Magento 2 (now known as Adobe Commerce) offers impressive flexibility for managing complex product catalogs and multiple payment options. But flexibility alone doesn’t guarantee smooth transactions. What truly drives results is how you configure your payment gateway — the features you activate, the methods you support, and how frictionless the checkout flow feels.
Cart abandonment in Magento stores
Cart abandonment occurs when a shopper adds products to the basket but leaves before completing the purchase. While some visitors are simply browsing, a significant share abandon due to preventable checkout issues. Common causes include slow page loads, limited payment methods, and lack of trust in payment security.
According to Statista, the global cart abandonment rate across e-commerce sites reached 70% in 2024. Meanwhile, roughly 70–80% of online shopping carts are abandoned before checkout. These figures highlight a critical challenge for Magento merchants who may lose substantial revenue at the final step.
Magento 2’s architecture supports complex integrations and high-volume transactions—handling over 600 per hour when configured well. But without a strategic payment gateway setup, even a powerful store can suffer from friction and failed conversions.
Top Magento payment gateway features that reduce abandonment
Multiple payment options and local methods
Choice builds confidence. The more ways shoppers can pay, the fewer reasons they have to leave. Magento supports credit and debit cards, e-wallets, bank transfers, and alternative payment methods like GrabPay, GCash, or Alipay.
Localisation also matters — offering regional payment methods builds trust, especially for cross-border merchants. Even adding PayPal, cash on delivery (COD), or American Express can make a measurable difference in checkout completion.
Magento’s modular adapters make this easy: you can integrate or update methods without reworking your entire site.
Guest checkout and one-step payment flow
Nothing kills momentum like forced account creation. 24% of online shoppers abandon carts for this reason alone.
Magento’s guest checkout and one-step checkout extensions simplify the process, cutting down form fields and time-to-payment to under 30 seconds. The result is less friction, fewer clicks, and higher conversion rates.
Strong security and PCI-DSS compliance
Trust is everything in e-commerce. Magento gateways that feature SSL encryption, PCI-DSS certification, and two-factor authentication reassure customers their data is protected.
Fraud prevention tools — like Antom Shield’s AI-driven risk detection — add another layer of defense, automatically flagging suspicious behavior and blocking fraudulent payments. These visible and invisible security measures help customers feel safe, encouraging them to complete the transaction.
Buy now, pay later (BNPL) and instalment options
When customers hesitate on high-value items, flexibility wins. BNPL services such as Klarna, Atome, or Afterpay let shoppers pay in instalments without disrupting cash flow.
Magento supports these models natively through flexible payment modules that handle recurring and partial payments, including subscription setups. These features reduce hesitation and increase average order values.
Express and mobile-optimised checkouts
About 80% of online purchases now happen on mobile. That means your checkout must load fast, scale perfectly to smaller screens, and complete payments with minimal redirects.
Magento gateways that offer on-site processing, auto-filled details, and stored wallets (like Apple Pay or Google Pay) remove barriers on mobile. Add express checkout for returning customers, and you dramatically shorten the path from intent to payment.
Transparent pricing and progress indicators
Surprise fees are one of the biggest conversion killers. Magento gateways that display taxes, shipping costs, and currency conversions upfront reduce abandonment instantly.
Progress bars or step indicators also make a difference. When customers know exactly where they are in the checkout flow, they’re less likely to leave midway.
Best practices for implementation in Magento 2
- Assess store requirements: Understand your transaction volume, target regions, and customer preferences before selecting a payment gateway. This ensures you choose one that supports your primary currencies and local payment methods.
- Select the right gateway: Prioritise gateways with proven uptime, PCI-DSS compliance, and multi-currency support. A reliable gateway should scale with transaction peaks and provide transparent reporting.
- Test integration thoroughly: Use Magento’s sandbox environment to test across browsers and devices. Confirm that each payment method works as expected and that mobile performance remains stable.
- Focus on speed and performance: Keep checkout scripts lightweight and minimise redirects. Every extra second at checkout can increase abandonment.
- Use analytics for ongoing optimisation: Track conversion rates, failed payments, and drop-off points. Analytics reveal trends that can guide improvements in checkout flow and payment options.
- Run A/B testing on checkout flows: Experiment with button placement, guest checkout options, and progress indicators to identify what leads to higher conversions.
- Personalise payment options: Display preferred methods based on user location, currency, or purchase history. Personalisation creates a sense of familiarity and convenience.
- Maintain 99.9% uptime: Monitor performance continuously. Choose gateways that offer redundancy and automatic failover to prevent interruptions during high traffic.
- Simplify integrations: Avoid using multiple overlapping gateways that increase complexity and loading time. Instead, adopt PCI-compliant adapters that streamline the checkout process.
- Recover lost sales through automation: Use Magento-compatible recovery tools, such as email reminders and retry automation, to bring back incomplete transactions. Extensions like Antom’s settlement and recovery features can simplify reconciliation and revenue tracking.
Reducing abandonment through smart payment strategy
Reducing abandonment is both about technology and strategy. Localise payment experiences by offering regional methods: QR-based payments in Asia, bank transfers in Europe, or wallet options in Latin America. Match checkout experiences to buyer habits and device preferences.
Balance cost and conversion performance. While some payment methods carry higher fees, they may deliver stronger conversion rates. Use analytics to monitor which options generate higher success and focus investment there.
Magento’s reporting tools can identify drop-off patterns, helping you test and refine payment flows. Intelligent retry systems, like Antom’s Revenue Booster, automatically attempt failed transactions at optimal times—improving recovery without user friction. Applying this level of automation can reclaim a significant share of lost revenue.
