Advertiser Disclosure

💳 Save money on credit card processing with one of our top 5 picks for 2022

Restaurant Credit Card Processing Guide: 8 Best Merchant Services (& What To Look For)

These restaurant payment processing providers have POS technology and rates that give foodservice businesses the best value for their money.

    Jason Vissers
  • Last updated onUpdated

  • Frank Kehl
  • REVIEWED BY

    Frank Kehl

    Senior Staff Writer

Advertiser Disclosure: Our unbiased reviews and content are supported in part by affiliate partnerships, and we adhere to strict guidelines to preserve editorial integrity.
Restaurant credit card processing

When launching a restaurant, café, or other foodservice business, your restaurant credit card processing choice is quite important. Credit and debit cards will inevitably make up a significant portion of your sales, so the rates and fees you pay will affect your bottom line.

When choosing from the best small business credit card processing companies, you’ll have a lot of factors to consider. We want to offer guidance on the best restaurant payment processing options so you can choose the provider that fits your eatery type and business model.

But first, here’s why it’s important for restaurants to have a merchant account in the first place.

Learn More About Our Top Picks

CompanySummaryNext StepsSummary

Read More

  • Best for restaurants looking to use the Clover ecosystem
  • Discounted rates for restaurants
  • Month-to-month billing
  • Best for restaurants looking to use the Clover ecosystem
  • Discounted rates for restaurants
  • Month-to-month billing

Visit Site

Read More

Read More

  • Best restaurant processor for scalable pricing
  • Offers restaurant-specific POS technology
  • Month-to-month billing
  • Best restaurant processor for scalable pricing
  • Offers restaurant-specific POS technology
  • Month-to-month billing

Visit Site

Read More

Read More

  • Best for high-volume restaurants
  • Discounted rates for restaurants
  • Month-to-month billing
  • Best for high-volume restaurants
  • Discounted rates for restaurants
  • Month-to-month billing

Visit Site

Read More

Read More

  • Best for low-volume restaurants
  • Restaurant-specific POS available for higher-volume restaurants
  • Simple flat-rate pricing
  • Best for low-volume restaurants
  • Restaurant-specific POS available for higher-volume restaurants
  • Simple flat-rate pricing

Visit Site

Read More

Read More

  • Best restaurant POS for small & medium-sized restaurants
  • Choice of 3 integrated payment processors
  • Starts at $69/month
  • Best restaurant POS for small & medium-sized restaurants
  • Choice of 3 integrated payment processors
  • Starts at $69/month

Visit Site

Read More

Show More Options

Read More

  • Best restaurant POS for customization
  • Many different hardware setups & processing plans available
  • Starts at $100/month for 36 months with a Pay Monthly plan when purchased through Clover.com
  • Best restaurant POS for customization
  • Many different hardware setups & processing plans available
  • Starts at $100/month for 36 months with a Pay Monthly plan when purchased through Clover.com

Visit Site

Read More

Read More

  • Best restaurant POS for advanced restaurant features
  • Excellent customer support
  • Starts at $0/month with the Pay-As-You-Go plan
  • Best restaurant POS for advanced restaurant features
  • Excellent customer support
  • Starts at $0/month with the Pay-As-You-Go plan

Visit Site

Read More

Read More

  • Best restaurant POS for bilingual capabilities
  • Great for food trucks
  • Starts at $69/month
  • Best restaurant POS for bilingual capabilities
  • Great for food trucks
  • Starts at $69/month

Visit Site

Read More

Show Fewer Options

Read more below to learn why we chose these options.

Table of Contents

Why Do You Need A Restaurant Merchant Account?

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. The 2021 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice by the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco found that just 19% of people in 2021 preferred to pay with cash, down from 27% in 2016. The COVID-19 pandemic got many people out of the habit of handling cash.

For another thing, many consumers 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. While some payment processors offer a one-size-fits-all approach to merchant accounts, 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. They may offer online ordering as well, either through in-house add-ons or third-party integrations.

The 4 Best Restaurant Credit Card Processing Companies

When researching the best restaurant payment processing providers, we took into account each company’s reputation, pricing, and customer support to determine the best matches for the foodservice industry. Here’s a rundown of the best merchant services for restaurants.

1. National Processing: Best Restaurant Payment Processing For Owners Seeking To Use Clover

National Processing


Visit Site


Get a free Clover Go card reader from National Processing when you sign up. Claim your card reader.

Pros

  • Interchange-plus or membership pricing
  • Month-to-month billing
  • Discounted rates for restaurants
  • Full line of Clover terminals and POS systems

Cons

  • Free equipment may require a long-term contract
  • Monthly fee

Why We Chose National Processing For Restaurant Credit Card Processing

National Processing (not to be confused with the terrible and now-defunct National Processing Company/NPC) exemplifies the qualities we like to see in a restaurant payment processor. And with its low processing rates for foodservice industry, National Processing is an excellent choice for restaurateurs — particularly those seeking to use Clover’s POS hardware and software.

What’s more, the company’s reputation is such that its customer reviews are overwhelmingly positive, which is not the norm in the payment processing industry. It’s an excellent indicator of how the company operates.

National Processing Features

Beyond National Processing’s reputation for being honest and ethical, the processor offers the following features:

  • Your choice of interchange-plus or membership pricing
  • A full line of Clover terminals and POS systems, including the option of a “free” Clover Go terminal
  • Mobile processing with a Clover Go card reader
  • No long-term contract if the processing hardware is purchased outright
  • Low-cost ACH and eCheck processing (available as an add-on)

National Processing Pricing

We love that National Processing offers special pricing to restaurant owners: $9.95/month and a rate of 0.14% + $0.07 above interchange. This rate is lower than NP’s standard retail rate (as well as its eCommerce rate). In addition, when signing up, restaurant owners can get a “free” Clover Go terminal, which accepts both EMV and NFC-based payments — both of which are increasingly important for restaurants to accept.

Just know that the “free” terminal requires you to sign a longer-term contract that includes a $295 early termination fee. Forgo the free terminal, and your processing agreement will be month-to-month with no ETF.

Here are some other National Processing pricing details:

  • Monthly fee: $9.95 with an interchange-plus plan, $59-$199/month with a membership plan
  • Transaction fees (interchange-plus pricing): Interchange + 0.18% + $0.10/transaction for retail, interchange + 0.29% + $0.15/transaction for eCommerce
  • Transaction fees (membership pricing): $0.05 to $0.09/transaction
  • ACH/eCheck processing (optional): $15/month & 0% to 1.5% + $0.48 per transaction
  • Chargeback fee: $15

Get Started With National Processing

Read our in-depth review

Jump back to comparison chart

2. CDGcommerce: Best Restaurant Credit Card Processing With Scalable Pricing

CDGcommerce


Visit Site


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

Why We Chose CDGcommerce For Restaurant Credit Card Processing

Why are we such fans of CDGcommerce? For starters, CDGcommerce offers month-to-month billing with no long-term contracts or ETFs. For another thing, the company offers three different pricing schemes to fit your processing volume.

Furthermore, although CDGcommerce’s specialty is eCommerce, restaurant owners have a particular reason to check out CDGcommerce, as it offers restaurant-specific POS technology.

Restaurant owners who want a processor that offers pricing that scales to fit their eatery as it grows 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 with flat-rate pricing, $19-$49/month with interchange-plus pricing, $49-$199/month with membership pricing
  • Transaction fees: 2.75% + $0.30 with flat-rate pricing, interchange + 0.25% + $0.10 with interchange-plus pricing, interchange + $0.05-$0.10 with membership pricing
  • ACH/debit fees: 0.75% + $0.15 per transaction

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

Get Started With CDGcommerce

Read our in-depth review

Jump back to comparison chart

3. Dharma Merchant Services: Best Restaurant Credit Card Processing For High-Volume Restaurants

Dharma Merchant Services


Visit Site


Pros

  • Interchange-plus pricing offered exclusively
  • Month-to-month billing
  • Discounted rates for restaurants
  • Outstanding transparency

Cons

  • Not recommended for restaurants processing under $10k/month
  • Monthly fee

Why We Chose Dharma Merchant Services For Restaurant Credit Card Processing

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. Restaurants that surpass this monthly threshold will be hard-pressed to find better restaurant payment processing, however.

Dharma Merchant Services Features

There’s a reason we give Dharma Merchant Services a 5-star score and our enthusiastic recommendation as a full merchant account provider. Actually, there are several reasons:

  • 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 restaurateurs pay a discounted rate of 0.15% + $0.08 above interchange makes Dharma particularly attractive for restaurants. Here are some of Dharma’s other rates and fees:

  • Monthly fee: $25
  • Transaction fee: Interchange + 0.15% + $0.08 for retail & hospitality, interchange + 0.20% + $0.11 for eCommerce
  • Chargeback fee: $25

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

Get Started With Dharma Merchant Services

Read our in-depth review

Jump back to comparison chart

4. Square: Best Restaurant Credit Card Processing For Lower-Volume Eateries

Square


Visit Site


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
  • No monthly fee
  • Massive feature set
  • Affordable card readers

Cons

  • Account stability issues
  • Advanced features can get expensive

Why We Chose Square For Restaurant Credit Card Processing

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 and restaurant-specific POS system present 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 2.6% + $0.10 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.

For full-service restaurants and bars that need a more robust POS system with restaurant-specific features and online ordering, there’s Square for Restaurants. Here’s what you’ll pay for this specialized POS:

  • Basic plan: $0/month
  • Plus plan: $60/month for your first countertop POS device, $40/month for each additional countertop POS device, and $50/month for each mobile POS device

Get Started With Square

Read our in-depth review

Jump back to comparison chart

4 Great Restaurant POS Systems With Built-In Merchant Services

Now more than ever, foodservice businesses have particular POS needs that must be met. That’s why we wanted to spotlight the following restaurant-focused POS systems with built-in restaurant merchant accounts.

Read our article on your best restaurant POS options for an even more in-depth look at your options.

1. Lightspeed Restaurant: Best Restaurant POS For Small & Mid-Sized Restaurants

Lightspeed Restaurant POS


Visit Site

Pricing

$69-$399/month

Online Ordering

Yes

Equipment Cost

Contact Lightspeed to receive a quote

Pros

  • Competitive monthly cost
  • Very customizable
  • Raw ingredient tracking

Cons

  • Limited inventory management
  • Moderate learning curve

Why We Choose Lightspeed Restaurant As A Top Restaurant POS

We gave Lightspeed Restaurant our highest possible rating on account of its easy-to-use interface, expansive feature set, its eCom For Restaurants platform, contactless ordering, exceptionally deep menu-building functionality, extensive reporting, and more. All told, it’s our pick for the best restaurant POS for small- to mid-sized foodservice businesses.

Lightspeed Restaurant gives you a choice of three integrated processors (2ACCEPT, TSYS, and WorldPay). You can use a non-integrated processor, but then your terminal won’t be connected to your Lightspeed Restaurant account.

Lightspeed Restaurant Features

Lightspeed Restaurant’s features include:

  • Multilocation support
  • Contactless payments
  • Gift cards
  • Customer loyalty
  • Online ordering
  • Inventory management
  • Reporting
  • Menu management
  • Delivery management
  • Employee management

Lightspeed Restaurant Pricing

  • Monthly fee: $69-$399/month, depending on your subscription tier
  • Transaction fees: 2.6% + $0.10
  • Transaction fees (keyed-in transactions): 2.6% + $0.30

Note that these transaction fees apply when you use Lightspeed’s integrated processing. If you go with another processing option, your fees will vary.

Get Started With Lightspeed Restaurant POS

Read our in-depth review

Jump back to comparison chart

2. Clover: Best Restaurant POS For Customization

Clover POS


Visit Site

Pricing

Starts at $0/month

Contract

Depends on merchant services provider

Equipment Cost

$49-$1,799 per device

Pros

  • Full-service and quick-service plans are available
  • Several available hardware setups
  • Competitive pricing when purchased through Clover.com

Cons

  • Must be paired with Fiserv
  • Some Clover resellers are disreputable

Why We Choose Clover As A Top Restaurant POS

Clover’s popular and easy-to-use full-service restaurant POS is packed with the features you’ll need for just about any type of eatery.

Clover provides a uniquely customizable restaurant POS system with numerous hardware and feature options. However, Clover is unusual because it only works with a Fiserv merchant account. Not all Clover resellers are reputable, so if you decide to go with Clover, get it directly from Clover.com or a reputable Clover reseller.

Clover Features

Clover’s features include:

  • Online ordering
  • Online payments
  • Contactless delivery
  • Dynamic floor plans that enable you to adjust your layout for social distancing etc.
  • Servers can also use a mobile Clover Flex for tableside ordering and payments

As far as hardware goes, a Clover Station with a Clover Flex is best suited to large restaurants, while the Clover Mini works best for small-to-medium eateries with a limited number of tables.

Clover Pricing

When purchased directly from Clover, the company’s quick service dining plans run from $100/month to $190/month for 36 months for hardware and software, depending on your subscription tier. Alternatively, you can pay $54.95/month to $69.90/month if you opt to pay the full price for the equipment ($799 to $2,398) outright.

Clover’s full-service dining plans run from $160/month to $310/month for 36 months, or $84.95/month to $114.85/month if you buy the equipment ($1,699 to $4,097) outright.

As for payment processing:

  • Transaction Fees: 2.3% + $0.10 (assuming you use Clover for payment processing and not another provider)
  • Transaction Fees (keyed-in): 3.5% + $0.10

Remember, these are the fees that apply when you buy from Clover directly. Pricing will vary greatly when you look at Clover resellers.

Get Started With Clover POS

Read our in-depth review

Jump back to comparison chart

3. Toast: Best Restaurant POS For Advanced Features

Toast POS


Visit Site

Pricing

$0-$165 plus custom plan

Online Ordering

Yes

Equipment Cost

$0-$847

Pros

  • Advanced restaurant features
  • Advanced employee management
  • All-in-one POS

Cons

  • Limited pricing disclosed online
  • Early termination fee

Why We Choose Toast As A Top Restaurant POS

Toast is both a POS system and a credit card processor. Toast’s POS is built for the restaurant industry and has a lot to offer restaurants and bars.

Toast offers a feature-rich POS and processing package for foodservice businesses of all types. What truly differentiates Toast, however, is its devotion to customer service, offering extensive technical support and training material — all for free. It’s one of the major reasons why we’re such fans. The only things we’re not fans of are the multi-year contracts and the early termination fee you’ll likely have to agree to.

See our Toast POS review to get the whole scoop.

Toast Features

Toast features include:

  • A purpose-built tableside ordering device called Toast Go
  • Mobile ordering
  • Check splitting
  • Customized tip percentage options
  • Menu creation
  • Digital receipts
  • Time tracking
  • Advanced reporting

Plus, for an extra $25/month, you can get access to Toast’s fully integrated loyalty program.

Toast Pricing

  • Monthly fee: $0/month with the Pay-As-You-Go plan, $69/month-$99/month with the Standard plan (depending on your hardware package)
  • Up-front fee: $0 with the Pay-As-You-Go plan, $609-$999 with the Standard plan (depending on your hardware package)
  • Transaction fees: 2.99% + $0.15 with the Pay-As-You-Go plan, 2.49% + $0.15 with the Standard plan
  • Online ordering: $50/month

Just remember that Toast’s services come with a two-year contract, and you’ll have to pay an early termination fee if you want to end things early. Additionally, the Pay-As-You-Go plans include an $85/month “inactivity fee” that applies if you don’t process any card transactions within a 90-day period.

Get Started With Toast POS

Read our in-depth review

Jump back to comparison chart

4. TouchBistro: Best Restaurant POS For Bilingual Functionality

TouchBistro


Visit Site

Pricing

$69/month

Online Ordering

Add-on

Equipment Cost

Call for quote

Pros

  • Competitive monthly cost
  • Numerous integrations
  • Easy to use
  • Bilingual support

Cons

  • Inconsistent customer support
  • Add-ons can get pricey

Why We Choose TouchBistro As A Top Restaurant POS

TouchBistro is a restaurant POS that combines supreme ease of use, versatility, solid features, and mobility with affordable pricing and 24/7 customer service.

TouchBistro is particularly well-suited to smaller foodservice businesses (such as food trucks), but its recent feature additions have made it a solid choice for larger restaurants as well. What’s more, the app can be used in Spanish as well as English.

TouchBistro’s one downside is that it’s a bit lacking in inventory, employee, and customer management, so you may need to purchase more software than you would with some other providers, depending on your needs.

TouchBistro Features

TouchBistor features include:

  • Order taking
  • Table management
  • Menu management
  • Kitchen display system
  • Reporting
  • Employee management
  • Payment processing with check-splitting capabilities

TouchBistro Pricing

  • Monthly fee (base POS): Starts at $69/month
  • Reservations: $229/month
  • Online ordering: Starts at $50/month
  • Loyalty: Starts at $99/month
  • Marketing: Starts at $99/month
  • Gift cards: Starts at $25/month
  • Transaction fees: Not disclosed

Get Started With TouchBistro

Read our in-depth review

Jump back to comparison chart

How To Choose The Best Merchant Services For Restaurants

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 coronavirus pandemic has put a premium on anything that makes the checkout process quicker and cleaner. 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 both 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. Some restaurant payroll software options can help with tip reporting.

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. Still, 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!

How Do You Choose The Best Merchant Services For Restaurants?

We know that the process of choosing the right restaurant merchant services and restaurant credit card machines is daunting and complex, particularly given the challenging circumstances we face today. 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!

FAQs About Restaurant Credit Card Processing

How much are restaurant credit card fees?

Credit card processing fees for restaurants will vary depending on your processor and pricing type (interchange-plus, membership, flat-rate, etc), just as with other business types. All things considered, restaurants can expect to pay between 1.5% and 3.5% of each transaction in processing fees.

Which merchant account is best for restaurants?

Several merchant account providers offer a compelling business package for restaurants, including National Processing, Dharma Merchant Services, and CDGcommerce. Alternately, if you go with a third-party processor, Square is a good choice to consider.

How do restaurants process payments?

Restaurants accept non-cash payments via point-of-sale devices. These devices then send the customer’s payment information to the acquiring bank via an online connection through a payment gateway. The acquiring bank receives this payment information and sends it on to the payment network.

How do you choose the best credit card processing for restaurants?

When looking for a payment processor for your restaurant, consider the features you’ll need for your type of eatery and whether or not the pricing scheme fits your business. For instance, flat-rate pricing is easy to understand and works well for smaller single-location foodservice businesses, while larger & multi-location restaurants may save money by going with interchange-plus pricing or membership pricing instead.

In Summary: The 4 Best Restaurant Credit Card Processing Companies

  1. National Processing:
    • Best for restaurants looking to use the Clover ecosystem
    • Discounted rates for restaurants
    • Month-to-month billing
  2. CDGcommerce:
    • Best restaurant processor for scalable pricing
    • Offers restaurant-specific POS technology
    • Month-to-month billing
  3. Dharma Merchant Services:
    • Best for high-volume restaurants
    • Discounted rates for restaurants
    • Month-to-month billing
  4. Square:
    • Best for low-volume restaurants
    • Restaurant-specific POS available for higher-volume restaurants
    • Simple flat-rate pricing

    4 Great Restaurant POS Systems With Built-In Merchant Services

  1. Lightspeed Restaurant POS:
    • Best restaurant POS for small & medium-sized restaurants
    • Choice of 3 integrated payment processors
    • Starts at $69/month
  2. Clover POS:
    • Best restaurant POS for customization
    • Many different hardware setups & processing plans available
    • Starts at $100/month for 36 months with a Pay Monthly plan when purchased through Clover.com
  3. Toast POS:
    • Best restaurant POS for advanced restaurant features
    • Excellent customer support
    • Starts at $0/month with the Pay-As-You-Go plan
  4. TouchBistro:
    • Best restaurant POS for bilingual capabilities
    • Great for food trucks
    • Starts at $69/month
Jason Vissers

Jason Vissers

Senior Staff Writer at Merchant Maverick
Jason has been writing about small business software platforms, services, and financing since 2015. Jason’s expertise has been featured in Yahoo Finance, Time/NextAdvisor, Home Business Magazine, CreditCards.com, GoBankingRates, TheLadders.com, and other publications. He has a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from San Diego State University and currently lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Jason Vissers
View Jason Vissers's professional experience on LinkedIn.

Sources