We find the 10 best options, so you can make informed decisions on tons of products and services.
These are the top credit card processors on the market today. Read on for in-depth details on features, plans, and pricing.
Free EMV equipment
Low transaction fees
$500 guarantee you’ll save money on processing
24/7 technical support
Leaders is a merchant service company geared towards businesses that are looking for a one-stop payment processing solution with competitive prices.
While the company has low monthly rates and credit and debit card transaction fees, the exact figure you’ll pay will be customized to your account and you’ll have to speak to a Leaders representative to get these figures. The company provides users with free equipment, including a mobile card reader for a smartphone or tablet and free processing software, and trains users so that they can operate the software and equipment smoothly. The service also integrates with a number of accounting programs including most versions of Quickbooks. You can also use it with the Clover POS system.
In addition, because there is a monthly minimum of just $15 in charges, the company is well-suited to small businesses that don’t have a large volume of sales.
You also get what the company describes as “industry-leading technical support” which is available 24 hours every day of the year.
Approval for a new business is typically given in the same day, so you can get up and running quickly. The company says it has an approval rate of 98% and that approval is not dependent on customers having a good credit rating.
No setup fees
Free credit card swiper
Cash advances up to $150,000
Rates starting at .38% + $0.19 per transaction
Flagship merchant services is one of the most trusted names in the transaction processing industry and is well-suited to help customers running all types of businesses.
Trying out Flagship for your business is easy and risk free, as the company doesn’t charge any setup fees. You also don’t have to sign up for a long term contract and can quit anytime, so feel free to try out Flagship for a month to see if it’s right for you.
Flagship can supply you with a free credit card swiper as well as a mobile payment processor that can hook up to your iOS or Android device by way of the headphone jack, so you can make wireless transactions for your business from just about anywhere. The company can also supply you with a sales terminal run by Clover, one of the top POS systems on the market today.
If your company comes into some cash flow needs, you can get a cash advance from Flagship for up to $150,000. In addition, the company can provide you with special gift cards that you can use to promote your brand.
The rates for Flagship are also attractive, starting at .38% + $0.19 per transaction.
Duplicate transaction prevention
Send receipts via email or SMS
Wide range of integrations with payment software
Low transaction fees
iPayment is the chosen transaction processing company for more than 140,000 merchant customers, who use the service to process payments online, in house, and from all points in between by way of the mobile payment options. The service is best geared towards established businesses that need an easily scalable transaction system. The company’s reputation also speaks for itself: In 2024, it was chosen as the ISO/Merchant Sales Organization of the Year.
iPayment is a top reseller of Clover business hardware, including the mini and mobile consoles made by the company and works seamlessly with Clover POS system and the wide range of integrations that work with the software. The company can also provide customers with a wide variety of transaction terminals for purchase.
iPayment also promises a high level of encryption and tokenization in order to keep your transactions secure.
The platform boasts a wide range of features, including multiple in-app tax rates, check and cash payment recording, a barcode scanner, duplicate transaction prevention, and the ability to send receipts via email or SMS, among others.
Merchant services is a broad terms that refers to merchant processing services giving a business the capability to accept payment using a customer's credit card. The merchant services provider (MSP) is the one who actually makes the transaction happen while complying with security requirements. Merchant services providers are also referred to as credit card processors (CCP). MSPs act as the intermediary between your business and your customer’s credit or debit card account.
This is how it works:
A customer will swipe their credit card or enter their credit card information to make a purchase from your store
Your point of sale software sends the data to your chosen MSP
The MSP contacts the customer’s credit card association to check that they have enough credit to pay for the purchase
The card association checks with the customer’s bank, and then (hopefully) sends the MSP a reply approving the transaction
The MSP completes the transaction and sends you a receipt for the customer
Understanding the fees and rates for merchant services providers can be difficult. It seems like every MSP uses a different pricing structure and has a different way of calculating your fees, which makes it hard to compare one MSP to another.
Here are the main fees and rates to look out for:
These are the biggest fees you'll pay. They're usually a percentage of each transaction plus a flat fee, e.g., 2.5% + $0.10 per transaction. Unusual transactions like foreign currency transactions incur higher interchange fees.
These are generally a percentage of your estimated monthly sales volume, e.g., 0.1% of sales up to 1,000 sales, then 0.11% of the next 1,000 sales, etc.
These are the cost of leasing a physical payment terminal for your store, so it doesn’t apply to online stores. Terminal leasing fees can add up to thousands of dollars, so it’s usually best to buy a terminal outright to avoid this extra charge.
Not all MSPs charge this fee, but it’s important to know to look out for it.
These only apply to online retailers. They pay for the cost of your online point of sale (POS) software, which is your virtual payment terminal.
You’ll have to pay a monthly minimum fee if you don't make a certain minimum amount of transactions each year.
One of the main issues that affect how much you’ll pay MSPs is your type of business. Every business is organized into a merchant category and given a merchant category code (MCC). If you have a high-risk MCC, you’ll be charged higher fees than low-risk businesses. High-risk MCCs include those that sell products with a high return rate, need a large amount of capital to get started, or are considered to be in a high turnover industry.
Some high-risk MCCs are:
Online gambling or casinos
Advance bookings in travel and tourism
Magazine or other subscription-based businesses
Online dating services
Debt collection
You could also be considered a high-risk business if:
You have a history of frequent chargebacks
You are all first-time business owners
You have bad credit history
You do a lot of business with international customers in areas that have a high risk of chargebacks (i.e., outside of the EU, North America, Japan, China, Singapore, or Australia)
You are a multi-currency business
There isn’t one credit card processor that is the best for everyone, because every business is different. What’s best for a large retail store with many branches isn’t necessarily best for a small Ecommerce business. However, here are some things to look for to help you find the best credit card processors for your business:
A CCP that has experience serving your sector.
A CCP that can service all your needs in one—for example, if you have an online store and a brick and mortar store, look for an MSP that can process both face-to-face and online transactions.
Hidden fees. Many companies practice ‘bait and switch’ where the price you see advertised doesn’t include all of the real costs.
Compare fees carefully. Because there are a few different pricing models, it can be difficult to compare like with like. An MSP that seems to offer great value at first glance might actually cost more in the long run due to the pricing model.
Check the minimum monthly transaction amount and make sure that you expect to meet it.
Pay attention to whether the rates go up or down according to your volume of sales. If you make a lot of transactions, you'll want a CCP that lowers the fee as sales increase, but if you make just a few high-value sales per month, you'll want the lowest fees to apply to the lowest sales volume.
Paying by credit card is the norm these days so adding credit card processing capabilities can be a real boost to your income. Small businesses can choose online credit card processing, a conventional credit card reader, or a mobile credit card processor that integrates with a smartphone or tablet.
Conventional card readers can be best if you make a lot of face-to-face sales. If most of your credit card transactions take place online, then an online CCP and payment gateway will be the most useful. Sole traders and mobile businesses, like electricians or entertainers, might find that a mobile CCP that works with their smartphone serves them best.
A payment gateway is like a virtual terminal for your online business. It works together with the credit card processor (also called a payment processor, which can make it easy to confuse with payment gateways) to authorize online sales. Payment gateways securely encrypt customer data and send it to the payment processor, which then transmits a request for payment to the customer’s credit card association. When the CCP gets approval for the transaction, it sends it to the payment gateway which then sends it securely back to the merchant.
Leaders is one of the best credit card processing services in the industry. It’s been around for 20 years, and its parent company is the reputable Paysafe Group Subsidiary. Leaders gives businesses a lot of reasons to love it, including some of the best credit card processing rates in the industry. We’re talking about rates that start at just 0.15%. Plus, Leaders has a 98% approval rating. So, businesses having a hard time getting the green flag will find Leaders’ process refreshing.
What's more, Leaders offers a solid $500 Assurance guarantee. This states that if the company can't save you money within the first 6 months of your contract, you'll be awarded $500 in compensation. Leaders works with the reliable Clover point of sale system, and it also integrates with QuickBooks. New SMBs will appreciate the helpful glossary of terms and 24/7/365 customer service for troubleshooting any issues. Additionally, Leaders offers value-added services such as business cash advances, loyalty programs, gift cards, check guarantee services, and point of sale systems.
Paysafe is a comprehensive payment solution that is transforming how businesses handle transactions. It accepts global payments in 17 currencies, including credit cards, debit cards, digital wallets, POS systems, cash cards, and installment payments. The scale-based pricing starts at 15% for low volume, 3.9% per volume, and 9.5% for higher volume. There's also a fixed fee of 1.5 euros per transaction. Paysafe offers various services, including online, digital wallet, and in-person payments, and additional benefits like POS systems, receipt management, and currency conversion. This makes it a versatile choice for businesses of all sizes and types.
Paysafe offers several tools to assist businesses with their in-store payment processing. One of the notable equipment offerings is Paysafe's Android tablet POS (Point of Sale) system, which facilitates on-the-spot payment acceptance. This POS system, combined with Paysafe's sophisticated in-store payment structure, allows businesses to provide their customers with various payment options, including installment payments and mobile purchasing. For detailed pricing, contact Paysafe directly for a tailored quote.
Merchant One is a credit card payment processing company that offers solutions to small and large businesses in various industries. The company partners with Clover to resell its state-of-the-art POS systems, provides its customers with free training on using them, and services the hardware in-house. This ensures a high-quality user experience.
While Merchant One has excellent reviews on Trustpilot, several complaints indicate issues with customer service, billing, and contract terms. Nevertheless, Merchant One’s dedicated managers will respond to queries and guide you on setting up your account and processing transactions.
Why we chose Merchant One - We chose Merchant One because it’s able to process both POS and mobile phone credit card payments.
Our experience - We liked that Merchant One provides a dedicated account manager and offers lower card payment processing fees than some of its rivals.
Many top credit card processing companies sell Clover’s point-of-sale systems. But did you know that Clover itself offers credit card processing through parent company Fiserv? That’s right. While Clover is primarily known for its POS hardware, it also offers a range of other services including payment processing, gift cards, invoicing and payroll solution, and working capital financing.
That said, if you’re looking for a payment processor that offers Clover devices, you should compare Clover to the many other payment processing companies that are authorized to resell Clover products. Clover’s flat-rate processing may seem convenient, but it looks less attractive when you consider the hundreds of poor reviews it has received from small business owners that have used its service.
Fortune 500 companies and one-person startups use Stripe to process credit card payments online. Stripe also enables you to build ecommerce stores, create custom checkouts, and even incorporate a company. Its many features allow Stripe to be an all-in-one way to accept credit cards and other payments online and set up an online business.
Accepting payments from 195 countries via digital wallets and other payment options, Stripe is more than just credit card processing. It is a full checkout and payment solution especially suited for online businesses, without the need for a traditional merchant account.
Stax by Fattmerchant offers payment processing for small businesses. It offers a monthly subscription and eliminates percentage-based transaction fees. So it can be a good option for businesses with high monthly transaction volumes.
Stax also has a software dashboard called Stax Pay that includes built-in analytics, an API, and support for e-commerce payments. All Stax customers receive 24/7 customer support by email, and the service doesn’t charge early termination fees.
Square revolutionized the industry when it introduced a POS system that was mobile, convenient, and affordable, even for small businesses. Since then, the company continues to make additions and improvements, and the latest one has earned Square a reputation for being the best mobile credit card processing option out there. With a credit card processor that can process all types of payments, including EMV chip cards and contactless payments like NFC and e-wallets like Apple Pay and Google Pay, Square does it one better by packaging this handy reader into a pocket-sized and surprisingly powerful piece of hardware.
The Square credit card processor comes with a flat rate for both dip and tap transactions, zero additional fees, wireless connection, and the ability to process payments in just 2 seconds. The dock allows you to keep the Square reader on your countertop, and it’s also designed to easily come with you wherever you go. Plus, you get a free magstripe reader just in case.
Payment Depot is a cost- and user-friendly merchant service with comprehensive equipment solutions and features to help you run your business. It uses a monthly subscription membership model and charges wholesale rates to keep your expenses low. Moreover, it saves you money by not marking up the interchange rates or taking a cut from your sales. There’s a custom option for processing annual transactions of $500,000.
All business types and sizes can use Payment Depot, which is highly rated in online reviews. It’s scalable and has several options for customer support. There are no cancellation fees, and its satisfaction guarantee means you can be eligible for a partial refund after 90 days.
businesses clicked on a merchant service provider this month
.20210623075645.png "stax1")
.20191225175205.20210422084600.jpg)
