at volume — ask.
Invoices and the free invoice generator
Razorpay offers a free online invoice generator that produces a GST invoice PDF without an account, and a full Invoices product that issues invoices with an attached payment link and tracks payment. The generator is fine for a one-off; it is not a system of record — no numbering series you can defend at audit, no receivables tracking. For that you want invoicing or accounting software: Zoho Invoice (free), Zoho Books, Vyapar or TallyPrime. See our Zoho Invoice and free invoice generator guide.
Subscriptions and recurring collection
Indian recurring payments run on mandates — UPI AutoPay, e-NACH and card mandates — under the RBI framework requiring pre-debit notification, with additional authentication above a threshold. What decides success is mandate registration completion rate and retry logic on failed debits, not the feature list. See our subscription billing and e-mandate guide.
Razorpay versus the alternatives
- Cashfree Payments — stronger if bulk payouts with account verification are central. See our Cashfree guide.
- Easebuzz — strong in education fees and society collections. See our Easebuzz guide.
- PayU and BillDesk — long-established, enterprise and bank-heavy.
- Instamojo — easiest onboarding for the smallest sellers.
- Juspay — orchestration across gateways for very high volume merchants.
Full comparison in best payment gateway in India.
FAQs
What are Razorpay's charges in India?
A percentage per successful transaction plus GST, varying by payment method: UPI and RuPay debit carry nil MDR for most merchants under current rules, other debit cards are low, credit cards are the highest domestic rate, and international cards are materially higher. Your effective rate is set by your payment mix. Negotiated rates are available at volume.
Is Razorpay's invoice generator free?
Razorpay offers a free online GST invoice generator that produces a PDF without an account. It is suitable for a one-off invoice but is not a system of record — it keeps no defensible numbering series and does not track receivables. For that, use Zoho Invoice, Zoho Books, Vyapar or TallyPrime.
What is RazorpayX?
RazorpayX is Razorpay's business banking layer: a current account with automated vendor payouts, approval workflows and reporting, plus RazorpayX Payroll which disburses salaries and statutory dues automatically. It is what distinguishes Razorpay from a collection-only gateway.
Does Razorpay support recurring payments?
Yes, via Razorpay Subscriptions on UPI AutoPay, e-NACH and card mandates under the RBI recurring-payments framework, including pre-debit notification. Evaluate on mandate registration success rate and failed-debit retry logic rather than on the feature list.
Razorpay or Cashfree — which should I choose?
Razorpay if you want one vendor across collections, business banking and payroll, and value ecosystem breadth. Cashfree if bulk payouts with bank-account verification are central to your model — marketplaces, lending, gig platforms. On collection pricing alone the two are broadly comparable; model your own payment mix against both rate cards.
Next step: get a free matched payment gateway shortlist based on your payment mix, volume and payout needs.
