Is Tapaya a Klarna alternative?

Not directly for buy-now-pay-later financing specifically, that's not something Tapaya offers. But if what you actually need is a single payments integration that covers both online and in-person, rather than a financing add-on layered onto an existing setup, Tapaya solves a different, broader problem than Klarna does.

Do I have to be a software company to use Tapaya?

No. Tapaya works for direct merchants too: sign up, verify your business, and start taking payments online and in person, approved in about 48 hours. The same underlying infrastructure is also available as an SDK for software companies that want to embed payments into their own product — one platform serving both audiences, not two separate products.

Can I embed Klarna under my own brand for my own merchants?

Klarna's partner ecosystem is a directory of PSPs and e-commerce platforms that already integrate Klarna as a payment method, not a self-serve white-label program — each merchant is still individually underwritten and the Klarna brand stays visible at checkout. Tapaya's SDK is built for self-serve, fully white-label embedding from the start.

Is Klarna widely used in Czechia and Slovakia?

It's present and growing, but launched relatively recently there (2022 in Czechia, 2024 in Slovakia) and adoption still looks modest compared with Klarna's Nordic and DACH home markets, based on third-party merchant-tracking data. Tapaya is built for both markets from the start.

All comparisonsUpdated 2026-08-31

ComparisonBuy now, pay later & online checkout

Tapaya vs Klarna

Klarna is a buy-now-pay-later and online checkout provider, live in Czechia since 2022 and Slovakia since 2024. Tapaya is one SDK a software company embeds for both online payments and in-person Tap to Pay, under its own brand, with no separate integration for each channel.

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At a glance

How Tapaya and Klarna differ

Klarna is best known for Pay Later financing, but it also processes immediate card and bank payments through Klarna Checkout, with Klarna taking on the credit risk of Pay Later purchases. It's a real, growing presence in Czechia and Slovakia, launched more recently there (2022 and 2024) than in its Nordic and DACH home markets, and adoption is still modest per third-party tracking. Pricing isn't published, it's negotiated per merchant, and Klarna's own integration partner directory is a list of PSPs and platforms, not a self-serve white-label program for a software company to embed Klarna under its own brand. Tapaya takes the opposite shape: one published rate, self-serve signup, and one SDK that covers online payments and in-person Tap to Pay together, so a software company integrates once rather than adding a separate BNPL provider on top of whatever already handles its payments.

Tapaya compared with Klarna
Capability	Tapaya	Klarna
Who it's built for	Software companies that want in-person and online payments to be one native, branded part of their own product (POS vendors, vertical SaaS, marketplaces, banks, fintechs), and direct merchants who want both channels from one provider.	Online merchants, from SMB to enterprise, who want to offer installment financing and broader payment methods at checkout, typically added on top of an existing payment setup.
In-person payments	The same SDK also runs Tap to Pay on any commercial Android device — one integration, both channels.	Not part of Klarna's core product; Klarna is an online checkout and financing provider, with no in-person/card-present offering found.
Embeddable under your own brand	Fully white-label across both channels, your app, your UI, your name end to end. Customers never see Tapaya.	Klarna's brand and checkout are visible to the shopper, and each merchant (or sub-merchant on a marketplace) is individually underwritten by Klarna; its partner ecosystem is a directory of PSPs and platforms that already support Klarna, not a white-label program.
Czechia & Slovakia presence	Available to direct merchants and embeddable partners across both markets from the start.	Live since September 2022 (Czechia) and May 2024 (Slovakia), via Pay in 3 and the Klarna shopping app; still a relatively recent, modest presence compared with Klarna's Nordic and DACH markets.
Pricing	One transparent blended rate, from 1.39%, no monthly fee, no lock-in, published openly.	Not publicly published; Klarna negotiates a per-merchant "price plan" based on account, market and sales channel, and partners are barred from quoting estimated rates.
Best fit	You're a software company that wants one integration to cover both online and in-person payments under your own brand, or a merchant who wants both from one provider.	You run an online store and want to add installment financing and broader payment methods to an existing checkout, and you're comfortable with per-merchant underwriting and negotiated pricing.

Who it's built for
Tapaya
Software companies that want in-person and online payments to be one native, branded part of their own product (POS vendors, vertical SaaS, marketplaces, banks, fintechs), and direct merchants who want both channels from one provider.
Klarna
Online merchants, from SMB to enterprise, who want to offer installment financing and broader payment methods at checkout, typically added on top of an existing payment setup.
In-person payments
Tapaya
The same SDK also runs Tap to Pay on any commercial Android device — one integration, both channels.
Klarna
Not part of Klarna's core product; Klarna is an online checkout and financing provider, with no in-person/card-present offering found.
Embeddable under your own brand
Tapaya
Fully white-label across both channels, your app, your UI, your name end to end. Customers never see Tapaya.
Klarna
Klarna's brand and checkout are visible to the shopper, and each merchant (or sub-merchant on a marketplace) is individually underwritten by Klarna; its partner ecosystem is a directory of PSPs and platforms that already support Klarna, not a white-label program.
Czechia & Slovakia presence
Tapaya
Available to direct merchants and embeddable partners across both markets from the start.
Klarna
Live since September 2022 (Czechia) and May 2024 (Slovakia), via Pay in 3 and the Klarna shopping app; still a relatively recent, modest presence compared with Klarna's Nordic and DACH markets.
Pricing
Tapaya
One transparent blended rate, from 1.39%, no monthly fee, no lock-in, published openly.
Klarna
Not publicly published; Klarna negotiates a per-merchant "price plan" based on account, market and sales channel, and partners are barred from quoting estimated rates.
Best fit
Tapaya
You're a software company that wants one integration to cover both online and in-person payments under your own brand, or a merchant who wants both from one provider.
Klarna
You run an online store and want to add installment financing and broader payment methods to an existing checkout, and you're comfortable with per-merchant underwriting and negotiated pricing.

A financing layer, not a channel-unifying platform

Klarna's growth strategy leans on being embedded inside other providers — Adyen, Stripe, Checkout.com, Worldpay, Mollie and others all offer Klarna as one of many payment methods a merchant can turn on. That's a real strength for reach, but it also means Klarna itself isn't the primary payments integration for most of its merchants; it's typically an add-on financing option layered onto a payments stack someone else already runs. Tapaya's online payments run on the same SDK, API and onboarding as its in-person Tap to Pay — a software company that already embeds Tapaya for in-person acceptance adds online payments to what it already has, rather than adding a separate financing provider on top of a separate payments setup.

Where each fits

Choosing the right tool

Choose Tapaya when

You're a software company that wants online payments and in-person Tap to Pay to be one native, branded part of your own product, not a financing option layered on top of a separate payments setup. Or you're a merchant in Czechia or Slovakia who wants both online and in-person payments from one provider, with one published rate instead of a negotiated quote.

Choose Klarna when

You run an online store and want to offer buy-now-pay-later financing and a broader set of payment methods at checkout, alongside whatever already handles your core payment processing. You don't need in-person acceptance, and you're comfortable with per-merchant underwriting rather than self-serve signup.

FAQ

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Keep comparing

See how Tapaya stacks up elsewhere

Accurate as of 2026-08-31. Based on publicly available information; all product names and trademarks belong to their respective owners. Comparison based on publicly documented Klarna product pages, developer documentation, press releases and independent merchant-tracking data as of August 2026; exact merchant pricing was not found published for Czechia or Slovakia specifically and is negotiated per merchant. Capabilities, pricing and regional availability change over time — verify current details with Klarna directly.