Online payments statistics:  Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania

It’s fascinating that even though online stores can look very similar, there are still big differences in how people pay online in different countries. While credit cards are a norm for many countries, in Poland, for example, BLIK is the go-to payment method. And most Austrians like to pay by invoice. The Baltic states aka Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have also their own favourites. Before expanding your online business to the Baltic States, you’ll definitely want to understand what payment methods are favoured. Let’s take a closer look at the online payment solutions that are most popular in these countries.

Time to crunch some data! We gathered data on payments made through more than 5,000 online stores, primarily those catering to local consumers or international brands with localized versions of their online stores. For clarity, we left out all the financing solutions and focused only on immediate payment solutions. Here’s the first impression:

It seems that, unlike global giants such as Amazon, eBay, and AliExpress, where card payments are the norm, people in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania prefer to use payment links (specifically, payment initiation or account-to-account payments) associated with their local banks. These payment links are sometimes referred to as bank links, as they appear similar to one another and consumers are generally unaware of the differences between them.

In fact, a whopping 96-97% of local online payments in the Baltic States are made via payment links, with only 1-3% of payments made using card payments. In Lithuania there’s also 3% of all payments done by alternative payment options. This highlights the importance of understanding local payment preferences before expanding your online business to new markets.

Let’s dig a little deeper. Here’s a closer look at the most popular banks for online payments in each country:

Online payments in Estonia in 2022:

  • Swedbank – 53%
  • SEB – 27%
  • LHV – 11%
  • Card payments – 3%
  • Luminor – 2%
  • Coop – 2%
  • OP – 1%
  • Nordea – 1%
  • Citadele – less than 1%

So, in Estonia, there are 8 banks that were mainly used for online shopping, plus a marginal amount of card payments.

Online payments in Latvia in 2022:

  • Swedbank – 56%
  • SEB – 23%
  • Citadele 11%
  • Luminor – 7%
  • Card payments – 3%

In Latvia, there are 4 banks that were mainly used for online shopping, plus a marginal amount of card payments.

Online payments in Lithuania in 2022:

  • Swedbank – 58%
  • SEB – 28%
  • Luminor – 8%
  • Revolut – 3%
  • Šiaulių Bankas – 1%
  • Citadele – 1%
  • Card payments – 1%

In Lithuania, there are 5 banks that were mainly used for online shopping, plus some amount of transactions through Revolut financial app and card payments.

As you can see, Swedbank is the most popular payment option in all three countries, with over half of online transactions being made through Swedbank’s payment links. SEB is a strong second choice, with Swedbank and SEB accounting for the majority of online payments in all three countries.

If you’re considering expanding your online store to one or all of these markets, it’s probably wise to offer a range of payment options. While Swedbank and SEB are the most popular payment links, limiting your options to just these two could result in a 20% decrease in revenue. Moreover, providing a variety of payment options signals to consumers that your online store is reputable and consumer-friendly.

To easily add all the necessary payment methods for your WooCommerce, Magento, PrestaShop, OpenCart, or other ecommerce platforms, sign up for Montonio. With Montonio, you can quickly add local shipping options and “buy now, pay later”, allowing you to sell in Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania in no time.