What are you really paying to take cards?
Two numbers from your monthly statement tell you: the total fees you paid and the total you took in on cards. Divide the first by the second and you have your effective rate, the one number that lets you compare months, compare processors, and check what you were quoted.
Example only: a cafe took $42,000 on cards in September and paid $1,260 in fees. $1,260 / $42,000 = 0.03, so the effective rate is 3.0%.
Where to find the two numbers
- Most statements have a summary box on page 1 with total amount submitted or total sales, and total fees or total charges. Square often labels these gross card sales and card processing fees. Stripe often labels payment volume and Stripe fees. Clover/Fiserv, Heartland, and Worldpay often label total amount submitted and total fees.
- If fees are split across sections (interchange, assessments, service charges, other fees), add them up.
- Flat-rate processors (for example Square and Stripe standard pricing) often show fees per transaction. The monthly total is in the account's reports.
What is inside the rate
- Interchange: paid to the card-issuing bank, set by the card networks. The same for every merchant for the same card and transaction type.
- Assessments: paid to the card networks (Visa, Mastercard, and others).
- Processor markup: what your processor keeps. This is the part with room to negotiate.
- Add-on fees: monthly, annual, or per-statement charges (for example PCI, statement, or non-compliance fees). Some are in your contract and some you may never have agreed to. Check your agreement.
Is my rate good?
There is no single right number. It depends on your card mix (rewards and business cards cost more), your average sale, and whether cards are present or keyed in. The comparisons that matter: this month against last month, and your effective rate against the rate you were quoted. The US Chamber of Commerce walks through the same math: How to calculate credit card processing fees.
Why it creeps up
Some processing agreements let the processor change pricing during the contract (one processor explains how here: mid-contract rate changes, a vendor source). A change notice is easy to miss. Re-check your effective rate every month, or let FeeXray Watch do it.