Best Restaurant Credit Card Processing Providers

Get Started With CDGcommerce

Total Rating	4.7
Fees & Rates4.6
Products & Services5.0
Contract5.0
Sales & Advertising Transparency5.0
Customer Service3.5
User Reviews4.9

Pros

Volume-appropriate pricing schemes
Month-to-month billing
Free gateway & virtual terminal

Cons

The cost of modules can add up
US-based merchants only
Company website could contain more information

Why We Chose CDGcommerce

CDGcommerce offers month-to-month billing with no long-term contracts or ETFs. The company also offers three different pricing schemes to fit your processing volume. CDGcommerce also offers restaurant-specific POS technology.

Restaurant owners who want a processor that offers pricing that scales as their businesses grow will find what they want in CDGcommerce. Over the past decade, CDGcommerce has maintained a client retention rate of over 97%. That speaks volumes about the kind of experience most businesses have had with CDGcommerce.

CDGcommerce Features

Restaurateurs will get the following features with CDGcommerce:

Reservation software
Tip adjustments
Debit/small ticket discounts
A mobile card reader that supports EMV and NFC payments

The system is also very modular, so depending on the plan you choose, you might end up incurring a few extra costs if you want more POS modules.

CDGcommerce Pricing

With CDGcommerce, your processing rates scale to fit your sales volume. Those processing less than $10K/month will want simplified flat-rate pricing, while those processing over $10K/month will want interchange-plus pricing. What’s more, those processing $25,000/month or more can get special membership pricing.

Monthly fee: $0-$199/month
Transaction fees: 2.9% + $0.30; interchange + 0.20-0.25% + $0.10; or interchange + $0.06-$0.15
ACH/debit fees: $0/month and 0.75% + $0.15 per transaction

We also like the fact that you get a payment gateway for no cost whatsoever.

When To Use CDGcommerce

You want pricing plans that scale with your business
You want a processor that handles online sales and in-person processing

Dharma Merchant Services: Best For High-Volume Restaurants

Dharma Merchant Services

Get Started With Dharma Merchant Services

Total Rating	5.0
Fees & Rates5.0
Products & Services5.0
Contract5.0
Sales & Advertising Transparency5.0
Customer Service4.8
User Reviews4.7

Pros

Interchange-plus pricing + month-to-month billing
Discounted rates for restaurants
Outstanding transparency

Cons

Not recommended for restaurants processing under $10K/month
Monthly fee
No support for high-risk or international sellers

Why We Chose Dharma Merchant Services

Dharma Merchant Services is one of the most honest and transparent providers of merchant services around, and its restaurant processing rates make it an excellent choice for higher-volume eateries.

The only downside to Dharma is that you need to process at least $10,000/month to see cost savings with its merchant accounts. However, restaurants that surpass this monthly threshold will be hard-pressed to find better restaurant payment processing.

Dharma Merchant Services Features

There are several reasons we give Dharma our enthusiastic recommendation as a full merchant account provider:

Interchange-plus pricing
Fully transparent pricing structure
Dharma sells its processing hardware directly — no overpriced equipment leases
Excellent reputation in the industry
Discounted processing rate for restaurants
Mobile processing app & card reader available

Dharma Merchant Services Pricing

The fact that restaurants with a low average ticket of less than $25 pay a lower monthly fee makes Dharma particularly attractive for restaurants. Here are some of Dharma’s other rates and fees:

Monthly fee: $15-$20/month
Transaction fee: Interchange + 0.10-0.30% + $0.08-$0.11
Chargeback fee: $25/instance

You’ll also get a discounted processing rate if you process more than $100,000/month.

When To Use Dharma

You run a high-volume eatery and you want a great processing deal that saves you money
Your foodservice business operates as a nonprofit and you want discounted nonprofit rates

Square: Best For New & Lower-Volume Eateries

Square

Total Rating	4.7
Fees & Rates5.0
Products & Services4.2
Contract5.0
Sales & Advertising Transparency5.0
Customer Service4.1
User Reviews3.9

Get a free card swiper from Square when you create a free account. Claim your card reader.

Pros

Predictable flat-rate pricing + no monthly fee
Massive feature set
Affordable card readers

Cons

Account stability issues
Advanced features can get expensive
No support for high-risk sellers (except CBD merchants)

Why We Chose Square

Square isn't like the traditional merchant account providers listed here. Unlike them, Square -- like PayPal and Stripe -- is a third-party processor. Whereas a merchant account provider gives you a unique merchant account after thoroughly vetting your business, TPPs give you access to a giant merchant account shared by all the service's users.

That means you get approved much more easily and quickly, but you run a higher risk of having your funds held or your account terminated due to the stricter transaction-level scrutiny. To protect your business, read our article on avoiding funding holds and account terminations.

Square's extensive feature set presents a compelling package for all kinds of eateries. However, higher-volume restaurants may be able to save on payment processing by going with a full merchant account provider instead.

Square Features

Square’s appeal is that it offers a vast ecosystem of different merchant services under its payments umbrella:

Flat-rate payment processing
A built-in payment gateway
A free POS
Affordable card readers, an all-in-one terminal, and full POS register kits
Invoicing
Inventory management
Developer tools
Numerous POS & accounting integrations

You can even customize your Square app settings to accept tips, either electronically or on a printed receipt. You can also integrate with other POS systems if you wish.

Square Pricing

As for Square’s fees, you’ll pay 2.4% – 2.6% + $0.15 per in-person transaction. No contracts, no ETFs — just one simple flat per-transaction rate with no monthly fees. Or at least that’s the case if you use Square’s free POS, which should serve you just fine if you’re running a cafe or other relatively low-volume eatery.

Depending on the plan you select, monthly fees range from $0 – $149/month.

When To Use Square

You’re launching a new eatery and you want to get set up with payment processing + a basic POS as quickly and easily as possible
You run a larger/multilocation foodservice business and you’re interested in an affordable paid plan with advanced capabilities

Get Started With Square

Helcim: Best For Invoicing & ACH Processing

Helcim

Total Rating	4.9
Fees & Rates5.0
Products & Services4.4
Contract5.0
Sales & Advertising Transparency5.0
Customer Service4.8
User Reviews4.5

Pros

Interchange-plus pricing with volume discounts
Invoicing & ACH processing with no monthly fee
Automatic processing discounts as your sales volume rises

Cons

Not cost-effective for very low-volume businesses
US and Canadian businesses only
No high-risk support

Why We Chose Helcim

Helcim has long been one of our favorite merchant account providers. With interchange-plus pricing that scales with your business and a complete lack of monthly fees, Helcim's business-friendly processing suits a wide variety of business types.

Helcim is particularly well-suited to foodservice businesses that invoice their customers, such as catering businesses. Helcim's invoicing solution supports both recurring and one-off payments, accepts keyed-in and ACH payments, and is available for no monthly cost.

Helcim Features

The following features are part of why Helcim is one of our top picks for payment processors:

Virtual terminal included with every account
Helcim Payments app for mobile processing
Helcim POS software — should be compatible with any existing hardware
Online food ordering
ACH processing for no monthly fee
Product/Inventory manager
Access to Helcim API

Helcim Pricing

In-person payments: Interchange + 0.15-0.40% + $0.06-$0.08
ACH payments: 0.5% + $0.25 ($6 cap for transactions <$25K)
Helcim Card Reader or Terminal: $199 – $349
Chargeback fee: $0-$15 (depending on outcome)

When To Use Helcim

Your foodservice business utilizes invoicing and ACH payments

Get Started With Helcim

Payment Processing Rating Methodology

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:

Years reviewing payment processors

100+

Providers evaluated

Attributes and features assessed per vendor

40+

Years combined experience

Why Do You Need Restaurant Payment Processing?

When you consider the costs of credit card processing — transaction fees, POS equipment, etc. — you might be tempted to just operate as a cash-only business instead. While you can save money this way, there are substantial downsides.

For one thing, cash isn’t the preferred payment method for most restaurant-goers.

Many consumers also use credit cards that offer the best credit card benefits or rewards for restaurants. These consumers look for eateries that allow them to earn credit card rewards with their dining purchases. A cash-only operation gets left out of that equation.

What Is A Restaurant Merchant Account?

A restaurant merchant account is simply a merchant account tailored to the needs of food service businesses. A processor that offers specialized restaurant credit card processing will have advanced features to help manage tips and other tasks that retailers don’t have to deal with.

These processors may offer such features as online ordering as well, either through in-house add-ons or third-party integrations with the best restaurant POS systems.

How To Choose The Best Restaurant Merchant Services

While it has been customary for restaurants to accept credit cards via traditional stations, times are changing, so you may want to think about new means of accepting payments.

The COVID era may be fading, but it has altered consumers’ expectations when it comes to payment options. With NFC payments, the customer’s card doesn’t have to touch a surface for the transaction to be made. Using a wireless NFC-enabled terminal can be a good way to put the customer at ease. Likewise, self-ordering kiosks and QR code payments all comport with the times and are likely to become even more common.

Mobile, handheld card readers have another advantage that may not be obvious at first. When a customer’s card is taken from the table to be processed, it presents an opportunity for someone to steal the card’s information. When a mobile card reader is brought to the table for the customer to use themselves (as has been customary in Canada for years now), that point of vulnerability is eliminated.

The best credit card machines & terminals for small business features our favorite credit card machine options, many of which are restaurant-friendly.

8 Features To Look For In The Best Restaurant Payment Processing Systems

When seeking out the best merchant services for restaurants, here’s what restaurant owners need to look for.

Excellent Tip Reporting

Finding a payment system with a robust tip reporting system is crucial. Without such a system, you might need to spend hours reconciling reports and dealing with payroll to sort things out. A solid automated reporting system will save time and ensure that your business stays within the law.

Another reason why a customizable tip reporting system is so important is that state laws differ on how restaurant owners must pay credit card tips to employees. For instance, California, Maine, and Massachusetts (and a few cities in other states) are prohibited from deducting credit card processing fees from the tips of servers. In other locations, this practice is permitted. In some places, the law is unclear on whether this is allowed.

Competitive Amex Pricing

Unfortunately for restaurant owners, American Express typically processes for higher rates than Mastercard or Visa. With Amex credit cards being especially popular among consumers in the hospitality industry, you’ll nonetheless want to be able to accept Amex payments. That’s why owners of restaurants, cafes, and bars should look into a provider’s Amex processing rates when looking for payment processing for restaurants.

To this end, you may want to select a processor that offers OptBlue pricing. OptBlue is a program that allows small businesses to accept Amex credit cards without paying the inflated merchant fees that would otherwise come with accepting Amex cards. So long as you process less than $1 million in Amex transactions annually, you’ll be able to get in on the OptBlue program if your processor allows it.

POS Compatibility

Many credit card processors will either have a recommended compatible POS to offer customers or, as is the case with third-party processors such as Square (and certain traditional merchant account providers), an in-house POS. But what if you already have a POS and are simply looking to switch processors?

If this is you, you’ll need to investigate whether or not your preferred processor is compatible with your existing POS system. For this, a good resource to check is your POS provider’s website, which will often list compatible processors.

Month-To-Month Processing Agreement

Long-term contracts — and the ETFs and setup fees often included in such contracts — exist solely to benefit the processor, not you. As a matter of fact, you may want to get out of an auto-renewal clause, if you can.

Thankfully, the industry is trending the right way on this issue, and providers are increasingly offering simple month-to-month agreements. Given that merchant account providers now have to compete with the likes of Square and PayPal, neither of which has ever offered long-term contracts, this process was perhaps inevitable. Nonetheless, we love to see it.

This isn’t to say a provider that requires you to sign a longer-term contract could never be a good choice. After all, this is only one of many factors you’ll be considering in your search, and some well-designed restaurant-oriented POS systems may be bundled with a payment processor that requires a contract. However, all else being equal, month-to-month is the way to go.

24/7 Customer Service

If there’s anything you don’t need me to tell you, it’s that technology isn’t bulletproof.

Sometimes systems malfunction or crash. If and when this happens to you, you’ll want a provider that offers knowledgable, caring customer service — and not just during the “normal” Monday-Friday 9-to-5 working hours. After all, your system could go down at 7 PM during your busiest rush of the week.

We here at Merchant Maverick understand this, which is why we always lend considerable importance to the quality of a processor’s customer support when putting together our reviews.

Affordable, Modern Restaurant Credit Card Processing Machines

Foodservice businesses require processing devices that cater to the particular needs of the industry.

Mobile card readers and tablets, especially ones that can accept NFC payments, are particularly useful in a restaurant/cafe/bar setting. At the very least, you’ll need a terminal that can accept EMV payments.

A good restaurant-focused POS will offer devices that can accommodate your particular needs. In particular, Clover offers a line of products well-suited to the demands of the industry, which is why a number of the processors featured in this article offer Clover devices. If the processor you’re considering offers Clover devices, that’s generally a good sign.

Just know that when acquiring hardware, buying it outright — or entering into a finance agreement — is vastly preferable to leasing the equipment. Don’t let some sales representative strong-arm you into accepting a lease agreement. Such a lease could see you losing hundreds or even thousands of dollars — and at the end of the lease agreement, you won’t even own the equipment! We can’t emphasize this enough: Buy, don’t lease.

Gift Card & Loyalty Programs

One way to draw new customers and keep them coming into your restaurant is to offer gift cards and loyalty programs. It’s a low-cost, low-hassle way to encourage repeat business and promote brand awareness.

Some such programs may be available through your POS; others may be available via your processor. Others are available through a third party. Read our article on gift cards for small businesses to get the low-down on how to implement a gift card program at your restaurant so that you can get in on the benefits!

For even more information on finding the right POS for your business, read our article on how to choose a restaurant POS system. We know this stuff isn’t easy, so we want to give you as much pertinent information as possible!

Contactless Payments

With the COVID pandemic having affected many customers’ payment preferences, you might prefer to have a service that offers contactless payments.

While the exact means of starting the payment transaction differ from service to service (pay by text, QR code payments, etc.), the services essentially facilitate app-to-app payments using the customer’s stored credit card info. This can avoid queues, limit person-to-person contact, and simplify the receipt process (the customer will automatically be sent an e-receipt).

Being able to accept QR code payments and/or other contactless payment methods provides an additional benefit: it reduces the workload on your staff. With many eateries currently finding themselves understaffed, the benefits of this are clear.

Additional Resources For Restaurants

Looking for more guidance on how to launch and grow your foodservice business in these trying times? Check out the following resources!

If you’re curious about NFC payments, our guide will walk you through the details.
Need the full scoop on restaurant inventory management? You know what to do!
Here’s why you should consider a self-ordering kiosk for your restaurant, along with some top kiosk POS systems.

How Do You Choose The Best Restaurant Payment Processing?

The process of choosing the right restaurant merchant services and restaurant credit card machines is daunting and complex. We hope that we’ve given you a sense of what to look for when choosing a credit card processor for your restaurant — as well as a snapshot of the processors and POS systems that, we feel, give foodservice businesses the best value for their money.

Before you start your search in earnest, it’s best to have a good idea of a) what kind of eatery you want to build and/or what you want to do with it in the future, b) the processing and POS features you’ll need to accomplish your goals, and c) how much you’re willing/able to spend to achieve this.

Once you’ve determined all this, it’s time to start shopping!