Pricing structures
31 guides written so a business owner can act on them, not so a processor looks good.
Zero-Fee Processing Offers: What to Ask
Zero-fee processing can lower what a business pays, but the mechanics matter. Ask for the terms in writing and check them against the card network rules and your local law.
6 min read Pricing structuresEffective Rate by Location and Card Type
A single effective rate is a fine headline number. Broken down by location, card type and ticket size, it becomes something a finance team can act on.
6 min read Pricing structuresVisa vs Mastercard Small Merchant Limits in Canada
Visa and Mastercard no longer agree on what counts as a small business in Canada. You could qualify for lower rates on one brand and not the other.
5 min read Pricing structuresWhat Is a Cash Discount Program, and Is It Legal?
A cash discount lowers the price for paying another way. It is not the same as adding a fee for paying by card, and the rules treat the two differently.
8 min read Pricing structuresHow Do I Lower My Credit Card Processing Fees?
Most savings come from knowing what you pay today. Start with your statement, not with a sales pitch.
6 min read Pricing structuresWhat Should a Restaurant or Salon Use Instead of Square?
There is no single right replacement for Square. The right one depends on whether you need to change the software, the processing, or both.
5 min read Pricing structuresVisa Embedded Payments Acquirer Charge
If your customers pay you with virtual cards from their accounts payable or procurement software, a new Visa charge may sit on some of those payments.
6 min read Pricing structuresFlat Rate vs Canada's Card Fee Cut: Restaurants
A flat rate is simple. The catch shows up when the cost underneath it falls and the rate you pay does not.
6 min read Pricing structuresVisa Canada Small Merchant Rates: October 2026 Change
Visa is widening its Canadian small merchant program and lowering its rates on October 24, 2026. Whether you see the change depends on your processor and your pricing.
6 min read Pricing structuresMastercard's New Cross-Border Business Card Rate
If you sell to companies in other countries, a new Mastercard rate may apply to some of their cards. Whether you can see it depends on how you are priced.
5 min read Pricing structuresPayment Routing: Questions for Large Merchants
Europe and the US are taking different paths to the same question: should merchants have more than one way to route a payment?
6 min read Pricing structuresIf Swipe Fees Fall, Will Your Processing Bill?
Myth: if swipe fees go down, your processing bill goes down too. Fact: it depends on how you are priced.
6 min read Pricing structuresCredit Card Competition Act: What Would Change
A bill in Congress could change how credit card payments are routed. Until it passes, your rate does not move. Here is what to know.
6 min read Pricing structuresTiered Pricing: Questions to Ask Your Processor
If your statement groups sales into qualified, mid-qualified and non-qualified, these are the questions that get you real answers.
6 min read Pricing structuresWhat Happens in a Free Statement Review
One statement in, a plain-English explanation of every fee line out. What you do with it is up to you.
7 min read Pricing structuresCanada's Lower Credit Card Fees for Small Business
Eligible small businesses in Canada pay lower Visa and Mastercard interchange since October 2024. Here is who qualifies and how to check you are getting it.
6 min read Pricing structuresCard-Present vs Card-Not-Present Fees: Why Online Costs More
The same card, the same amount, a different price. Here is how Visa's published schedule prices a sale by how the card was accepted.
6 min read Pricing structuresRegulation II: Debit Interchange Caps (Durbin) Explained
Debit cards from large banks have capped interchange under Federal Reserve Regulation II. Cards from smaller issuers do not, and merchants have routing rights.
7 min read Pricing structuresVisa Interchange Rates in the US: How to Read the Schedule
Visa publishes its US interchange rates in a public document. Here is how it is organized and what the rows mean for your processing cost.
8 min read Pricing structuresRate Creep: The Industry's Quietest Revenue Model
Small increases are hard to see on any one statement. Three months side by side makes them visible.
8 min read Pricing structuresFree Terminal Offers: What to Check Before You Sign
The hardware is one document. The account, the term and the lease are others.
7 min read Pricing structuresBasis Points in Card Processing: How to Convert and Compare
One hundredth of one percent. The unit quotes are written in, and the unit the rules are written in too.
9 min read Pricing structuresProcessing Rates by Volume: What Actually Changes
Nobody publishes a rate for $50,000 a month, because the schedule is not built that way.
8 min read Pricing structuresSeasonal Businesses: Fees, Deposits and the Off-Season
A quiet month shows which fees you pay whether or not you sell anything.
8 min read Pricing structuresLarge-Ticket Card Sales: What Visa's Schedule Says
Above a certain amount Visa's own schedule stops charging mostly percentage and starts charging mostly a fixed fee. The catch is which cards it applies to.
9 min read Pricing structuresSmall Tickets: What Visa's Schedule Charges on a $4 Sale
On a small sale the fixed cents matter more than the percentage — and Visa prices some small-ticket programs as a percentage with a floor, not a percentage plus a per-item fee.
8 min read Pricing structuresWhen Should You Move to Interchange-Plus Pricing?
There is no universal volume threshold. Your card mix, average ticket and fee structure decide it, and you can check it from one statement.
7 min read Pricing structuresHow to Negotiate Credit Card Processing Rates
Interchange is published and not negotiable. The markup, the fees and the contract terms are.
7 min read Pricing structuresFlat Rate vs Interchange-Plus Pricing (Blended vs Cost-Plus)
Simplicity has a price. Whether it is worth paying depends on your card mix, ticket size and volume, and you can check it on your own statement.
10 min read Pricing structuresTiered Pricing: The Structure Built to Be Unauditable
The only pricing model where the party billing you also decides which bucket each sale lands in.
6 min read Pricing structuresInterchange Explained: The Network Fee Inside Your Rate
Part of what you pay is set by the card networks' published schedules, not by your processor. Here is how to read it.
10 min readEvery fee named, usually within 4 hours. Or call now and we quote you on the spot.
Everyone else in this industry says twenty-four hours. We say four — and if that is still too slow, pick up the phone and get your numbers while you are on the call. No contract, nothing to cancel, no pressure.