Card processing guides
Twenty plain-language guides for business owners in the United States and Canada: what you pay to accept cards, the rules on passing that cost on, and how to run payments without surprises. Each one is dated and cites the primary sources we checked.
Pricing and fees
Credit Card Processing Fees: What Small Businesses Pay and Why
Every card fee you pay is built from the same three parts. Two are set by the card networks; one is set by your provider, and that is the part you can compare.
8 min read Fees & statementsHow to Read a Card Processing Statement, Line by Line
Most statements are built to be skimmed, not read. Here is how to find what you actually pay and where it goes.
9 min read Fees & statementsEffective Rate: How to Calculate What You Really Pay
One number tells you what you are actually paying. It is not the rate on your contract.
9 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 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 Fees & statementsHidden Processing Fees: A Line-by-Line Checklist
Most of them are in the agreement. The problem is that few merchants read the fee schedule before signing.
9 min read Fees & statementsWhat Is a PCI Non-Compliance Fee?
A PCI non-compliance fee is a charge your processor or acquiring bank adds when it has no record that you validated PCI DSS. Complete the SAQ and any scans it requires to stop it.
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 readRules and compliance
Cash Discount vs Surcharging: Rules by State and Province
The label on the program does not decide how it is treated. How the price is posted and what the customer is charged at the register does.
10 min read Compliance & rulesCredit Card Surcharge Laws by State (2026 Guide)
Card network rules set the floor. State law decides whether you can surcharge at all, and how you have to show it.
11 min read Compliance & rulesCanada's Card Industry Code of Conduct: Your Rights
Before you sign with a processor in Canada, know what the federal Code says it must show you, tell you and let you do.
9 min read Compliance & rulesPCI Compliance Basics for Small Businesses
PCI SSC writes the standard. Your acquirer and the card brands decide how you prove you meet it.
9 min read By industryRestaurant Tipping, Service Charges and Card Surcharges
Tips, service charges and surcharges look alike on a receipt and are treated very differently by card networks, tax authorities and consumer law.
8 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 Fees & statementsInterac Fees for Merchants in Canada, Explained
Interac Debit is priced almost entirely in flat cents per transaction, not a percentage of the sale, which is why it stays cheap even as your average ticket grows.
7 min readRunning your payments
Chargebacks Explained: How They Work and How to Prevent Them
A chargeback reverses a sale after the fact. Most can be prevented, and many can be won with the right paperwork.
8 min read POS & equipmentHow to Choose a POS System Without Getting Locked In
The POS you pick decides how you work every day and, often, who processes your cards for years. Choose it on purpose.
8 min read Switching providersSwitching Payment Processors: Contracts, Fees and Timing
Switching is usually easier than providers make it sound, but the contract you signed decides what it costs. Read it first.
8 min read POS & equipmentTap to Pay: Contactless Cards, Wallets and Phones as Terminals
Your phone can take contactless payments. Here is what the official sources say it needs, and where it falls short.
9 min read Funding & operationsACH and e-Transfer vs Card Payments: When to Use Each
Cards are convenient and fast; bank payments are cheaper and better suited to large invoices. Most businesses need both.
8 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 readSend one statement. Every fee named, back, usually within 4 hours.
It is free, there is nothing to sign and nothing to cancel. We read your current merchant statement line by line, name every fee on it — including the ones buried in the fee schedule — work out your true effective rate, and send the written analysis back, usually within 4 hours. Do not want to wait? Call 1-888-705-7896 and we will read your statement with you on the call in about 5 minutes.