BitPay alternative: GriffNode compared

BitPay is one of the oldest names in crypto payments, and for merchants who want daily fiat landing in a bank account it does a real job. The trade is that BitPay takes a percentage of every payment, holds the funds on the way through, and requires business verification before you can operate.

GriffNode is built the other way round. A flat monthly fee, nothing taken from the payment amount, no custody, and no merchant KYC. Which one fits depends almost entirely on whether you want fiat in a bank or crypto in your own wallet.

GriffNode vs BitPay

BitPay figures below are quoted from their published pricing page.

BitPay's pricing page notes that higher fees apply to high-risk industries. Network and gas fees are separate from processor fees on both platforms, so compare total cost, not just the headline rate.

BitPay alternatives worth comparing

What each one is genuinely built for.

• GriffNode: flat monthly pricing with no cut of the payment, non-custodial settlement to your own wallet, and no merchant KYC.
• BitPay: fiat settlement to a bank account with tiered percentage pricing and full business verification.
• NOWPayments: a very broad coin list with percentage pricing and both custodial and non-custodial flows.
• CoinGate: a European, compliance-first processor with merchant verification and euro settlement.
• CoinPayments: a long-running custodial processor charging a lower percentage on coins than on tokens.
• BTCPay Server: free and open-source and fully self-custodial, at the cost of running your own server and node.

What the percentage actually costs you

At BitPay's standard tier, a merchant doing $50,000 a month in crypto sales pays roughly $1,000 a month plus the fixed per-transaction component. The same merchant on GriffNode's Business plan pays $49, or $129 on Professional if they are running more than 300 transactions a month.

The gap widens with every good month, because one number is tied to your revenue and the other is not. You can run your own figures with the fee calculator.

When BitPay is the better answer

Being fair about this matters. If you need crypto to arrive as fiat in your bank account automatically, on a daily schedule, and you are comfortable completing business verification, BitPay does that and GriffNode does not.

GriffNode settles on-chain to your wallet. Converting to fiat is something you do yourself, through whatever exchange or off-ramp you already use. If that step is a dealbreaker, BitPay is the better tool. If holding your own keys matters more, it is not.

How to switch from BitPay to GriffNode

You can run both side by side while you test.

1. Set up the wallet you want paid into. Choose a hardware or software wallet you control and export its extended public key. This is the account your customers will actually be paying. See the wallet setup guide.
2. Create a free GriffNode account. Sign up with an email, paste your xPub, and pick the coins you want to accept. There is no business verification step to wait on.
3. Swap the integration. Replace BitPay invoice creation with a GriffNode payment call and point your webhook at the new endpoint. The quick start covers the whole request and response shape.
4. Verify webhook signatures. Check the signature on every incoming event before you mark an order paid. The webhook security docs have working verification code.
5. Test, then move your volume across. Run end-to-end payments in test mode, confirm order status transitions, then switch to live keys and wind BitPay down at your own pace.

Frequently asked questions

What does BitPay charge merchants?

BitPay publishes tiered pricing based on cumulative monthly volume: 2% plus 25 cents under $500,000, 1.5% plus 25 cents from $500,000, and 1% plus 25 cents at $1 million and above. Their pricing page also notes higher fees for high-risk industries.

Is BitPay custodial?

Yes. BitPay processes the payment and then settles to you, which means it holds the funds in between. GriffNode is non-custodial: payments go from the customer straight to an address derived from your own wallet key, and GriffNode never has the ability to spend them.

Does BitPay require KYC?

Yes. BitPay requires business verification with identity documents, applied in tiers, before a merchant account can operate. GriffNode requires no merchant KYC. You sign up with an email address and connect your own wallet.

Can GriffNode settle to my bank account like BitPay?

No. GriffNode settles on-chain to your own wallet, in crypto. Converting to fiat is something you do yourself through an exchange or off-ramp of your choosing. If automatic daily bank settlement is essential to you, BitPay is the better fit.

Is GriffNode cheaper than BitPay?

For most merchants, yes, and the gap grows with volume. GriffNode charges a flat monthly fee and nothing on the payment amount, so $49 or $129 a month stays the same whether you process $5,000 or $500,000. A percentage fee rises with every sale you make.