If you are building a SaaS product targeting Turkish customers, your payment integration choice matters more than almost any other technical decision. Stripe is not generally available for local TRY payments here, so the practical options are domestic providers. This comparison covers the five APIs Turkish SaaS products actually use.
Quick comparison
| API | Best for | Auth | Integration complexity |
|---|---|---|---|
| iyzico | E-commerce, subscriptions, marketplace | API key + secret (PKI + SHA-1) | Medium |
| PayTR | Quick virtual POS, iFrame checkout | HMAC-SHA256 | High |
| Craftgate | Multi-gateway orchestration | API key + secret | Medium |
| Papara Merchant | Wallet-first payments | API key | Medium |
| ininal | E-money and virtual cards | OAuth 2.0 | High |
What "fit" actually means here
A payment API qualifies for this comparison if it:
- Lets a Turkish merchant accept TRY card payments compliantly.
- Provides a sandbox environment for integration without real transactions.
- Has documented APIs you can ship a real product against, not just a hosted page.
Pricing models for payment APIs change frequently and vary by transaction volume — always negotiate the actual rate with the provider rather than relying on a public comparison.
API options
iyzico
iyzico is the broadest payment API in the Turkish market, owned by PayU Group, PCI-DSS Level 1 compliant, and integrated into a long list of Turkish banks. The documentation and SDK ecosystem are the most polished of the providers in this list.
Use it when:
- You are building a standard e-commerce or SaaS subscription product.
- You need marketplace-style payouts to multiple sellers.
- You want clean SDKs in JS, PHP, Java, Python, and others.
The integration model uses an API key + secret with a PKI signature scheme. It is more involved than a Stripe-style bearer token but is well-documented.
PayTR
PayTR is the go-to choice when you want a quick virtual POS without building a custom checkout UI. The iFrame integration drops a hosted payment form into your page; you handle order creation, PayTR handles card data and 3D Secure.
Use it when:
- You want to launch a Turkish online store with minimum integration work.
- You are happy with a hosted iFrame checkout rather than a fully custom UI.
- You need installment options across multiple Turkish banks.
The full API integration (without iFrame) is rated high complexity in the catalog because the HMAC signature flow and parameter spec are strict — make sure to use the iFrame route if you don't need a fully custom checkout.
Craftgate
Craftgate is a payment orchestration layer. Instead of integrating one provider, you integrate Craftgate, and Craftgate routes transactions across multiple downstream providers (iyzico, PayTR, Stripe, etc.).
Use it when:
- You want failover across multiple gateways.
- You are operating at a scale where downtime on one provider is unacceptable.
- You need a single integration that supports several payment methods.
The integration overhead is similar to a single provider, but the operational benefit is meaningful once your transaction volume justifies it.
Papara Merchant API
Papara Merchant API is the merchant-side API for Papara, a popular Turkish digital wallet. It enables payments via Papara wallet balance and transfers.
Use it when:
- Your audience is Papara-heavy (younger users, gig economy, gaming, crypto-adjacent).
- You want wallet payments alongside or instead of card payments.
- You need KYC verification flows.
For SaaS products targeting traditional B2B customers, Papara is usually a secondary option behind iyzico or PayTR. For consumer products with a young demographic, it can be the primary one.
ininal API
ininal API provides e-money and virtual card APIs through ininal's developer portal. It is the most specialized of the five — useful for products that issue branded cards or manage e-money balances rather than just collecting one-off payments.
Use it when:
- You are building a fintech product that issues virtual cards.
- You need wallet-style balance management for end users.
- You can absorb the higher integration complexity (OAuth 2.0 + KYC flows).
For a basic SaaS subscription, this is usually overkill — pick iyzico or PayTR instead.
Picking the right one
Match the API to the product type:
- Standard SaaS subscription → iyzico (or PayTR if you want a hosted iFrame).
- Quick MVP e-commerce → PayTR with iFrame.
- Marketplace with split payouts → iyzico.
- Multi-gateway, high reliability → Craftgate.
- Wallet-first or younger consumer audience → Papara.
- Card issuance or e-money product → ininal.
The most common Turkish SaaS stack is iyzico for primary card payments plus a fallback or specialty provider when needed.
When to look elsewhere
These five APIs cover the practical Turkish payment market, but you should look outside this list when:
- Your customers are international and pay in USD/EUR. Stripe (or Paddle, LemonSqueezy) is the standard outside Türkiye.
- You need crypto payments. Look at CryptAPI or BTCPay Server.
- You only need invoicing and bank transfer reconciliation. Many Turkish accounting platforms expose APIs for that workflow without needing a payment gateway.
Related API Deposu entries
Sources
Frequently Asked Questions
›Why not just use Stripe in Türkiye?
Stripe is not generally available to Turkish merchants for local TRY payments. Most Turkish SaaS products integrate a domestic provider — iyzico, PayTR, or Craftgate — to handle TRY card payments and 3D Secure compliantly.
›Which payment API is the easiest to integrate?
iyzico has the most polished developer docs and SDK ecosystem, which usually means the fastest integration for a standard checkout. PayTR's iFrame flow is also quick to ship for simple stores. Craftgate is more involved but pays off if you need multi-gateway orchestration.
›Do these APIs offer sandbox environments?
Yes — iyzico, PayTR, Craftgate, Papara, and ininal all expose sandbox environments where you can integrate and test without real card transactions.
›Which one supports installment payments and 3D Secure?
All five providers support 3D Secure as standard. iyzico and PayTR both expose installment options through Turkish bank partnerships; Craftgate handles installments through whichever gateway you orchestrate.