Answer
How do I choose a hotel payment processor in 2026?
Choose a hotel payment processor on four dimensions: monthly card volume (Stripe under EUR 500K/month, Adyen above), PMS integration depth (Mews Payments and Cloudbeds Payments are native to their PMS), regional fit (Worldpay strong in UK, Shift4 in US hospitality), and tokenisation support for PCI SAQ A scope. For most independent hotels under EUR 500K monthly card volume on a cloud PMS, the choice reduces to Stripe or the PMS-native processor.
The volume crossover
Stripe charges roughly 1.4% + EUR 0.25 for European cards and 2.9% + USD 0.30 for non-European cards. Adyen runs Interchange++ pricing (interchange + scheme + Adyen markup), which is typically 1.2-1.8% for European volume. The crossover where Adyen becomes cheaper than Stripe is around EUR 500K monthly card volume; below that, Stripe simplicity wins; above, Adyen pricing wins.
PMS-native vs third-party
Mews Payments, Cloudbeds Payments, and Profitroom Payments are native processors built into their respective PMS systems. Native processors simplify pre-arrival authorisation, fold transactions into the folio without third-party gateway integration, and reduce reconciliation complexity. The trade-off is processor lock-in and slightly higher fees than negotiating Stripe or Adyen directly.
PCI DSS scope
Every modern processor (Stripe, Adyen, Mews Payments, Cloudbeds Payments) supports tokenisation that keeps card data off your network and qualifies the property for SAQ A (the lightest PCI level). According to Stripe's PCI guidance, SAQ A is the right level for most independent hotels using a tokenising processor.