Google Checkout and Paypal are two payment systems that you can employ on your site so that visitors to your site can purchase items and pay via either of the two. Although they function in basically the same manner, there are differences between the two that set them apart; the biggest of which is the companies behind them. Paypal is owned by ebay; a very popular auction site. Paypal is closely integrated to ebay while Google Checkout is not. Using Google Checkout on ebay is pretty similar to a bank deposit and you need to consult with the seller first whether he accepts payments via Google Checkout. On the other hand, Google Checkout is closely associated with Google’s advertising products; Adwords and Adsense. You can even use your earnings directly to pay for purchases.

Paypal has been around for some time and it has a substantial lead, especially with international transactions. Paypal already accepts accounts from over 55 countries and can facilitate the conversion of currencies for hassle free payments. On the other hand, Google Checkout is available only in the US for the time being but it is only a matter of time before Google decides to go international. Google Checkout now accpets many countries outside the US and UK. Another advantage to using Paypal is the presence of customer support representatives over the phone. You can just call them up if you have problems and try to resolve them. With Google, the only support provided is through email. So there is no instant way of solving your problem as replies via Email can take anywhere between a few hours to a few days.

In terms of protection against fraud, Google Checkout offers a little bit more than Paypal does. Paypal only covers claims for purchases of $50 and above, so any amount below that will not even get looked into by Paypal. Google Checkout offers protection for any purchase regardless of the amount.

Summary:

1. Paypal is more popular than Google Checkout
2. Paypal is an accepted payment method for ebay while Google Checkout is not
3. Google Checkout is connected with Adwords while Paypal is not
4. Paypal is accepted in over 55 countries while Google Checkout is available only in the US
5. Paypal offers phone support while Google Checkout only offers E-mail support
6. Google Checkout offers total protection while Paypal only offers protection for purchases of over $50