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Best Credit Card Processors For Canadian Small Businesses
Canadian business owners should check out these great merchant account options for every type of business.
Frank has been writing about payment processing and business services since 2015. He is a retired Air Force officer and a former practicing attorney. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from The Pennsylvania State University and a Juris Doctorate degree from the Ventura College of Law.
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Frank KehlFrank has been writing about payment processing and business services since 2015. He is a retired Air Force officer and a former practicing attorney. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from The Pennsylvania State University and a Juris Doctorate degree from the Ventura College of Law.
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Shannon has been writing for Merchant Maverick about small business software and financing since 2015. She started writing professionally about business topics in 2005. Shannon has been featured in the Washington Post, Reader's Digest, US News, MSN, Yahoo Finance, Business Insider, and other publications. She has a bachelor's degree in English from San Diego State University and currently resides in San Diego, California.
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Shannon VissersShannon has been writing for Merchant Maverick about small business software and financing since 2015. She started writing professionally about business topics in 2005. Shannon has been featured in the Washington Post, Reader's Digest, US News, MSN, Yahoo Finance, Business Insider, and other publications. She has a bachelor's degree in English from San Diego State University and currently resides in San Diego, California.
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Finding the best credit card processors in Canada is complicated because there aren’t nearly as many processors operating in the country as there are in the United States. Canadian businesses will need one of the best credit card processors for small businesses that can handle both the big international credit card networks and local payment methods, such as Interac.
Whether you select a homegrown Canadian payment processor or an international company that operates in Canada, you’ll want to choose a service that provides the most overall value for the lowest total cost.
The Best Merchant Services & Payment Processors In Canada
The best Canadian merchant services providers accept both Canadian and international payment methods and have month-to-month plans with no early termination fees, comprehensive feature sets, and either flat-rate or interchange-plus pricing. Some of the best payment processing companies in Canada we’ve found include the following:
Exclusive interchange-plus pricing for all merchants
Month-to-month billing & no early termination fees
All-in-one payments platform for eComm & in-person sales
Cons
Doesn’t accept high-risk businesses
Can be expensive for low-volume sellers
Basic POS features
Why Helcim Is The Best Free Canadian Merchant Account
With no monthly account fee and no long-term contracts, Canadian merchant services provider Helcim offers one of the lowest points of entry to a full-service merchant account.
Helcim provides detailed pricing disclosures, so you won't need to negotiate to secure the best possible deal for your business. The company's website also includes in-depth articles explaining how credit card processing works and exposing other providers' deceptive advertising tricks. Everything is completely laid out on the table with crystal-clear fee disclosures, and you'll get transparent cost-plus (interchange-plus) pricing right out of the box with no additional hassle, and no monthly fee.
Helcim offers a proprietary payment gateway and POS software, making it suitable for both eCommerce and in-person sales. Processing hardware options include the versatile Helcim Card Reader and the Helcim Smart Terminal, both of which are available for direct purchase.
Helcim Features
Your Helcim account comes with a full range of essential payment processing features, including the following:
While Helcim offers a great overall deal to low-risk businesses, it does not accept any high-risk merchants. We recommend checking the company’s policies on this issue before signing up for an account.
Helcim’s interchange-plus pricing model can also be expensive for very low-volume businesses processing less than $10K/month.
Finally, Helcim’s selling features are not as deep as those from a dedicated POS provider such as Lightspeed.
Choose Helcim If...
You want a full-service merchant account for your business that includes interchange-plus pricing and month-to-month billing, but you don’t want to have to pay a monthly fee.
Get a free card swiper from Square at no cost when you create a free account. Claim your card reader.
Pros
Predictable flat-rate pricing
Ideal for low-volume merchants
No monthly fees for basic account
Massive feature set
Cons
Not a dedicated merchant account
Not available to high-risk merchants (except CBD)
Not suitable for high-volume businesses
Why We Chose Square As Best For Startups
Square has made waves in the US market as a convenient payment solution for small businesses and serves small Canadian merchants similarly well. How does Square work? Well, it's a third-party payment processor that offers simple pricing schemes and a wealth of business management, POS, and eCommerce features, all for a very low cost of entry.
Square provides enormous value for no monthly fee, and it's also very easy to sign up for and get started with. These factors make Square a great first payment processor for new small businesses that may have infrequent transactions and want access to top-rated business tools as part of the package.
PayPal, Stripe, and Shopify also provide free third-party processing services in Canada, though these providers are geared more toward eCommerce. Of all these processors, Square provides the most free POS features, which is why it's the best choice for brick-and-mortar startups---in fact, we also consider Square one of the best POS systems for Canadian restaurants!
Square Features
Square offers a full-featured payments ecosystem that includes the following major features:
Aggregated account for credit and debit card processing
EMV and NFC-capable card readers available
Tap to Pay contactless mobile payments for iPhone and Android
Square’s affordable card readers and terminals can only be used with a Square account, and cannot be reprogrammed to work with any other provider.
It’s also important to know that third-party processors such as Square (and PayPal, Stripe, etc.) are known to have hair-trigger fraud detection settings, which makes them prone to withholding funds and freezing accounts if they deem a transaction suspicious. Accordingly, this type of processor is a less-than-ideal choice for high-volume businesses that need a stable dedicated merchant account to keep sales flowing smoothly.
Choose Square If...
You’re a first-time business owner looking for the easiest and most affordable way to accept credit and debit cards.
You need free POS features for your brick-and-mortar business and/or a simple, free online store.
Plans may not be suitable for low-volume businesses
Why Clearly Payments Is The Best Choice For High-Volume Businesses
There's a lot to like about Clearly Payments. The company claims its mission is to drive down the cost of credit card processing. The option to choose between membership or interchange-plus pricing makes Clearly Payments an excellent choice for high-volume businesses that want to minimize their processing costs.
Clearly Payments offers a wide variety of products and services for online and eCommerce businesses. Processing hardware options include Clover POS products or a variety of universal credit card terminals and mobile card readers. The company's contracts are month-to-month, with no long-term commitment or termination fees. The company's website included extensive disclosure of processing rates and account fees.
Clearly Payments Features
Clearly Payments strives to meet the needs of any business, whether you’re a retail establishment, mobile business, or online enterprise. Major features include the following:
Full-service merchant accounts for low-risk and high-risk businesses
Custom pricing available (over $250,000/month processing volume)
What To Watch Out For
Clearly Payments offers high-volume businesses the chance to save a lot of money on credit card processing. However, the company’s pricing structure can be quite expensive for smaller businesses with a lower monthly processing volume. We’d also caution US-based merchants against renting their terminals. It will usually be more cost-effective in the long run to purchase them outright.
Note that membership pricing is available to Canadian businesses only.
Choose Clearly Payments If...
Your business has a high monthly processing volume and you’d like to save money on your credit card processing costs with a membership pricing plan.
Why Host Is The Best Choice For Restaurants In Canada
Host Merchant Services offers excellent merchant account services to both US and Canadian merchants, including low- and high-risk businesses, as well as online and in-person businesses. Transparent pricing, responsive customer service, and free web hosting are all hallmarks of this processor. All accounts include a payment gateway and interchange-plus pricing.
Host truly offers something for everyone, whether you own a brick-and-mortar business or eCommerce store. Host even has industry-specific plans, including plans for retail, restaurants, and eCommerce businesses. Host's pricing for restaurants is especially competitive.
Host Merchant Services Features
Full-service merchant accounts for US & Canadian businesses
Mobile processing
Shopping cart integrations
Web hosting
Proprietary payment gateway
QuickBooks integration
Bonsai Point of Sale
Same-day and next-day funding
Merchant cash advances
Host Merchant Services Pricing
For in-person transactions, Host charges:
Interchange + 0.25% + $0.10 for retail storefronts
Interchange + 0.20% + $0.09 for restaurants
Host Merchant Services eCommerce fees are as follows:
Interchange + 0.35% + $0.10 per transaction
Additionally, there’s a $14.99 monthly fee to use Host Merchant Services.
Note that high-risk businesses will likely pay higher fees.
What To Watch Out For
Host’s interchange-plus pricing model may be prohibitively expensive for very low-volume businesses processing less than $15K/month.
Choose Host Merchant Services If...
You own a brick-and-mortar restaurant business with at least $15K/month in credit card sales.
You run a high-risk business, retail store, or high-volume eCommerce business.
Usually offers month-to-month contracts with no early termination fees
Credit card terminals available for sale or rent
Next-business-day funding for business checking customers
Cons
A long-term contract may be required for some merchants
Reports of mediocre customer service
Why We Chose Chase Payment Solutions As The Best Large, Direct Payment Processor
For Canadian merchants running larger, more established businesses, Chase Payment Solutions is a surprisingly good choice for such a large company. You'll get a far more robust line of products and services than you will with a smaller provider, plus it's a direct processor.
Like most providers, Chase doesn't discuss contract terms in its advertising materials. However, the company doesn't appear to offer "free" terminals in exchange for a long-term contract to its Canadian customers. Be sure to discuss contract terms with your sales agent and read your contract documents thoroughly to confirm them before you sign up.
Chase offers competitive rates and low account fees -- something we don't often see in a large processor. If your scaling plans include the payment processing services of a large processor like Chase, Chase Payment Solutions provides a convenient on-ramp for small businesses.
Chase Payment Solutions Features
Chase Payment Solutions offers a full range of products and services for most small online or retail businesses, including the following:
Full-service merchant accounts
Month-to-month billing
Choice of proprietary Orbital payment gateway or Authorize.Net
Virtual terminal included with each account
Chase Mobile Checkout-PLUS + card reader for mobile payments
Chase Point of Sale POS smart terminal
Next-day funding for Chase business bank account holders
Choice of processing hardware, including Ingenico DX8000, Desk/5000, or Move/5000 models
Level II/Level III credit card processing for B2B payments
Support for international payments
Chase Payment Solutions Pricing
Pricing depends on which selling solutions you use. Chase shares the following pricing information on its website but unfortunately no longer discloses its transaction fees or eComm fees for Canadian merchants.
Chase Mobile Checkout-PLUS + card reader: $14.95/month CAD rental fee
What To Watch Out For
Although Chase typically offers month-to-month billing to its small business customers, a long-term contract may be required in some circumstances. Be sure to read your contract documents thoroughly before signing up so you know whether you have a long-term commitment or not.
Choose Chase Payment Solutions If...
You have a business banking account with Chase and want to consolidate all of your business’s financial services under one roof.
$50,000 CAD/month minimum processing requirement for international accounts
Why Durango Merchant Services Is The Best Choice For High-Risk Merchants
High-risk merchants have fewer options for payment processing, but that doesn't mean they should settle for poor service. Durango Merchant Services is one of our favorite high-risk payment processors, offering reasonable rates and contract terms to industry segments that can easily be exploited.
Durango Merchant Services offers most clients a month-to-month contract, but some merchants in particularly high-risk industries may be stuck having to enter a contract. This contract will usually be for three years initially and one year after that. Your early termination fee will probably be somewhere around $500.
Durango also offers a broad selection of perks, including shopping cart integration, a proprietary Durango Pay gateway, and support for cryptocurrency payments. It's a particularly good choice for online-only businesses in Canada.
Durango Merchant Services Features
Durango Merchant Services offers a full range of products and services for eCommerce and retail businesses. Primary features include the following:
High-risk merchant accounts for Canadian businesses
Durango Pay payment gateway and virtual terminal
Mobile processing through the iProcess app and card reader
Merchant Maverick has been researching the payment processing industry since 2009. Our writers have reviewed hundreds of credit card processors, merchant account services, and mobile payment apps, evaluating each provider carefully on several different metrics.
Weighted Rating Breakdown
Fees & Rates 35%
Contract 20%
Products & Services 15%
Sales & Advertising Transparency 15%
Customer Service 10%
User Reviews 5%
When comparing different payment processing companies and applications to one another, we consider numerous data points. Our experts start by comparing credit card processing rates, the presence of additional fees, contract length, sales practices, and the presence or absence of additional features and services, like point of sale software. Each provider is judged on its own merits and how well it stacks up to industry standards; then it is weighed against the other providers on the list.
We spend an average of 10-15 hours researching and updating each one of our lists, making sure every company or application included meets our internal standards for quality and reputation. Any list of recommended payment processors on our site might contain a mix of standard merchant accounts, third-party payment processors, mobile payment devices, and high-risk payment processors, depending on what our expert feels is the best fit for certain scenarios or business types.
For additional details about Merchant Maverick’s review and rating processes, please refer to any or all of the following methodology pages:
The Basics Of Payment Processing For Canadian Small Businesses
To process credit cards, you’ll need a merchant account or a third-party payment processor, which aggregates businesses into large merchant accounts. Your credit card processor will deduct various network, bank, and markup fees from each transaction before the remaining funds are deposited into your business bank account. Today, almost all merchant service providers also offer a host of additional features and services beyond basic credit/debit card processing.
Accepted Payment Methods
Credit and debit cards now make up more than half of all payments made in Canada. Unless you occupy a specific niche that can get by on cash or peer-to-peer wallet transfers, you’ll want to be able to accept major credit cards, such as Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover, and Diners Club. You’ll also want a processor that can handle Interac debit cards.
Those are the basics, but some businesses may want additional payment methods, including support for Electronic Funds Transfers (EFTs), digital wallets, QR code payments, or cryptocurrency.
Credit/Debit Card Readers & Terminals
If you’re only selling online, all you’ll need is a payment gateway to accept payments from your customers. If you’re selling in person, you’ll need hardware that can handle the payment methods you’re supporting, including EMV chip cards and NFC contactless payments.
Canadian merchants face a unique issue: EMV-compliant terminals are not designed to be resold or reprogrammed. We usually recommend that American merchants buy their terminals outright as the best and most cost-effective way to outfit their businesses with processing equipment. However, the inability to resell an EMV terminal in Canada means you may want to consider an alternative. Many Canadian merchant service providers offer month-to-month terminal rentals. These rentals differ from leases in that you won’t be locked into a noncancelable long-term contract and won’t be responsible for every single lease payment as soon as you sign up.
With convenience comes expense. Credit card processors charge a fee every time you dip, tap, or swipe a credit card. The tricky part is that not all payment processors use the same pricing model or charge the same fees. This can make comparisons between merchant account providers challenging.
The good news is that Canada’s Code of Conduct for the Credit and Debit Card Industry generally leads to relatively low payment processing fees for Canadian merchants, even if the processor charges more in other markets.
How To Find A Good Merchant Services Provider In Canada
Canadian businesses need most of the same things from their payment processors as businesses everywhere else. When choosing a merchant services provider, you’ll want to consider the following:
Costs
You don’t want to pay any more for your payment processing service than you have to. While there are free credit card processing options available, you’ll want a processor with a transparent pricing schedule so that you know what you’re paying in advance. For low-volume or newly established businesses, we recommend processors that offer flat-rate pricing. At higher monthly processing volumes, cost-plus (or interchange-plus) pricing is usually less expensive overall.
Contracts
As important as pricing is, your contract’s terms are also critical. Unless your business is considered “high-risk,” you should avoid companies that lock you into a contract with early termination fees. Month-to-month billing allows you to switch to a different provider without incurring an expensive early termination penalty. In both the US and Canada, long-term contracts are gradually being phased out, and most of the best credit card processors now offer month-to-month billing as a standard feature.
Customer Service
Nothing is more frustrating than not getting the payments you expect deposited into your account… except having that happen and then having to navigate substandard customer service when you’re trying to resolve the issue. Don’t take good customer service for granted. Top-notch payment processors offer 24/7 customer support, and the best providers might even assign a dedicated account manager to help you with any problems you encounter.
Support For Sales Channels
Some credit card processing companies in Canada specialize in in-person transactions, while others specialize in online transactions. While there’s a lot of overlap, you’ll get the most value out of a payment processor that has a specialty that aligns closely with how you conduct your sales.
Bundled Services
The best credit card processors offer their customers additional software, integrations, and specialized features beyond basic credit card processing. These services can greatly increase the value proposition of a merchant services provider.
Hardware Options
If you’re going to be taking payments in person, you’ll want to choose a merchant services provider that either supports your existing hardware or offers affordable credit card terminals and card readers for purchase.
Which Canadian Credit Card Processing Company Is Right For Your Small Business?
While there are fewer credit card processors in Canada than in the United States, there are still many excellent providers that will be a good fit for just about any type of business. As always, there is no best, one-size-fits-all solution. The best provider for your business is the one that best matches your needs and provides the most overall value for your money.
We strongly recommend that you shop around and come up with a reasonable estimate of your overall costs before deciding on a specific merchant services provider. Most of our top choices make this easy with transparent pricing disclosures. For providers with variable pricing, it’s always a good idea to obtain a customized quote and compare it to what your other candidates have to offer.
FAQs: Best Credit Card Processors For Canadian Small Businesses
How does payment processing work in Canada?
The process of approving a transaction and disbursing funds to the appropriate parties is the same in Canada as it is elsewhere. However, Payments Canada is the sole network for processing credit card transactions, while debit card transactions are processed through Interac.
Both of these payment systems are overseen by the Bank of Canada.
Are payment processors regulated in Canada?
Yes. Regulation of payment processors in Canada is primarily accomplished through the Payment Card Networks Act, which all Canadian processors must comply with.
Regulation is also accomplished through voluntary compliance with the Canadian Code of Conduct for the Credit and Debit Card Industry.
Does Canada have ACH payment processing?
No. The Automated Clearing House (ACH) network operates exclusively in the United States. However, the Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT) network in Canada allows bank-to-bank transfers and provides very similar functionality to ACH payments. It’s also compatible with the ACH network for cross-border transfers.
Is it legal to charge customers for credit card processing fees in Canada?
Canada allows merchants to offer discounts for different payment methods, which isn’t exactly the same thing. So you can pass along your costs in theory, but it can’t be in the form of a direct fee for transactions in most instances.
Frank has been writing about payment processing and business services since 2015. He is a retired Air Force officer and a former practicing attorney. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from The Pennsylvania State University and a Juris Doctorate degree from the Ventura College of Law.
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The vendors that appear on this list were chosen by subject matter experts on the basis of product quality, wide usage and availability, and positive reputation.
Merchant Maverick’s ratings are editorial in nature, and are not aggregated from user reviews. Each staff reviewer at Merchant Maverick is a subject matter expert with experience researching, testing, and evaluating small business software and services. The rating of this company or service is based on the author’s expert opinion and analysis of the product, and assessed and seconded by another subject matter expert on staff before publication. Merchant Maverick’s ratings are not influenced by affiliate partnerships.
Our unbiased reviews and content are supported in part by affiliate partnerships, and we adhere to strict guidelines to preserve editorial integrity. The editorial content on this page is not provided by any of the companies mentioned and has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. Opinions expressed here are author’s alone.
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