CDGcommerce Review

• 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 to 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.

• 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 several 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.

• 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/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).

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).

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/month (includes a free gateway)
• Silver Plan: $29/month (includes a free gateway + one PastePay application)
• Gold Plan: $49/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/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.

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 other providers. 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.

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 one (1-star) customer review.

Most 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.

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.