National Processing Review

Products & Services

Although National Processing doesn’t offer all the extra bells and whistles that you might find with a larger provider, it covers the basics very well. Here’s an overview of its major services:

• Merchant Accounts: Like most merchant account providers, National Processing is not a direct processor. While the company does not disclose its back-end processor, it appears to use Fiserv (formerly First Data) exclusively. Note that National Processing still provides customer service in most cases. You shouldn’t have to deal with Fiserv directly unless you experience an account hold, freeze, or termination.
• Countertop Credit Card Terminals: The company has recently changed the lineup of terminals it offers and now features Clover products exclusively. If you just need a simple countertop terminal, you can choose either the wireless Clover Flex or the Clover Mini, which also offers some POS functionality. Both of these devices can accept EMV and NFC-based (contactless) payment methods. National Processing does not disclose equipment prices on its website. You can either buy your equipment outright or include the use of a “free” terminal with your account under some pricing plans. The company does not offer overpriced equipment leases, which is good to see. Remember that Clover devices cannot be reprogrammed to work with any other processing network other than Fiserv’s.
• Point Of Sale Systems: For restaurants and other businesses that need a more robust processing device, the company offers the popular Clover Station point of sale system. National Processing is currently our top choice among Clover resellers.
• Mobile Processing: If you’re a small business owner and just need an affordable mobile processing system to use with your smartphone or tablet, National Processing offers the Clover Go mPOS system. Clover Go connects to your smartphone or tablet via Bluetooth, and the app works on both iOS and Android devices. The Clover Go reader can accept magstripe, EMV, and NFC-based payment methods.
• Payment Gateway: The company currently supports eCommerce merchants through a partnership with Authorize.Net. While it doesn’t charge any gateway setup fees, you might have to pay gateway fees of $5 per month. National Processing doesn’t offer any further information about its payment gateway or virtual terminal on its website, so you’ll need to consult with a sales agent for more details.
• ACH/eCheck Processing: National Processing has excellent ACH services with its own proprietary ACH software. Finding reasonably priced ACH processing isn’t as easy as it used to be. Gone are the days of free ACH for low-value transactions. The company’s ACH rates start at $15 per month + $0.48 per transaction. As always, be sure to ask your sales agent for more details if you need this feature.
• Cash Discount: National Processing offers one of the most well-established cash discount programs available. This program is fully compliant with the card brands and works with Clover, SwipeSimple, and Dejavoo devices.

Fees & Rates

Unlike most merchant services providers, National Processing offers very clear pricing disclosures on its website. The company breaks its plans down by the primary sales channel for low-volume businesses, with all plans offering interchange-plus pricing. High-volume and very high-volume businesses are eligible for membership pricing plans that eliminate the per-transaction percentage markup in exchange for a higher monthly subscription fee. All plans feature an option to include either a free card reader or a terminal with your account. Here’s an overview of the features and costs of each plan:

Restaurant Plan

• $10 per month account fee
• Interchange + 0.15% + $0.07 per transaction
• Optional free Clover Go terminal
• No monthly minimum

Retail Plan

• $10 per month account fee
• Interchange + 0.20% + $0.10 per transaction
• Optional free Clover Go terminal
• No monthly minimum

eCommerce Plan

• $10 per month account fee
• Interchange + 0.30% + $0.15 per transaction
• Optional free Clover Go terminal
• No monthly minimum

National Processing offers two plans for high-volume merchants, both of which feature membership pricing and include an option for free equipment. The company’s website no longer discloses the monthly processing volume requirements for these plans. Previously, the high-volume plan required that you process between $75,000 and $200,000 per month in card sales, while the very high-volume plan required a monthly processing volume of more than $200,000 per month.

High-Volume Business Plan

• $59 per month account fee
• Interchange + 0% + $0.09 per transaction
• Includes free mobile card reader, terminal, and PIN pad

Very High-Volume Business Plan

• $199 per month account fee
• Interchange + 0% + $0.05 per transaction
• Includes free mobile card reader, terminal, and PIN pad
• Optional free Clover Go, Flex, or Mini
• Free terminal upgrades every two years

National Processing is one of the better providers in the industry when it comes to fees. It doesn’t charge any account setup fees or annual fees. It also doesn’t require a monthly minimum for any of its pricing plans. If you don’t need a free terminal, your contract comes with month-to-month billing and no early termination fee. While the company no longer discloses miscellaneous incidental and recurring fees on its website, in the past, it has charged the following extra fees:

• PCI Compliance Fee: $7.95 per month
• AVS Fee: $0.05 per verification
• Batch Fee: $0.10 per batch
• Chargeback Fee: $15.00 per chargeback
• Retrieval Fee: $5.00 per instance
• Voice Authorization: $1.50 per authorization
• PIN Debit Fees: Passed through at cost (i.e., no markup)

If you need ACH/echeck processing, there are separate fees for this optional program. While the company no longer lists them on its website, in the past, it has charged the following fees for ACH processing:

• Monthly Fee: $15.00
• ACH Processing Rate: $0.48 per transaction
• Return Fee: $3.50 per instance
• ACH Rejection Fee: $15.00 per instance

You should also be aware that Clover charges a monthly fee for the use of any of the Clover hardware products described above in the Products & Services section. The amount of this fee varies based on which product you are using. Also, National Processing notes that the fees and rates disclosed on its website are only for low-risk merchants. While this implies that the company can also accept some high-risk merchants, it doesn’t offer any further information on this subject.

Overall, these are some of the lowest fees and rates we’ve seen disclosed by a provider, making National Processing an excellent choice for small or medium-sized businesses. However, we encourage you to compare its prices against what a competing provider will offer you before making a decision.

Visit National Processing

Contract Length & Early Termination Fee

Standard agreements with National Processing include a $295 early termination fee (ETF), but even as part of this standard contract, the company waives this fee under several circumstances. If you don’t need any free equipment when you sign up, you should be able to get a month-to-month account with no cancellation fees. National Processing makes the following statement on its website regarding this topic:

1. In the event that your business is sold or closed, National Processing will waive your termination fee upon receipt of the appropriate documentation.
2. In the event that National Processing can’t meet or beat a competitor’s rates, your termination fee will be waived. In order to qualify, the competing quote must be submitted to National Processing in writing with the competitor’s original contract.
3. In the event that you leave National Processing for a competitor without providing the opportunity for National Processing to meet or beat another offer, you agree to pay the standard termination fee.

We’d prefer to see the company dispense with its early termination fee altogether. However, this is a reasonable compromise because there can be significant hard costs for equipment. The argument is that by ensuring you have some level of commitment to keeping your account open for an extended period, National Processing can offer you lower rates and free equipment. I have not seen complaints about this policy, so it appears that merchants are satisfied with the arrangement overall. However, if you’re dead set on getting a full-service merchant account without any ETF whatsoever, there are highly-rated providers that can accommodate you. See our Merchant Account Comparison Chart for some recommendations.

Sales & Advertising Transparency

National Processing’s website isn’t the fanciest or most informative one that we’ve ever seen, but it does an excellent job of disclosing the company’s rates and fees under its numerous processing plans. The company also does a good job of disclosing many of the “hidden” fees that most providers bury in the fine print of their contracts, although the details provided aren’t as extensive as they’ve been in the past. In any event, you’ll want to read your contract thoroughly before signing up. If you have any concerns about specific fees, you should discuss them with your sales agent before opening your account. While some fees are non-negotiable, many others can be reduced or even waived altogether if you ask.

Unlike the vast majority of providers on the market, National Processing provides an extensive discussion of interchange fees on its website. It even includes real-world examples of interchange fees from Visa and Mastercard to show you how they affect your final processing cost for a given transaction. Most merchants are surprised to discover that interchange fees constitute the majority of their processing charges. The provider’s markup only constitutes a small portion of the cost you pay to process a transaction.

One fee not disclosed is the early termination fee (ETF), which only applies if you elect to include a “free” terminal as part of your account. We haven’t seen a provider yet that advertises either the existence or the amount of this fee in any marketing materials. Rest assured that the fee is disclosed during the sales process, so you won’t experience an unpleasant surprise later on if you decide to close your account.

National Processing appears to use a combination of in-house and independent sales agents to market and set up its accounts. It even includes disclosure of its ISO program on its website. While we’ve found a ton of complaints about independent agents working for other providers, we haven’t seen any complaints regarding the sales team at National Processing. You should fully expect honest and ethical treatment from the company’s sales representatives in negotiating and setting up your account.

Lastly, we have some concerns about any “meet or beat” guarantee, such as the $500 promise National Processing makes if you can find a lower rate elsewhere. It’s easy to manipulate the numbers and obscure value to make one deal seem better than another, so we generally consider this type of marketing to be gimmicky and meaningless. The fact is that just about any provider is willing to match a valid quote to win or retain your business. While it’s not a bad thing necessarily, take this tactic with a grain of salt.

National Processing’s rate match promise

Customer Service & Technical Support

National Processing offers 24/7 telephone and email support and has recently added a live chat function to its website. However, it’s not clear whether the support team is entirely in-house or if the company outsources this function outside of regular business hours. It’s tough for me as an independent reviewer to assess the quality of tech support since I can’t test it out in the real world. However, most of the comments I was able to track down from merchants about National Processing’s credit card processing support were positive, which is more than most merchant services providers can say. Usually, customer service is the leading complaint about any merchant account provider. The fact that National Processing doesn’t have a ton of complaints about support says something in itself.

We’d love to hear from you if you have direct experience with National Processing’s customer support. Your feedback helps keep our review accurate! Leave us a comment if you have any information, and we’ll consider it during our next update.

Visit National Processing

User Reviews

Unlike most merchant account providers, National Processing has received far more positive comments from merchants than complaints. We can’t guarantee that you won’t have any problems (that applies to any processor we recommend). Nonetheless, we’re confident that your chances of experiencing difficulties with the company’s service after you’ve signed up are very low.

Negative Reviews & Complaints

National Processing has been accredited with the BBB since 2008 and currently has an A+ rating. The company has received only one complaint in the last three years. There are also three reviews from customers, all of whom gave the company a 5 out of 5 stars rating. Likewise, reviewers on Google have awarded the company an overall rating of 4.6 out of 5 stars, based on 124 reviews.

In researching online customer feedback about National Processing, it’s important not to confuse the company with National Processing Company (NPC), another merchant services provider with a far less savory reputation. Remember that you’re looking for the Utah-based National Processing.

Positive Reviews & Testimonials

National Processing uses a service called BirdEye to aggregate feedback on the company from multiple online sources and display it on its home page. It currently has a rating of 4.8 out of 5 stars, based on 334 reviews from Google, the BBB, Facebook, and numerous other sources.

While most of these reviews don’t go into much detail about why merchants liked the company, two main themes emerged. The first is that merchants were very impressed with the quality of customer support they received. This reinforces a trend we’ve seen across multiple reviews where smaller providers are actually able to offer much better, more personal customer service than the mega-processors in the industry. The second theme is that merchants were able to save a significant amount of money on their processing costs with National Processing. Saving money is always a good thing, especially if you’re running a small business and need to watch every penny.

Final Verdict

National Processing is an excellent provider for businesses that want low rates from a reliable company. If you’re hoping for some massive free software suite like what Square offers with POS, analytics, and such included, you might not find what you want here. However, keep in mind that you could easily end up saving enough money with National Processing to buy all that software and more from whichever provider you want. Low costs and overall versatility make National Processing a great option for many businesses.

We’re not thrilled that National Processing requires you to accept a long-term contract with an early termination fee (ETF) in exchange for “free” processing equipment. Still, it’s a fair deal, given that you’ll receive low processing rates and a reasonable account fee schedule in addition to the free terminal. We’re also happy to see that the company will waive your ETF if you sell or close your business. Most providers will charge you the full ETF regardless of the circumstances that led to your decision to close your account.

Overall, we’re happy to award National Processing a coveted score of 5 out of 5 stars. Suppose your small business has grown to where you need the added features and stability of a full-service merchant account. In that case, this is one of the most affordable options currently available. While it offers the very low interchange-plus and membership rates that will be attractive to larger businesses as well, we’d caution you to look carefully at the company’s product lineup before making a decision. National Processing is a small company and doesn’t offer as complete a lineup of services as you’ll find with a larger provider. Businesses with more basic needs, however, will find everything they need to accept credit and debit cards as well as ACH/echeck payments. Give National Processing a shot!