Top Payment Gateways in Tanzania

A Detailed, Practical Guide for Businesses

Tanzania is a mobile-money economy.

If your payment gateway does not support how people actually pay, your checkout will fail. Not because your product is bad. Because paying is hard.

This guide breaks down the top payment gateways in Tanzania, who they are built for, and when each one makes sense. The goal is simple. Help you choose the right gateway for your stage, your industry, and your risk profile. Because what works for a multinational operating in Tanzania is very different from what works for a startup that launched last week.

List of top payment gateways in Tanzania:

1. DusuPay

2. Elemitech

3. Selcom

4. Pesapal

5. Nala

1. DusuPay

Best for local and global businesses operating in Tanzania

DusuPay is built for businesses that operate in Tanzania and beyond. It supports local mobile money, cards, bank transfers, and cross-border payments across several African countries.

This is not a lightweight ecommerce tool. It is payment infrastructure designed for scale.

What DusuPay does well

• Tanzanian mobile money support

• Cross-border collections and payouts

• Multi-currency processing

• Enterprise-grade compliance

Ideal clients

DusuPay is ideal for:

• Money remittance companies

• Fintech companies

• Forex trading platforms

• Large corporations operating across Africa

If your business handles volume, regulation, or multiple markets, this is the safest and most flexible option.

2. Elemitech

Best for high-risk businesses

Elemitech is focused. It is not trying to serve everyone.

It is built specifically for high-risk industries that are often rejected or restricted by mainstream gateways. That focus makes it very strong where others struggle.

What Elemitech does well

• High-risk payment processing

• Advanced settlement controls

• Strong compliance frameworks

• Scalable APIs for complex platforms

Ideal clients

Elemitech is best suited for:

• Forex companies

• Financial services businesses

• Money remittance platforms

• Betting and gaming companies

If your business is considered high risk, Elemitech is designed for your reality.

3. Selcom

Strong local gateway for Tanzania

Selcom is deeply rooted in the Tanzanian market. It supports mobile money, cards, and bank payments with reliable local settlements.

It is well suited for businesses focused mainly on Tanzania.

Ideal clients

• Local ecommerce businesses

• Utilities and service providers

• Companies serving Tanzanian customers only

4. Pesapal

Good for businesses selling online and offline

Pesapal works well for businesses that collect payments both digitally and in physical locations.

It combines cards, mobile money, and reconciliation tools in one system.

Ideal clients

• Retail businesses

• Hospitality businesses

• Merchants with mixed payment channels

5. NALA

Best for payouts and mobile money movement

NALA is not a traditional checkout gateway.

It is best used for moving money into Tanzanian mobile wallets, especially for payouts, remittances, and operational transfers. Many businesses use it alongside another gateway.

Ideal clients

• Businesses paying agents or suppliers

• Platforms managing mobile wallet payouts

• Companies handling cross-border transfers into Tanzania

RELATED: Top payment gateways in Africa

Comparison Table: Which Gateway Fits Which Scenario

Gateway	Best For	Risk Profile	Geographic Reach	When It Makes Sense
DusuPay	Large and growing businesses	Medium to High	Tanzania + multiple African countries	When you operate locally and across borders
Elemitech	High-risk industries	High	Multi-country	When mainstream gateways reject your business
Selcom	Local Tanzanian merchants	Low to Medium	Tanzania	When your customers are mainly local
Pesapal	Hybrid businesses	Low to Medium	East Africa	When you sell online and offline
NALA	Payouts and remittances	Low	Tanzania + inbound transfers	When moving money matters more than checkout

Different Businesses Need Different Gateways

This is the part most founders miss.

Multinationals operating in Tanzania

They care about:

• Cross-border collections

• Multi-currency settlements

• Compliance and audit trails

For this, DusuPay makes sense. A small local-only gateway creates friction at scale.

High-risk businesses

Forex, betting, and financial services need:

• Risk tolerance

• Controlled settlements

• Fewer sudden account freezes

This is where Elemitech fits. Using a low-risk gateway here usually ends badly.

Startups just launching

Startups need:

• Fast onboarding

• Simple integration

• Local payment methods

For this stage, Selcom or Pesapal is often enough. Complexity too early slows growth.

Businesses focused on payouts

If your main problem is sending money, not collecting it, NALA becomes valuable. Often alongside another gateway.

Key Considerations When Choosing a Payment Gateway in Tanzania

Before choosing, be honest about these:

1. Who are your customers? Local customers need mobile money. International customers need cards and cross-border support.

2. What industry are you in? Ecommerce and high-risk finance cannot safely use the same infrastructure.

3. Are you local or regional? Local gateways are simpler. Regional gateways future-proof expansion.

4. Do you need payouts as well as collections? Not all gateways handle both well.

5. How fast do you plan to scale? Migrating gateways later is expensive and painful.

Final takeaway

There is no universal “best” payment gateway.

There is only the right gateway for your business model, stage, and risk profile.

This guide exists to help you make that decision clearly and avoid costly mistakes at checkout.