What is the most popular online payment method in Germany?
PayPal. It took 28.7% of online retail turnover in 2025, just ahead of purchase on invoice at 26.1%. Direct debit (14.4%) and cards (13.7%) follow, so a German checkout needs all four.
In detail
PayPal. It took 28.7% of German online retail turnover in 2025, according to the EHI Retail Institute, and 77% of internet users surveyed by the Bundesbank hold a PayPal account. Purchase on invoice (Kauf auf Rechnung) follows closely at 26.1%, so the two together take more than half of e-commerce turnover.
The rest of the German checkout
- SEPA direct debit (Lastschrift), 14.4% of online turnover.
- Cards of all kinds, 13.7%.
- Installments, 4.7%.
- Prepayment by bank transfer (Vorkasse), 3.5%.
- Wero, live for online payments since the end of 2025, replacing giropay.
Germany looks like no other market. Shoppers trust their bank account and like to pay after delivery, which explains the weight of invoice and direct debit compared with cards.
What it means for payment operators
A German checkout needs PayPal, invoice, direct debit and cards at a minimum. These usually come from different providers: a wallet, an invoice specialist, a SEPA mandate setup and an acquirer. Operators serving German merchants benefit from connecting them once and turning the right mix on per merchant, then adding Wero as adoption grows.