South America: Mercado Pago's Home Turf (2026)
South and Central America play by different rules: cards are expensive and installment-driven, instant bank rails are nearly free, and the biggest "gateway" is also the region's largest e-commerce ecosystem. Two truths dominate everything below: Pix in Brazil costs 0%, and published flat rates are rare outside Mexico and Brazil.
The providers that matter
| Provider | Role / Type | Markets Covered | Published Card Rate | Instant Rail / Wallet Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercado Pago | Ecosystem Gateway & Wallet | BR, MX, AR, CL, CO, PE, UY, EC, CR, DO | 3.19% (CL) to 6.29% (AR); 4.99% immediate in BR | Pix 0%–0.99% in Brazil; wallet QR across LatAm |
| PagBank / Getnet (Santander) | Acquirer & Gateway | Brazil (PagBank); BR, CL, AR, UY, MX (Getnet) | 2.95% (CL) to 3.99% + R$0.40 (BR) | Pix QR 0%–1.89%; bank-owned acquiring |
| Wompi / PayU / Placetopay | Regional Card & A2A Gateways | Colombia, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Central America | 2.65% + COP 700 (Wompi) to 3.49% + COP 900 (PayU) | Supports PSE, Bre-B & Nequi in Colombia |
| Transbank / Flow.cl / Culqi | Country Champions | Chile (Transbank, Flow); Peru (Culqi) | 2.95% (Transbank) · 3.19% (Flow) · 3.44% + S/0.75 (Culqi) | Regulated interchange in Chile; Yape/Plin in Peru |
| Tilopay / BAC Credomatic / ONVO Pay | Central America Specialists | GT, HN, SV, NI, CR, PA, BZ | 3.25% + ₡150 (ONVO CR) · 3.5%–3.95% (BAC / Tilopay) | ONVO Pay: 1.25% + ₡150 on SINPE Móvil |
| dLocal / EBANX / Kushki | Cross-Border & Enterprise | Pan-LatAm (15+ countries) | 3.9%–4.9% published baseline; custom at scale | Aggregates Pix, PSE, Boleto, PagoEfectivo & local wallets |
Gateway landscape by currency
The tables below separate card gateways & bank acquirers from digital wallets & instant bank rails across South and Central America.
1. Card gateways & bank acquirers by currency
| Currency | Market | Card Gateways (Published Rates) | Bank Acquirers & Enterprise Gateways |
|---|---|---|---|
| BRL | Brazil | Getnet Santander (3.79%), Stripe (3.99% + R$0.39), PagBank (3.99% + R$0.40), PayU (4.39% + R$0.40), Mercado Pago (4.99% immediate) | dLocal (3.9% + R$1.50), EBANX (3.99% + R$1.50), Adyen, Checkout.com, Nuvei, Kushki |
| ARS | Argentina | Nave by Banco Galicia (4.3% immediate), Getnet Santander (4.5%), PayU (4.59% + ARS 50), Mercado Pago (6.29% immediate) | dLocal, EBANX |
| CLP | Chile | Transbank Webpay Plus (2.95%), Getnet Santander (2.95%), Mercado Pago (3.19%), Flow.cl (3.19%), PayU (3.49% + CLP 200) | Kushki, dLocal, EBANX, Placetopay |
| COP | Colombia | Wompi by Bancolombia (2.65% + COP 700), Placetopay Evertec (2.99% + COP 800), Mercado Pago (3.29% + COP 800), PayU (3.49% + COP 900) | Nuvei, Kushki, dLocal, EBANX |
| PEN | Peru | Culqi (3.44% + S/ 0.75), PayU (3.85% + S/ 1.20), Mercado Pago (3.99% + S/ 1.00) | Kushki, dLocal, EBANX |
| UYU | Uruguay | Getnet Santander (3.8%), Handy (3.9%), dLocal (4.5%), Mercado Pago (4.99%) | EBANX, Placetopay |
| PYG / BOB / VES | Paraguay, Bolivia, Venezuela | Bancard vPOS (4.5% PYG), Pagopar (5.5% PYG) · Libélula (3.5% + Bs 1.50 BOB) · Ubii Pagos (3.5% VES) | dLocal & EBANX (PY, BO) |
| CRC / PAB | Costa Rica, Panama | ONVO Pay (3.25% + ₡150 CRC), BAC Credomatic (3.5%), Tilopay (3.95%), PagueloFacil (3.95% PAB), Pagadito (4.9%) | Scotiabank eCom+, Placetopay Evertec, Kushki, dLocal, EBANX |
| GTQ / HNL / NIO / BZD | Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Belize | PixelPay by BAC (3.75% HNL), BAC Credomatic (3.75%–3.95%), Tilopay (3.95%), Recurrente (4.5% + Q2 GTQ), Pagadito (4.9%) | Powertranz & Fygaro (Belize), Kushki, dLocal |
2. Wallets & instant payment rails by currency
| Currency | Market | Wallets, National QR & A2A Rails | Published Merchant Rate & Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| BRL | Brazil | Pix (Central Bank instant rail), Mercado Pago Wallet, PayPal Brazil | Pix: 0%–0.99% at Mercado Pago & PagBank (vs 4%–5% on cards) · PayPal BR: 4.79% + R$0.60 |
| ARS | Argentina | Transferencias 3.0 QR (via Nave / Galicia & Mercado Pago), MODO | Nave QR interoperable: 0.8% immediate settlement |
| COP | Colombia | PSE (A2A bank transfer), Bre-B (instant rail), Nequi, DaviPlata (via Wompi) | Included in Wompi (2.65% + COP 700) & Placetopay checkout |
| PEN | Peru | Yape (BCP wallet), Plin, PagoEfectivo (via Culqi & Mercado Pago) | Yape & Plin QR accepted natively inside Culqi & Mercado Pago checkouts |
| BOB / VES | Bolivia, Venezuela | QR Simple (Bolivia via Libélula), Pago Móvil Interbancario (Venezuela via Ubii) | QR Simple bank-to-bank QR in Bolivia; Pago Móvil instant Bs. rail in Venezuela |
| CRC | Costa Rica | SINPE Móvil (via ONVO Pay & Tilopay), Amber Pay | ONVO Pay processes SINPE Móvil at 1.25% + ₡150 with automatic reconciliation |
| PAB | Panama | Yappy Comercial (Banco General wallet) | 1.0% + ITBMS (minimum $0.02), used by 1.6M+ Panamanians |
| BZD | Belize | PayPal, Amber Pay | PayPal commercial checkout (4.4% + BZ$0.60); local bank withdrawal supported |
What to watch
- Installments are a cost, not a feature. In Brazil, a 12x installment sale can carry ~9% processing. If you sell to Brazilian consumers, model parcelado pricing before setting prices.
- Pix changes the math entirely, for Brazilian customers, offering Pix alongside cards can cut your average processing cost dramatically.
- Promotional rates expire. Mercado Pago's 0.74% credit promos typically last ~30 days or R$5,000 in sales, then revert to standard rates.
- Local-method discounts are real: dLocal reports costs fell 19% in Colombia (Nequi) and 30% in Peru (Yape) after adding local rails.
Currencies: South America
Currencies: Central America (grouped here for convenience)
Run your own numbers in the fee calculator (MXN and BRL are supported), or start from the MXN and BRL comparison tables. Related: the Caribbean guide covers the Spanish-speaking Caribbean (DOP, CUP).
This guide is general information, not financial, tax, or legal advice. See our full disclaimer.