Research from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business revealed that 78 percent of businesses believe their credit card processing fees have been unaffordable. Helcim is an option for businesses that process more than $5,000 per month and want better rates than what flat-rate plans offer. We selected Helcim because it provides interchange-plus pricing to all of its merchants and posts its complete rates and fees on its website, so you know exactly how much you’ll pay. Helcim has low rates as well as volume-based discounts, and it’s one of the few companies with a rate lock that guarantees its margin won’t increase over the life of your account. The amount a business pays varies based on sales volume and transaction types. After you are approved for a merchant account through QuickBooks, you can begin to process credit card payments.
Since customers have become accustomed to paying a little extra for the convenience of these payment methods, your business can charge slightly more for processing these transactions. If you can’t manage to find a processor that offers free credit card processing, this is a valid option. Firstly, customers may not be happy about paying a premium to use their credit cards. As most businesses in the United States now allow credit card payments, passing on card fees to customers can be seen as a competitive disadvantage. If you’re in a competitive niche, passing on fees may cause customers to look elsewhere. At North American Bancard, LLC, our goal is to provide merchants with a multi-faceted credit card processing solution that does it all.
Adding to the confusion is the terminology used to refer to these credit card processing fees. You may see them listed as “merchant account fees” or even “discount rate.” Don’t let the name fool you. Your discount rate simply refers to the amount of the sale that goes toward paying credit card processing fees.
It also offers a point of sale system called Shopify POS. This allows merchants to process credit cards in person through a card reader or mobile device. While this feature isn’t free, it’s included with your monthly payment for the base level plan, which starts at $29 per month. Termination fees are not required by processors, but are often added by a sales agent as an extra profit center. To help combat rising fees and transaction expenses for retailers, NRS PAY also offers its unique FeeBU$TER program. Like popular cash discount programs, this plan passes along a credit card transaction “service fee” to the customer so that the retailer does not have to sustain transaction expenses. With no monthly account fee businesses processing over $18,000, and ZERO out-of-pocket transaction fees, the plan could be 100% free.
However, as this is Square’s proprietary hardware, you will need to purchase new equipment if you move to another processor. Payment Depot offers membership-based pricing, which can reduce processing fees for high-volume businesses. Join us as a partner to gain the latest insights in credit card processing and discover effective ways to personalized payments for a positive impact. With a robust system in place, you can drive in-store transactions and transform one-time customers into regulars. Choosing efficient credit card terminals for your business improves customer experiences, potentially increasing retention and the number of recurring purchases. You’ll see at a glance — in an apples-to-apples comparison — just how much you could save with North American Banking Company.
You might also pay a high noncompliance fee (more than $50 in some cases) each month. Just Free credit card processing machine of the merchant acquirers in the survey reported merchant compliance rates above 60%, and 23% reported rates below 25%. Buying processing hardware outright is nearly always your best bet. Although it may be a big upfront cost, it’s less expensive and less restrictive over time than other equipment options. You can keep your purchasing costs low by shopping around for the best price, choosing a basic terminal instead of a fancy POS system, and asking if used equipment is available for purchase.