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7 Best Virtual Terminals for Small Business of April 2024

The right virtual terminal can save you time and money when you need to manually enter credit card transactions.
By Lisa A. Anthony, Karrin Sehmbi
Last updated on May 17, 2023
Edited bySally Lauckner
Fact checked and reviewed

⏰ Estimated read time: 5 minutes

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Virtual terminals are web apps that allow computers, tablets or smartphones to process card payments without a card reader or . They are primarily for businesses receiving phone, fax, email or mail orders and allow for the manual entry of the customer’s card details for payment processing.
The following offer some of the best virtual terminal options for businesses that regularly enter credit card transactions manually. Because they have different pricing models, the cost of each service for your business will depend on transaction amounts, sales volume and other factors. In addition to cost, deposit speed, customer support and online payment options are also important in determining which virtual terminal is the best fit for your business.

Our Nerdy picks for

Best Virtual Terminals for Small Business

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Estimates assume an average interchange fee of 1.81% + $0.10, based on our latest available data. Estimates provided reflect online and in-person transactions, but exclude any keyed transactions. Estimates are based on the lowest monthly plan and processing fees for each provider.

Product
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Payment processing fees
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Square POS

Learn more

on Square POS's secure website

Get an estimated monthly cost for your business.
5.0/5

Best for Overall

In-person: 2.6% + $0.10

Online: 2.9% + $0.30

$0.00

and up.

Get an estimated monthly cost for your business.
Learn more

on Square POS's secure website

Stax by Fattmerchant

Learn more

on Stax by Fattmerchant's secure website

4.0/5

Best for Subscription pricing model

In-person: 0% + $0.08

Online: 0% + $0.15

Plus interchange

$99.00

and up.

Learn more

on Stax by Fattmerchant's secure website

Clover POS

Learn more

on Clover POS's secure website

4.0/5

Best for POS flexibility

In-person: 2.3% + $0.10

Online: 3.5% + $0.10

$14.95

and up.

Learn more

on Clover POS's secure website

Shopify Retail POS

Learn more

on Shopify POS's secure website

4.0/5

Best for Shopify e-commerce users

In-person: 2.6% + $0.10

Online: 2.9% + $0.30

$39.00

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

Learn more

on Shopify POS's secure website

TouchBistro

Learn more

on TouchBistro's secure website

3.5/5

Best for Restaurants

N/A

Quote-based.

$69.00

and up.

Learn more

on TouchBistro's secure website

Dharma Merchant Services

4.5/5

Best for Surcharging option

In-person: 0.15% + $0.08

Online: 0.2% + $0.11

Plus interchange

$15.00

for most industries; $12 for nonprofits.

PayPal Zettle

4.0/5

Best for Software integrations

In-person: 2.29% + $0.09

Online: 2.89% + $0.49

$0.00

Our pick for

Overall

Square POS

Learn more

on Square POS's secure website

Monthly fee
$0.00

and up.

Our pick for

Subscription pricing model

Stax by Fattmerchant

Learn more

on Stax by Fattmerchant's secure website

Monthly fee
$99.00

and up.

Our pick for

POS flexibility

Clover POS

Learn more

on Clover POS's secure website

Monthly fee
$14.95

and up.

Our pick for

Shopify e-commerce users

Shopify Retail POS

Learn more

on Shopify POS's secure website

Monthly fee
$39.00

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

Our pick for

Restaurants

TouchBistro

Learn more

on TouchBistro's secure website

Payment processing fees
N/A

Quote-based.

Monthly fee
$69.00

and up.

Our pick for

Surcharging option

Dharma Merchant Services

Monthly fee
$15.00

for most industries; $12 for nonprofits.

Our pick for

Software integrations

PayPal Zettle

Monthly fee
$0.00

How do virtual terminals work?

After setting up an online account with your payment processor, you’ll log in and navigate to the virtual terminal. There, you'll enter a customer’s credit card information into an online form, submit the transaction for processing, and receive payment.
The exact information needed varies, but generally transactions require the following:
  • Card number.
  • Expiration date.
  • CVV/CVV2 number (the three- or four-digit number on the back of a card).
  • Customer name.
  • Billing ZIP code.
There may also be an area on the screen to write a note to the customer, as well as an option to email or text a payment confirmation.
Processing fees are deducted from the payment before the transaction funds are transferred to your business account.

How much does a virtual terminal cost?

Depending on the pricing model used by the processor, a virtual terminal could include some of the following fees:
  • Monthly fee.
  • Terminal fee.
  • Processing fees.
  • Interchange fees.
  • Margin fees.
  • Assessment fees.
Regarding processing fees, remember that card-not-present transaction fees are higher because they are considered to have a greater potential for fraud.
How much you will pay each month depends on the processor you select and your volume of credit card transactions. For example, one processor may require a monthly fee of $25 and charge 2% plus 10 cents per transaction, while a competitor that doesn’t require a monthly fee may charge a higher transaction rate of 2.5% plus 20 cents.

What businesses use virtual terminals?

Businesses that accept payment information from customers who are not physically there — card-not-present transactions — use virtual terminals. It’s also an option when a mobile terminal is required or when customers prefer contactless payments.
Businesses that use virtual terminals include:
  • Mail-order and telephone-order businesses, also called MOTO businesses.
  • , diners and that process phone and online orders.
  • Delivery-based businesses such as food and beverage stores, florists and gift shops.
  • Mobile businesses such as , pet groomers and photographers.
  • Freelancers such as web designers, artists, SEO specialists and bookkeepers.

What to look for in a virtual terminal

If you already have a for your business and you want to add a virtual terminal for limited use, then your best option would generally be to use your existing provider. However, if more than about a quarter of your transactions are entered manually, a payment processor that offers a robust virtual terminal could be a smart choice.

Price

The is important when evaluating your options. There are a variety of pricing models, such as flat-rate, interchange-plus and membership plans. Because each payment processor has different pricing, it’s not easy to make a quick side-by-side comparison.
This credit card processing fees calculator can help you get a good idea of the cost of each plan based on your volume of manual transactions.
For example: Say a processing service charges $100 monthly to use its platform, and its virtual terminal option is free. Its processing fees are 2% of the transaction total plus 10 cents per transaction. If you do about 80 manual transactions a month for a total of $4,000, you would pay the monthly fee of $100 and processing fees of $80 (2% of $4,000) plus $8 (10 cents x 80 transactions) for a total of $188.
A company with a high volume of phone orders could benefit from a membership-based model with lower processing fees, while a business that does a small volume of phone orders may pay less with a flat-rate model and no monthly fee.

Other factors to consider

  • Payment speed. You want to get your money quickly from your transactions — ideally the next business day, with an option for the same day. If there’s a fee for same-day payments, remember to add that into your calculations.
  • Customer support. At a minimum, you want support available during the hours you'll be submitting transactions. Getting 24/7 support is ideal.
  • Integration with other apps. It will save you time if your virtual software works with your accounting software. If a third-party service is necessary for integration, add that fee to your calculation.
Last updated on May 17, 2023
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