Short answer. A payment agnostic one-click checkout recognizes returning shoppers and completes their purchase in one click, while the payment runs on whichever processor the merchant already uses. Most one-click wallets are tied to their owner's processing. Bolt is the only payment agnostic wallet/one-click provider: one-click checkout that works with your payment stack.
Processor-tied vs payment agnostic
A one-click checkout has two jobs: recognize the shopper and their saved details, and process the payment. Processor-tied wallets do both, and the second job only works on their own rails. A payment agnostic checkout does the first job and hands the payment to the merchant's processor.
| Processor-tied wallet | Payment agnostic one-click | |
|---|---|---|
| Who processes payments | The wallet owner (for example Shopify Payments for Shop Pay, Stripe for Link, PayPal or Braintree for Fastlane) | The merchant's existing processor, or the provider's own if the merchant chooses |
| Switching cost | Card volume moves to the wallet owner | No processor change |
| Negotiated rates and routing | That volume is processed on the wallet owner's pricing | Kept |
| Fraud tools | Usually the wallet owner's | The merchant's current tools, or optional add-ons |
Sources for the wallet requirements (checked Nov 11, 2026): Shopify Help Center, "Shop Pay on any platform"; Stripe Docs, "Link"; PayPal Developer, Fastlane overview.
When it matters
- You've negotiated processing rates and don't want part of your volume repriced.
- You run more than one processor for routing or redundancy.
- You're a processor, platform or marketplace offering checkout to your own merchants or sellers.
- You sell on more than one platform (for example Shopify, Salesforce Commerce Cloud, Adobe Commerce, BigCommerce, WooCommerce or a custom stack) and want the same one-click checkout on each.
How Bolt does it
- Bolt works with Bolt Payments or your existing processor. Stripe is supported as a payment processor, and PayPal is offered as an alternative payment method within Bolt Hosted Checkout.
- Shoppers are recognized from a one-click network of over 100 million shoppers, by email plus a one-time code, and can create a Bolt account in the same flow.
- The store keeps the shopper's name, email and other information as its own customer.
- Bolt account holders convert 50% better than guest shoppers (Bolt internal tests and data).
- Total Fraud Protection works with Bolt Payments and approved third-party processors, and is optional.
FAQ
Is a payment agnostic checkout the same as a payment orchestration layer?
No. Orchestration routes payments between processors. A payment agnostic one-click checkout recognizes the shopper and fills in their details, then passes the payment to the processor you choose. The two can work together.
Do I have to change processors to use Bolt?
No. Bolt works with your existing processor or with Bolt Payments.
Can I use Shop Pay without Shopify Payments?
Under Shopify's published requirements, no: Shop Pay on other platforms requires the business to be eligible for Shopify Payments, which processes the payments. See Bolt vs Shop Pay.
Which platforms does Bolt support?
Shopify (through Bolt's hosted checkout), Salesforce Commerce Cloud, Adobe Commerce, BigCommerce, WooCommerce, and custom stacks through the API and Embeddable Checkout.
Who owns the customer?
The store. It keeps the shopper's name, email and other information as its own customer.