PSP vs Payment Orchestrator: What's the Difference?
Understanding the difference between a PSP and a payment orchestrator helps you build the right payment stack for your business.
What is a PSP?
A Payment Service Provider (PSP) processes transactions between you and card networks/banks. They handle the technical and regulatory complexity of accepting payments. Examples: Stripe, Adyen, Worldpay.
What is a Payment Orchestrator?
A payment orchestrator sits between you and multiple PSPs, routing transactions intelligently and providing a unified integration layer. Examples: Spreedly, Primer, Gr4vy.
Key Differences
Direct Processing vs Routing
- PSP: Actually processes your transactions
- Orchestrator: Routes transactions to PSPs but doesn't process directly
Contract Relationship
- PSP: Single contract with the processor
- Orchestrator: Contract with orchestrator + contracts with underlying PSPs
Integration Complexity
- PSP: Integrate once with that PSP
- Orchestrator: Integrate once, access multiple PSPs
When You Need an Orchestrator
- Multi-PSP strategy: You're using multiple processors for redundancy or optimization
- Smart routing: You want to route by card type, geography, or success rates
- Failover: Automatic switching when a PSP is down
- Unified reporting: Single view across multiple PSPs
- Token portability: Moving stored cards between PSPs
When a PSP is Enough
- You're using one processor
- Your transaction volume doesn't justify orchestration complexity
- Your PSP's features meet all your needs
- You don't need geographic routing optimization
Cost Considerations
Orchestrators add another fee layer. Make sure the benefits (better approval rates, reduced downtime, easier switching) justify the cost. For smaller merchants, the math often doesn't work.
Key Takeaways
- PSPs process transactions; orchestrators route them
- Orchestrators make sense for multi-PSP strategies
- Single-PSP merchants usually don't need orchestration
- Consider total cost, not just orchestrator fees
- Start simple, add complexity only when needed
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