The Best Credit Card Payment Processing Companies For Small Business
Read More Jun 13, 2022 Filed under: Credit Card Processing
CDGcommerce Review
This reputable merchant account provider offers month-to-month billing with no account setup fees, application fees, or early termination fees.
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Expert Analyst & Reviewer
UPDATED
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CDGcommerce
| Total Rating | 5.0 |
|---|---|
| Products & Services | Excellent |
| Fees & Rates | Excellent |
| Sales & Advertising Transparency | Excellent |
| Contract Length & Early Termination Fee | Excellent |
| Customer Service | Excellent |
| Reviews & Complaints | Excellent |
CDGcommerce At A Glance
- Offers full-service merchant accounts
- Accepts some high-risk industries
- Month-to-month billing with no long-term contracts
Pros
- Processing rate plans fully disclosed
- Free payment gateway and virtual terminal
- No account setup or application fees
- Month-to-month billing with no early termination fees
- Excellent customer service and support
Cons
- Only available to US-based merchants
Table of Contents
What Is CDGcommerce?
CDGcommerce is a merchant account provider that offers features and pricing that fit well with the needs of small businesses, including true month-to-month billing with no long-term contracts for all of its merchants. CDGcommerce also offers three separate pricing plans that are designed to give you the best value, based on the size of your business and your average monthly processing volume.
Flat-rate pricing is available for very small or seasonal businesses, while interchange-plus pricing is offered to medium-sized businesses. Larger enterprises can choose one of four membership pricing plans, depending on their monthly processing volume.
CDGcommerce earns an excellent score of 5 out of 5 stars. It’s one of the very few providers in the industry that actually focuses on meeting the needs of business owners, and it offers services and prices that are appropriate to all segments of the market.
We recommend the company very highly, and when you learn about all it has to offer, we’re sure you’ll agree.
Products & Services
The company’s line of products and services covers all the bases, but it’s particularly focused on eCommerce and small to mid-sized businesses. CDGcommerce’s offerings include the following:
CDGcommerce Credit Card Processing
- Merchant Accounts: Like most merchant account providers, CDGcommerce is not a direct processor. Instead, it partners with one or more back-end processors to handle processing your transactions and getting the money to you. Your back-end processor will be identified in your contract documents when you set up your account. One unique aspect of the company’s merchant accounts is its use of a hybrid risk structure, which allows it to override risk decisions made by the back-end processor and assume liability for a transaction or account. The end result for you is that your account will be more stable, and you’ll be less likely to have your funds held or your account suddenly shut down.
- High-Risk Payment Processing: If you’re a high-risk merchant, you know how hard it can be to find a provider who will approve you for an account. Not sure if you’re high-risk? Read our article on high-risk businesses by industry. CDGcommerce offers high-risk processing to certain select industry types but prohibits others, including adult entertainment, CBD/marijuana products, telemarketing, and others.
- Credit Card Terminals: CDGcommerce currently offers the Dejavoo Z11 terminal, which supports both EMV and NFC-based payment methods, as its primary countertop terminal. One terminal is included as a standard feature of your account. While this terminal isn’t quite “free,” the only thing you’ll have to pay is a $79 annual insurance fee. This is much cheaper than traditional credit card terminal leasing arrangements and might be less expensive than buying your own equipment. You also have the option to buy your own terminal and have it programmed to work with the company’s processing network.
- Mobile Payments: If you need a mobile processing solution, CDGcommerce offers the Walker C2X card reader for a flat $65.00 each. This reader connects via Bluetooth and works with either iOS or Android devices. Both EMV and NFC-based (contactless) payment methods are supported. There’s no additional monthly fee for this service. For more information on mobile card readers and mobile processing in general, check out our guide on accepting credit card payments on your phone.
- Chargeback Protection Features: All merchant accounts with CDGcommerce include access to Chargeback Defender, a program that automatically notifies you immediately if a chargeback is filed against your business. Need to know more about chargebacks? Read our small business guide to preventing chargebacks. The program also assists you in defending against the chargeback. If you’re not successful, the Chargeback Collector feature works with a collections agency to file for restitution to recoup the cost of the chargeback. You’ll receive 50% of any amounts collected, with the rest going to cover the program’s costs.
CDGcommerce Payment Gateways
- Payment Gateway: CDGcommerce is one of the very few providers to offer a completely free payment gateway to eCommerce merchants. Your primary choices are either the company’s proprietary Quantum Gateway or Authorize.Net. Alternatively, you can also use the Braintree, NMI, CyberSource, eProcessing Network, Shopify, Slim CD, or PayPal Payflow Pro gateways. Regardless of which one you choose, your gateway is completely free to use – there’s no setup fee, no monthly gateway fee, and no extra per-transaction processing charge.
- Virtual Terminal: All accounts come with free virtual terminal access, allowing you to process transactions from any internet-connected computer instead of a traditional credit card terminal. You can key in transactions manually or swipe them with an optional card reader. Virtual terminal features are usually built into the payment gateway of your choice.
- Recurring Billing: Another standard feature that’s included for free with your payment gateway is support for recurring billing. While almost all providers offer this service, it’s usually only included as an option and comes with an additional monthly fee. With CDG’s recurring billing feature, you can automate your billing process, manage an unlimited number of customized subscriptions, and increase customer retention.
- Security Service: Called cdg360, this $15 per month optional feature includes $100,000 in data breach insurance, PCI-DSS vulnerability scans, customized security alerts, staff awareness training, and a Merchant Trust seal for your website. For such an affordable price, the $100,000 insurance alone could be well worth it.
- Fraud Loss Reimbursement Plan (FLRP): For an additional $10 per month, users of the Quantum Gateway can sign up for this program, which reimburses you 100% of the cost of a fraudulent transaction (up to a maximum of $150).
CDGcommerce Point-Of-Sale Systems & Software
- Integrated POS System: CDGcommerce also offers PastePay Cloud POS, an integrated payments and customer relationship management system that can be accessed from any smartphone, tablet, laptop, or desktop computer. PastePay integrates with your countertop terminal, mobile card reader, or eCommerce website to provide a host of features for monitoring your business. PastePay’s feature list is too long to include here, but highlights include support for invoicing, scheduling, online service signups, inventory management, donations, and recurring billing. PastePay is available as an add-on for a flat $199 per year.
- Other POS Options: CDGcommerce also offers Vital POS and the Echo POS system from HarborTouch.
CDGcommerce Fees & Rates
CDGcommerce differs from most traditional providers in that it fully discloses its pricing on its website. Everything you need to know is available via a Pricing tab, which is prominently displayed in the top menu. You’ll want to take a close look at the information presented here, as the company offers a variety of rates and pricing plans for different types of businesses. CDGcommerce offers a choice between three pricing plans, depending on your monthly processing volume.
Here’s an overview of the One Rate and the Interchange-Plus plans:
| Simple, One Rate Plan | Interchange Plus Pricing Plan | |
|---|---|---|
| Processing Rate Plan Type | Flat-rate | Interchange-plus |
| Swiped Rate | 2.75% + $0.30 | INT + 0.25% + $0.10 |
| Mobile Rate | 2.75% + $0.30 | INT + 0.25% + $0.10 |
| Online Rate | 2.90% + $0.30 | INT + 0.30% + $0.15 |
| Monthly Processing Volume | $1,000 – $10,000 | $10,000 – $200,000 |
| Monthly Account Fee | $0.00 | $19-$49 |
| Features | Mobile card reader ($65) | Countertop terminal ($79/yr), $100,000 Breach Protection Plan, PCI Security Tools |
The Membership Pricing Plan has four tier options:
| Basic | Standard | Plus | Premium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Processing Rate Plan Type | Membership | Membership | Membership | Membership |
| Swiped Rate | INT + $0.10 | INT + $0.10 | INT + $0.07 | INT + $0.05 |
| Mobile Rate | INT + $0.10 | INT + $0.10 | INT + $0.07 | INT + $0.05 |
| Online Rate | INT + $0.10 | INT + $0.10 | INT + $0.07 | INT + $0.05 |
| Monthly Processing Volume | Up to $25,000 | $25,001 – $75,000 | $75,001 – $200,000 | Over $200,000 |
| Monthly Account Fee | $49 | $79 | $99 | $199 |
| Features | Countertop terminal ($79/yr), $100,000 Breach Protection Plan, PCI Security Tools | Countertop terminal ($79/yr), $100,000 Breach Protection Plan, PCI Security Tools | Countertop terminal ($79/yr), $100,000 Breach Protection Plan, PCI Security Tools | Countertop terminal ($79/yr), $100,000 Breach Protection Plan, PCI Security Tools |
Simple, One-Rate Pricing Plan
This plan is very similar to what Square offers and is ideal for very small or seasonal businesses. It works best for small businesses processing between $1,000 and $10,000 per month. Your flat-rate processing rates couldn’t be easier to understand:
- 2.75% + $0.30 per transaction for swiped or EMV (card-present) transactions
- 2.75% + $0.30 per transaction for mobile (card-present) transactions (a 0.15% surcharge also applies to keyed-in transactions)
- 2.90% + $0.30 per transaction for online (card-not-present) transactions
Note that there is also an additional 0.25% surcharge for all American Express transactions. ACH debit transactions cost a flat 0.75% + $0.15 per transaction.
This pricing plan has no monthly account fee, making it very attractive to small businesses that might otherwise be tempted to sign up with Square. Unlike Square, however, with CDGcommerce, you’ll receive a true merchant account with a unique merchant ID number and robust customer service and support.
While there are no regular monthly fees with this pricing plan, there are a few incidental fees that you’ll have to pay from time to time. These fees include chargeback fees ($25 per occurrence), retrieval fees ($15 per occurrence), refund processing fees ($0.25 each), and batch fees ($0.10 each).
Interchange-Plus Pricing Plan
Most well-established businesses will be best served by the interchange-plus pricing plan, which is tailored to the needs of merchants processing between $10,000 and $200,000 per month. Interchange-plus processing rates are as follows:
- Interchange + 0.25% + $0.10 per transaction for card-present (e.g., swiped or EMV) transactions
- Interchange + 0.30% + $0.15 per transaction for card-not-present (e.g., online or keyed-in) transactions
There is also a special rate of interchange + 0.20% + $0.10 per transaction available to qualified nonprofit organizations. Again, all ACH debit transactions cost a flat 0.75% + $0.15 per transaction.
While this plan does include a monthly account fee, the amount will vary according to which of the following options you choose:
- Bronze Plan: $19 per month (includes a free gateway)
- Silver Plan: $29 per month (includes a free gateway + one PastePay application)
- Gold Plan: $49 per month (includes a free gateway, all PastePay apps, and cdg360 security package)
Note that users of the Bronze or Silver plans can also add the cdg360 security package for $15 per month.
Again, there are a few incidental fees that you’ll have to pay from time to time. These fees include chargeback fees ($25 per occurrence), retrieval fees ($15 per occurrence), and batch fees ($0.25 each). There is no refund processing fee under this plan.
Wholesale Membership Pricing Plan
For large, established businesses that want to save a substantial amount of money on processing costs and get the lowest possible processing rates, CDGcommerce now offers several membership pricing plans that are very competitive with those offered by such providers as Payment Depot and Stax by Fattmerchant. Here’s an overview of your options:
- For $49 per month, businesses processing up to $25,000 monthly pay a single rate of interchange + $0.10 per transaction
- For $79 per month, businesses processing up to $75,000 monthly pay a single rate of interchange + $0.10 per transaction
- For $99 per month, businesses processing up to $200,000 monthly pay a single rate of interchange + $0.07 per transaction
- For $199 per month, businesses processing over $200,000 monthly pay a single rate of interchange + $0.05 per transaction
One important caveat is that the subscription rates quoted above only apply if you pay for your account on an annual basis, meaning you’ll have to hand over anywhere from $588 to $2,388 all at once. Like many businesses offering subscription-based services these days, CDGcommerce provides a substantial discount if you pay for twelve months all at once. Your rates will be higher if you choose to pay monthly. We recommend scrutinizing your cash flow carefully before selecting either of these two payment options (i.e., monthly or annually).
We’re very impressed with how CDGcommerce has been able to eliminate so many of the nickel-and-dime fees that most providers charge. Here’s a brief rundown of the things the company doesn’t charge you for:
- No account setup fee
- No annual fee (except the $79 per year terminal insurance fee)
- No gateway fees
- No monthly minimum (this is particularly valuable to very small or seasonal businesses)
- No PCI compliance fees
- No Address Verification Service (AVS) fees (saves $0.05 per transaction)
- No TIN/1099K IRS reporting fees
- No early termination fees
For a small business, this can add up to very significant savings over what you would pay with a more traditional merchant account provider. Account setup fees can be $100 or more. Gateway fees usually run between $15 and $25 per month, plus there’s often an additional per-transaction charge. PCI compliance fees typically run around $99 per year but can be even higher. Although only applicable if you close your account early, early termination fees can run between $300 and $500 – or even more.
Sales & Advertising Transparency
CDGcommerce’s website discloses far more details about the company’s pricing and contract terms than most of its competitors. At the same time, the variety of plans and features can be a bit confusing, particularly for a first-time business owner. If you’re not sure about something or have a question, don’t hesitate to contact one of the company’s sales representatives for clarification.
The company uses a full-time, in-house salaried sales staff and doesn’t rely on independent sales agents. The use of independent agents by many other providers has resulted in a massive volume of complaints from merchants. You won’t have to worry about this problem with CDGcommerce. With most of the pricing and contract terms already disclosed online, there’s simply no reason for your sales representative to lie to you.
CDGcommerce also has a social media presence, with accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Vimeo, and LinkedIn.
Contract Length & Early Termination Fee
True month-to-month billing with no long-term contract and no early termination fee is the best arrangement you could ask for, and that’s exactly what CDGcommerce provides for all its merchants. In the processing industry, the typical merchant account contract runs for an initial term of two to four years, with three years being the most common length. These agreements also contain an automatic renewal clause, which will extend your contract for an additional year at a time unless you close your account within a very narrow window at the end of the term.
Most providers include these terms in their standard contracts, although some will now waive the early termination fee – but only if you negotiate aggressively to have it removed.
Even then, you’re still on the hook for three years or more, and you might continue to be billed for monthly fees after you’ve stopped using your account and thought it was closed. Always thoroughly review your contract terms and merchant agreement before signing up with any provider, and follow the instructions for closing your account to the letter to avoid difficulties.
Note: Merchants on one of CDGcommerce’s subscription plans who’ve paid for a full year of processing upfront and then decide to close their account can expect to receive a prorated refund of the subscription fees for the unused months remaining in their subscription.
Customer Service & Technical Support
| CDGcommerce Support | Availability |
|---|---|
| Phone Support | |
| Email Support | |
| Support Tickets | |
| Live Chat | |
| Dedicated Support Representative | |
| Knowledge Base or Help Center | |
| Videos & Tutorials | |
| Company Blog | |
| Social Media |
CDGcommerce offers 24/7 customer service via telephone, 365 days a year. Live chat is also available through the website during regular business hours. Additionally, you can contact the company via email and usually receive a response within 24 hours. Reports from merchants indicate that the quality of CDGcommerce’s customer support is very high.
The company no longer includes a knowledgebase on its website, which would be a useful feature for merchants trying to resolve minor technical issues on their own.
CDGcommerce Reviews & Complaints
CDGcommerce reviews demonstrate the company has a great reputation among merchants and across the payment processing industry. Complaints are few and far between and often arise due to issues with the back-end processor, which are out of the company’s hands.
Negative CDGcommerce Reviews & Complaints
CDGcommerce has been accredited with the BBB since 2020 and has an A+ rating. The company has a clean record of zero complaints within the last three years and zero customer reviews.
The majority of complaints against CDGcommerce on other review sites came from merchants who had experienced a funding hold. While it’s quite unpleasant not to receive your funds for a transaction (and they’re often very large transactions), merchants need to understand that this situation is not the fault of CDGcommerce. The company is not a direct processor, and the decision to withhold funds is solely at the discretion of the back-end processor. In fact, CDGcommerce is much more proactive than many providers in trying to resolve holds on funding. After all, the company doesn’t get its money until the funds are released, either. Our article on avoiding merchant account holds, freezes, and terminations offers tips to avoid this situation.
We’ve also found a few complaints from merchants whose accounts were terminated after the company determined that their businesses were high-risk. CDGcommerce does a good job of specifying which high-risk industries it does and does not accept, and its sales team can clarify company policies if you have any concerns. However, it’s ultimately your responsibility as a merchant to be completely honest about the nature of your business when applying for an account. There isn’t a provider in the industry that won’t shut your account down immediately if it finds out that your business isn’t really what you said it was when you applied for an account.
Positive CDGcommerce Reviews & Testimonials
CDGcommerce offers several testimonials on its website, all of which fully identify the customer providing the testimonial and include detailed information about what they liked about the company. You’ll also find several positive reviews for CDGcommerce in our Comments section as well as on other independent review sites. It’s relatively uncommon for satisfied customers to go to the trouble of writing a review. Merchants are far more likely to complain than to praise. While this is probably true in any line of business, it’s especially true in the credit card processing industry.
Final Verdict
For a small business looking to accept credit cards with a full-service merchant account rather than relying on Square, CDGcommerce is one of the best (and most affordable) choices you can make. If your business doesn’t need any specialized, optional features, you can have a true merchant account with pay-as-you-go pricing and no monthly account fee. Also, eCommerce merchants, who usually have to shell out extra just to connect their website to a payment gateway, can enjoy a free gateway and interchange-plus pricing for as little as $19 per month.
We’re also very impressed with the company’s unique way of supplying credit card terminals. Countertop terminals are provided for free (one per account, of course), and all you have to pay is a reasonable annual fee to insure and maintain them. This is the one instance where we would recommend renting your terminal rather than buying one outright. Remember, this is not a lease – you can cancel your account and return your terminal at any time. It’s a good way to avoid the risk of being stuck with an obsolete terminal in the future.
If there’s a catch in CDGcommerce’s service, it’s that it’s only available to US-based merchants. The company also sometimes doesn’t accept high-risk merchants in several specific industries. If you’re a high-risk merchant in need of a merchant account and CDGcommerce can’t accommodate your industry, check out our article on the best high-risk merchant account providers for some great recommendations.
Overall, CDGcommerce easily receives a score of 5 out of 5 stars. The company’s combination of high-quality service and low pricing makes it one of the best processors we’ve found, and we highly recommend that you check it out.
Frank Kehl
Expert Analyst & Reviewer at Merchant Maverick
Frank Kehl has been researching and analyzing merchant services, payment gateways, and international money transfer services since 2015. He has a Bachelor of Science degree from Penn State and a Juris Doctorate from the Ventura College of Law.
View Frank Kehl's professional experience on LinkedIn.
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The Merchant Maverick Seal of Approval 🏆
CDGcommerce |
|---|
After hours of in-depth research and evaluation, we can confidently recommend this brand to our readers. Get started today and see CDGcommerce for yourself.
The Merchant Maverick Seal of Approval 🏆
CDGcommerce |
|---|
After hours of in-depth research and evaluation, we can confidently recommend this brand to our readers. Get started today and see CDGcommerce for yourself.
Organization Name: Wild Apples
Closing an account with CDG Commerce was a very frustrating and costly procedure. On their Merchant Cancellation form they give you an incorrect Fax # and tell you that if you do not get a confirmation # after 48 hours, your fax got “lost” . While your cancellation form gets lost, they of course charge you their monthly fees etc. I feel that CDG Commerce is not an honest company and I would not recommend them
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
Organization Name: The BayLou Group, LLC
Excellent analysis. And while this comment appears on the CDGCommerce articles, kudos to the entire series. The writer goes through painstaking detail to set forth his reasons for assigning certain ratings. And yes, I will be selecting one of the features companies; most likely CDGCommerce or FattMerchant. This site is a wonderful resource. Best wishes for continued success.
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
Cdgcommerce used to be awesome. They were super customer service based. Now they are just like every other company. They use a huge outfit (transfirst) to do all of thier customer service. They are nothing but a middle man marking up the price. If you, ask them why they say customer service. Hahahahaha. Thier service sucks. I have been working with them for years. They used to have real employees that answered the phone that’s actually cared. They dropped them for a big name company to answer thier phones. I used to call and Marquis or Amanda always answred the phone. Willing to help. Now it is a 3rd party service that doesnt even know who cdgcommerce is when you ask them to transfer you or grumpy men who don’t care at all and aren’t willing to help. Cdg used to be great – read the reviews- now it sucks. Waiting for our fiscal year to end and we will be dropping cdg so fast. Just another corporate company chasing the dollar. Want help refunding? They will send you the instructions via email. Need help with your statement? Let me send you to a 3rd party. Owner: gain sight of focus. Drop your call center and bring back employees that care and remember your name when you call. The women you had on staff were awesome. Everyone sounds so depressed to work there. Where did all the happy people go?!Hopefully with darma (who we are switching to) we will get better service, happy voices, and a add-on program we keep getting charged for.
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
Organization Name: HVAC Energy Products Inc.
Easy to use and navigate- good customer service, transparent fee structure; switched from a mega merchant provider and now a happy customer-
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
We closed 2 business Account in 2015. Your company claiming that we closed one only, which is not true. No reach out to us, no account activities, no statements, no E-Mail 1st Data charged for 2 years a total of $ 638.50. My 1st statement was delivered on sept 2017. I found out about the charges I called the very unprofessional customer service and was able to get a copy of the statements. My contact with your company was only a waste of my time. I called the ethics hot line and file a complaint nobody ever tried to contact me back.That’s what we call fraudulent activities and my recommendation to any business trying to open an account with 1st data or Santander Bank: Think twice, check their reviews and do not make the same mistake we made.
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
Continued – Based on one of my monthly statements – charges were $9088 and interchange fees were $214. Since the total fees were $458, the non-interchange fees were 458-214 = $244. At the time of bill , I was paying 60 basis points (they have now lowered to 40) . If I am calculating this correctly, this would be .0060 x 9088 = $54.53. Apparently, the basis points are a small part of the total merchant charges. Its all the other stuff they add on. I am considering switching to GDC if my total monthly cost will be enough less than now which is around 4-5% – which would mean all the add-on costs would need to be less.
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
Hi Gail,
Thank you for your inquiry, I am happy to help you with this. Unless you are a high risk merchant, 4-5% is pretty high, you want to fall around 2.6%. I would definitely give your monthly statements to CDGcommerce to take a look at and see if they can work with you on it. I hope this helps and I would encourage you to use the green “visit site” button within our review if you would like to support our work. If you have further questions please let me know.
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
Thanks.
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
Maybe you answered this somewhere – but here is my question. I currently am with Flagship / Authorize and pay Flagship a total fee of 4%, sometimes 5%: Calculated by dividing fees/income. I have an online home decor biz (9 years), no physical terminal, good credit, nothing unusual. Can you give an idea of what best % total fees is realistic?
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
Our nonprofit that works with two National Park Service units was about to sign up with CDGcommerce based on the good reports here and on other consumer sites. After chats and email exchanges with their underwriting staff, we learned that each terminal/location requires a separate account that incurs a monthly charge of $10 for the first terminal and $7.50 for additional terminals, which would mean our monthly charge would increase from the $10 for all locations/terminals with our current (and previous) processors to $40/mo. for four terminals and website plus the $79/yr. insurance for each terminal. The representative said that their bank’s agreement with Visa and MasterCard requires the separate charges, so she wondered why that wasn’t the case for our current processor with whom we signed up through the Michigan Nonprofit Association. Can you explain what’s going on here?
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
I went to CDG’s website, clicked the links in their menu for information. Each link led to a sales inquiry application form. I thought that was a bit odd. I filled out the form anyway. Instead of routing me to a page for CDG, I was routed to a notice that a representative of Durango, which I assume is a subsidiary or affiliated company, would contact me. Nowhere on the site was there any indication that I would be routed to a third party. Nor was there any indication as to why I was automatically routed to a third party. Of course I was suspicious. It was deceptive. I’ll be looking elsewhere.
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
Hi Lee,
If you click on the green “visit site” button within our review, you will be redirected to a page where you will be able to find any information you need. I hope this helps and if you have further questions please let me know.
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
The reason you were directed to our International Merchant Inquiry page is that you visited our Web site from an IP address in Greek. As a courtesy to our international guests and since CDGcommerce can not directly underwrite non-USA merchants, we immediately allow them to fill out a form to learn about other processing partner options to obtain a merchant account in their country.In the past it was a frustration for international visitors because they would often begin filling out the online application for a US merchant account despite not being eligible to do so. This happened on a daily basis which is why we changed our Web site to more accurately direct people to the best area to assist them.I understand that in your case, your business is actually based in the USA and we would be happy to help you out here but I wanted to clarify that the reason you were presented with the international page was due to your IP address as 99% of the time this is a valid method for determining a merchant’s geographic location.
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
First – I just wanted to thank you for all of your extremely helpful articles on this site. It REALLY helps out a solo entrepreneur trying to get a small retail shop launched on their own.After a lot of research and reading many of your articles, I decided to go with CDG Commerce for my new retail shop (since it will be primarily e-commerce sales to start).I signed up with them last May and it couldn’t have been an easier process. Extremely simple and they even came out to my home for the inspection of my home based business.It integrated beautifully with my BigCommerce site and I have had no troubles whatsoever. Setting it up in BigCommerce was very easy.I do want to shed some light on an additional (minor) monthly fee. It is NOT a fee that comes from CDG Commerce, but rather, a third-party fee…good to know if you plan on processing credit cards and weren’t aware.My current account cost is actually $12.00 per month: $10 monthly service fee from CDG Commerce$2.00 FANF (Fixed Acquirer Network Fee)-APR. I believe this goes to VISA (from what I understand of it http://www.clearent.com/resources/visafanf/)Shortly after signing up, I ran a test sale on my website. On the statement, a $2 fee appeared in addition to the $10 monthly fee.After the test transaction, I actually put my business set-up on hold (had a baby), but I decided to keep my CDG account active since the monthly fee was minimal. For the next several months, I didn’t process any sales. The monthly fee ever since that test transaction has been $12 ($10 + $2 as outlined above) – so it is there even if you don’t process sales.Beyond that $2 fee, I’m still trying to learn everything that goes into interchange rates. It’s still very fuzzy to me, but hopefully will become more clear as I start processing a lot more sales. For example…on that single transaction test for a $14.99 sale, it was initially scary how much that test “cost” me when I received my monthly statement ($13.02). Then I took a closer look.The $10 statement fee of course is there per month, so I’m not going to count that.The $2 FANF fee I wasn’t expecting to see, but now that I see it’s part of the monthly fee, I understand that is separate too.Fees I WAS expecting to see (both were exactly as they should have been):$.15 transaction$.25 batch closeThen in addition, there were the following:ASSOC KILOBYTE/BASE II FEES $0.02VISA ASSOC APF FEE $0.02VISA BUS ENH CNP $0.52At the bottom of the statement, there was another fee labeled “Discount $0.04″The $0.60 is what I was guessing comprised interchange + 0.30%. If that’s the case, the rate is apprx. 4% (60¢ fees on $14.99). That seems high to me, but again I’m still learning what interchange + rates equate to. From what I understand, e-commerce transactions are considered keyed transactions so they will always have higher rates.Of course, I don’t anticipate such low volume sales, but it was interesting to see exactly how one $14.99 test transaction amounted to a statement of $13.02 in fees.I’m just finally getting my business set-up finalized. With the handful of sales I’ve had thus far, everything has been extremely smooth with CDG Commerce. I’ll be adding on Mobile Processing with them shortly.Now that I’m starting to go into production, I’ll be starting to see the CC processing and fees in the coming months. So far this month, all of my sales from online have been depositing very quickly into my bank account (2 business days after the day received).I contacted them today to add mobile processing (hopefully at the slightly lower than online rates displayed in this article.) They said underwriting will be contacting me shortly to add this to my account.As I start ramping up more sales and garner more experience with CGD, I’ll report back. So far I’m thrilled to have them! I am just going to keep an eye on what the average interchange + rate equates to over time. If it stays at that 4% range, then it will be much more cost effective for me to exclusively switch over to the other processor I use (Quickbooks Payments). Since I anticipate my average e-commerce sale size to be between $50 – $75, it might make more sense to switch over.Since I currently use Quickbooks Payments Pay-As-You-Go, there is no monthly fee and the Keyed rate is 3.4% + 25¢. At a transaction of around $17 and up, the Quickbooks Payment rate is lower…so it make make sense for me to switch over.Furthermore, if I were to switch to Quickbooks Payments monthly, it’s $19.95 per month and keyed drops down to 3.2% + 25¢. There are also no other fees (i.e. batch close) with Quickbooks…so that is a factor as well. However, time will tell what the average CDG rate comes out to be with interchange + 0.30% + 15¢. I’ll be receiving my June statement soon, so I’ll assess and decide.Thanks again for all the helpful, insightful advice!
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
Stay far away from these crooks. They processed me through Transfirst. Went through all the underwriting including site inspection. Almost immediately after I started processing transactions on my website they put hold on all money. Over $600 they are holding. The first excuse they gave me is that they tried to contact me and couldnt get a hold of me. Checked my call history, voicemail an email on file. No such attempt to contact me. Then they said some nonsense about all of my transactions were debit and prepaid cards and needed invoices for transactions. So I sent them order details for every single transaction. Including the customers contact info and billing address. Then they gave me the same old song and dance they probably give everyone else by saying it will take 48 hours to review this.This company is no different then those companies that dont do any underwriting ahead of time and wait for your money to get in their pockets and come up with every excuse to hold your money for 6 months. Its a big float game. Its amazing how I go through their underwriting process, including a site inspection and all of a sudden they need to do it again. And then they act like they dont know anything about my business at all even though its on their application that i provided to them. I told them I dont have time for all this nonsense I have a business to run. You know what Chrystal the supervisor working at the risk department at trans first told me? We have a business to run too. Oh you mean that “business” of taking off the top the profits of real businesses. You know the ones that actually created a service or product and work 16 hours a day 7 days a week. Chrystal here is a heads up for you. You dont run a business you work a job because you havent put your money where you mouth is and actually created a business. I am so tired of listening some bum who is hired to answer a phone and has the power to put a strangle hold on my business.I am going to sue these crooks. They can cry contract all they want but I guarantee you through a little discovery through legal proceedings that they do this to a lot more people than just me. They are playing the old float game. Well, I will be refunding all the transactions before I allow these crooks to hold my money on their float. I asked for their legal department contact info and she refused to give it to me.STAY FAR AWAY FROM THESE CROOKS. I DONT CARE WHAT THESE OTHER PEOPLE TELL YOU. THEY WILL SCREW YOU!!!!
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
CDGcommerce makes every possible effort to approve as many merchant categories as possible but there are certain unacceptable merchant types – which we list on our Web site – that are exclusionary business categories.In the event that a merchant is determined to be operating an excluded business category, the merchant is notified and the account is subsequently closed. This is true for ANY merchant processor. Unfortunately, Web sites can be quickly changed and so sometimes it can take longer than the initial approval “snapshot” to see if the underlying business is different than what it was initially understood to be.In addition – and very importantly – contrary to what a recent poster indicated, there is no “float” earned by an ISO on funds on hold with risk. Very few CDGcommerce merchants ever enter into the risk queue but for this that do, in the event of any held funds – all funds are held in NON-interest bearing security escrow accounts at the bank. No one profits from this. Risk issues are a COST center, not a PROFIT center, for ISO’s. Risk issues require staff and cost money and time and in a perfect world, there wouldn’t be a need for a risk department at all.While we are never at the liberty to discuss the specifics of any individual merchant because of the confidentiality that we hold with them, we can certainly say that the circumstances portrayed here are far from the reality of the situation. CDGcommerce has been in business since 1998 and we welcome many thousands of new clients each year to our family of merchants. We consistently receive great reviews because we put our merchant’s first.
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
You mentioned that “…there are certain unacceptable merchant types – which we list on our Web site – that are exclusionary business categories.” It would be great if you could hotlink the “which we list on our Web site” part of that answer, because I have not been able to find your list of unacceptable merchant types.
I am starting up a mobile food service business for fairs and carnivals. While most of my business will be cash, I have decided to accept credit cards for purchases over $10. I’m guessing the bulk of my credit card sales will be in the $10 to $50 range. Is carnival food an “exclusionary business category” for you?
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.
I don’t think there is really a way to find out which one will come out cheaper for us, I have intuit online who says the charge is so low they do not offer debit card processing and I payment charges a 9.99 miscellaneous fee, huh? when was that on paper?
This comment refers to an earlier version of this review and may be outdated.