Shopify permits third-party gateways inside native checkout — a short approved list. Own-domain checkout via CascadeCheckout goes further: any gateway with an API, on a URL you own, with orders still writing back to Shopify. Merchants who need this are usually escaping a Shopify Payments freeze, plugging in a high-risk MID, or supporting a corridor Shopify does not.
Merchant opens Shopify settings → Payments → looks for their preferred gateway. It is not there. Shopify's third-party list is the whitelist; if the gateway is not on the list, native checkout cannot use it. Common reactions: settle for a listed gateway and hope; abandon Shopify entirely; try to hack a custom checkout that Shopify does not officially support.
Own-domain checkout is the middle path. Shopify keeps the store, cart, product catalog, apps and reports. The checkout step moves to checkout.your-brand.com. Any gateway with an API sits behind it. Buyer flow feels the same; the URL is different.
Shopify's storefront, cart engine, Storefront API and Admin API are independent of the checkout URL. When the Buy button on your product page redirects to your own checkout subdomain instead of Shopify's hosted checkout, cart contents flow via Storefront API, capture happens through your gateway, and the resulting order is written to Shopify Admin via Admin API. Fulfillment apps, Klaviyo flows, ERPs and marketing pixels fire on the Admin order-created event exactly as before.
What actually stops working without Shopify Payments. Shop Pay express button. Native Apple Pay/Google Pay if wired through Shopify Payments. That is it. Wallets can be re-enabled through your own gateway if the gateway supports them (most modern ones do).
Any API-based gateway — Stripe, Adyen, NMI, Nuvei, Airwallex, Whop, Coinbase Commerce, offshore MID, custom HTTP.
checkout.your-brand.com with TLS + PCI tokenization. Modern responsive UI.
Captured order writes to Shopify Admin tagged [cascade]. Fulfillment app fires normally.
Yes. Shopify's Basic and Advanced plans both allow third-party gateways. And own-domain checkout via CascadeCheckout lets you plug in gateways that are not on Shopify's approved list at all.
Shopify's third-party gateway transaction fee applies on native checkout (typically 0.5-2% depending on plan). Own-domain checkout via CascadeCheckout bypasses native checkout, so Shopify's third-party fee does not apply either.
No. Shop Pay is a Shopify Payments product. Without Shopify Payments, the Shop Pay express button is disabled. Buyers still get modern wallet-style checkout depending on your gateway (Apple Pay, Google Pay, etc).
Send your gateway API keys. We provision an own-domain checkout URL at checkout.your-brand.com, wire your gateway, and point Shopify's Buy button at the new URL. Test order goes through inside 48 hours.
Any gateway with an API. Live in 24-48 hours.
Shopify Payments banned → · Own-domain checkout → · How it works →
CascadeCheckout