iDEAL is the most popular online payment method in the Netherlands. Introduced in 2005, it allows Dutch customers to pay online through their own bank. Based on a direct bank transfer, iDEAL offers guaranteed payments and real-time notifications without the risk of chargebacks. Businesses can process orders right away and get paid quickly. With Mollie, you can easily integrate iDEAL as a payment method, opening your business to the whole of the Netherlands within a few clicks.
This is how the iDEAL payment method works
22. 12. 2022
Josh Guthrie
Co-Country Manager
What is the payment method iDEAL?
iDEAL is an ecommerce payment method that enables your customers in the Netherlands to pay online through their own bank. Already part of many Dutch banking services, it has become an integral part of customers' everyday life.
iDEAL is used for nearly 50% of online transactions in the Netherlands and for many offline transactions like local taxes and invoices.
How does the iDEAL payment method work?
Only customers with an account at a participating Dutch bank and access to online banking services can use iDEAL to pay for their online purchases. Most major Dutch banks, such as ING, Rabobank, or bunq, support iDEAL as a payment method.
On the customer side: A simple & familiar payment process
Dutch customers browse through your webshop as usual. Upon checkout, they select the iDEAL payment method and are redirected to their familiar banking environment where they carry out the transaction.
The steps in detail:
Dutch customers select the iDEAL payment method and bank of their choice.
Customers are forwarded to their online banking environment. Here, they log in with their familiar credentials.
All relevant payment details are automatically transmitted; customers only need to select their account and confirm the payment.
The transaction is securely processed within the bank's interface via two-factor authentication.
Customers are immediately notified of the status of their payment.
Once payment is confirmed, customers return to your webshop.
On the business side: Guaranteed & fast payment
The transaction process only takes a few seconds and is secured through the iDEAL transaction protocol. As a business owner, you are notified of iDEAL transactions in real-time and can start processing orders immediately.
Why use iDEAL?
The Netherlands, comparatively small in size, still ranks seventh when it comes to ecommerce usage across Europe. Over 90 percent of Dutch people shop online, beating the average European consumer. And they do so not only locally, but worldwide. In the first quarter of 2022, Dutch customers spent over 912 million euros on foreign ecommerce sites, mostly in the U.S. and Germany.
iDEAL makes online payments easy, fast, and secure for all parties involved. It simultaneously boosts popularity and increases conversion rates for you as a business.
Whether you are launching or expanding internationally, offering the right payment strategy is essential to turning shoppers into loyal customers.
iDEAL benefits for customers
Quick and familiar: Consumers do not need to sign up. The seamless integration of iDEAL into banking interfaces allows customers to log in with their familiar credentials.
Easy to use: iDEAL can be accessed online, via a banking app, or with QR codes. There is no need to manually enter payment details, making it easy for customers to pay on the go.
Secure: As transactions take place within the customer’s bank interface, all data remains securely within that system. Since customers must authenticate each payment, the risk of fraud is minimised.
iDEAL benefits for businesses
Minimal costs and guaranteed payments: As iDEAL is a direct bank transfer, it does not allow chargebacks, meaning customers cannot reverse the payment themselves. Businesses only pay per successful transaction.
Secure and simple: With iDEAL, you are protected against payment defaults, which minimises payment disputes and debits within your account.
Tapping into new markets: More than half of Dutch ecommerce customers already pay via iDEAL.
Over 100,000 merchants across 60 countries already offer iDEAL as one of their payment methods. With Mollie, you can quickly become one of them.
Accept iDEAL payments with Mollie
We know how difficult it can be to run a successful business. With Mollie, you can focus on other matters while we take care of the “behind the scenes” of online payments.
By integrating iDEAL via Mollie, there is no need for a Dutch Bank account to receive payments from your customers in the Netherlands. Just activate iDEAL as a payment option within your dashboard, and you are ready to go.
Additionally, by using the Mollie dashboard, you automatically benefit from a wide range of other advantages:
Stay flexible
Mollie enables you to offer iDEAL alongside other payment methods through a single integration.
Through our clever onboarding process, you can receive payments via iDEAL quickly, bypassing the typical administrative paperwork.
Mollie enables you to export relevant data like balance reports, transactions, and settlement reports in various formats, allowing it to be processed within different programs like DATEV.
Stay in charge
Through your Mollie dashboard, you can keep track of all incoming iDEAL payments and make immediate changes or refunds.
You only pay for successful transactions. With Mollie, there are no start-up or maintenance costs.
Stay safe and up to date
We guarantee a smooth and safe process of iDEAL payments – even if technical problems occur at your customer's bank.
Your data is safe with us. All information we process is extremely well-protected, stored on Dutch servers, and watched over by our NOC team.
As a Mollie customer, you can access our free open-source packages and plugins for various programming languages.
Ready to grow your business?
With Mollie, integrating the right payment method is easy and quick.
Already a customer?
As a Mollie customer, you can immediately integrate iDEAL along with other popular payment methods through your dashboard.
Not a customer yet?
Get started and create an account and learn more about why over 130,000 ecommerce providers already trust us with growing their business.
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