Note: This article covers LINE Pay, a mobile payment service available only to merchants and customers in Japan. The information below will not be relevant if you are not selling in the Japanese market.
※ LINE Pay's service will end in 2025. (reference)
When running an e-commerce site on Shopify, offering the right payment methods is extremely important. Especially in the Japanese market, adding a popular mobile payment service like LINE Pay can improve customer convenience and potentially boost sales. This article explains in detail the benefits and drawbacks of adding LINE Pay to your Shopify store, along with the specific setup steps. If you're considering adding LINE Pay, please use this as a reference.
The article below introduces the benefits of using LINE with Shopify and recommended Shopify apps for LINE integration. Please use it as a reference.
The article below introduces how to run LINE-linked member-exclusive sales on Shopify, along with recommended Shopify apps. Please use it as a reference.
What Is LINE Pay?
LINE Pay is a mobile payment service offered by LINE Pay Corporation. Customers can pay using a barcode or QR code displayed on their smartphone, and it works both for in-store shopping and online shopping. It also stands out for letting users top up their balance through a variety of methods, including bank transfer and convenience-store payment.
Benefits of Adding LINE Pay to Shopify
Reach customers who don't hold a credit card (for stores)
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.
LINE users can register for LINE Pay simply by agreeing to the terms from the wallet tab in the app. Since they can easily top up their balance via bank account or convenience store, they can use their LINE Pay balance to purchase products and services.
There are also many adults who feel hesitant about using credit card payments. Adding LINE Pay 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 (for stores)
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."
LINE has a large user base of 95 million monthly users (as of the end of March 2023). LINE Pay is included as a core feature within the LINE app itself. Many LINE users likely think, "I want to pay using LINE Pay." For this reason, we believe adding LINE Pay can help reduce cart abandonment among LINE users.
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.
No credit card information needed (for customers)
Customers can pay easily with LINE Pay as long as they have the LINE app installed. With credit card payments, customers have to enter their card number, expiration date, security code, and so on — with LINE Pay, none of that data entry is needed.
LINE Points can be used for payment (for customers)
Any LINE Points customers hold (1 point = ¥1) can be used toward payment when paying with LINE Pay.
Drawbacks of Adding LINE Pay to Shopify
It comes with a cost
The main drawback of using LINE Pay is that it comes with additional costs.
Using LINE Pay incurs a payment processing fee, and because it's a payment method outside Shopify Payments, a transaction fee also applies. Depending on the payment provider, setup fees and monthly fees may also apply.
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 | Grow | Advanced | Plus |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Transaction Fee | 5.00% | 2.00% | 1.00% | 0.60% | 0.2% |
If you use Shopify Payments, you only pay the payment fee, but if you use another provider, you'll pay both a payment fee and a transaction fee.
【Reference article】
The article below explains in detail the benefits of using Shopify Payments and its payment fees. Please use it as a reference.
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.
How to Add LINE Pay to Shopify
To add LINE Pay to Shopify, you need to sign a contract with one of the following payment providers.
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.
LINE Pay Fees
| Setup Fee | Monthly Fee | Payment Fee |
Payment Service Usage Fee Rate |
Transaction Fee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ¥500 | ¥500 | 3.5% | 0.0% | ¥5 |
Reference: Shopify Payment Plans | SB Payment Service
KOMOJU
KOMOJU is known for having no setup fee or monthly fee, and for its fast screening process.
The blog article below introduces KOMOJU in detail. Please use it as a reference.
LINE Pay Fees
| Setup Fee | Monthly Fee | Payment Fee |
|---|---|---|
| ¥0 | ¥0 |
Physical goods 3.5% Digital content 9% |
Reference: LINE Pay | KOMOJU
PingPong Checkout
Finally, there's PingPong Checkout. As an overseas payment provider, it may not be a familiar name. It supports not only LINE Pay but also other major Japanese mobile payment services such as PayPay and Rakuten Pay.
LINE Pay Fees
Please contact them for details
Reference: PingPong Checkout
A Shopify App That Can Automatically Hide LINE Pay
After adding LINE Pay, you may run into situations where you want to hide it — for example, "digital products have high fees, so I want to hide LINE Pay for those," or "I want to hide LINE Pay when a preferred delivery date is set."
This section introduces a Shopify app that can hide LINE Pay 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 LINE Pay when the cart total reaches ¥3,000 or more
・Hide LINE Pay when the cart contains digital products
・Hide LINE Pay for guest customers only
The blog article below explains how to use RuffRuff Order Limits to automatically hide mobile (QR code) payment methods, including LINE Pay, when the subtotal exceeds ¥50,000. Please use it as a reference.
Q&A About LINE Pay
Can I use LINE Pay with GMO Epsilon?
GMO Epsilon's LINE Pay support is limited to the Color Me Shop cart system, so it cannot be used with Shopify.
Reference: Which shopping carts can use LINE Pay?
Summary
LINE Pay is a convenient payment service linked to the LINE app, which has over 95 million users. Adding LINE Pay to your Shopify store can offer benefits such as:
- Reaching customers who don't hold a credit card
- Helping reduce cart abandonment
- Simplifying the checkout process for customers
- Improving customer satisfaction through the use of LINE Points
On the other hand, there are drawbacks such as payment fees and transaction fees. When considering whether to adopt it, it's important to carefully weigh the benefits and drawbacks based on your business model and customer base.
To add LINE Pay, you can use a payment provider such as SB Payment Service, KOMOJU, or PingPong Checkout. Compare each provider's features and fee structures to choose the one that's right for you.
If you want to hide LINE Pay under specific conditions, you can also flexibly handle that by using a Shopify app such as RuffRuff Order Limits.
Adding LINE Pay to your Shopify store opens up the potential for improved customer convenience and increased sales. Choose the payment method that best fits your needs, and aim to run an e-commerce site that keeps customers satisfied.
