Twice a year the card networks republish their interchange tables, and your costs move without your processor touching anything. Here's how to tell a real rate hike from the calendar.
Interchange goes to the bank. Your processor's markup goes to your processor. Assessments go to Visa and Mastercard themselves — and almost nobody explains that third bucket.
A wrong Merchant Category Code costs you on every transaction and never shows up as a line item. Here's the 10-minute check and the script for getting it corrected.
Grocery stores get some of the best interchange rates in the system. Convenience and specialty food stores don't. The line between them is one digit on your merchant account.
Your Merchant Category Code decides which interchange rates you qualify for. Here's how to find yours, what the common codes mean, and why the wrong one quietly costs you money.
ACH costs a fraction of card processing, but it's not right for every situation. Here's how to decide which payment method to push.
Leasing a terminal can cost you 10x its purchase price over a contract term. Here's what you should actually be paying for hardware.
Most merchant agreements include a clause that lets the processor increase fees at will. Here's where to find it and what to do about it.
American Express has a reputation for being expensive. But the gap has narrowed, and refusing Amex might cost you more than accepting it.
The same debit card can cost you two different rates depending on whether the customer enters a PIN. Here's which is cheaper and why.