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Merchant Guides & Tools

Everything we've written to help you pay less to take payments: working tools, sourced references, and plain-English guides. No paywalls, no email gates.

Tools

Processing Fee Calculator

Work out your real effective rate from three numbers on your statement.

Surcharge Sign Generator

Build a printable surcharge, cash discount, or dual pricing sign — free, in your browser.

Free Statement Review

Send one statement and get every fee on it named, priced, and explained.

Processor Comparison

Payment USA vs Square, Stripe, Toast and Clover, side by side.

Processing Glossary

Every acronym on your statement, translated into plain English.

Surcharging & Pricing Programs

Surcharge Laws by State

The 50-state reference — caps, disclosure rules, and the statute behind each answer.

Cash Discount vs Surcharge vs Dual Pricing

The three models, told apart by what the posted price means.

Zero Cost Processing, Honestly

What "zero cost" really means, what it costs, and when the math works.

Fees & Statements

Processing Fees Comparison

Pricing models and published provider rates, side by side.

How to Lower Your Fees

Eight concrete steps, from effective rate to renegotiation.

How to Read a Merchant Statement

An annotated example statement, section by section.

Are Processing Fees Tax Deductible?

The IRS-sourced answer, plus how to record them.

American Express Interchange

Why Amex prices differently, and what OptBlue means for you.

PCI Non-Compliance Fee

What the penalty is and how to make it stop.

Hardware & POS

Credit Card Machine Costs

Real published prices by device class, and what "free" actually means.

Dejavoo Terminal Guide

The current lineup, verified specs, and which model fits which counter.

Clover POS Pricing

Hardware, software tiers, and the fine print — and why your reseller matters.

Take Cards Without a Machine

Virtual terminals, payment links, and tap-to-phone.

Processor Guides

North American Bancard (North)

Published pricing, the 2024 rebrand, and the review-platform picture.

Elavon

The U.S. Bank processor — published rates and what they don't publish.

TSYS Merchant Solutions

Where the twice-absorbed brand went, and where your account lives now.

Worldpay Fees

A quote-only processor, and how to shop one.

Heartland Fees

Heartland (now Global Payments): what's published and what isn't.

Specialty Processing

High-Risk Account Fees

Rates, reserves, and red flags, explained honestly.

eCheck Processing

The check-shaped thing on the ACH rail, and when it beats cards.

Level 2 & Level 3 Data

How B2B transactions qualify for lower interchange.

What Is an ISO?

Who actually holds your merchant account, and why it matters.

Working in Payments

Become a Processing Agent

What the job really is, how residuals work, and how to start.

Start a Processing Company

The four entry routes, from agent to registered ISO.

Prefer a Person to a Page?

Send us one recent statement and we'll do the reading for you — every fee named, priced, and explained, free.

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