The Japanese ecommerce market continues to expand year after year. According to data from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, the consumer ecommerce market reached ¥26.1 trillion in 2024, a 5.1% increase from the previous year.

Against this backdrop, the key to business success lies in ecommerce operators establishing robust payment systems that can provide customers with a convenient and secure shopping experience. Furthermore, among the various online payment options available, credit card payments are particularly popular and are considered integral across all industries.

In this article, we’ll explain why credit card payments are considered important for ecommerce sites, as well as how to implement them, their benefits, and key points to consider during implementation.

Key takeaways

• Credit card payments, which are the most widely used ecommerce payment method, are key for ecommerce sites.
  
• There are two main ways to implement credit card payments on an ecommerce site: entering into a direct contract with a credit card company or using a payment service provider (PSP).
  
• While there are various benefits to implementing credit card payments, it’s necessary to verify in advance that your ecommerce shopping cart system is compatible with your chosen PSP and preferred payment methods.
  
• When ecommerce businesses select a PSP, one of the criteria they need to consider is whether the PSP supports multiple card brands.
  
• Stripe Checkout can optimize and simplify your ecommerce site’s payment process, with support for over 30 languages and more than 135 currencies.
  

Why credit card payments are important for ecommerce sites

Major methods used for ecommerce payments in Japan include credit card payments, electronic money payments, convenience store payments, and bank transfers. Among these, credit card payments boast a particularly high usage rate. According to 2024 data from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, credit cards account for an overwhelming share—approximately 80%—of all ecommerce payments, far surpassing the usage rates of other payment methods.

Credit card payments are popular among a wide range of customers not only because they offer the convenience of seamless transactions, both online and offline, with a single card, but also because certain cards offer rewards programs and support installment payments, revolving payments, and bonus payments.

Therefore, to optimize conversion rates and meet customer needs, it’s important to implement credit card payments, the most widely used online payment method.

How to implement credit card payments on an ecommerce site

There are two ways for ecommerce businesses to implement credit card payments on their sites: by entering into a direct contract with a credit card company (such as an acquirer), or by using a payment service provider (PSP).

Contracting directly with a credit card company

When implementing a payment system through a direct contract with a credit card company, the business enters into a contract with an acquirer—a company that handles merchant onboarding for international brands such as Visa, Mastercard, and JCB—without going through a PSP.

The advantage of this approach is that it allows businesses to keep payment processing fees low by bypassing PSPs; however, the reality of the Japanese payment industry is that screening criteria are strict, and direct contracts are generally limited to large companies with a proven track record of high sales volumes.

In addition, entering into direct contracts requires significant time and effort to prepare for the screening process. Furthermore, companies must not only implement security measures for credit card payments, but they’re also responsible for building their own payment systems, both of which require specialized knowledge.

In addition, billing cycles and payment due dates can vary by credit card company, which could complicate accounting procedures. This means it’s necessary to allocate sufficient staff for administrative tasks and establish systems to prevent errors.

Using a payment service provider (PSP)

This method involves a PSP acting as an intermediary between the business and the credit card companies, handling everything from contract negotiations and implementation procedures to sales data management and payment processing.

Using this model, you can complete the setup all at once, even if you need to enter into contracts with multiple card companies or want to introduce payment methods other than credit cards.

In addition to the implementation support services provided during the setup phase, continuing to use the PSP’s system after implementation offers the following benefits:

• Cost reduction: Minimizes the time and expense required to build payment and security systems.
  
• Sales data consolidation: Enables sales data from multiple credit card companies to be consolidated, managed, and operated within a single system.
  
• Streamlined reconciliation and payment confirmation process: Because it’s possible to process varying closing dates and payment cycles from different card companies on the same day, reconciliation and payment verification are simplified.
  

Benefits of implementing credit card payments on ecommerce sites

By implementing credit card payments on your ecommerce site, you can enjoy the following benefits:

Expanded sales opportunities

As data from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications shows, credit card payment is the most widely used payment method in Japan. Therefore, implementing this feature enhances the convenience of your ecommerce site, helping to prevent cart abandonment and expand sales opportunities.

Increased average transaction value

Credit card payments are generally preferred for high-value purchases; many customers are willing to go ahead with a purchase using a card even when they might hesitate to pay the same amount in cash.

By offering not only one-time payments but also installment plans and bonus payments, you can lower the barrier to purchasing high-priced items and facilitate an increase in the average transaction value.

Increase in repeat customers

For ecommerce sites that customers have used before, credit card information is already on file (if they provided it), so they don’t need to reenter their card details the next time they shop, allowing them to complete transactions quickly.

Offering credit card payment options that streamline the checkout process in this way makes the site more user-friendly, ultimately leading to an increase in repeat customers.

Points to consider when implementing credit card payments

While credit card payments offer many benefits, there are some key things to consider when implementing them on an ecommerce site.

Specifically, the ecommerce platform or shopping cart tool your company uses might limit the available payment processing services and payment methods.

For example, while PSPs can offer a variety of convenient services and tools, you won’t be able to implement them if they aren't compatible with your site’s ecommerce platform or shopping cart system.

Similarly, when it comes to payment methods other than credit cards—such as convenience store payments and smartphone payments—the options available to you will vary depending on the ecommerce platform or cart you choose.

Therefore, it’s important to make your decision based on your specific situation, as outlined below.

• If you’ve already decided on the payment methods or PSP you want to use: Before selecting an ecommerce platform or online shopping cart, check which ones support your preferred payment methods or PSP.
  
• If you’ve already decided on the ecommerce platform or cart you want to use: Review the list of supported payment methods beforehand and select a PSP that integrates well with that ecommerce platform or cart.
  

Key considerations when choosing a payment service provider

Using a PSP is a common way to streamline contracts with multiple credit card companies and make it easier to implement and manage diverse payment methods—all while ensuring customer security. Here are the key points to consider when selecting the best PSP for your company.

Can the PSP support multiple card brands at once?

The range of card brands supported varies by PSP. Therefore, to meet your customers’ needs, you should verify whether the PSP you’re considering supports major card brands such as Visa, Mastercard, and JCB.

In addition, if you’re considering cross-border ecommerce targeting customers overseas as well as in Japan, it’s important to verify whether the PSP can flexibly accommodate card brands and payment methods commonly used in those regions. For example, if your business is looking to expand into cross-border ecommerce in China, it’s advisable to support UnionPay—the most widely used card brand in China.

How easy is it to get set up with the PSP?

The biggest advantage of using a PSP is that it simplifies the contract and setup processes.

By having the PSP take on the entirety of the implementation process, including integration with various payment systems, the workload on the business is significantly reduced.

The level of support the PSP provides during implementation and ongoing operations also plays a key role—more support from the PSP means less operational burden for the business, and vice versa. Small businesses, in particular, often struggle to secure in-house staff and tend to rely more heavily on external resources; therefore, it’s recommended that they choose a PSP that offers comprehensive support.

However, using a PSP entails significant costs for implementation and operation. Since some PSPs charge fixed fees, it’s important to carefully review the pricing structure beforehand and evaluate the cost-effectiveness of the service.

Does the PSP support security and fraud prevention measures?

Preventing fraud and working to ensure customer safety helps enhance your brand image and public trust, and ultimately helps to avoid financial losses. Therefore, selecting a PSP that proactively and vigorously implements the following security measures is a key consideration when operating an ecommerce business.

• PCI DSS: Does the PSP comply with the international security standard for credit card information known as PCI DSS?
  
• 3D Secure 2.0: Does it support 3D Secure 2.0, an identity authentication service designed to prevent identity theft and other fraudulent activities?
  
• PSP’s proprietary fraud detection system: In addition to preventing unauthorized access through data encryption (SSL/TLS technology) and the tokenization of payment information, is a proprietary fraud detection system available that incorporates machine learning capabilities to address ever-changing fraud patterns?
  

Can the PSP scale as you grow?

As payment methods continue to diversify, the key to success in further strengthening the payment environment lies in the ability to adapt to new payment needs as they emerge.

Therefore, when selecting the optimal PSP, you should assess not only whether new payment methods can be added in the future but also whether the PSP has the capacity to expand payment functionality and adapt to long-term business growth.

How Stripe Checkout can help

Stripe Checkout is a fully customizable prebuilt payment form that makes it easy for you to accept payments on your website or application.

Checkout can help you:

• Increase conversion: Checkout’s mobile-optimized design and one-click checkout flow make it simple for customers to input and reuse their payment information.

• Reduce development time: Embed Checkout directly into your site, or direct customers to a Stripe-hosted page, with just a few lines of code.

• Improve security: Checkout handles sensitive card data, simplifying PCI compliance.

• Expand globally: Localize pricing in 100+ currencies with Adaptive Pricing, which supports 30+ languages and dynamically displays the payment methods most likely to improve conversion.

• Use advanced features: Integrate Checkout with other Stripe products, such as Billing for subscriptions, Radar for fraud prevention, and more.

• Maintain control: Fully customize the checkout experience, including saving payment methods and setting up post-purchase actions.

Learn more about how Checkout can optimize your payment flow, or get started today.

FAQs about ecommerce credit card payments in Japan

Finally, here are some frequently asked questions about credit card payments on ecommerce sites, presented in a Q&A format.