The short answer
A payment gateway securely transmits card data from your website or virtual terminal to the processor. Fees are usually a monthly charge of $10 to $35 plus $0.05 to $0.15 per transaction. Bundled gateways can be cheaper — or can lock you to one processor, which costs far more later.
Independent versus bundled
An independent gateway such as Authorize.net or NMI works with many processors, so changing processor does not mean rebuilding your checkout or re-collecting stored cards. A processor's own gateway is often cheaper monthly and considerably more expensive to leave.
Watch for double charges
Merchants regularly pay a gateway fee to the gateway and a 'gateway access' fee to the processor for the same connection. Read both invoices.
Key takeaways
- Portability is worth more than a $10 monthly saving
- Check for the same connection being billed twice
- Vault portability should be agreed before you integrate
Want this checked against your own statement?
We are an independent agent — we shop every processor we work with and bring you the best deal for your profile. Free analysis, every fee named, back within 4 hours. Or call now and we will quote you on the phone.