Note: This article covers carrier billing, a mobile payment method available only to merchants and customers in Japan. The information below will not be relevant if you are not selling in the Japanese market.
When running a Shopify store, offering a variety of payment methods is an important factor in improving customer convenience and boosting sales. Among these, carrier billing is an effective option for appealing to younger customers and other specific customer segments. This article explains in detail the benefits and drawbacks of adding carrier billing to your Shopify store, the specific setup steps, and related Q&A. We hope this provides useful information for anyone considering adding carrier billing.
What Is Carrier Billing?
Carrier billing is a payment service that lets customers pay for products purchased on your Shopify store together with their monthly mobile phone or data bill from their carrier (Docomo, au, or SoftBank).
Any user with a smartphone contract from a carrier like Docomo, au, or SoftBank can use it easily, which is a major benefit. On the other hand, there are drawbacks too, such as a cap on the payable amount and costs like monthly fees and payment processing fees.
Benefits of Adding Carrier Billing to Shopify
Easy to pay
Carrier billing lets customers pay as long as they have their carrier account information. With credit card payments, customers have to enter their card number, expiration date, security code, and so on — with carrier billing, none of that data entry is needed.
Reach younger customers who can't get a credit card
Credit card payment is one of the main payment methods for e-commerce sites, but most credit card companies set the minimum age for issuing a card at 18 to 20 years old. As a result, stores that only accept credit card payments generally cannot sell to minors — adding carrier billing solves this problem.
Reach customers who prefer not to use a credit card
There are also many adults who feel hesitant about using credit card payments. Adding carrier billing so that customers who want to avoid credit card payments can still make a purchase benefits both the store and the customer.
Helps reduce cart abandonment
According to a Baymard Institute survey, the 4th most common reason for cart abandonment is "didn't want to enter credit card information," and the 10th most common is "not enough payment options." For this reason, we believe adding carrier billing can help reduce cart abandonment among customers who prefer this payment method.
The article below introduces other reasons for cart abandonment as well as countermeasures beyond simply adding more payment options. Please use it as a reference.
Drawbacks of Adding Carrier Billing to Shopify
It comes with a cost
The main drawback of using carrier billing is that it comes with additional costs. Using carrier billing involves setup fees, monthly fees, and payment processing fees, and because carrier billing is a payment method outside Shopify Payments, a transaction fee also applies.
High fees eat into your store's profit margin, so if you want to keep costs down, choose a provider with lower fees.
【Reference article】
The article below explains in detail the benefits of using Shopify Payments and its payment fees. Please use it as a reference.
What is a transaction fee?
A transaction fee is a fee charged when you receive payment from a customer.
Transaction fees are waived when using Shopify Payments, but the following fees apply when using an external payment provider.
| Shopify Plan Name | Starter | Basic | Standard | Premium | Plus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Transaction Fee | 5.00% | 2.00% | 1.00% | 0.60% | 0.2% |
The article below thoroughly compares Shopify plans across various criteria besides transaction fees, such as monthly cost and staff account limits. Please use it as a reference.
There's a usage limit
Carrier billing caps the amount that can be charged per order. For example, with GMO Epsilon's carrier billing, the limit per order is ¥50,000. Stores that sell higher-priced items should keep this in mind.
Screening is required separately for each carrier
Carrier billing requires you to apply for screening separately with each carrier — Docomo, SoftBank, and au — and pass each one individually.
How to Add Carrier Billing to Shopify
To add carrier billing to Shopify, you need to sign a contract with one of the following payment providers.
GMO Epsilon
GMO Epsilon is a payment processing service that lets you set up a wide range of payment methods at once, including credit cards, convenience-store payment, and online bank transfer. Setup and transaction processing are free, and it has been adopted by over 42,000 companies to date.
Beyond payment processing, it also offers a variety of its own services, including shipping and financing services.
The blog article below introduces GMO Epsilon in detail. Please use it as a reference.
Carrier Billing Fees
GMO Epsilon has a straightforward pricing model: no setup fee, a monthly fee of ¥3,000 for all 3 carriers combined, and a flat 6.0% payment fee.
| Setup Fee | Monthly Fee | Payment Fee |
|---|---|---|
| ¥0 | ¥3,000 | 6.00% |
SB Payment Service
SB Payment Service is a payment processing service operated by SB Payment Service Corp., part of the SoftBank Group. In addition to supporting a wide range of payment methods, it's known for its marketing support to boost sales and its robust security setup.
The blog article below explains SB Payment Service in detail. Please use it as a reference.
Carrier Billing Fees
With SB Payment Service, a setup fee of ¥1,000 and a monthly fee of ¥1,000 apply per carrier. For example, if you support all three carriers — SoftBank, au, and Docomo — the total is a ¥3,000 setup fee and ¥3,000 monthly fee. Payment fees also vary by carrier.
| Setup Fee | Monthly Fee | Payment Fee |
Payment Service Usage Fee Rate |
Transaction Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
¥1,000 ※ per carrier |
¥1,000 ※ per carrier |
SoftBank 5.50% au 6.30% docomo 5.50% |
0.0% | ¥5 per carrier |
A Shopify App That Can Automatically Hide Carrier Billing
After adding carrier billing, you may run into situations where you want to hide it — for example, "I want to hide carrier billing when a preferred delivery date is set."
This section introduces a Shopify app that can hide carrier billing under any condition.
RuffRuff Order Limits
RuffRuff Order Limits is fully localized for Japanese and is Japan's first Shopify app built on the Cart and Checkout Validation API.
By using the Cart and Checkout Validation API, it handles order-restriction logic on the server side — processing that previously could only be done on the front end. As a result, it achieves more robust order restrictions that are harder to bypass compared to existing order-limit apps.
With a single app, you can apply quantity limits, amount limits, bundling restrictions, customer restrictions, and payment method hiding.
Using this app, you can achieve things such as:
・Hide carrier billing when the cart subtotal reaches ¥3,000 or more
・Hide carrier billing when the cart contains pre-order products
・Hide carrier billing for guest customers only
Frequently Asked Questions About Carrier Billing
Can I use carrier billing with KOMOJU?
KOMOJU does not support carrier billing.
Reference: What payment methods are available when you add KOMOJU to Shopify?
Summary
Carrier billing is an effective way to expand the payment options on your Shopify store and reach a wider range of customers. It offers benefits such as a simple checkout process, reaching younger and other specific customer segments, and reducing cart abandonment, but it also has drawbacks such as costs, usage limits, and the need for screening.
When considering whether to adopt it, it's important to carefully weigh the benefits and drawbacks based on your business model, customer base, and the nature of your products. We also recommend comparing the features and costs of payment providers such as GMO Epsilon and SB Payment Service to choose the best option.
You can also use an app such as RuffRuff Order Limits to flexibly control when carrier billing is shown or hidden, allowing for a more fine-tuned operating strategy.
Adding carrier billing is one effective way to strengthen your Shopify store's payment options and improve customer satisfaction. Use the information in this article as a reference to build the payment strategy that's right for your business.
Shopify also supports a variety of other payment methods. The blog article below introduces other payment methods you can add to Shopify besides carrier billing. If you're considering adding a new payment method, please use it as a reference.
