Digital River Alternatives for 2024 --

Sep 24, 2024

There's an abundance of Digital River alternatives on the market. You may not know what makes any particular one distinguish themselves from others.

It's particularly important to remember the fact that Digital River is a merchant of record (MoR) This means that many payment services providers don't provide the same comprehensive features you're accustomed to when using an MoR.

In this blog, we cover:

Why the Best Digital River Alternative is a Retailer of Record

If you're familiar with Digital River but aren't familiar about the phrase "merchant of record," you may not be well-versed in the numerous advantages come from using it.

Let's review the definition of MoR and the reasons why it's important it's important to know if your company uses one currently to monetize your SaaS software, program, or other digital product -You should make sure you remain using one.

 What Is a Merchant of Record?

Merchant of Record (MoR) can be described as the entity which sells the products and services to customers. Companies can serve as their own MoR However, many prefer to outsource that responsibility to a company such as Digital River or to sell products or services on behalf of their company.

The MoR assumes the responsibility of SaaS transactions for you which means they take care of everything from processing payments, to chargeback management, to collection and remittance of taxes, and even conformity with local laws and regulations. And because the MoR is responsible for problems related to these fields that they resolve, they can handle those issues so there is no need to.

Digital-commerce-reliant businesses that utilize an MoR can focus less on ecommerce and more on making great software, SaaS, video games, mobile games, or other digital goods.

What makes a Merchant of Record Different From Payment Service providers ?

Payment service providers (PSPs), like MoRs are an intermediary between companies that want to sell a product and the specific network and the services needed on the back end in order to facilitate those transactions. The specialized networks and the services could include payment gateways, payment processing, merchant accounts that accept debit and credit card payments, and others.

PSPs usually also include some sort of ecommerce platform and/or integration functionality (such like APIs, plugins, special integrations, etc.) for integrating their payment platform or payment gateway with your shop or site, however the different options are available.

But, payment service suppliers generally fall from taking care of risk, tackling taxes and helping with chargebacks. When regulations and rules are changed within any of the regions or countries in which you offer your products, you'll be accountable for keeping up with the changes and updating your PSP processes and checkout accordingly.

Some PSPs may offer upgradeable payment solutions to get their services closer to the features that MoR automatically provides, however these are typically bolt-on functions that come with upgrade fees. For example, Stripe comes with a fraud protection upgrade called Radar however it is bundled with cost-per-transaction fees.

 Grow with , an experienced merchant of Record

is the most prominent merchant of record for worldwide software companies, powering over one billion dollars of global transactions each year.

Here's just a handful of the reasons we've earned that reputation.

 We have Decades of Expertise

In 2005, the company was founded and has over two decades of expertise in enabling global payments, and have been a component of the SaaS landscape as it has expanded.

As a result, our team deeply understands the intricacies of selling digital goods as well as software, such as subscription management, as well as the nuances that go with it.

 We're backed by Great Investors

It's not necessary to fret about whether you're profitable or reliable. In addition to our expertise, we also offer the assurance which comes from being supported by an extremely successful, top-performing and reliable investment company.

Through Accel-KKR, we have the resources and proceeds needed for you to expand your company's operations with online payment as well as providing superior security, privacy and corporate security oversight.

 We Get Growing When You Get

The many years we have spent of experience in the worldwide payment platform business has enabled to grow over time however, this increase has occurred because of our great clients.

That's for two reasons that we operate on a revenue-sharing model, as well as because we're a trusted company that wants to assist you continue growing.

 1. It is a way to earn money when you make Cash

Due to the revenue sharing structure that we use, we earn money whenever you make. When your buyer makes a purchase, we charge a small commission for that purchase.

If you're not doing any business, we're not charging this commission.

Our team will collaborate together with you to establish simple, flat-rate pricing based on your volume of transactions as well as the duration, and the pricing will include all of our platform's features and tools.

2. Wants to Be Your Business Partner. Not Your Payments Solutions

Stardock was able to complete the switch to SaaS subscriptions thanks to 's already-in-hand subscription infrastructure that is ready to use, but they saw the mutual investment we made in our own platform in order to develop new products and features.

It made Brad Sams of Stardock feel secure in Stardock's partnership with  the company, as he knew the partnership was to last. "Because the better we do then the better it will be to do. You have to be sure everyone is winning and things with just felt to be aligned."

" I was following that road that was a continuous investment, not just taking a pay check every month but doing nothing."

 -- Brad Sams, Stardock

TestDome is also satisfied with its support which ranges all the way from helping with issues for buyers and chargebacks up to the top of the company and our CEO.

 Award-Winning Customer Support and Customer Succeed

The high level of support and customer service has not only been recognized by our customers, it's also being recognized in our industry.

We don't say just that we'd like to be partners, we set out to show this.

 Our hands-on Migration Team strives for your success

Support isn't just for the first time after you've joined and we're here to help you get started on our payment platform as swiftly and as easily as is possible.

Our hands-on implementation team comprised of extremely efficient sales engineers are experts on  the pre-built storefront for web with its flexible and expansive webhook API, and more. They'll help to make the transition seamless by integrating and migrating.

 Other Fantastic Features

Below are additional great reasons for using :

  • Your account will automatically comply in compliance with VAT, sales tax, and privacy regulations all over the world.
  • Accepts the highest most popular payment options that are in use in more than 185 countries around the world, and in more than 21 languages.
  • You are able to create seamless pop-ups that are embedded in your website or checkout experience on your site.
  • We make it easy to give discounts, coupons, or the ability to offer price points that change with promotions.
  • It is possible to make checkout as simple as one click using 1ClickPay.
  • Plus much and more!

3 More Digital River Options

The options below are typical choices to look into in the case of evaluating Digital River competitors. Remember that none of the options are merchants of record Therefore, you'll have to add additional services, either internally or with other vendors or products.

 Stripe

Screenshot of Digital River alternative Stripe's homepage, with a colorful red, purple, and yellow background, large black text on the left, and photos of a smartphone screen and an analytics dashboard on the right.

Stripe is a well-known and trusted payment processor that allows businesses to accept credit and debit cards, and mobile payments and features like:

  • Payment processing.
  • An UI that can be customized and built checkout flows.
  • Simple management of subscriptions.
  • Online invoicing.

It's possible that you're wondering whether it's a good alternative for your company because it's ubiquitous and it may initially appear to offer lower pricing than the merchant of record you're currently employing. However, that's due to the fact that Stripe isn't a merchant of record.

If you're seeking to cut your transaction costs and you have the scale and expertise, as well as the time and resources to provide all the services you'll end up losing when you switch from MoR system to Stripe, this could be a good option for your company. You'll still need to compensate for the loss in services lost, including the tax-related compliance aspect, fraud control as well as other. Stripe offers products that cover some of those needs, but they are an add-on that can raise your total cost- so any initial cost savings could quickly evaporate.

But, if you're planning to change to Digital River to a business that is in the same class with the features and comfort that MoR offers, Stripe probably isn't the most suitable Digital River competitor for you.

 Adyen

Screenshot of Digital River alternative Adyen's homepage, white background with black or green text and a close-up image of a small digital device and stylus.

Adyen describes itself as "end-to-end payments, data, and financial management in all-in-one solution." The company's solutions for payment as well as financial services come with options and services like:

  • Payments in person and on the internet all in the same system.
  • Revenue optimization with intelligent payment routing, which improves the conversion rate.
  • Subscription management features like dunning automation.
  • The management of risk includes fraud detection and prevention.

While Adyen includes many of the benefits a merchant of record offers but you'll need to manage your own company account and your merchant account.

PayPal is a great option for Business

Screenshot of Digital River alternative PayPal for Business' homepage, white background with black and blue text and photos of people and digital devices.

PayPal is a well-known digital wallet for personal online payments However, they also offer an option to process payments for small business. PayPal for Business is both an in-person as well as electronic commerce solution.

(SaaS companies that utilize it also process payments using PayPal.)

Other benefits offered by PayPal for Business include but are not limited to:

  • Integrated integrations to the most popular internet-based carts for shopping (such as Shopify).
  • QR codes and POS systems.
  • Invoicing.
  • Protection against chargeback (only only available to accounts for businesses which have Advanced Credit and Debit Card payment).

In addition to PayPal for Business, PayPal also offers an exclusive payment processor for SaaS named Braintree.

 How Can Help

Need a merchant of record to increase your sales internationally? It is a complete, integrated payment solution to SaaS software, video games and various other businesses that sell digital products.

Our services cover calculations for sales tax and VAT as well as collection and remittance; payment localization; regulation compliance; top-rated consumer service; and many more!

Katie Stephan

Katie Stephan   Katie Stephan is the Senior Content Strategist of . Besides her extensive marketing experience and expertise, she also holds an MFA in creative nonfiction writing and has been a part of the communities she lives in as a writing professor at a local college.