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Credit Card Processing Fees: What Small Businesses Should Know in 2024

The answer varies widely by provider and pricing structure, but in general, they're 1.5% to 3.5% of the transaction.
By Billie Anne Grigg, Whitney Vandiver
Last updated on September 20, 2024
Edited byRyan Lane

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⏰ Estimated read time: 8 minutes

Credit card processing fees typically cost a business 1.5% to 3.5% of each transaction’s total. For example, you’d pay $1.50 to $3.50 in credit card fees for a sale of $100.
How much you’re actually charged depends on factors like the card type and whether the transaction was made in person or online. Ultimately, the best credit card processing company for you will offer fees that are manageable based on your business’s sales trends and volume.
Here's how credit card processing fees work and how your business can lower its rates.

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Stripe
Stripe

Stripe Payments

NerdWallet Rating  
5.0
Starting At  

2.7% + 5¢

in-person; 2.9% + 30¢ online. 

What are credit card processing fees?

Credit card processing fees are charges that merchants pay to enable and complete card transactions. How much your business owes will depend on multiple underlying factors and the various financial institutions — usually credit card companies, issuing banks and payment processors — involved in this process.
Here’s a breakdown of the charges that make up credit card processing fees:

A green bank.
Interchange feesInterchange fees make up the largest portion of the credit card processing fee that goes to the issuing bank, which manages the credit card used to make the payment. Examples of credit card issuer banks include Chase, Citi and Bank of America.
One blue credit card with a green card behind it.
Assessment feesThese fees are directed toward the card networks, such as Visa, Mastercard, Discover and American Express, and help pay for their operating costs. The networks are also responsible for setting them.
Some bills and a red card.
Payment processor feesThese costs go to the processor, which is the company that manages the logistics of getting card payments processed for your business. Processors include Square, Stax and Helcim. Depending on your payment processing company, there may be room to negotiate these fees.

Looking for affordable credit card processing?

Explore NerdWallet’s list of cheapest credit card processing companies and compare prices across each to make sure you’re getting the best deal.

How much do major credit card companies charge?

Card network charges can change due to variables like transaction or business type. For example, interchange fees are typically higher for online versus in-person transactions and high-risk industries versus low-risk ones.
The following table shows average merchant fees for major credit card networks based on estimates from the payment processor Payment Depot.
Card network
Average merchant fees
American Express
2.3%-3.5%
Discover
1.55%-2.5%
Mastercard
1.5%-2.6%
Visa
1.4%-2.5%

Learn more about how credit card transactions are processed

Take a behind-the-scenes look at what happens each time you swipe a credit card, as both a merchant and consumer.

How much do payment processing companies charge?

The two main types of payment processing pricing structures are flat rate and interchange plus. For each transaction, flat-rate processors charge a set amount that includes all processing fees. Interchange-plus processors separate those fees so it’s easier for you to see how much each costs.
Here’s a rundown of how much popular payment processing companies charge businesses for in-person and online transactions, along with which type of pricing structure they use.
Pricing structure
Payment processing fees
Square
Flat rate.
  • 2.6% plus 10 cents for in-person transactions.
  • 2.9% plus 30 cents for online transactions.
Stripe
Flat rate.
  • 2.7% plus 5 cents for in-person transactions.
  • 2.9% plus 30 cents for online transactions.
Helcim
Interchange plus.
  • Interchange plus 0.4% and 8 cents per in-person transaction (if $50,000 or less in monthly card transactions).
  • Interchange plus 0.5% and 25 cents per online or manually keyed transaction (if $50,000 or less in monthly card transactions).
Finix
Interchange plus and subscription based.
  • $79 and up per month.
  • 8 cents plus interchange for card-present transactions.
  • 15 cents plus interchange for card-not-present transactions.
Shopify
Flat rate.
  • 2.5%-2.9% plus 30 cents for online payments.
  • 2.4%- 2.6% plus 10 cents for in-person payments.

Types of credit card processing fee structures

Credit card processing fees generally fall into the following categories:

💬 From our Nerds: Weighing interchange-plus vs. flat-rate options

"I'm in the process of choosing a payment processor for my husband's brewery. Initially, I was going to choose a flat-rate processor for convenience's sake, but what if he could save more money with an interchange-plus one?
"I used this calculator to compare fees across both types of processors. It turns out that flat-rate pricing might be just as economical — if not less expensive — for businesses with lower average transaction amounts (e.g., under $50) and doing less than $8,000 in card transactions per month. Doing that same kind of math can help you make an informed decision for your own business.”
Hillary Crawford, lead writer covering small business

How to calculate your credit card fees

Use this credit card processing fee calculator to see how monthly payment processing costs will vary based on transaction rates and how you accept credit card payments (e.g., online versus In person). If you have a payment processor in mind, enter the provider's rates in the calculator — or an estimate of average rates for interchange-plus pricing — to estimate how much the service will cost each month.

How to offset your credit card processing fees

Here's how you can save money on credit card processing fees.

Pass credit card fees to consumers

Small businesses can pass credit card fees to customers by implementing a cash discount program or credit card surcharge. With a cash discount program, customers receive a small discount for choosing to pay with cash instead of card. Credit card surcharges are similar in that the business tacks an extra fee on purchases made with a card.
In both cases, businesses need to follow specific rules and regulations. For example, credit card surcharge programs aren’t legal in Connecticut, Massachusetts and Puerto Rico. Additionally, remember to consider your customer base and how you’ll roll out the program.

Sidestep avoidable fees

It's best to work with a processor that doesn't charge statement fees, minimum monthly processing fees, PCI compliance fees or terminal lease fees. But if that's not an option, and you see these fees on your statement, pick up the phone and ask if any of those charges can be waived or avoided in the future.

Keep your chargeback rate low

Your chargeback rate is the percentage of transactions disputed by customers — for instance, because of unauthorized card use, billing errors or unresolved disputes about the quality of the items purchased. Chargeback fees can be costly, often $20 to $100 per dispute on top of refunding the complete transaction, and high rates of chargebacks can cause providers to increase your transaction fees.
Minimize chargebacks by using contactless and chip card readers to reduce your liability in case of credit card fraud, and by offering return policies, good customer service and quick responses to any customer complaints.

Collect quotes

Collect quotes from multiple processors. If you find more favorable pricing elsewhere, take the quote to your current processor. The company might match the offer or provide lower rates. If that doesn't happen, the quotes can help you decide whether the savings are substantial enough to justify switching processors.

Ready to choose a payment processing company?

Explore NerdWallet’s collection of top credit card processing companies and compare your estimated monthly costs for each. 

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Best Payment Processing Companies
Helcim

Helcim

NerdWallet Rating 
5.0
Learn more

on Helcim's website

0.40% + 8¢ 

plus interchange, in-person; 0.50% + 25¢ plus interchange, online.

$0 
Learn more

on Helcim's website

Square

Square

NerdWallet Rating 
5.0
Learn more

on Square's website

2.6% + 10¢ 

in-person; 2.9% + 30¢ online.

$0 

Starts at $0/month for unlimited devices and locations.

Learn more

on Square's website

Stripe

Stripe

NerdWallet Rating 
5.0
Learn more

on Stripe's website

2.7% + 5¢ 

in-person; 2.9% + 30¢ online.

$0 
Learn more

on Stripe's website

Shopify

Shopify Retail POS

NerdWallet Rating 
4.5
Learn more

on Shopify's website

2.70% 

in-person; 2.9% + 30¢ online (Basic plan).

$39 

and up for e-commerce plans with POS Lite; Can upgrade to POS Pro for an extra $89.

Learn more

on Shopify's website

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