NOWPayments Vs CoinPayments Vs Larecoin: Which Crypto POS System Actually Works for Small Business?

Small business owners are bleeding money.

Traditional payment processors charge 2.5-3.5% on every transaction. That's $12,500 gone annually on $500K revenue. Just vanished into interchange fees.

Crypto payment solutions promise relief. But which one actually delivers?

Let's break down NOWPayments, CoinPayments, and Larecoin. No fluff. Just facts about what works for merchants who want to keep their hard-earned revenue.

The Fee Problem Nobody Talks About

Here's the brutal truth about merchant fees.

You sell a $100 product. Traditional processors take $2.50-$3.50 before you see a dime. Multiply that across thousands of transactions. The math hurts.

Crypto POS systems claim to slash these costs. But the devil's in the details.

Platform	Processing Fee	Annual Cost ($500K Revenue)
Traditional Card	2.5-3.5%	~$12,500
NOWPayments	0.5-1%	~$3,750
CoinPayments	0.5-1%	~$3,750
Larecoin	Gas-only	Under $2,000

See that gap? Larecoin's gas-only model saves merchants over $1,750 annually compared to the next best option. At scale, those savings compound.

NOWPayments: The Middle Ground

NOWPayments has carved out a solid position in the crypto payments space.

What they offer:

• 300+ cryptocurrencies supported

• 30+ stablecoins available

• Non-custodial option (payments go directly to your wallet)

• ~5 minute processing time

• 0.5-1% fees

For small businesses testing crypto payments, NOWPayments provides a reasonable entry point. The non-custodial option sets them apart from legacy competitors.

But here's the catch.

They still operate as an intermediary. Your transactions flow through their system. That 0.5-1% fee? It adds up fast. A $10,000 monthly business pays $75-100 annually in processing fees alone.

Better than traditional cards? Absolutely. The best option available? Not quite.

CoinPayments: The Legacy Player

CoinPayments has been around. That's both good and bad.

What they offer:

• 40+ cryptocurrencies

• Established brand recognition

• Custodial wallet system

• 0.5-1% fees

The custodial model is where CoinPayments loses points. Your funds sit in their wallet until you withdraw. That's not self-custody. That's not Web3.

Their integrations feel dated. The platform works, but innovation hasn't been a priority. For merchants who just want "something that functions," CoinPayments delivers baseline functionality.

But why settle for baseline when you're building a business?

Larecoin: Built for Merchant Freedom

Here's where things get interesting.

Larecoin wasn't designed to be "good enough." It was engineered to solve the specific problems small merchants face daily.

Core advantages:

• Gas-only fees – No percentage taken from transactions

• Full self-custody – Your funds, your wallet, your control

• Near-instant processing – No waiting 5+ minutes

• LUSD stablecoin – Price stability without volatility risk

• NFT receipts – Immutable transaction records on-chain

Let's unpack why these matter.

Self-Custody: Why It's Non-Negotiable

When CoinPayments holds your funds, you're trusting a third party. History shows us how that ends. Exchange hacks. Platform insolvencies. Frozen accounts.

Larecoin's self-custody model eliminates this risk entirely. Payments hit your wallet directly. No intermediary touching your revenue.

For small business owners who've built everything from scratch, financial sovereignty isn't optional. It's essential.

LUSD: Stability Without the Volatility

Crypto volatility terrifies merchants. Accept Bitcoin at $95,000. Watch it drop to $85,000 overnight. That's not sustainable for businesses with razor-thin margins.

LUSD solves this.

Larecoin's native stablecoin maintains price stability while preserving all the benefits of blockchain payments. Customers pay in crypto. You receive stable value. No conversion anxiety.

For merchants processing $10,000+ monthly, this stability transforms crypto from a gamble into a genuine payment rail.

NFT Receipts: The Future of Transaction Records

Paper receipts fade. Digital PDFs get lost in email folders. Traditional record-keeping fails merchants during tax season and audits.

NFT receipts change the game.

Every Larecoin transaction generates an immutable, on-chain receipt. Permanent. Verifiable. Accessible forever.

Benefits for small businesses:

• Simplified accounting and bookkeeping

• Audit-proof transaction history

• Customer dispute resolution with cryptographic proof

• Zero storage costs for receipt archives

This isn't a gimmick. It's practical infrastructure for modern commerce.

The Real-World Cost Comparison

Numbers don't lie. Let's see how these platforms stack up for actual small business scenarios.

Scenario: Coffee Shop Processing $15,000/Month

Platform	Monthly Fees	Annual Fees	5-Year Cost
Traditional	$450	$5,400	$27,000
NOWPayments	$112	$1,350	$6,750
CoinPayments	$112	$1,350	$6,750
Larecoin	~$40	~$480	~$2,400

Over five years, Larecoin saves that coffee shop owner $4,350 compared to NOWPayments or CoinPayments. Compared to traditional processors? $24,600 stays in the merchant's pocket.

That's a new espresso machine. Employee bonuses. Marketing budget. Real money for real business growth.

Feature-by-Feature Breakdown

Feature	NOWPayments	CoinPayments	Larecoin
Fee Structure	0.5-1%	0.5-1%	Gas-only
Custody Model	Non-custodial option	Custodial	Full self-custody
Processing Speed	~5 minutes	Variable	Near-instant
Stablecoin	Multiple options	Limited	Native LUSD
Receipt System	Standard	Standard	NFT receipts
Crypto Support	300+	40+	Growing ecosystem

Who Should Choose What?

Choose NOWPayments if:

• You need maximum cryptocurrency variety

• You're testing crypto payments for the first time

• Non-custodial operation matters, but you're okay with intermediary fees

Choose CoinPayments if:

• Brand familiarity outweighs innovation

• You prefer custodial simplicity over self-custody control

• You only need basic crypto payment functionality

Choose Larecoin if:

• Maximizing revenue retention is your priority

• Self-custody and financial sovereignty matter

• You want enterprise-grade features (NFT receipts, LUSD) at small business prices

• You're building for the long term, not just next quarter

The Bottom Line

Small businesses can't afford to leak revenue to payment processors. Every percentage point matters.

NOWPayments and CoinPayments improve on traditional card processing. They deserve credit for pushing the industry forward.

But Larecoin was purpose-built for merchants who refuse to compromise.

Gas-only fees. Full self-custody. LUSD stability. NFT receipts. Near-instant processing.

This isn't incremental improvement. It's a fundamental rethinking of how merchants should interact with payment infrastructure.

Ready to slash your interchange fees by 50% or more? Explore what Larecoin can do for your business.

Your revenue belongs in your pocket. Not someone else's platform.

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This post is part of the Larecoin 10-Year Blog Marathon, exploring Web3 payments, merchant sovereignty, and the future of decentralized commerce. Check out more comparisons like NOWPayments vs Larecoin and CoinPayments vs Larecoin for deeper dives.